Helpdesk Setup video: https://youtu.be/UbQRewsgJ-c
Helpdesk Setup Guide
The purpose of this guide is to help you with your helpdesk setup. First you will need to start off by creating your departments, ticket categories etc. before configuring your helpdesk notifications and mailboxes.
1. Enable Helpdesk Module:
Before you can start with the helpdesk setup, you will first need to enable the helpdesk module in DataTill. To do this, go to “Setup” > “System Settings” then click on the “Helpdesk” option.
After the page has loaded, switch the toggle button to “Yes” to enable the helpdesk module.
1.1. Helpdesk Settings:
After enabling the helpdesk, you will be able to see a list of other settings that you need to configure as well.
| Orange: | If enabled, customers can submit and view helpdesk tickets via their portal; if disabled, they cannot access tickets from the portal. |
| Pink: | If this function is enabled, a random URL will be generated and can be sent to customers. This means that the customer will not need to be logged in. |
| Purple: | If you would like to have customers receive notifications when their tickets are updated, you can do that here by enabling this button. |
| Light Blue: | If enabled, staff receive SMS alerts when tickets are assigned—provided the customer allows notifications and SMS credits are available on the account. |
| Dark Blue: | If this button is enabled, customers will receive a link in which they can rate the service received. This link will be sent to the customer once the ticket is closed. |
| Green: | If this section is enabled, a reason will need to be added to all newly created tickets as well as already existing tickets that are updated or re-assigned. |
| Red: | If enabled, the resolution and diagnosis fields will not show autocomplete values. |
| Yellow: | If enabled, the dropdown counters on the ticket view screen will only show if refresh is clicked. |
| Brown: | If enabled, staff receive SMS notifications for assigned tickets—provided the customer has notifications enabled and SMS credits are available via the SMS Gateway. |
| Black: | In this section, you can add a footer message that will then be added at the bottom of each helpdesk email message. |
1.2. Helpdesk PBX Settings:
Enable this setting to allow your PBX to auto-create tickets when customers call in, including calls transferred between departments. Be sure to activate the module first to use this feature.
1.3. Helpdesk Escalation:
The Helpdesk Escalation function allows tickets to be escalated based on priority, rules, and timeframes, and can be toggled on or off as needed. If enabled after using the helpdesk module, escalation applies only to new tickets—ensuring a smooth transition. It’s especially useful for managing SLAs and prioritizing VIP customers. To activate, switch the toggle to “Yes.”
Remember to click on the “Update” button found at the bottom of the page to save any changes that have been made.
If you have already set up and used the helpdesk module, continue setting up the following sections for your escalation module.
- Ticket Priorities
- Priority Rules
- Escalation Rules
- Escalation Periods If you are setting up your helpdesk module for the first time, continue to set up your helpdesk as per the outline of this guide.
2. Create Helpdesk Departments:
Your helpdesk department refers to all the departments within your company that will be using tickets. Please note that each department has its own ticket categories, which will be created in section 3. Some suggested department to have is:
- Accounts
- Field staff
- Helpdesk
- High Site
- Management
- Operations
- Sales
- Stock
* Please note that the above are just examples and you will need to set up your departments according to your ISP structure.
To set up your helpdesk department, go to “Workflow” > “Helpdesk Setup” and then click on the “Helpdesk Departments” option.
You will now see the following screen:
On this screen, you will be able to see a list of all departments, edit existing department, delete departments or “Add Departments “.
2.1. Adding New Departments:
To add a new department, click on the “Add Department” button. On the pop-up screen, you will need to give the department a name and a short description to mention what this department is about.
After adding all the details, click on the “Create” button.
2.2. Editing Departments:
To edit department, click on the edit button found on the right-hand side of the department.
After clicking on the edit button, you will now see the following screen:
| Pink: | In this section, you can change the department name. |
| Purple: | Here, you can change the department description. |
| Blue: | The Admin Only toggle controls visibility of this department in the customer portal. If set to No, customers can select it when logging helpdesk tickets. If set to Yes, the department remains hidden from customer selection. |
2.2.2. User:
Within this Users tab, you gain the ability to establish precise linkages between individual employees and their respective departments.
