Manage automation rules

What are rules?

A rule is a set of conditions that, when met, trigger one or more actions in your HelpDesk license. HelpDesk rules are designed to help you with everyday, repetitive tasks and speed up your work. They’re easy to use and intuitive — no matter how technologically advanced you are. 

Rules provided by HelpDesk can lower the time spent on managing tickets. They allow you to respond faster and more precisely to customer requests. Also, automation rules reduce errors caused by the human element and allow you to focus on challenging topics where the support of a real agent is needed.

Think about the tasks you’d like to automate as part of your ticketing work to get a job done. Write down the steps you need to take and proceed to rule planning.

When are rules triggered?

Rules are triggered whenever there’s a change to a ticket, including ticket creation. After each change, the conditions of the rule are analyzed again, and when those conditions are met, actions are executed.

Rules dashboard 

To find the rules, go to the “Automations” section and choose the “Rules” category. 

In the rules dashboard, you can find a list of your turned-on and turned-off rules. Here you can add, turn on, turn off, and manage rules, meaning edit, duplicate, or delete them.

Single rule view

The single rule view consists of:

• Name
• Description
• Activity status
• Assigned teams
• The number of rules executions

Turn on/turn off rules

To turn on or turn off a rule, use the “Switch” button on the right side of the rule.

Edit rule

You can edit the rule and all of its parts at any time. Use the menu and select the “Edit” button to change the rule’s configuration.

You don’t have to disable a rule to edit it. You can freely edit and change any part of an active rule. Remember to save all changes.

After editing and saving changes in the rule, it’ll remain in the same place on the list. 

Duplicate rule

Use the menu and select the “Duplicate” button to duplicate the rule with its configuration.

The duplicate rule will be at the bottom of the list.

Delete rule

To delete the rule, use the menu and select the “Delete” button.

Before making your request, you’ll see a message asking if you really want to delete it. After that, you’ll get confirmation that the rule has been deleted along with the whole configuration.

Adding rules

Before you start adding your new rule, pay attention to the order in which you create rules, as they’re ordered by creation sequence, so the rule created first will be executed first.

You can choose one of two available options:

• Create a new custom rule.
• Use rule templates grouped into many useful categories, such as auto-messaging, prioritizing and VIP, assignment, following, labeling, or status change

Custom rule

You can create a unique rule to suit your needs. To automate your processes, select the conditions that must be met to run the actions as well as the actions themselves. 

First, think about whether all or any of the conditions have to be met.

Specify the condition

Next, choose the condition from the list. Configure it according to your preferences, and fill in the available fields.

Available conditions

There are many conditions you can choose from, divided into categories for better rule configuration:

Ticket:

• Ticket created
• Ticket changed
• Source
• Status
• Status changed
• Priority
• Priority changed
• Rating
• Subject
• New message from requester
• New private note
• Any agent message
• New message to requester
• Tag
• Language
• Performed events number
• Forwarding address

Assignment:

• Team
• Team changed
• User
• User changed
• Follower

Requester:

• Requester email

Spam:

• Ticket is spam
• Ticket is not spam

Time:

• Time since

If necessary, you can add another condition and adjust it right away. Select the “Add condition” button to do so.

All phrase-based conditions now have a reverse selection option. Look at the graphic below, where the new message contains OR does not contain the phrase/string of characters you specified.

See examples of how rules work with a phrase and a string of characters as conditions:

1) When you select the phrase (case-sensitive):

If HelpDesk ticketing system is found in the ticket, it’ll match the phrases like ticketing system and HelpDesk, but not helpdesk, Ticketing, ticket, or Help. The rule is that the phrase must be matched. The use of uppercase or lowercase letters is important here.

2) When you select the phrase:

If HelpDesk ticketing system is found in the ticket, it’ll match the phrases like ticketing system and HelpDesk, but not ticket or Help. The rule is that the phrase must be matched.

3) When you select the string of characters (case-sensitive):

If HelpDesk ticketing system is found in the ticket, it’ll match all the words, that is, the ticket, Help, ticketing system, HelpDesk, but not helpdesk, Ticketing, or Tickets. The use of uppercase or lowercase letters is important here. 

4) When you select a string of characters:

If HelpDesk ticketing system is found in the ticket, it’ll match all the words, that is, the ticket, Help, ticketing system, HelpDesk. This is the former default, and it’s more permissive.

Specify the action

Then, specify the action to be executed automatically if the conditions are met.

Available actions

There are many actions you can choose from, divided into categories for better rule configuration:

Assign:

• Set assignment (find out more on setting up auto-assignments)

Send:

• Send feedback request: choose if it should be a custom message or a canned response
• Send follow-up: choose if it should be a custom message or a canned response
• Send message: choose if it should be a custom message or a canned response
• Send private note

Set:

• Set status
• Set priority

Tag:

• Add tag
• Remove tag

Spam:

• Move to Spam
• Move to all recent tickets

Followers:

• Add follower
• Remove follower

If necessary, you can add another action and adjust it right away. Select the “Add action” button to do so.

Tips for “Send message” action

You can add the advanced “If parameter” when creating the rule related to the “Send message” action to avoid undesirable situations where the assigned agent field is blank or the name of the person submitting the ticket is unknown.

Use the “If parameter” below and place it in the message body to look professional. 

{{#ticket.agentName}}Agent: {{.}}{{/ticket.agentName}}

{{^ticket.agentName}}No agent name{{/ticket.agentName}}

Describing rule 

Name

Name your rule. To create a name, you can use the actions and the final effect caused by it. 

Description

In the “Description” field, briefly write what your rule covers. This helps you manage your rules. Also, your team can quickly learn about their purpose by reading the description.

Options

Here you can choose whether to turn on or turn off the rule after the configuration is completed.

When all fields are completed, select the “Add rule” button, and it’ll appear on your list. Every new rule appears at the bottom of the list. 

Rule templates

You can also use proven templates to speed up the configuration process. Think of them as a basis for working with rules. All rule templates are grouped into many useful categories, such as auto-messaging, prioritizing and VIP, assignment, following, labeling, or status change. 

Frequently asked questions about rules

What are the differences between sending feedback requests, follow-ups, and messages?

When setting up rules, different types of automated communications — such as feedback requests, follow-ups, and messages — serve distinct purposes. Understanding these differences can help you design more effective customer service strategies.

Feedback requests

• Purpose: To gather customer feedback about their experience or satisfaction with a service/product. This is crucial for quality assurance and continuous improvement.
• Timing: Typically sent after a ticket has been resolved or a service has been delivered, to evaluate the customer’s experience.
• Content: Often includes a quick survey or a set of questions designed to measure satisfaction levels, understand customer needs, and identify areas for improvement.

Follow-ups

• Purpose: To check in with the customer after an initial interaction or service has been provided, ensuring that their issue has been resolved satisfactorily or if further assistance is needed.
• Timing: Sent at a predefined interval after the initial ticket resolution, follow-up timing can be critical for catching unresolved issues before they escalate.
• Content: Generally, a follow-up is less about gathering detailed feedback and more about ensuring resolution completeness, customer satisfaction, and offering additional support if necessary.

Messages

• Purpose: Messages can serve a variety of purposes, such as providing customers with updates on their ticket status, informing them about new features or services, or delivering transactional information.
• Timing: The timing of messages can vary widely depending on their purpose. For instance, transactional emails are sent immediately after an action is taken, while informational updates might be scheduled regularly.
• Content: The content of a message is highly dependent on its objective. It could range from detailed information about a service update and instructions for the next steps in a support process to general announcements.