This training material will cover the following topics:
Ticket fields are the individual components that make up a ticket form. They can be customized to ask for specific information and help generate ticket metadata. Typically, there are two types of ticket fields:
There are several types of ticket fields, however the only ones we use are as follows:
| Field Type | Usage |
|---|---|
| Drop-down | A select box containing a list of items (only one can be selected) |
| Text | A single line textbox |
| Multi-line | A textbox allowing for multiple lines |
| Checkbox | A checkbox allowing for boolean style data |
| Numeric | A textbox allowing for only whole numbers |
| Decimal | A textbox allowing for decimal type numbers |
| Date | A textbox allowing for date strings only |
| Regex | A textbox allowing for strings only matching a specific regex formula |
While the exact options vary from type to type, the options you will generally see are:
Note: As of 2021-09-21, Zendesk has changed the location of the ticket
fields management pages. They are now located in the Admin Center, which you
can locate by clicking the four squares in the top-right of the page and
clicking the Admin Center link. After doing so, you can locate the ticket
fields management pages under Objects and rules > Tickets > Fields. All
videos are of the old location (i.e. in the admin panel). Once you access the
management pages, the steps to create/edit/etc. are the same.
To create a ticket field via the Zendesk UI, you will first go to the Admin
Center, which you can locate by clicking the four squares in the top-right of
the page and clicking the Admin Center link. After doing so, you can locate the
ticket fields management pages under Objects and rules > Tickets > Fields.
From there, click the Add field button at the top-right of the page.
You will then give your ticket field a title by clicking on New field at the
top of the page (keep in mind the title shown to agents is determined from the
title you enter). After doing that, you will then select the field type.
Next, you will enter the permission information. This will vary depending on what you want the ticket field to look and act like.
You will then enter any options specific to the ticket field itself.
Finally, click the blue Save button in the bottom right-hand side of the page.
Note: As of 2021-09-21, Zendesk has changed the location of the ticket
fields management pages. They are now located in the Admin Center, which you
can locate by clicking the four squares in the top-right of the page and
clicking the Admin Center link. After doing so, you can locate the ticket
fields management pages under Objects and rules > Tickets > Fields. All
videos are of the old location (i.e. in the admin panel). Once you access the
management pages, the steps to create/edit/etc. are the same.
To edit a ticket field via the Zendesk UI, you will first go to the Admin
Center, which you can locate by clicking the four squares in the top-right of
the page and clicking the Admin Center link. After doing so, you can locate the
ticket fields management pages under Objects and rules > Tickets > Fields.
From there, locate the ticket field in question amongst the list of all ticket
fields. After doing so, click on the name of the ticket field.
From here, you can tweak the settings of the ticket field.
One you are done editing, click the blue Save button in the bottom right-hand
side of the page.
Note: As of 2021-09-21, Zendesk has changed the location of the ticket
fields management pages. They are now located in the Admin Center, which you
can locate by clicking the four squares in the top-right of the page and
clicking the Admin Center link. After doing so, you can locate the ticket
fields management pages under Objects and rules > Tickets > Fields. All
videos are of the old location (i.e. in the admin panel). Once you access the
management pages, the steps to create/edit/etc. are the same.
To deactivate a ticket field via the Zendesk UI, you will first go to the Admin
Center, which you can locate by clicking the four squares in the top-right of
the page and clicking the Admin Center link. After doing so, you can locate the
ticket fields management pages under Objects and rules > Tickets > Fields.
From there, locate the ticket field in question amongst the list of all ticket
fields.
From here, there are two ways to deactivate the ticket field:
Re-activating a ticket field is the same process, but instead you'd make sure to
click the Inactive tab on the ticket field list page and ensure the option
you click in the pop-up menu is Activate.
To ensure all ticket fields we utilize are both consistent in nature and transparent in their actions, we strive to meet some standards on all ticket fields we work with.
The title of the ticket field should be as clear and concise as possible. The objective is for the agents working tickets and the Zendesk admins to be able to understand what the ticket field is for and what information it contains.
With drop-downs, aim to make the information as clear and concise as possible. Lengthy wordings here can render poorly at times in the ticket form.
There will be times when you cannot avoid it. In those cases, you'll want to double check what it will look like to the end-user and the agent before committing the option to production.
Whenever possible, we want tags generated from ticket fields. The tags should be very unique and align with the title of the ticket field.
As an example, if you are making a drop-down called "Billing Problem Type", you would want the tags used to reflect that as well as the option they represent.
| Option | Tag |
|---|---|
| I want a discount | billing_problem_discount |
| My credit card won't work | billing_problem_cc_issue |
| Other | billing_problem_other |
We do this to ensure the tags do not collide with one another and so we can get very specific information via data queries.
As this usually stems from changes to ticket forms, it will follow the exact same change management process as those. For more information, see Ticket Forms Change Management.