Here are some key considerations to bear in mind before embarking on the process of linking employees to departments:
- Prior to initiating any connections, ensure that you have loaded all your employees as admin users (refer to the DataTill Initial Setup for comprehensive guidance).
- It’s imperative to assign admin users to their corresponding departments. This allocation is pivotal for the effective assignment of tickets and their subsequent resolution.
- In essence, the ability to assign a ticket to specific admin users hinges on the existence of a direct link between them and the relevant department. Absence of such a link may impede seamless assignment.
To assign users to a department, select their names from the dropdown and click the blue Add button. To mark someone as a supervisor, toggle Yes next to their name. To remove a user, click Delete beside their name.
After making any changes, remember to click on the “Update” button.
2.2.3. Linked Categories:
This linked category tab will allow you to link specific categories to each department.
Things to note before linking a category to a department:
- Categories need to be created in advance (please refer to section 3 for more information).
To link a category to a department, select it from the dropdown and click Add. Use Edit to modify a category quickly, or Delete to remove it from the department.
3. Create Ticket Reasons:
Ticket reasons provide internal reporting on why tickets were created—such as speed issues, miscommunication, offline high sites, or forgotten passwords. These reasons are visible to staff only, not to customers.
Please note that unlike ticket categories, ticket reasons are not department specific.
To find a list of all your ticket reasons, go to “Workflow” > “Helpdesk Setup” > “Ticket Reasons”.
On the following screen, you will see a list of all your current ticket reasons. You will also be able to add, edit and delete ticket reasons.
3.1. Adding Reasons:
To add reasons, click on the “Add Helpdesk Ticket Reasons” button and complete details on the screen. You will need to:
- assign a group to the reason i.e., enquiry, sales or other.
- and give each reason a title.
After adding the relevant details, click on the “Add Helpdesk Ticket Reason” button.
In your reason list, you will now be able to see that all reasons are listed by the group first and then the title.
4. Create Ticket Categories:
Helpdesk categories provide a general overview of issues (e.g. account or connectivity). Unlike internal ticket reasons, categories are visible to customers and selectable via their portal. They’re also department-specific and should be linked accordingly (see section 2.2.3).
Key Category Info:
- You cannot have 2 categories with the same name.
- It is not advised to use the sub-category function on ticket categories as this feature is still under development.
- Once a ticket has been assigned to a ticket category, that specific category can no longer be deleted.
To find a list of all your helpdesk categories, go to “Workflow” – “Helpdesk Setup” and then click on the “Ticket Categories” option.
You will now see a list of all your ticket categories as well as add, edit and delete categories.
4.1. Adding Ticket Categories:
To add a new category, click on the “Add Category” button.
| Red: | In this section, give your category a name. |
| Orange: | Here, you need to add a short description about your category. |
| Pink: | If enabled, the category becomes internal only and is hidden from customers in the portal. |
| Blue: | Is this switch is enabled; you will be able to view statistics for this category on your helpdesk dashboard. |
After adding all details, click on the “Create” button.
5. Set Helpdesk Ticket Priorities:
Your ticket priorities work in close relation with your ticket rules. Your escalation module comes with 5 pre-populated priorities and overdue times:
- Low (24 hours)
- Normal (12 hours)
- High (2 hours)
- Critical (30 minutes).
You can add and manage these ticket priorities as you need to. To find the ticket priorities, go to “Workflow” > “Helpdesk Setup” > “Ticket Priorities” option.
You will now see a list of all your ticket priorities:
| Pink: | Here you can view the priority order. Priorities at the top of the list are seen as more important than priorities at the bottom of the list. |
| Red: | Here you can see the priority type. The ISP can create and manage these priorities as per their needs. |
| Orange: | In this section, you can see the time linked to each ticket priority. For example, a ticket can be low priority for 24 hours before it will be marked as overdue. |
5.1. Adding Ticket Priorities:
To add a new ticket priority, click on the “Add Priority” button.
