What companies use Front?

While Front’s entire client list isn’t published, many of its customers include tech companies that need to focus on efficient service delivery to many customers. Front helps to stay connected with customers and avoid missing business-critical communications.

How many users does Front have?

Although no exact number has been published, Front reports on its website that more than 9,000 organizations use it. The actual number of users will vary based on the number of employees each company that uses Front has. Also, the number will fluctuate from month to month as users subscribe and unsubscribe to Front’s app.

Is the Front app free?

No, Front is not available for free. The company charges on a subscription basis. However, you can get a free trial to test out Front’s features and determine whether it’s a useful option for your workflows. To try Front, you can fill out a short questionnaire with your name and contact info on their site.

What is Front used for?

Front is used for communicating with customers in real time and tracking communications across multiple avenues, such as email and text. It brings all communications into a central inbox so companies don't miss out on any customer interactions. It also works as an email management tool, particularly for customer service reps and salespeople who interact directly with customers.

Updated May 30, 2025 at 11:02 AM

Front 2026: Benefits, Features & Pricing

Written by Molly Burke

Senior Specialist Analyst

Edited by Caroline Rousseau

Senior Editor

Wondering if Front is right for your organization?

Our Email Management Software selection experts can help you in 15 minutes or less.

On this page

Our Summary
Pricing and Plans
Features
Integrations
Key Sentiments
User Reviews
Frequently Asked Questions

Our Summary

Front

4.5

(285)

Pros:

Integration with other platforms
Email organization

Cons:

High pricing
Confusing user interface

Pricing

Starting at $25.00 per month

What is Front:

Front is a platform for communicating with customers via multiple channels, such as text messaging, social media, email, and live chat. It unifies communications, sending them to a single inbox to keep track of customer interactions.

Why we like Front:

Front is particularly strong in its inbox management and real-time chat features. It also offers mobile access, making it a convenient solution for those on the go. Users rated it 4.5 out of 5 for ease of use.

Who should use Front:

Front is a particularly helpful tool for teams that deal with sales, customer support, and account management, though any organization that needs to communicate more efficiently can benefit from using it. Although it’s a versatile tool, it’s particularly popular among smaller and midsize companies: 64% of verified user reviews come from people who work for organizations with between one and 200 employees.

Front Screenshots

Front Overview

Front is a customer operations platform that enables support, sales, and account management teams to deliver exceptional service at scale. Front streamlines customer communication by combining the efficiency of a help desk and the familiarity of email, with automated workflows and real-time collaboration behind the scenes.

With Front, teams can centralize messages across channels, route them to the right person and unlock visibility and insights across all of their customer operations. Additionally, it drives operational efficiency that prevents churn, improves retention...

Front Pricing and Plans

Starting price: $25.00 per month

Free Trial

Free Version

Starter

$25.00

per user, per month

Plan includes:

Shared inbox and ticketing
AI Topics and up to 10 automation rules
Basic analytics
No-code public knowledge base
Available AI add-ons: Copilot, QA, CSAT

Professional

$65.00

per user, per month

Plan includes:

Shared inbox and ticketing
AI Topics and automation rules
Advanced analytics
No-code public knowledge base
Available AI add-ons: Copilot, QA, CSAT
Omnichannel (email, SMS, social, etc.)
Macros and up to 20 automation rules
Multiple workspaces, SSO, and SCIM
AI Answers add-on ($0.70 / resolution)

Enterprise

$105.00

per user, per month

Plan includes:

Shared inbox and ticketing
Advanced analytics
No-code public knowledge base
Included AI add-ons: Copilot, QA, CSAT
Omnichannel (email, SMS, social, etc.)
AI Topics and unlimited automation rules
Macros and unlimited automation rules
Multiple workspaces, SSO, and SCIM
Smart rules
Multi-language knowledge base

Confused about pricing? We've got you covered.

Get a personalized pricing breakdown tailored to your specific needs—no guesswork, no generic estimates.

