BQE CORE vs. Kustomer

Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
BQE CORE
Score 8.3 out of 10
Small Businesses (1-50 employees)
BQE CORE is a business management solution built specifically for professional service firms. BQE CORE is a combination of a billing assistant, project management, and accounting solution. CORE is designed to do the hard work of delivering actionable insights directly to the user's dashboards or inbox. BQE CORE replaces the products Engineeroffice, Archioffice, and BillQuick; the functionality of these applications is now found in BQE CORE.N/A
Kustomer
Score 8.0 out of 10
N/A
Kustomer is a CRM built on customer service intended to be a one stop shop for support across several platforms, including online chat, phone, email and social media. By using AI automation for self service options and matching customers with agents based on their needs, Kustomer aims to make resolution faster and easier for everyone.
$89
per month per user
Pricing
BQE COREKustomer
Editions & Modules
No answers on this topic
Enterprise
$89
per month, per user
Ultimate
$139
per month, per user
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
BQE COREKustomer
Free Trial
YesNo
Free/Freemium Version
NoNo
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
YesNo
Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
Additional DetailsAll plans require an annual subscription and 8 users minimum.
More Pricing Information
Features
BQE COREKustomer
Project Management
Comparison of Project Management features of Product A and Product B
BQE CORE
6.0
16 Ratings
24% below category average
Kustomer
-
Ratings
Task Management6.110 Ratings00 Ratings
Resource Management6.112 Ratings00 Ratings
Gantt Charts3.02 Ratings00 Ratings
Scheduling7.46 Ratings00 Ratings
Workflow Automation6.06 Ratings00 Ratings
Team Collaboration6.09 Ratings00 Ratings
Support for Agile Methodology4.02 Ratings00 Ratings
Support for Waterfall Methodology9.13 Ratings00 Ratings
Document Management5.09 Ratings00 Ratings
Email integration6.08 Ratings00 Ratings
Mobile Access7.08 Ratings00 Ratings
Timesheet Tracking8.916 Ratings00 Ratings
Change request and Case Management3.05 Ratings00 Ratings
Budget and Expense Management6.015 Ratings00 Ratings
Professional Services Automation
Comparison of Professional Services Automation features of Product A and Product B
BQE CORE
5.7
11 Ratings
28% below category average
Kustomer
-
Ratings
Quotes/estimates5.24 Ratings00 Ratings
Invoicing6.98 Ratings00 Ratings
Project & financial reporting6.011 Ratings00 Ratings
Integration with accounting software4.85 Ratings00 Ratings
Incident and problem management
Comparison of Incident and problem management features of Product A and Product B
BQE CORE
-
Ratings
Kustomer
8.9
16 Ratings
9% above category average
Organize and prioritize service tickets00 Ratings8.615 Ratings
Expert directory00 Ratings8.314 Ratings
Subscription-based notifications00 Ratings8.513 Ratings
ITSM collaboration and documentation00 Ratings8.013 Ratings
Ticket creation and submission00 Ratings9.916 Ratings
Ticket response00 Ratings9.916 Ratings
Self Help Community
Comparison of Self Help Community features of Product A and Product B
BQE CORE
-
Ratings
Kustomer
7.7
12 Ratings
4% below category average
External knowledge base00 Ratings7.512 Ratings
Internal knowledge base00 Ratings7.812 Ratings
Multi-Channel Help
Comparison of Multi-Channel Help features of Product A and Product B
BQE CORE
-
Ratings
Kustomer
9.3
16 Ratings
15% above category average
Customer portal00 Ratings8.611 Ratings
IVR00 Ratings8.310 Ratings
Social integration00 Ratings9.813 Ratings
Email support00 Ratings9.916 Ratings
Help Desk CRM integration00 Ratings9.911 Ratings
Best Alternatives
BQE COREKustomer
Small Businesses
FunctionFox
FunctionFox
Score 9.9 out of 10
Agiloft Flexible Service Desk Suite
Agiloft Flexible Service Desk Suite
Score 9.0 out of 10
Medium-sized Companies
SAP Ruum
SAP Ruum
Score 9.0 out of 10
Agiloft Flexible Service Desk Suite
Agiloft Flexible Service Desk Suite
Score 9.0 out of 10
Enterprises
Kanban Tool
Kanban Tool
Score 9.0 out of 10
SAP Service Cloud
SAP Service Cloud
Score 9.3 out of 10
All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
User Ratings
BQE COREKustomer
Likelihood to Recommend
8.5
(105 ratings)
9.0
(37 ratings)
Likelihood to Renew
8.0
(8 ratings)
7.9
(2 ratings)
Usability
8.4
(93 ratings)
10.0
(3 ratings)
Availability
8.2
(1 ratings)
9.1
(2 ratings)
Performance
7.3
(1 ratings)
6.4
(2 ratings)
Support Rating
8.4
(88 ratings)
10.0
(11 ratings)
In-Person Training
-
(0 ratings)
7.6
(2 ratings)
Online Training
6.4
(1 ratings)
8.3
(2 ratings)
Implementation Rating
5.1
(7 ratings)
7.9
(2 ratings)
Configurability
-
(0 ratings)
7.9
(4 ratings)
Ease of integration
4.5
(1 ratings)
7.2
(4 ratings)
Product Scalability
8.2
(1 ratings)
9.1
(1 ratings)
Vendor post-sale
8.2
