Case Studies Twilio Enhances Customer Support with Zendesk's Cloud-Based Help Desk Software

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	Twilio Enhances Customer Support with Zendesk's Cloud-Based Help Desk Software

Twilio Enhances Customer Support with Zendesk's Cloud-Based Help Desk Software

Technology Category	Functional Applications - Enterprise Resource Planning Systems (ERP) Functional Applications - Remote Monitoring & Control Systems
Applicable Industries	Professional Service Software
Applicable Functions	Business Operation
Services	Software Design & Engineering Services System Integration
Challenge	Most of Twilio’s customers start out with a certain amount of trial credit and then start hacking away. It is only when they have built something useful that they decide to invest more in Twilio. So it is critical that the company’s support team helps all of its customers build something as quickly and seamlessly as possible, otherwise it’s a bad reflection on how easy Twilio is to use. Twilio wanted to make sure its help desk solution offered the same flexibility and reliability it provides as a cloud-based company. This is one of the reasons why they chose Zendesk, and have been using it since November 2008. The company needed a system especially designed for customer support, as email wasn’t going to be a scalable way to respond and keep track of support requests. Additionally, Twilio’s support team had to handle very technical questions, which required a unique structure and a scalable solution. Read More
About Customer	Twilio is a cloud-based communications company that provides its 40,000 customers, a mix of developers and non-developers, with basic building blocks for building voice and text messaging capabilities into their web apps, regardless of their level of technical experience. The company is known for its high-growth and web-based nature, requiring a robust and flexible support system to cater to its diverse customer base. Twilio’s customers often start with trial credits and only invest more once they have built something useful, making the initial support experience crucial for customer retention and satisfaction. The company’s support team is structured to handle very technical questions, with a mix of dedicated agents and engineers who can jump in as needed. Read More
Solution	Twilio chose Zendesk as its help desk solution to ensure flexibility and reliability. Zendesk’s cloud-based nature meant that Twilio didn’t have to install anything, which was crucial for a company with evangelists based all over the country. The support team began using Zendesk’s triggers, customizable automated workflows, to direct tickets to the right people based on their expertise. Agents also have customized inboxes for their tickets to ensure they never lose track of support requests. Triggers help surface high-priority tickets, making agents more productive and ensuring timely responses. Macros are used to create template answers for frequently asked questions, allowing agents to quickly and easily respond to common queries. Twilio also employs customized ticket views for those on support duty, providing an actionable list of all support requests needing a response. Tags are used to funnel valuable product feedback from customers to the product team, consolidating feedback into a report that is easily digestible. Read More Log in to view content
Contents

Technology Category

Functional Applications - Enterprise Resource Planning Systems (ERP)

Functional Applications - Remote Monitoring & Control Systems

Applicable Industries

Professional Service

Software

Applicable Functions

Business Operation

Services

Software Design & Engineering Services

System Integration

Challenge

Most of Twilio’s customers start out with a certain amount of trial credit and then start hacking away. It is only when they have built something useful that they decide to invest more in Twilio. So it is critical that the company’s support team helps all of its customers build something as quickly and seamlessly as possible, otherwise it’s a bad reflection on how easy Twilio is to use. Twilio wanted to make sure its help desk solution offered the same flexibility and reliability it provides as a cloud-based company. This is one of the reasons why they chose Zendesk, and have been using it since November 2008. The company needed a system especially designed for customer support, as email wasn’t going to be a scalable way to respond and keep track of support requests. Additionally, Twilio’s support team had to handle very technical questions, which required a unique structure and a scalable solution.

About Customer

Twilio is a cloud-based communications company that provides its 40,000 customers, a mix of developers and non-developers, with basic building blocks for building voice and text messaging capabilities into their web apps, regardless of their level of technical experience. The company is known for its high-growth and web-based nature, requiring a robust and flexible support system to cater to its diverse customer base. Twilio’s customers often start with trial credits and only invest more once they have built something useful, making the initial support experience crucial for customer retention and satisfaction. The company’s support team is structured to handle very technical questions, with a mix of dedicated agents and engineers who can jump in as needed.

Solution

Twilio chose Zendesk as its help desk solution to ensure flexibility and reliability. Zendesk’s cloud-based nature meant that Twilio didn’t have to install anything, which was crucial for a company with evangelists based all over the country. The support team began using Zendesk’s triggers, customizable automated workflows, to direct tickets to the right people based on their expertise. Agents also have customized inboxes for their tickets to ensure they never lose track of support requests. Triggers help surface high-priority tickets, making agents more productive and ensuring timely responses. Macros are used to create template answers for frequently asked questions, allowing agents to quickly and easily respond to common queries. Twilio also employs customized ticket views for those on support duty, providing an actionable list of all support requests needing a response. Tags are used to funnel valuable product feedback from customers to the product team, consolidating feedback into a report that is easily digestible.

Impact #1	Zendesk’s help desk software allowed Twilio’s support team to use triggers for automated workflows, directing tickets to the right people based on their expertise.
Impact #2	Customized inboxes and ticket views ensured that agents never lost track of support requests, allowing for timely responses.
Impact #3	Macros enabled the support team to quickly respond to frequently asked questions, improving efficiency.

Impact #1

Zendesk’s help desk software allowed Twilio’s support team to use triggers for automated workflows, directing tickets to the right people based on their expertise.

Impact #2

Customized inboxes and ticket views ensured that agents never lost track of support requests, allowing for timely responses.

Impact #3

Macros enabled the support team to quickly respond to frequently asked questions, improving efficiency.

Benefit #1	Twilio’s support team consists of 45 employees, with 26 agents working with Zendesk.
Benefit #2	Only five to six agents are designated to be on support duty all the time, with additional licenses allowing other engineers to jump in when needed.
Benefit #3	Twilio has been using Zendesk since November 2008.

Benefit #1

Twilio’s support team consists of 45 employees, with 26 agents working with Zendesk.

Benefit #2

Only five to six agents are designated to be on support duty all the time, with additional licenses allowing other engineers to jump in when needed.

Benefit #3

Twilio has been using Zendesk since November 2008.

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Overview

Twilio Enhances Customer Support with Zendesk's Cloud-Based Help Desk Software

Operational Impact

Quantitative Benefit