In this lesson, we'll discuss
Automating Support Tickets.
Automating support ticket management
can significantly enhance the efficiency of IT
and customer support teams by streamlining issue resolution
and improve overall customer satisfaction.
Support ticket management is a critical function
for our customer support teams.
These teams are responsible for addressing various issues,
incidents, and service requests
that are submitted by users or customers.
In many organizations,
the volume of support tickets can be really overwhelming,
which in turn can lead to delays in issue resolution,
increased workloads for your staff,
and decreased customer satisfaction scores.
Automating support ticket management
helps to address these challenges
by introducing efficiency, consistency,
and scalability into your support process.
When we talk about automation,
remember that we're referring
to the process of using technology and machinery
to perform tasks or processes
with minimal human intervention.
So, when it comes to automating trouble tickets,
the two key aspects that we attempt to automate
are the ticket creation and the ticket escalation process
for our support team.
Now, let's cover the ticket creation process first.
Automated ticket creation is the first step
in streamlining support ticket management.
This process involves the automatic generation of tickets
when users or customers report issues or requests.
Basically, the ticket creation process moves
through six steps.
First, the user or customer
will submit their support requests
through various channels, such as a email, web form,
or dedicated support portal.
These requests can range from technical issues
to service inquiries.
Second, the ticket is automatically generated
using an automation tool that is configured
to monitor these incoming requests
and automatically generate support tickets
based on predefined criteria.
For example, an email with specific keywords
or a request submitted
through a web form can trigger
the creation of a support ticket.
Third, the automation system will capture
the essential information from the user submission,
including the description of the issue,
contact details, and any relevant metadata.
This information is then associated
with a newly created ticket.
Fourth, the automation will categorize the tickets
based on their content or source.
For instance, a ticket related to a network issue
can be categorized under network support
while a request for a software installation
falls under software support.
Fifth, a priority will be assigned to the ticket
based on the predefined rules
and criteria you have set.
For example, an urgent issue may be assigned
a higher priority to ensure that it receives
some immediate attention and faster response.
Six, an automated notification
can be sent to the relevant support team or technician.
This notification includes all of the captured information
so that the support team
can begin to address the issue promptly.
By automating ticket creation,
organizations can ensure that all incoming support tickets
are efficiently captured,
categorized, and assigned for resolution.
This reduces the risk of ticket being lost or overlooked,
and accelerates the response time to user needs.
As a real world example, here at Dion Training,
we use a trouble ticket system
to collect any questions submitted by our students.
These tickets are automatically created
anytime someone sends an email to support@diontraining.com.
But, in addition to creating tickets by email,
we also have several automation and integrations
that also create tickets in our systems
for our student support team to answer.
For example, if you post a question
in the Q&A section of this course,
we have an automation that runs every four hours
to collect those Q&As,
create a ticket for each one of our system,
and then notify the proper student support agent
to create an answer to your question.
Then, our automation will take the answer
from our troubleshooting ticket
and send it back to the question and answer section
of this section so you can review it.
Another common support automation
is one that involves ticket escalation.
Ticket escalation is a critical aspect
of support ticket management that ensures that complex
or high priority issues are addressed properly
and by the appropriate personnel.
Ticket escalation follows a basic five step process.
First, organization will define its escalation criteria
based on the nature of the issue, its urgency,
and the service level agreement that it has in place.
For instance, a critical system outage
may require immediate escalation,
but a question from a student
as to what course they should enroll in,
might be okay to wait a few hours before it gets a response.
Second, we create the automation rules
around the escalation.
Here, our automation tools are configured
with predefined rules that monitor ticket attributes
such as priority level, response times,
or unresolved status.
When a ticket meets the escalation criteria,
the automation is automatically triggered.
Third, we take our escalation actions.
Once the trigger has been breach,
the automation system performs predefined actions,
which may include notifying a supervisor,
reassignment, or a change in priority.
If a supervisor is notified,
then an automated notification
will be sent to a team supervisor or manager
to alert them to the escalated ticket.
With reassignment,
the ticket may be automatically reassigned
from lower-level technician to a higher-level expert
capable of resolving a more complex issue.
Also, a change in priority
will allow the ticket's priority level
to be elevated to ensure it receives immediate attention.
Fourth, we have monitoring and tracking.
Here, our automation will continue to monitor
the escalated ticket's progress
to ensure that it is being addressed
according to the organization's escalation protocols.
Fifth, we have resolution and closure.
Once the issue is resolved,
automation system can trigger the ticket's closure
and notify the user or customer of the resolution.
Automating ticket escalation not only ensures
that critical issues are handled properly,
but maintain transparency
and accountability throughout the support process.
It also helps to minimize delays
in addressing urgent matters
and helps organizations meet
their service level agreements.
For example, here at Dion Training,
we have automations in place
that will route tickets to the proper instructor
if our student support analyst
cannot answer the question on their own.
Additionally, we have automations in place
to escalate the tickets after 24 or 48 hours
if they have not already been answered
based on our internal service level agreement targets
that we have set for various types of requests and tickets.
So remember, automating support ticket management
through ticket creation and escalation
brings numerous advantages to organizations
such as increased efficiency, consistency,
and customer satisfaction,
while optimizing resource allocation
and providing valuable insights or process refinement.
By embracing automation and support ticket management,
organizations can streamline their support operations,
address issues more effectively,
and ultimately, deliver better service
to their users or customers.