Hi everyone! I've been lurking here for a bit, and finally decided to post. I'm helping my small team (we're a team of 5) choose a new support tool, and I'm feeling a bit swamped by all the options.
We've been trialing Intercom's Fin AI features, and while some of the auto-suggested replies are helpful, the overall package is getting too expensive for our budget. The thing is, every time I search for "alternatives," the results are dominated by Zendesk AI and Freshdesk. We've looked at both, and they feel a bit too heavy and enterprise-y for our needs right now. I'm not a fan of their interface, to be honest.
I'm hoping you can point me towards some other platforms. Specifically, I'm looking for something that has solid AI-assist features for our agents—like helping draft replies or suggesting knowledge base articles—but maybe in a more streamlined, affordable package. A good auto-responder for after-hours and solid analytics (especially deflection rates!) would be a huge plus.
What are you all using, especially those in smaller teams? Are there any newer or more niche tools that are doing interesting things with AI for support without being part of the giant legacy platforms? I'd love to hear about your actual experiences with the AI features, not just the marketing promises. Thanks in advance