Gorgias vs. Zendesk for Shopify – Which should you choose for e-commerce?
Why do customers choose you, even though your competitor offers exactly the same products – maybe even at a better price? It all comes down to one thing: Customer service.
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Why do customers choose you, even though your competitor offers exactly the same products – maybe even at a better price?
It all comes down to one thing:
Customer service.
Good customer service can make or break your business.
But customer service isn’t just about creating loyalty – for 85 percent of consumers, the quality of customer service dictates whether they take out their wallets in the first place.
To provide good customer service in 2024, your company needs the right tools in its toolbox – and here there is simply no way around a helpdesk software that can take your customer service from a rusty Fiat to a well-oiled Ferrari (Nothing personal, Fiat. It just fit best).
In any search for helpdesk software for e-commerce, the same two names keep coming up: Gorgias and Zendesk.
On paper, they’re pretty similar…
But we both know that this is not necessarily the case when the software is used in "real life".
Are they easy to use? How is their customer service? How is the customer experience? How is their pricing? What are their strengths – and more importantly – what are their weaknesses?
Let’s take a closer look:
- Quick intro to Gorgias and Zendesk – 5 quick facts
- The biggest differences between Gorgias and Zendesk
- The greatest similarities between Gorgias and Zendesk
- Conclusion + The 3 most important takeaways
Quick intro to Gorgias and Zendesk
You have enough on your plate. So, we won’t pile on more with all the ins and outs of helpdesks, Gorgias and Zendesk.
But we do think you deserve a little bit of background information – so here’s a warp-speed intro to each before we start the comparison.
A quick intro to Gorgias:
- Gorgias was founded in Paris, the City of Lights, in 2015.
- They market themselves as the best alternative to Zendesk with a help desk is easy to use, budget-friendly and easy to integrate with the rest of your solutions (40+ e-commerce integrations).
- Their helpdesk software is designed specifically for e-commerce. From the beginning, their main focus has been (and continues to be) Shopify, but Gorgias has also expanded to include BigCommerce and Magento. In fact, Gorgias was the first app to receive a Shopify Plus certification.
- As of this writing, they have more than 8,300 brands under their belt – and something tells us that number is growing daily.
- According to Gorgias, they are the best reviewed help desk for e-commerce.
A quick intro to Zendesk:
- Believe it or not, Zendesk was established in Denmark in 2007. They could definitely be considered "first-movers" when it comes to smart, automated customer service.
- By their own account, they provide a complete CRM-based software solution that is easy to use – and can be scaled to grow with your business. With the slogan "Champions of customer service", their software is said to be powerful, flexible and scalable.
- Their solution has two parts: Sales and Service. Zendesk provides solutions that address customer service, sales and support.
- Zendesk is without a doubt at the top of the customer service software hierarchy, with more than 160,000 companies using their solutions across a variety of industries.
- Their solutions can be integrated with the vast majority of platforms – Where Gorgias has tailored its solution for e-commerce and Shopify, Zendesk offers a one-size fits all approach. Their solution is uni-size, and they don’t really have a specialty. They’re more of a jack of all trades, as they say....
Okay – so far so good.
Let's move on to what you're here for 👇
The 5 biggest similarities between Gorgias and Zendesk
On paper, Gorgias and Zendesk provide the same service. So, they will undoubtedly share several common features – although in reality, the two are miles apart (hang on, we'll get to that later).
Here are, in my opinion, the top 5 similarities between Gorgias and Zendesk
1) Cross-channel support
Both Gorgias and Zendesk support cross-channel support, so you’ll be able to drastically reduce your response times across all channels.
Both solutions allow you to help your customers quickly and competently, regardless of whether they contact you via email, live chat, Facebook or Instagram – although currently, only Zendesk offers support via Twitter.
2) Avoid answering the same questions over and over again
Where is my order? How long will delivery take?
If you had a nickel for every time you answered those questions…
Gorgias and Zendesk both have a feature called "macros" – a.k.a. automated self-help. Macros (automations) can be used to program automatic responses to the most frequently asked questions. So, when a user asks just that question, the answer appears immediately. Although the feature is found in both solutions, only Gorgias offers intuitive direct integration with Shopify.
This frees up time that your customer service employees can spend on other more important tasks.
3) Follow up and follow through with reminders
Both Gorgias and Zendesk allow you to create reminders so that it's easier to follow up on a request – even if several people or departments are involved.
You can use reminders to keep track of all necessary information, making sure that no customer slips through the cracks. You can also be the first to reach out, going the extra mile so that your customers feel well treated.
While the feature is found in both solutions, only Gorgias has a dedicated, easy-to-use button for it.
4) One at a time, please
When several employees are in communication with a customer at once, the situation can quickly spin out of control.
It's not just a waste of time for your business – there is a real risk that the customer will receive conflicting information, leading to total confusion on all sides.
Both Gorgias and Zendesk have a feature that prevents this from happening. That’s win-win – both for you and for your customers.