Our Analysis of Front's Pricing Plans

Choosing the right pricing plan is a critical decision for any business considering Front's customer communication platform. To help guide your choice, we've analyzed the key features, benefits, and limitations of each of Front's four pricing tiers: Starter, Growth, Scale, and Premier. Whether you're a small team just getting started or a large enterprise looking for advanced customization, understanding the nuances of these plans is essenti...

al for aligning Front's capabilities with your specific needs and budget. __Starter plan__ Front's Starter plan is a cost-effective solution for small teams looking to streamline their customer communication. At $19 per seat per month when billed annually, or $29 per seat per month when billed monthly, it supports up to 10 users and offers essential features such as shared inboxes, live chat, and ticketing. The plan also includes basic analytics and automation rules to help optimize workflows. **Pros:** - **Budget-friendly:** The Starter plan provides a comprehensive set of features at an affordable price point, making it accessible for small businesses. - **Collaborative tools:** Shared inboxes, internal comments, and message templates foster seamless teamwork and efficient customer support. - **Omnichannel communication:** Connect with customers through various channels, including email, chat, SMS, and social media. **Cons:** - **Limited scalability:** The 10-seat maximum may be restrictive for growing teams or those anticipating rapid expansion. - **Basic reporting:** While the plan includes analytics, the reporting capabilities are limited compared to higher-tier plans. - **Automation constraints:** With a maximum of 10 rules, more complex workflows may require an upgrade to a higher-tier plan. __Growth plan__ The Growth plan, at $59 per seat per month when billed annually, or $79 per seat per month when billed monthly, offers advanced features for teams looking to optimize their support processes. With no seat minimum, this plan is suitable for organizations of various sizes. It includes all Starter plan features, plus AI-powered tools, advanced team controls, and expanded integration options. **Pros:** - **No-code automation:** Streamline support processes with intuitive, no-code automation and reporting tools. - **AI-assisted support:** Leverage AI Summarize and AI Compose to enhance agent efficiency and provide more accurate responses. - **Robust analytics:** Access comprehensive reports on team performance, SLAs, and customer satisfaction to drive data-driven decisions. **Cons:** - **Higher per-seat cost:** The per-seat price is significantly higher than the Starter plan, which may impact budget-conscious organizations. - **Learning curve:** With advanced features and customization options, teams may require more time to fully utilize the plan's capabilities. - **Integration limitations:** While the Growth plan offers more integrations than the Starter plan, some organizations may still find the API rate limits (100/min) restrictive. __Scale plan__ Front's Scale plan, at $99 per seat per month (billed annually) with a 2-seat minimum, is designed for organizations seeking total workflow flexibility and advanced user management. It includes all features from the Growth plan, along with enhanced automation, analytics, and support options. **Pros:** - **Extensive automation:** With up to 200 rules and advanced features like macros, load balancing, and webhooks, the Scale plan enables highly customized workflows. - **Granular analytics:** Gain deeper insights with account-based and company-wide analytics to identify trends and optimize performance. - **Seamless CRM integration:** Sync data with popular CRM platforms like Salesforce and HubSpot for a unified view of customer interactions. **Cons:** - **Cost considerations:** The higher per-seat cost and 2-seat minimum may be prohibitive for some organizations, particularly those with limited budgets or smaller teams. - **Complex setup:** Implementing and maintaining advanced automation rules and integrations may require dedicated resources and technical expertise. - **Potential underutilization:** Smaller teams might not fully leverage all the advanced features, leading to a lower return on investment. __Premier plan__ The Premier plan is Front's enterprise-level offering, with pricing available upon request. This plan includes all Scale plan features, along with professional services tailored to meet the unique needs of large organizations. **Pros:** - **Unlimited customization:** With up to 1,000 automation rules and 100 knowledge bases, the Premier plan offers unparalleled flexibility to adapt to complex workflows. - **Dedicated support:** Receive personalized onboarding, solution design, and ongoing assistance from a dedicated account team. - **Early access:** Participate in pre-release and beta features to stay ahead of the curve and provide feedback on upcoming enhancements. **Cons:** - **Implementation complexity:** Rolling out the Premier plan across a large organization may involve significant time, resources, and change management efforts. - **Dependency on professional services:** Organizations may become reliant on Front's professional services team for ongoing support and customization, potentially increasing long-term costs. __Conclusion__ After analyzing Front's pricing plans, it's evident that they provide a range of options designed to cater to businesses of various sizes and customer support needs. - **For startups and small businesses:** The Starter plan is an affordable entry point. It offers essential features like shared inboxes, live chat, and basic automation, enabling small teams to manage customer interactions efficiently. However, as the business grows, the limitations on rules and knowledge base articles may become restrictive. - **For growing businesses and mid-sized companies:** The Growth plan strikes a balance between functionality and cost. With advanced automation, AI-powered features, and expanded integrations, it empowers teams to streamline their support processes and handle increasing volumes. The additional team controls and analytics features provide the necessary tools for effective management and optimization. - **For larger enterprises and complex support operations:** The Scale plan and the Premier plan offer the most comprehensive solutions. These plans provide extensive customization options, advanced workflow automation, and enterprise-grade features. The higher limits on rules, knowledge base articles, and API rates ensure scalability for even the most demanding support environments. Ultimately, the choice of pricing plan depends on factors such as team size, support volume, required features, and budget. By carefully evaluating these aspects and aligning them with Front's offerings, businesses can select the plan that best supports their customer service goals and enables them to deliver enhanced experiences at every stage of growth.

