Fields classification
1. In terms of data affiliation, fields can refer either to the user or the case.
In custom fields, the data is fixed for a specific user and does not change from case to case. An example is the "Email address" field.
Case fields, on the contrary, are fixed for a specific case and are not related to the user. For example, the checkbox "A task has been set".
The list of fields has a corresponding division into these two types. If necessary, any of the blocks can be collapsed.
2. According to the editing capabilities, fields are divided into standard and custom ones.
Standard fields cannot be disabled or completely removed. You can only edit, although editing is significantly limited. All this is done because the standard fields are an integral part of the platform, and a lot is tied to them.
Custom fields are fully customizable. You decide what type of field to create, in what forms and under what name they are displayed, and whether they are mandatory or not.
3. Depending on the data representation, the fields are divided into five types: text field, text area, checkbox, dropdown list, and date.
In the field list, the field type is displayed immediately below its name. You cannot change the type of standard fields. With custom fields, the type is set only when the field is created and cannot be changed later.
Fields settings
When customizing a field, the key is choosing the forms in which it should be displayed. By selecting certain forms, you decide whether the field will be available for filling and editing by the customer or only by agents.
Deskie has a total of 8 forms available:
Submit an idea (section "Ideas" in the Help Center);
User profile (user account, Help Center);
User page (agent account, "Users" section);
User data (agent account, specific case, right sidebar);
Adding user (agent account, page for adding a case);
Incoming call (agent account, incoming call pop-up window);
Case parameters in agent account (agent account, specific case, left sidebar);
Case parameters in user account (user account, specific case, left sidebar).
When creating/editing fields, there is a tooltip to the right of the name of each form, that helps you understand which form it is.
If the field is added to the "User Profile" or "User Contact Settings" forms that are in the user's Help Center account, you can choose whether the user can edit the field or only view it.
Editing standard fields
Each standard field displays by default all the forms it can be added to. In most cases, the desired forms are already active and cannot be disabled. In this case, it is possible to change the name of the field in any of the forms. Sometimes you can also specify if the field is required.
Creating and editing custom fields
When creating an additional field, you need to choose: affiliation, type, and forms in which it will be added.
Let's say we want to create a Case Type field. With it, customers will indicate what type of case they are sending: a question, a problem, a bug, a complaint, or appreciation.
The customer must select the appropriate option when sending a case through the widget so that later both the agent and the customer can see it in the case parameters.
First of all, we indicate that this is a case field since the data is not related to the user. Next, select the "Dropdown" type to provide the user with the opportunity to select the appropriate one from the options we have specified. We activate the forms "Case parameters in agent account" and "Case parameters in user account". To add this field to the widget, you need to add it in the settings of the widget itself.
Additional features
a. By default, all custom fields are added to forms as optional, but if you wish, you can click on the asterisk to make the field mandatory in the desired form.
b. You can enable restrictions on "Date", "Text field," and "Text area" fields to prevent clearing or both clearing and editing. Enabling editing automatically activates the clearing option since editing includes the ability to clear.
c. Editing restrictions can be enabled for fields of the "Checkbox" and "Dropdown" types.
The settings outlined in points a–c only apply to manual actions within the employee account, and the fields will still be editable through templates, rules, and the API.
d. You can also change the order of the fields in the forms. To do this, go to the "Sorting fields in forms" tab, find the desired form and arrange the fields in the desired order.
Other points
For custom fields, the name that is displayed in the list of fields in the administrator account is taken from the first active form.
If you have disabled the Help Center, the forms associated with it (Submit an idea, User profile) are hidden in all fields — standard and custom.
If the Google plus, Facebook, Telegram and other standard fields with contact details are enabled for the "User Data" form, which are filled in automatically by the service, in case the user has not yet contacted you via these channels and the fields are empty, we hide them so as not to take up space for nothing.
In the parameters of the case, the fields "Reply from address" and "Recipient" have been moved to the top for greater convenience since they cannot be edited.
Additional fields are supported in the API, rules, and macros.