Forms

This feature is only available to administrators using SmarterTrack Enterprise.

While it's possible to create custom ticket and live chat templates that can be used to collect certain types of data from customers PRIOR to a ticket or live chat being submitted, there's a balance that needs to be found. That balance teeters on asking customers to provide too much or too little information. You don't want to overwhelm customers with fields when they first contact you, but you also need some types of information in order to properly triage issues or questions. That's where SmarterTrack Forms come into play.

Forms can be used for any number of things: gathering system information; gathering access information for remotely accessing a customer's network; gathering product serial numbers or part numbers and more. That said, a form can only be filled out once. If information is missing or filled out incorrectly, a new form will need to be sent to the user.

To view or manage forms in the system, log into the management interface with a system administrator account. Select Settings in the Navigator, then click on Forms in the navigation pane. Existing forms will load in the content pane. If no forms have been created, the content pane will be blank. The following buttons will be available:

1. New - Allows you to create a new form.
2. Edit - Allows you to edit a form.
3. Delete - Allows you to delete a form.

Creating a Form

Just as with Surveys, it's up to system administrators to create new forms. To do this, click the New button. When you do this, Form settings will open in the content pane and three (3) tabs appear: Preview, Details, and Fields

Preview

This is where you see how the form looks when it's presented to your end user. Once you've filled out the details and fields you'll use, the Preview tab will give you a good idea of how your customer or end user will see the form when it's sent to them.

Details

This tab displays fields to fill out for general information about the form, as well as the messages users will see when the form is sent to them to be filled out. There is some default text in certain areas, but it can easily be replaced or customized as needed.

• Form Name - The friendly name of the form as it appears in the forms list.
• Form Link Text - The link text you want the user to see, to entice them to click the link. For example, "New User Setup Information" or "New Vendor Registration Form". This is the text used by the #FormLink# variable that's included with the email and chat introduction text.
• Thank You Header - The text that appears at the top of the page that's displayed once a user fills out the form.
• Thank You Text - The full text that appears on the "Thank You" page that appears once a user fills out the form.
• Chat Introduction - This is the text that appears when a form is introduced via live chat. Generally, this text should be short and to-the-point. As a result, the introduction should be very basic. The "Form Link Text" that's set will appear within the introduction. Therefore, the #FormLink# variable MUST be included somewhere within this text.
• Email Introduction - This is the email that will be sent to users when the form is requested. This text can be longer and more stylized as it's sent as a reply to the ticket. Just as with the Chat Introduction, the "Form Link Text" that's set will need to appear somewhere within this text using the #FormLink# variable.

Fields

Fields are, essentially, the questions you want to ask, the information you want to collect, etc. Form fields are like survey questions: you add the items you want to collect and arrange them on the page in the order you want the information collected. In many ways, the field types match the survey question types you can create.

To add a field, click the Add Field button. A modal window will open and the following options are displayed:

• Field Type - This is the type of box you want to create to have filled out by the user. Field types include:
• Header - Text that will appear on the form as a <h2> header.
• Informational - Text that will appear as a label on the form. This is, more or less, introductory text that is not filled out by the user.
• Multiple Selection - Allows users to select one or more options from a list.
• Single Selection - Allows users to select one option from a list.
• Short Response - Allows users to enter a small amount of text in response to your question or statement.
• Long Response - Allows users to enter a larger amount of text in response to your question or statement.
• Yes / No - Allows users to select yes or no in response to your question.
• Checkbox - Allows user to checkmark a statement or question. For example, this could be used to gather consent. ("I accept the Terms and Conditions as outlined in this form.")
• Email Address - Allows users to enter a valid email address.
• Link - Creates a text box where users can input URLs to websites or individual web pages.

Depending on the Field Type you select, options will appear that will allow you to customize the question, or data point, so you can collect the information you want. Once you have everything set up, be sure to save your new form.

Sending a Form

As mentioned, forms can be sent to users either via live chat or as a reply to a ticket. However, the options for sending a form as a chat reply versus a ticket reply are slightly different.

Sending a Form Via Live Chat

When sending a form as part of a live chat, simply click the Actions (...) button and select "Send Form" from the dropdown. This will paste the Chat Introduction text as a reply to the chat, along with the Form Link Text. The user simply clicks that link to open the form in a new window.

Sending a Form as a Ticket Reply

When sending a form as a reply to a ticket, agents have the ability to modify the Email Introduction text, if necessary. Unlike the Chat Introduction, having the ability to edit the Email Introduction is a benefit for agents when replying to tickets. This is because they may want to modify, or personalize the Email Introduction based on any ongoing or previous conversations they've been having with the end user. Crafting Email Introduction text that is viable across many different circumstances is difficult, at best, for a system administrator. Therefore, giving agents the ability to customize the text ensures that the rapport the agent has with the end user is preserved.

Just as with live chats, when an agent is replying to a ticket, they click the Actions (...) button and select Send Form from the dropdown. This opens a reply window and pastes the Email Introduction text as the agent's reply, complete with Form Link Text. The agent can then simply send the reply, and set the appropriate status on that reply, or edit the introduction text before sending the reply.

Regarding ticket status once a form is sent, a completed form will always place the ticket the form is associated with back to an Active status. (Tickets that are Closed and Locked retain that status, even if a form is filled out.) In addition, a comment is added to the ticket denoting the date and time the form was completed, and the Forms tab will display a number on it, noting that there is a new completed form associated with the ticket. The agent can then go to that tab and click the Form link to view the form.