Front Features

Drawn from insights across 285 verified reviews, we've outlined Front's best and worst rated features and how they stack up against the average rating.

Front's score

Category average

Front's Best Rated Features

Real-Time Monitoring

5.0

4.26 category average

Calendar Management

5.0

4.36 category average

Collaboration Tools

4.95

3.78 category average

Front's Worst Rated Features

Support Ticket Management

3.29

4.02 category average

Reporting/Analytics

3.68

4.24 category average

Spam Blocker

3.75

4.09 category average

Popular features found in Email Management
Alerts/Notifications
Archiving & Retention
Autoresponders
Canned Responses
Contact Management
Data Recovery
Email Marketing
Email Monitoring
Search/Filter
Shared Inboxes
Signature Management
Spam Blocker
More features of Front
Access Controls/Permissions
Account Alerts
Account Management
Activity Dashboard
Activity Tracking
AI Copilot
Alerts/Escalation
API
Application Management
Appointment Scheduling
Assignment Management
Audit Trail
Automated Routing
Batch Communications
Brainstorming
Business Process Automation
Calendar Management
Calendar/Reminder System
Calendar Sync
Call Center Management
Call Monitoring
Call Recording
Call Routing
Campaign Analytics
Campaign Management
Case Management
Chatbot
Chat/Messaging
Churn Management
Client Management
Client Portal
Collaboration Tools
Commenting/Notes
Communication Management
Compliance Management
Computer Telephony Integration
Configurable Workflow
Contact Database
Corrective and Preventive Actions (CAPA)
CRM
Customer Communication
Customer Complaint Tracking
Customer Database
Customer Engagement
Customer History
Customer Management
Customer Segmentation
Customer Service Analytics
Customizable Branding
Customizable Fields
Customizable Forms
Customizable Reports
Customizable Templates
Dashboard
Data Import/Export
Data Visualization
Deadline Management
Deal Management
Discussions/Forums
Document Storage
Drag & Drop
Email Distribution
Email Management
Email Reminders
Email Templates
Email Tracking
Employee Database
Employee Directory
Engagement Tracking
Event Calendar
Event Triggered Actions
Feedback Management
File Sharing
For iPad Devices
For Startups
Health Score
Help Desk Management
Inbox Management
Interaction Tracking
Internal Chat Integration
Inventory Management
Issue Management
Issue Tracking
IT Asset Management
Knowledge Base Management
Knowledge Management
Lead Capture
Lead Management
Lead Qualification
Live Chat
Macros/Templated Responses
Mailing List Management
Meeting Management
@mentions
Mobile Access
Mobile Alerts
Mobile App
Monitoring
Multi-Channel Communication
Multi-Channel Data Collection
Multi-Channel Management
Multiple User Accounts
Multi-User Collaboration
Negative Feedback Management
Notes Management
Onboarding
On-Demand Communications
Opportunity Management
Order Management
Performance Management
Performance Metrics
Personalization
Prioritization
Process/Workflow Automation
Project Management
Project Time Tracking
Prospecting Tools
Quality Assurance
Quality Management
Queue Management
Read Receipts
Real-Time Analytics
Real-Time Chat
Real-time Consumer-facing Chat
Real-Time Data
Real Time Editing
Real-Time Monitoring
Real-Time Reporting
Real-Time Updates
Reminders
Remote Access/Control
Remote Support
Reporting/Analytics
Reporting & Statistics
Resource Management
Response Management
Role-Based Permissions
Routing
Rules-Based Workflow
Sales Pipeline Management
Scheduling
Search
Secure Data Storage
Self Service Portal
Service Level Agreement (SLA) Management
Shipping Management
Single Sign On
SMS Messaging
Social Media Integration
Social Media Monitoring
SSL Security
Status Tracking
Supplier Management
Support Ticket Management
Support Ticket Tracking
Surveys & Feedback
Tagging
Task Management
Task Progress Tracking
Task Scheduling
Team Collaboration
Team Management
Template Management
Territory Management
Text Analysis
Third-Party Integrations
Ticket Management
Time Tracking
Transcripts/Chat History
Transfers/Routing
Transportation Management
Trend Analysis
Two-Way Audio & Video
Usage Tracking/Analytics
Version Control
Video Chat
Video Conferencing
Visual Analytics
Voice Mail
Warehouse Management
Website Integration
Whitelisting/Blacklisting
Widgets
Workflow Configuration
Workflow Management
Workforce Management

