Putting together an enterprise-level IT team to provide around-the-clock technology support is expensive. If you hire the wrong people, they might end up being more of a liability than a help to employees and clients who are having issues. 

When your company relies on the internal team for help desk support, its members get bogged down with solving problems and don’t have time to focus on business strategy or innovation. 

Using help desk services can solve these problems. But how do you choose the right type of help desk services for your company? 

Here’s a quick overview of 5 help desk options to guide you in your selection process. 

1) On-Premises Help Desk 

An on-premises help desk is software that your company purchases and sets up on its servers. Your company is responsible for maintaining, securing, and backing up the on-premises help desk software. If your business lacks the security resources needed to protect client information, you can get security and maintenance services from some vendors for an extra charge.  

On-premises help desk software is customizable. However, it can be expensive and may require an on-site technical support team with members who understand your company’s technology operations. For these reasons, on-premises may be a better option for larger companies. 

2) Web Help Desk 

A web help desk is a type of software as a service (SaaS) that is deployed in the cloud. Customer service history data is stored on the cloud-hosted servers. Clients use the help desk by installing the application on their device or by signing into their accounts through the provider’s site. 

As with many cloud services, your company can sign up for a subscription and pay a regularly scheduled and predictable fee. Typically, web help desk includes maintenance, backups, and updates. Help desk SaaS requires minimal maintenance, so providers usually offer the application and related technical services at a low rate. 

3) Enterprise Help Desk 

An enterprise help desk is used to help both clients and employees. With an enterprise help desk, your company can increase client satisfaction and help employees stay productive. 

Features of an enterprise help desk include: 

• Account management 
• Service request fulfillment 
• Survey management 

The solution can be custom-made to meet your company’s needs, or you can deploy an enterprise help desk solution that has been tailored to your industry. 

As part of the enterprise help desk, an internal help desk can improve communication between departments.  

4) Open-Source Help Desk

Open-source help desks are popular because they are free. This type of help desk uses open-source software which can be accessed freely and altered without the need for permission from the developer. A coder at your company easily can customize the software’s ability to fix bugs. 

While an open-source help desk is affordable, not many small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) have the skilled technicians and coders needed to manage and adapt the software. 

5) Cloud-Based Help Desk 

Cloud-based help desks are installed and used differently from other types of help desks. These help desks combine web and desktop applications, so they are cloud based but locally installed. This means cloud-based help desks can operate offline and clients can access them anytime from anywhere. 

Cloud-based help desks can also be hosted on more than one server and operated either by the client or a third party. Because cloud-based help desks use web applications, they are scalable and can handle large data volumes. 

Finding the Right Help Desk  

Your company has many options when choosing a help desk. Selecting the right one depends on your company’s size, resources, and requirements. 

At Secure Data Technologies, as part of our Managed IT Services, we offer SecureDesk, our solution to providing the first line of support for your employees when they have IT questions and issues. Secure Data has an extensive team of engineers from Level One through Senior-level engineer/architects who provide our Level One engineers with a team for internal collaboration on issues your users may face. 

We offer 3 plans so you can choose the one that best meets your needs: 

Essentials 

Perfect for the company that just needs a little extra help with their basic, Tier 1 level end-user support and Windows PC workstation support from 8am to 5pm, Monday through Friday. 

Enhanced 

Offers remote troubleshooting and remediation, third-party application support escalation, and assistance with OS patching, service packs, and updates 24 hours a day, Monday through Friday. 

Comprehensive 

Provides everything in Essentials and Enhanced, with the added benefit of 24x7x365 remote troubleshooting and remediation (holidays included). Not only that, but you’ll receive a dedicated support line for your organization. 

Find out more about your options for help desk services and solutions. Reach out to Secure Data Technologies today.