You will now see the following pop-up screen:
| Red: | Enter your priority title here. |
| Orange: | In this section, you need to choose the amount of time that a ticket can be linked to the specific priority before escalated to the next priority. |
| Pink: | Here you can choose a colour to link to your category. |
| Purple: | If you would like to have repeated overdue alerts for this priority, click on yes to enable it. |
| Blue: | If enabled, the customer will not be able to see what the ticket priority is. If disabled, the customer will be able to view the ticket priority. |
After completing all the fields above, click on the “Add Priority” button.
5.2. Editing Ticket Priorities:
To edit a specific ticket priority, click on the “Edit” button.
On the pop-up screen, you will be able to amend the same details as to when you add a new ticket priority.
After making any changes, click on the “Save Changes” button.
5.3. Deleting Ticket Priorities:
If you need to delete a ticket priority, click on the “Delete” button found on the right-hand side of the priority.
Click on the “OK” button to confirm that you want to delete the priority.
5.4. Manage Priority Positioning:
Higher priorities rank as more important and appear first in the helpdesk ticket list. Use the arrows on the right to move items up or down in your priority order.
6. Helpdesk Priority Rules:
The escalation module lets you set priority rules, so new tickets can be automatically assigned a priority—like auto-tagging VIP customer tickets as highest priority. To configure, go to Workflow → Helpdesk Setup → Ticket Priority Rules.
You will now see the following screen:
| Pink: | Here you can see the rule name. |
| Red: | In this section, you can see to which aspect of DataTill the rule applies. |
| Orange: | This will show you which priority is linked to the rule. |
6.1. Adding Priority Rules:
To add a rule, click on the “Add Priority Rule” button.
You will now need to complete the following settings:
| Orange: | Add your rule name here. |
| Pink: | In this section, add any additional comments. |
| Purple: | Here you will need to choose the relevant ticket priority. |
| Blue: | Choose from six priority rule types: Admin User – applies to tickets created by staff Customer – applies to standard customers VIP Customer – ensures top priority for VIPs Customer Group – links priorities to groups like resellers Customer Category – links to categories such as virtual resellers Default – applies when no other rule is matched |
Click on the “Add Priority” button after completing the details.
6.2. Editing Priority Rules:
To edit priority rules, click on the “Edit” button found on the right-hand side.
On the following screen, you will be able to edit the same fields as when adding a new rule.
Remember to click on the “Save Changes” button after making any changes.
6.3. Deleting Priority Rules:
To delete a priority rule, click on the “Delete” button found on the right-hand side of the rule.
On the pop-up screen, click on the “OK” button to confirm that you would like the rule to be deleted.
6.4. When Multiple Rules Apply:
In the case that multiple rules are applicable to the ticket, then the rule with the highest priority rank will be applied to the ticket. For more information on how to determine the priority rank, please refer to section 2.3.4.
7. Helpdesk Escalation Rules:
When escalation rules are enabled, the system gives special attention to active tickets, excluding those on hold or deleted. Rules are department-specific and can apply to either all tickets or just high-priority ones—a useful setup for meeting customer SLAs and urgent support needs.
To set up an escalation rule, go to “Workflow” > “Helpdesk Setup” > “Escalation Rules” option.
Once loaded, the screen displays your escalation rules along with linked departments, Helpdesk categories, and other rule details.
7.1. Adding Escalation Rules
To add an escalation rule, click on the “Add Rule” button.
You will now see the following screen:
| Grey: | Give your rule a name. |
| Black: | In this section, you can add more information as to why the escalation is needed. |
| Brown: | Here you need to choose to which department this rule is applicable. |
| Gold: | If the rule applies to specific Helpdesk categories, select them here. To apply the rule to all tickets in the department, leave the field blank. |
| Orange: | If the rule targets specific ticket priorities, select them here. Leave the field blank to apply it to all priorities. For example, to escalate only critical tickets, choose that priority. |
| Red: | This sets the time limit a ticket can remain unattended before escalation—measured from its creation, last update, or previous escalation. |
| Pink: | If enabled, tickets can be escalated to specific departments, categories, and users, with an option to notify additional users like managers. If disabled, only an admin notification is sent when a ticket is unattended. |
| Purple: | In this section, you need to choose the department to which you would like the ticket to be escalated to. |
| Dark Blue: | Here, you will need to choose the relevant category that you would like to escalate the ticket to. |
| Light Blue: | This section will allow you to escalate the ticket to a specific admin user in the department selected. In other words, the ticket will be re-assigned to this user. |
| Light Green: | You can assign an admin user to receive escalation notifications, regardless of whether the escalation toggle is enabled or disabled. |
After completing all the details above, click on the “Add Helpdesk Escalation” button. Once you see your escalation rule on your screen, you will need to enable the escalation rule for your helpdesk.