Front Integrations

Based on 285 verified reviews, we've identified products most frequently integrated with Front.

Gmail

Integration rated 4.0 from 4 reviews

Integration rated 4.0 from 2 reviews

Slack

Integration rated 5.0 from 2 reviews

Twilio

Integration rated 5.0 from 2 reviews

Nextiva

Integration rated 5.0 from 2 reviews

Intercom

Integration rated 1.0 from 2 reviews

See all 84 integrations

Front Key Sentiments

We analyzed 285 verified reviews for Front to find out what actual users really think.

Most Positive Sentiments

Team collaboration

69% Positive

24% Neutral

7% Negative

Reviewers find Front essential for improving team communication and efficiency, allowing seamless collaboration on customer communications. They appreciate how Front's features help keep track of customer interactions and internal discussions, making it easier to stay engaged and precise. Users also value the Front team's dedication to implementing customer feedback and regularly updating the app with new features.

Customer support

67% Positive

13% Neutral

21% Negative

Users consistently praise Front for its excellent customer service, noting that it is usually bug-free and reliable. They find the platform effective for fully engaging with customers and providing top-notch support. Additionally, reviewers highlight the continuous release of new features and the helpfulness of canned responses in managing customer interactions.

Team email management

65% Positive

28% Neutral

7% Negative

Users appreciate Front's ability to streamline internal communication through features like live chat and comments within email threads. They find the shared inbox and collaboration on drafts particularly useful for managing team emails efficiently. Additionally, users value the option to assign conversations and integrate personal and work emails in one place, enhancing overall productivity.

Least Positive Sentiments

Email archiving

32% Positive

26% Neutral

42% Negative

Users appreciate Front's email organization features, such as archiving and tagging emails for future follow-up. However, they experience difficulties with archive handling, including issues with re-opening archived emails and the auto-sync feature. Reviewers also mention challenges with fully archiving emails and ensuring no important messages are missed.

Response management

26% Positive

37% Neutral

37% Negative

Users appreciate Front's canned response feature for its convenience and efficiency in managing replies. However, users report problems with the appearance of canned responses and the platform's handling of critical feedback.

Ticket management

25% Positive

54% Neutral

21% Negative

Reviewers find Front beneficial for enhancing the customer experience and simplifying email management. However, they face challenges with ticket visibility and the overall ticket management system, which can lead to missed or forgotten tickets. Users also note that Front is not ideal as a dedicated ticketing system, as it lacks some necessary features for effective ticket handling.

Front User Reviews

Overall Rating

4.5

Ratings Breakdown

71%

20%

Secondary Ratings

Ease of Use

4.5

Value for money

4.1

Customer support

4.4

Functionality

4.4

David D.

Verified reviewer

Consumer Services

11-50 employees

Used daily for less than 12 months

Review source

Reviewed August 2022

Great product with a few annoying things

Overall great product, really happy with the exception of the email nesting

Ratings Breakdown

Ease of use

Value for money

Customer support

Functionality

Pros:

Easy to use - actually integrates well and completely replaces all other email managers. Unlike Zendesk or similar products; emails you send from Front are actually sent from your email address, not a weird routing domain like yourcompany.zendesk.com

Cons:

When multiple emails come in on the same day with the same title (e.g., two customers respond to the same automated email they got), Front will nest them together as if they are one thread. This causes problems with the customer support team because sometimes they forget / don't know they need to scroll up to respond individually to each nested email. Pretty annoying and error prone

Reasons for switching to Front

Freshdesk was not easy to use, wouldn't send messages directly from email, and there were lots of errors in the features I was using

Verified

Reviewer

Information Technology and Services

51-200 employees

Used daily for more than 2 years

Review source

Reviewed December 2019

Front is the best Shared Inbox for collaborative customer support

Front truly is a dynamic tool for teams looking to improve their internal workflows for external-facing communications. There is some fantastic automation that is built into the platform that has helped streamline and build in consistency for external client-facing communication.

