Intercom alternatives?
I'm looking into moving away from Intercom. Not because it isn't good (it's quite awesome actually) but because of the price. Any suggestions for alternatives? I primarily use Intercom for customer chat/email, help docs, and in app/customer messages.
I like how HelpScout differentiates email from chat.
Hey, nice to hear that I'm not alone with the same problem. A year ago I decided to solve it for myself and now shared my idea with the IH community. Would love to hear if it could be a solution for you https://www.indiehackers.com/post/888e71136d :)
We use Crisp at Mailmeteor. Their chat module is free and it generated very good sales for us.
For documentation, we use GitBook. Have a look here https://support.mailmeteor.com. It’s very easy to use.
Off topic, but I recently learned that they are both French companies 🇫🇷
I've heard a lot of good about Crisp. However, looks like their knowledge base software and CRM sync are only on the highest plan... Which is more than I'm currently paying Intercom.
GitBook for docs does look really slick! Although, I would prefer a solution that is integrated with the support tool.
Hey, we do offer a startup plan which is very interesting ;) Feel free to have a chat with us :)
There was a recent discussion on this that might be helpful - https://www.indiehackers.com/post/901ce757cd
we just switched from intercom to Helpscout! and yeah, saved a bunch and it works nice as a replacement.
for integration, the biggest hurdle was not having full event history (custom events) with user info, so we built a custom Helpscout App (a sidebar in HS dashboard that exposes whatever you want by grabbing it from a webhook) to add the events.
FWIW, really like intercom but their billing method (monthly tracked users) does not scale well. :(
Do you use HelpScout for customer support only or support and sales?
Yeah, I read their docs on creating custom sidebar integrations and it looked SUPER simple. Which is really cool.
Yep, I have the same opinion on Intercom.
just CS.
I have the same pain point. Somebody ought to make another product that can compete with Intercom.
Would be happy to show you how Crisp can compete with Intercom :)
They have lots of competitors but it will take a lot of resources to get feature parity with Intercom and their suite of products.
I've found plenty that try-hard. But somehow, they all fall short of the breadth and slickness of Intercom.
If Intercom's pricing wasn't based on user count, I would probably pay the price. But because leads, actual users, and even sometimes attendees of events that are my customers count as "users", it is too much.
HubSpot is running a special now.
Starter Growth Suite
To support small businesses through this uncertain time, we're reducing the cost of our Starter Growth Suite from $112.50/month to $50/month with a 12-month commitment.
Similar to the startup pricing offered by Intercom for a year, but with a 12-month commitment and different features.
You can see the free bot in action hyperjump.co right now. It is a little limited though.
This one is completely free: https://www.tawk.to/ However you can pay $1/h to book a customer support person over their platform.
Look at this offer https://appsumo.com/birdseed-pro/
I'm currently using Chaport for SocialTracker. It's basically Intercom on a budget. (Their design even looks similar)
It does the job, but it's quite bare bones so I might look into other solutions later.
I have to recommend LiveChat (live implementation here: https://www.aidlab.com) - they have really good prices compared to existing solutions.
Freshworks suite is awesome! For chatting I've been using smooch.io to connect web and facebook messenger to slack.
Smooch.io looks expensive too... Although, it's not based on user count which helps.
Haha completely forgot, they've got so expensive... Been using the platform for the past 4 years, probably grandfathered some kind of a free account.
Ah, I see. That's nice.
I just switched to HelpScout on my sites because Groove tripled my bill – started using their Beacon feature for live chat and it's great. Does email and help docs too.
wow. HelpScout has changed so much. I have used it years ago when it was free. This option seems awesome for solo app developers.
Yeah, I like how HelpScout differentiates email from chat. Have you used their Messages feature at all?
Yeah it works really nicely!
I haven't tried Messages – don't really need it for what I'm doing. Nice that it's an extra feature though to keep costs down if you don't need it.
Okay, I'm not using Intercom's messages solution much right now but I know that I will be wanting something for that sometime soon. I'm thinking about either using HelpScout (if I end up switching) or UserList.
How much are you getting charged?
Currently only $49/m because of the Early Stage discount. But that will soon be over. After that I'm not entirely sure how much the bill will be but definitely more than $150.
They also have a $99/mo Growth Plan so you should definitely inquire about that. That's what I'm on 👍It's pretty much the same as the Early Stage plan.
Even $99/mo is more than I want to pay considering what I really need it for.
Drift has a free plan that I occasionally use and can recommend - a bit limited though.
I used Drift for a while before Intercom. It's decent. But the extreme jump from free to the first paid plan is a bit off-putting (unless it has changed since last I looked).