5) Fantastic customer service – even while standing in line
Our working hours and methods are becoming more and more flexible.
And that requires something extra from the software solutions we use. Fortunately, both Gorgias and Zendesk have apps for mobile (Android and iOS) that allow you to provide great customer service – wherever you are.
This makes it easy to maintain an overview and answer queries, whether you are sitting on the train, waiting for the bus or standing in line at Whole Foods.
The 5 biggest differences between Gorgias and Zendesk
Gorgias and Zendesk share a number of basic functions – and the functions listed above are some of the most similar in use.
These similarities are all fine and well – but the differences are in a different league. And they’re what separates the wheat from the chaff.
So, without further ado: The 5 biggest differences between Gorgias and Zendesk:
1) Gorgias is designed exclusively for e-commerce. Zendesk is not.
A golden rule of marketing is that there is no point trying to be a jack of all trades.
The same can be said of help-desk solutions.
Because although Gorgias and Zendesk have many similarities, only Gorgias is designed exclusively for e-commerce – and even specializes in Shopify. Zendesk isn’t.
In other words: If your webshop is the glass slipper, Gorgias is Cinderella. It's a perfect match, an effortless fit. There’s no need to exert any excess energy to provide efficient customer service.
You can edit, cancel, or return an order without ever leaving Gorgias' dashboard. Gorgias is also built to work with the most popular e-commerce apps, offering seamless, intuitive embedded integrations.
“When we started Gorgias, we just wanted to be able to write emails faster. But during our research, we stumbled upon Laurent from Foodcherí. Back in 2015, customer service was certainly not a top priority – mostly because the team had to use five different apps to respond to their customers! It was cumbersome and response times were long.
But Laurent longed to provide first-rate customer service – and so we decided to help him with that. We got to work building a helpdesk that actually made it easier and faster to provide the lightning-fast customer service that creates value – for both them and their customers.”
2) Never overlook comments on posts or ads again
When you run ads or post on social media, users will (hopefully) comment – and some of these comments will certainly fall into the customer service category. All too often, these comments go unnoticed because no one is actually responsible for them. Yet each missed comment is a missed potential sale.
Gorgias makes sure these comments actually get into the customer service system, so you get a real chance to answer them.
And while Zendesk does not support Facebook or Instagram, Gorgias does – both paid and organic posts.
3) Edit directly in an order
Rather than firing up the big furnace, employees can quickly and easily edit orders directly in Gorgias' dashboard.
There’s no need to open Shopify to edit an order – you can do it all via Gorgias, where everything is in one place. Once you’ve set up Gorgias with the right integrations, you can edit, cancel, or track an order, place a new order and much more.
While Zendesk offers something in a similar vein, their solution is a hassle and much more time consuming. The integrations communicate so poorly that it just doesn’t make sense.
4) Integrations that actually make life easier
Integrations and digital tools are necessary today – and here Gorgias scores a big win over Zendesk. Gorgias can work with anything present in your setup: Yotpo, Klaviyo, Postscript, Channel Reply – the list goes on and on and on… There's virtually no e-commerce tool Gorgias can’t integrate with.
Zendesk can also be integrated with a long list of apps and platforms, but this list is hugely generic – and for e-commerce you need a specific, tailor-made solution.
5) And then there is just that final small detail...the price tag
Gorgias offers four different pricing solutions. The cheapest plan starts at $60/month and includes 350 inquiries/month, with the option to pay $25 for 100 additional inquiries if needed. That add-on price decreases as you upgrade your solution.
Zendesk starts at just $49/month, with no limit on the number of inquiries. But – and there is always a but – this is only an appropriate solution if you do not work with e-commerce. That $49 price tag? It only includes one user! So, if you dream of growth, Zendesk’s price tag grows just as quickly.
My (almost) impartial conclusion
Before I get to the point:
The purpose of this article is to equip you to easily choose the right solution for your business. Both solutions have muscles to flex – and for some, Zendesk may be the right choice, while Gorgias will certainly be the perfect fit for others.
I have tried the vast majority of helpdesk solutions – and this is just my two cents.
And now for my conclusion:
It's no secret that I run an e-commerce agency. An e-commerce agency specializing in Shopify. So, it probably comes as no surprise to you that my favorite in the comparison is Gorgias.
It's obvious that Zendesk is trying to take a big bite of the pie. And if you ask me, they have bitten off more than they can chew.
Gorgias is 100% tailored for e-commerce. And it shows.
Summary: The 3 main takeaways
- When it comes to the most basic functions, the two solutions have a lot in common – yet no matter which way I look at it, the differences are more significant than the similarities. The undeniably biggest differences lie in how the two solutions interact with the rest of your setup – and this is where Zendesk often falls short.
- When it comes to a helpdesk for e-commerce, Zendesk can’t hold a candle to Gorgias. Gorgias’ functional features and seamless integrations save you real time (and win over real customers).
- Gorgias is developed exclusively for e-commerce – and it shows. Zendesk may well be the biggest. But Gorgias can do the most for your business.