Ratings Breakdown

Ease of use

Value for money

Customer support

Functionality

Pros:

My favorite functionality would be the collaborative chat tools amongst team members for email threads. Its an amazing tool.

Cons:

The thing I struggled the most to adapt to was the Tags functionality. It is not something we use daily but had a slight learning curve for me and my team.

Reasons for switching to Front

I was just beginning as an employee when this switch happened so I am not certain as to why. I know we were looking for a more collaborative tool which we found in Front App.

Mike S.

Verified reviewer

Marketing and Advertising

2-10 employees

Used daily for less than 2 years

Review source

Reviewed May 2019

Best way to collaborate on emails!

We're really happy with the switch from Gmail to Front. Love the customer support!

Ratings Breakdown

Ease of use

Value for money

Customer support

Functionality

Pros:

I like the clean UI and the way we can work with multiple people and teams on emails.

Cons:

The integrated chat could be done much better.

Marjolaine L.

Verified reviewer

Transportation/ Trucking/ Railroad

11-50 employees

Used daily for less than 2 years

Review source

Reviewed March 2020

Best email software ever

We have a shared inbox and we had trouble to avoid double answers and we had to forward the emails to each other or CC them on our replies so they could get informed of a conversation

Ratings Breakdown

Ease of use

Value for money

Customer support

Functionality

Pros:

Sharing emails without having to forward them, being able to have internal conversations within an email, plenty of integrations

Cons:

When I need to speak to all the team, I have to create a discussion and add them all, one by one. I'd rather have the possibility to @team within an email or a discussion to make sure they are all included. I also whish we could find a slack inbox where we could find all the channels we have and avoid having to switch between the two softwares.

Reasons for switching to Front

Missive product is very good although, we were missing integrations such as website hat, Intercom, Trello, Guru and Aircall

Verified

Reviewer

Education Management

11-50 employees

Used daily for less than 2 years

Review source

Reviewed July 2020

Great aggregator tool for Customer Success

I lead a customer success team that uses Front daily.

Ratings Breakdown

Ease of use

Value for money

Customer support

Functionality

Pros:

I love the ability to interact with all our support tools - phone, email, chat from intercom, while interacting with our full team (support team of 5). We stay connected on each user, and can easily run reports and track year over year metrics. We especially like the ability to chat back and forth before we respond to tricky situations, and the ability to Snooze.

Cons:

I would love for more integrations - specifically survey functionality, or the ability to have automation once you close out an email/chat. We have this on intercom but it lives within the intercom platform now.

Reasons for choosing Front

I like that it can pull together everything, and be accessed on the go.

Jan Z.

Verified reviewer

Biotechnology

2-10 employees

Used daily for less than 12 months

Review source

Reviewed May 2020

We wouldn't be the same without Front

Front is the backbone of communications, from talking with customers, taking care of signups and inquiries and handling customer support, Front lets us do all of that remotely.

Ratings Breakdown

Ease of use

Value for money

Customer support

Functionality

Pros:

Front helps us respond so much faster as we collaborate on high impact messages and it lets us know what each other's doing. The support team is also really fast and reliable.

Cons:

Runs on Electron, so can be a bit slow. Some missing features but the team is iterating really quickly.

Reasons for switching to Front

Tried a very cheap trial and fell in love with it

Jay M.

Verified reviewer

Real Estate

11-50 employees

Used daily for more than 2 years

Review source

Reviewed March 2025

Game-Changing Email Management for Teams

Front has completely transformed the way our team manages email communication! The shared inbox functionality is a game-changer, making collaboration seamless and ensuring no messages slip through the cracks. The interface is intuitive and easy to navigate, and the ability to assign emails, leave internal comments, and automate workflows has significantly boosted our efficiency. The integrations with other tools we use daily, like Slack and our CRM, make it even more powerful. Customer support is also fantastic—quick, helpful, and always responsive. If you're looking for a smarter way to handle team emails, I highly recommend Front!

