Unity Contact Center

Unity Contact Center is a cloud-based contact center overlay for businesses that use Cisco BroadSoft ACD. It suits small and medium businesses seeking a shared workspace for voice and digital conversations, but it is not a standalone option for teams without BroadSoft.

Its strongest case is the combination of channel handling and supervisor controls within that BroadSoft environment. Check the requirements for each channel and the custom-pricing terms before deciding whether it fits your operation.

Overview

Agents can manage voice, email, web chat, SMS, callbacks and Twitter in the Unity Agent interface. Conversation histories, canned chat responses and supervisor escalation support continuity across interactions; customizable routing directs incoming work to appropriately equipped agents, and Unity manages agent availability when agents enter conversations.

The trade-off is fundamental: Unity is built as an overlay for BroadSoft ACD call centers. That makes it relevant to businesses already using the platform, but unsuitable as a replacement for the underlying ACD or as an independent contact center. Kakapo describes the service as cloud-based and says queues, channels and agents can scale without limits or bottlenecks.

Key features

Web chat queues and routing can be configured in the supervisor portal, while web chat and callback widgets can be deployed by embedding generated JavaScript on a website. This gives a team a direct path to add those channels to its site. The channels do have prerequisites: calls require ACD queues, SMS needs a number that can receive SMS, Twitter needs a handle, and email requires an IMAP-compliant server.

Supervisors get real-time and historical queue statistics, agent-management tools, and a dashboard with configurable tabular and graphical views. These controls are useful for monitoring operations and managing agents, though the product's value depends on a business being able to use the BroadSoft foundation beneath it.

Connections include Microsoft 365, Exchange, Gmail and Twitter, alongside CRM integrations for contact lookup and screen popping. Kakapo lists Salesforce, Agile CRM, Microsoft Dynamics, Zendesk, Sugar CRM and Zoho CRM. The breadth can help teams bring customer context into agent workflows, particularly where they already use one of those systems.

Pricing

Unity Contact Center uses custom pricing, with a 14-day trial. Kakapo says the trial includes full functionality and Service Provider branding, so teams can assess the complete product rather than a reduced-feature edition. A demo request form connects prospective customers with product specialists.

There are no published plan prices or seat limits to compare. Ask Kakapo for a quote that specifies the cost and terms for your team, and confirm that the channel prerequisites and BroadSoft requirement are covered before committing.

Platforms

The product is offered for web and Windows. Unity Web Apps run in browsers on Windows, Mac and Linux, with Chrome, Firefox, Edge and Safari listed as supported browsers. The Windows application supports Windows 8.1, Windows 10 and Windows 11 in 32-bit and 64-bit versions.

Although the browser apps cover three desktop operating systems, this is not a broad native-platform offering: the listed desktop application is for Windows, and the service remains dependent on BroadSoft ACD.

Who it's for

Unity is best suited to a small or medium business contact center already running BroadSoft ACD that wants agents to handle several inbound channels in one interface and supervisors to track queues and manage agents. Teams with compatible email, SMS and Twitter setups can make use of the channel mix, while CRM integrations may help bring contact details into calls.

It is a poor fit for organizations seeking a contact center independent of BroadSoft, or those that cannot meet the necessary channel requirements. Kakapo has developed UC and call center apps since 2006 and offers product specialists through a demo request, which may help prospective buyers assess fit.

Pros and cons

• Pros: Voice, email, chat, SMS, callbacks and Twitter share an agent interface, reducing the need to separate those supported channels into distinct agent workflows.
• Pros: Real-time and historical queue statistics, agent-management tools and configurable dashboards give supervisors operational visibility.
• Pros: CRM contact lookup and screen popping, plus integrations with several named CRM systems, can connect agent work with customer records.
• Cons: The BroadSoft ACD overlay requirement rules it out for businesses without that platform.
• Cons: Individual channels depend on specific infrastructure or accounts, including ACD queues, an SMS-capable number, a Twitter handle and an IMAP-compliant email server.
• Cons: Custom pricing makes it harder to compare cost without requesting a quote.

Alternatives

Freshdesk is worth considering for teams looking for a service desk with a free program for 1–2 agents for 6 months, or a paid Growth plan at $19 a month billed annually. LiveAgent may suit buyers who want ticketing, live chat, a knowledgebase, a customer portal, contact forms and automation rules in its Small business plan at $15 a month billed annually.

BoardQ is a different option for teams prioritizing leaderboard creation: its free Basic plan supports up to 2 leaderboards, real-time updates, themes, custom columns, website embedding and CSV and Excel export. For quality-management needs, MaestroQA has a free plan with 100 Agent Runs per month, unlimited Q&A and $100 in AI credits, while its Starter plan is $185 a month.

Aspect League is another alternative. AmplifAI Quality Assurance is another option for buyers comparing paid quality-assurance software. OneContact Gamification is another paid web-based option, while Talkdesk Quality Management offers an Elite plan at $165 per user, per month with workforce management, custom reporting, screen recording, performance management and automated notifications.

Browse Customer Service Gamification Software for more products in that category.

Verdict

Choose Unity Contact Center if your small or medium business already uses Cisco BroadSoft ACD and wants a blended interface for multiple inbound channels with queue oversight for supervisors. The channel breadth and management tools are its clearest strengths; the BroadSoft dependency is the decisive reason to look elsewhere if you need an independent contact center.