7.2. Enabling Escalation Rules
To enable you escalation rule, click on the “Enable” button found on the right-hand side of the rule.
After clicking on the enable button, you will see the following pop-up screen:
Click on the “OK” button to successfully enable the rule.
7.3. Disabling Escalation Rules
To enable your escalation rule, click on the “Disable” button found on the right-hand side of the rule.
After clicking on the enable button, you will see the following pop-up screen:
Click on the “OK” button to successfully enable the rule.
7.4. Editing Escalation Rules
To edit an escalation rule, click on the “Edit” button.
You will now see the same screen as when adding a new rule. If you have made any changes to the rule, remember to click on the “Update” button.
7.5. Prioritizing Escalation Rules
After creating escalation rules, you can prioritize them from most to least important within each department group. Reordering is useful when multiple rules share similar matching criteria.
Use the arrows on the right to reorder rules—higher placement means greater importance.
7.5.1. Can’t Move a Rule?
You will not be able to move rules up when:
- It is already at the top of the list for a specific department.
- It is the only rule for a specific department.
You will not be able to move rules down when:
- It is already at the bottom of the rules list in a specific department.
- It is the only rule for a specific department.
8. Helpdesk Escalation Periods
Once enabled, the escalation module lets you define global escalation periods across departments. To configure, go to Workflow → Helpdesk Setup → Escalation Periods.
The screen displays all current escalation periods, including five default presets active Monday to Friday, 08h00–17h00, once the module is enabled.
8.1. Adding Escalation Periods
To add escalation rules, click on the “Add Escalation Rules” button found on the right-hand side.
You will now see the following screen:
| Orange: | Here you need to add a name for the rule. |
| Pink: | Select the day of the week for which rule is applicable. |
| Purple: | In this section, you can enter from which time of the day the escalation rule should be active. |
| Dark Blue: | In this section, you need to add the end time. This means after that specified time, tickets will not be escalated until the following day. |
| Light Blue: | Here you can add any additional comments. |
After completing all the necessary details, click on the “Add Escalation Periods” button.
8.2. Editing Escalation Periods
To edit the existing escalation rule, click on the “Edit” button found on the right-hand side of the screen.
8.2.1. Editing the Period
After clicking Edit, the same screen used for creating a rule will appear. Update the details as needed, then click Update to save changes.
8.2.2. Audit Trial
Additionally, you can now also view the audit trial for each escalation period. To do this, click on the “Audit” tab.
You will now be able to see who made changes and what changes were made. Remember to click on the “Update” button after making any changes.
8.3. Disabling Escalation Periods
8.3.1. Disabling the Periods
Disabling an escalation rule means that this rule will no longer be active. To disable a specific escalation rule, click on the “Disable” button.
After clicking the “Disable” button, you will see the following pop-up screen. Click on the “OK” button.
8.3.2. Enabling the Periods
To make a rule active again, click on the orange tick mark.
On the pop-up screen, click on the “OK” button.
8.4. Deleting Escalation Periods
To delete an escalation rule, click on the delete button found next to the rule.
After clicking the “Delete” button, you will see the following pop-up screen. Click on the “OK” button.
9. Escalation History
To view a list of all tickets that have been escalated, go to “Workflow” – “Helpdesk Setup” and then click on the “Escalation History” option.
On the following screen, you will see a list of all escalations that have taken place.
10. Mailboxes
Next, set up your helpdesk mailboxes. For detailed steps, refer to the Mailbox Scraping manual.
11. Helpdesk Notification Setup
This setting sends ticket update notifications to customers and a confirmation email with ticket details when a new ticket is created—helping them track and access their ticket quickly.
To find this setting, go to “Setup” and then click on the “Notification” option.
Under your Notifications settings, ensure that you have enabled the “Notifications Enabled” toggle switch.