(1 ratings)
8.7
(4 ratings)
Vendor pre-sale
8.2
(1 ratings)
9.1
(4 ratings)
User Testimonials
BQE COREKustomer
Likelihood to Recommend
BQE Software Inc.
CORE is well suited for time entry and reporting across employee groups and projects. CORE can generate many useful reports, however the customization and filtering of these reports isn't exactly intuitive. It can be difficult to get the reports to show the data you want, and there is no way to remove data fields from a report or create a custom report.
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Meta Platforms Inc
It works really well for you to ask a teammate to review a case/email/message and provide some input since you can all review the same conversations and client accounts. They can also cover your inbox using your email handle in case you are out of the office suing some well deserved PTO.
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Pros
BQE Software Inc.
  • Invoice Collections within Billing is a great tool because of the ability to take notes and track contact.
  • Invoices are professional looking and easy for our clients to understand the overall progress within each phase of their project.
  • Dashboards are the best tool EVER!
  • The Contact List feature within Clients setup is the perfect way to track multiple project managers within a large company that also has multiple contracts with us.
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Meta Platforms Inc
  • All customer data (past orders, communication with customer service, rewards account data) is in one place. This helps agents avoid confusion and reduces the number of tabs they need to open.
  • The Knowledge Base (or K Base) is very helpful. Any time we roll out a new policy or have a limited-time promotion, we can add all the relevant information and worksheets there for the convenience of the agents. That way they can stay in a chat while looking up the answer to a question.
  • We can seamlessly move from chat into email if the customer leaves or the queue times are too long. All the interactions will stay on the customer profile page, so they are kept up to date.
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Cons
BQE Software Inc.
  • Startup training is available (& you need it so that you get off to a great start)
  • A report that shows the key setups for a project that can be glanced over quickly to assure it is correct
  • A way to set a new start date for the dashboards and data set, or a way to default old bad data to a default so reports run without bad data showing up.
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Meta Platforms Inc
  • Small chat window--maybe the ability to chat in real-time with the person who received your ticket would help.
  • Different teams could have differently colored notes.
  • The notification bell could be a bit bigger. It's hard to keep track sometimes, when a lot of notes pile on.
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Likelihood to Renew
BQE Software Inc.
We have been using Core for a few years now, and honestly started to look at other software systems to see what was out there. What we chose was a nightmare for migration so we never left Core. Now we have added invoicing and payments from Core instead of double entry with QBO. Still only a few cycles in but looks like it will be up to speed soon and working smoothly.
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Meta Platforms Inc
I believe at this time, Kustomer is doing a good job. I really love its functionality at the moment.
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Usability
BQE Software Inc.
It's very easy to use and straightforward. Everything is laid out in an easy to use pattern and can be changed, somewhat, based on user preference. The options are limited but it's a pleasant experience using the product and I can perform the tasks I need to perform quickly and without any issues.
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Meta Platforms Inc
I give this rating based on my experience daily using this CRM, handling multiple communications at my current job, using its features, and learning how Kustomer can make my job easier every day.
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Reliability and Availability
BQE Software Inc.
I can only remember a couple of times in 4 years that Core has been unavailable.
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Meta Platforms Inc
I gave it a 10 rating because it is very helpful and the availability is there when needed. I have never had issues with application errors or unplanned outages so far.
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Performance
BQE Software Inc.
This is one area that does need some improvement. It can be slow at time, so we had our IT look at it from our side and we had no issues, so it has to be some slowness on their side.
