What Is the Difference Between a Service Desk and a Helpdesk?

Are you looking for IT support for your business, but are struggling understand the difference between a service desk and a helpdesk? This understanding is essential for businesses to be conscious of because the misunderstanding of these support services can lead a company to undersell or oversell their service and support expertise.

What is a Service Desk

A service desk offers a single point of communication between the provider and the end user. The purpose of a service desk is to be initiative-taking in enhancing IT processes for the end user while discovering opportunities for the end users IT process to run more efficiently. IT Service Desks can assist users with service request management and incident management. Service Desks focus on providing the service to the end users while offering customer service aspects as well. This allows end users to resolve issues independently.

What is a Helpdesk

Helpdesks can serve as a valuable tool for your company through helping you troubleshoot and track problems that may arise. A helpdesk focuses on fixing and troubleshooting IT issues for end users. Business’s like PSM use helpdesk software to maintain a record of all their end users’ issues that may involve certain products and services. These software tools allow helpdesk employees to communicate with one another on how to best respond to the end users’ primary issue.

What Are the Different Types of Helpdesks

Helpdesks are crucial for simplifying the IT support process. It is important to be aware that helpdesks use a broad range of tools, workflows, and reporting processes to manage support tasks. Here are four types of helpdesk support your company can receive:

1. Digital / cloud-based helpdesk: This helpdesk option is perfect for small and medium sized businesses that do not have an in-house IT team. There are multiple advantages in choosing this type of helpdesk, for instance, being able to have increased business scalability while offering anytime, anywhere accessibility. One disadvantage to this type of helpdesk would be that Internet connection is always required.
2. On-site helpdesk: This choice is ideal for businesses that want to have extensive control over their own data and security. An advantage in choosing this type of helpdesk will be that help would be more customizable to meet the needs and wants of a business compared to prior types mentioned. An obstacle for this type would be that it requires a tremendous initial investment for buying the software license and the servers.
3. Enterprise helpdesk: This type can either be digital or onsite and offers features such as IT asset management and enterprise reporting. Additionally, this type of helpdesk support is employee focused. Advantages to choosing this type is that it can be adapted to meet the demands of large businesses. One disadvantage is that it is more costly or complex to manage than the prior two types.
4. Open-source helpdesk: This option is ideal for companies who want an IT group to create helpdesk software specific to their company. The advantages to this helpdesk type include being free of charge and coming with minimum restrictions. Downsides to this type include needing an IT team that will create and customize software for your specific business, in addition to there being a lack of reliable support.

Why Your Company Needs a Helpdesk

Helpdesks streamline the operations of a company and in previous studies on helpdesk support, it was found that 66% of end users expect to engage with support representatives immediately when they have a problem. Therefore, it is crucial for your company to have a helpdesk.  Moreover, 86% of companies with a helpdesk reported increased productivity at their company. PSM Partners provides helpdesk services for all types of businesses, and we provide specialized cloud-based and on-site support to our clients. For further inquiries, please contact us at (312) 940-7830 or fill out a contact form.