2.8.1 Ticketing Systems

A ticketing system is a software application used to track help desk tickets.

Creating Tickets

Organizations use ticketing systems to identify and record technical issues, manage progress, and verify that those issues were fully resolved to the customer's satisfaction. The first step in handling a new ticket is to record all relevant information in the ticketing system. Relevant information includes:

• User Information
  • Name
  • Phone
  • Email
• Problem Description
  • Symptoms
  • Error Messages
  • Recent Changes
• Device Information
  • Model Information
  • Operating System
  • Warranty Status
  • Device Network ID
  • Name of the Software / Peripheral Involved

Organizing Tickets

Ticketing issues are often organized by category. The most important category is the ticket's severity level. It determines how time-sensitive a solution is, and also helps workers prioritize their work. Other severity levels include can be high, medium, and low. Another possible category would be the department that the ticket could be assigned to, along with the ticket's tier. Support teams often have two or three tiers for tickets assigned to them.

• The first tier collects customer information and tries to resolve the issue with basic troubleshooting solutions. If they cannot solve the issue, the ticket gets pushed to the second tier.
• The second tier is made up with individuals that have more experience or are specialized in a certain area. If they cannot fix it or don't have the required permissions to fix the problem, then it gets moved to the third tier.
• The third tier doesn't usually receive problems that the customer is facing. They instead solve issues behind the scenes and handle the most complex, urgent situations.

When related internal tasks can be associated with a support ticket, some ticketing software have the ability to add sub-tickets to tickets. Sub-tickets can be used to further organize required tasks that can help lead to the complete resolution to the problem surrounding a help ticket.

Describing Tickets

Tickets should also include progress notes, recording descriptions of any fixes that were attempted and any information gained about the problem, whether it be though interactions with the customer, attempting to resolve the issue, external research regarding the problem, along with follow-up conversations following the resolution of the ticket's issue.

• Fixes that have been tried
• Research or follow up conversation
• Next steps that need to be completed
• Exactly how a problem was resolved

Tickets have a status field that keeps track of the progress of the issue surrounding the ticket. Common statuses may include:

• Open: New ticket has been created but not addressed.
• In-Progress: Ticket has been assigned to a team and someone is working on resolving the issue.
• Solved: The issue surrounding the ticket has been solved and is awaiting customer acknowledgement.
• Closed: Ticket has been solved and the customer has confirmed that the solution works. Workers can now move on to the next waiting ticket.

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