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Meta Platforms Inc
Kustomer Performances need improvement. The pages do load very slowly but that might be because of the information they carry. If Kustomer integrates with other software or systems it does slow the performance. They need to find a solution to this.
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Support Rating
BQE Software Inc.
Our team has had to contact support on a number of occasions, mostly to address a slow system and/or not being able to log in. The support is very responsive and fixes the issue within the same day. Additionally, any time we need to modify codes, BQE helps with that support and gets it turned around quickly.
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Meta Platforms Inc
I think that it has been good. I am not the primary one in contact with Kustomer support. I know that we have experienced technical issues at different points, which has been frustrating, but in my experience, each problem has been quickly resolved. Working in a fast-paced environment, even fairly minor outages have a big impact, and this has happened to us a few times since using Kustomer.
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In-Person Training
BQE Software Inc.
No answers on this topic
Meta Platforms Inc
Because they are very hands-on in training us and very approachable
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Online Training
BQE Software Inc.
Make sure you have someone training you that fits your style of learning.
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Meta Platforms Inc
The best training I did was online. Videos teach as well as explain how everything works and what Kustomer's functions are.
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Implementation Rating
BQE Software Inc.
It does take some time to understand the options and to find the best invoice template.
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Meta Platforms Inc
Nothing really because it is easy to use. After an hour of using it, we're already getting the hang of it.
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Alternatives Considered
BQE Software Inc.
I am a user and was not involved in the decision making. Tool was already in place when I joined. But comparing to other tools I have used in the past, BQE is by far the easiest to use. You do not need any training to start using this tool immediately
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Meta Platforms Inc
Apps like Intercom, Zendesk, and Gorgios all treat customer inquiries as tickets, just tracking that one issue or interaction with a customer. Kustomer treats each customer as an individual, which allows us to provide top-notch customer service. Customers love that we're able to be more conversational and informal, while still solving their issues quickly. It also helps us build relationships with customers and increases repeat orders.
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Scalability
BQE Software Inc.
This software works on a small and large scale.
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Meta Platforms Inc
Because customer is flexible and scalable
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Return on Investment
BQE Software Inc.
  • BQE Core has allowed our growing business to manage time tracking in an effective and efficient manner. We could not have effectively kept running our operation without it.
  • BQE Core provides all of the reports we need to do our monthly management reporting. This allows us to quickly spot problems such as capacity overloads, receivables problems, budget overruns, or timekeeping issues.
  • BQE Core has supported our business objective of generating more profit from projects that we undertake by allowing us to quickly and effectively monitor budget burn rates before it becomes an issue.
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Meta Platforms Inc
  • We’re getting so much positive feedback — which is not something you traditionally associate with a customer care team — because we’re making it effortless for customers to deliver both positive and negative feedback, and we can now resolve the bad feedback really really quickly.
  • Primarily from our increased efficiency with Kustomer, we’ve seen a significant reduction of $3 to $4 for every cost per contact.
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ScreenShots

BQE CORE Screenshots

Screenshot of Core powered by BQE SoftwareScreenshot of Core DashboardScreenshot of Core ManagementScreenshot of Core AnalysisScreenshot of Core Mobile

Kustomer Screenshots

Screenshot of Example of a customer profile within Kustomer.Screenshot of Example of how Kustomer’s automated chats can save agents time by handling less complex requests automatically.