Ratings Breakdown

Ease of use

Value for money

Customer support

Functionality

Pros:

The integrations with other tools, Customer support

Cons:

No current complaints about front, we are happy with their system

Vendor Response

Hi Jay. Thank you for taking the time to leave us a review! We’re thrilled to hear that Front has made such a positive impact on your team’s email workflow and collaboration. It’s great to know the shared inbox, internal comments, and automation features are helping you stay efficient and organized. And that our integrations are adding even more value to your daily tools. We also really appreciate the shoutout to our support team! We’re always here to help, and it means a lot to hear that you’ve had a great experience with us. Thanks again for the recommendation! 💙

Replied May 2025

Junior T.

Verified reviewer

Accounting

51-200 employees

Used daily for less than 2 years

Review source

Reviewed September 2025

Front Review

It has been really good it enables shared inboxes, internal comments, and task assignments, boosting team efficiency.

Ratings Breakdown

Ease of use

Value for money

Customer support

Functionality

Pros:

It's consistency across browsers and devices, making applications accessible on desktops, mobile devices, and tablets.

Cons:

Can be slow with large volumes of messages or complex workflows. New users may need time to adapt to advanced features.

Vendor Response

Thank you for your valuable feedback. We're glad to hear that you find Front's consistency and collaborative features beneficial. We appreciate you raising the issues with performance and the learning curve for new users to our attention. Feedback like yours helps shape how we move forward with improving Front!

Replied September 2025

Kinjal V.

Verified reviewer

Health, Wellness and Fitness

11-50 employees

Used daily for less than 2 years

Review source

Reviewed May 2025

Front - Customer Satisfaction

With out Front, I can say that my customer service will affect us way down and with Front our business is driven like skyline.

Ratings Breakdown

Ease of use

Value for money

Customer support

Functionality

Pros:

AI powered customer service and support. Live support and best customer service software so far. Easy graphics that can understand by non technical person. Shared inbox and help desk can allow team to work together for better experience.

Cons:

As per my experience I can say that there is no any least things about front but for premier version you have to pay more. I think it’s not it’s drawbacks.

Vendor Response

Thank you for your review, Kinjal! We're so glad to hear that Front has been helpful with your customer service and team collaboration. We appreciate your positive comments about our easy-to-understand graphics and shared inbox features.

Replied May 2025

Emily H.

Verified reviewer

Real Estate

2-10 employees

Used daily for more than 2 years

Review source

Reviewed May 2025

Front is great!

We have used Front for several years now, it's been a great tool and core part of our software and systems.

Ratings Breakdown

Ease of use

Value for money

Customer support

Functionality

Pros:

Front's collaboration, shared inbox system and ability to coordinate with people on my team, make it a necessity in our core tech stack.

Cons:

I can't think of anything in particular, Front is great and works really well for all our functions.

Vendor Response

Thank you so much for your wonderful review! 🌟 We’re thrilled to hear that Front has become such an essential part of your tech stack and that the collaboration and shared inbox features are making a real difference for your team.

Replied May 2025

Showing 1 - 10 of 285 Reviews

See All Reviews

Front FAQs

What companies use Front?
While Front’s entire client list isn’t published, many of its customers include tech companies that need to focus on efficient service delivery to many customers. Front helps to stay connected with customers and avoid missing business-critical communications.
How many users does Front have?
Although no exact number has been published, Front reports on its website that more than 9,000 organizations use it. The actual number of users will vary based on the number of employees each company that uses Front has. Also, the number will fluctuate from month to month as users subscribe and unsubscribe to Front’s app.
Is the Front app free?
No, Front is not available for free. The company charges on a subscription basis. However, you can get a free trial to test out Front’s features and determine whether it’s a useful option for your workflows. To try Front, you can fill out a short questionnaire with your name and contact info on their site.
What is Front used for?
Front is used for communicating with customers in real time and tracking communications across multiple avenues, such as email and text. It brings all communications into a central inbox so companies don't miss out on any customer interactions. It also works as an email management tool, particularly for customer service reps and salespeople who interact directly with customers.