Creating & Managing Tickets

The Ticket dialog (FrmCRMTicket) is the form you use to create new support tickets, view existing ticket details, update fields, manage status transitions, and record resolution notes. This article walks you through every part of the dialog, from the header area and input fields to the status workflow and resolution notes, so you can confidently manage tickets from start to finish.

Opening the Ticket Dialog

There are two ways to open the Ticket dialog:

• Creating a new ticket — On the Customer Form's Tickets tab, click the New Ticket button in the ToolStrip. The dialog opens with empty fields, ready for you to fill in.
• Editing an existing ticket — On the Customer Form's Tickets tab, double-click any ticket row in the grid. The dialog opens with all of that ticket's current information loaded.

In both cases, the ticket is automatically linked to the customer whose record you are viewing. You do not need to select the customer manually.

The Header Area

At the top of the Ticket dialog, the header area provides quick-reference information about the ticket:

• Ticket #ID — The unique, auto-generated ticket number. For new tickets, this field shows "New Ticket" until the ticket is saved for the first time, at which point the system assigns a permanent ID.
• Status Badge — A colored badge showing the ticket's current status (Open, In Progress, Resolved, or Closed). This badge updates instantly when you change the status dropdown.
• Priority Badge — A colored badge showing the ticket's current priority (Low, Medium, High, or Urgent). Like the status badge, this updates instantly when you change the priority dropdown.

The header gives you an immediate visual summary of the ticket's state without needing to read through all the fields.

Ticket Fields

Below the header, the dialog contains the input fields where you enter and edit the ticket's details. Here is a breakdown of every field:

Subject (Required)

The subject is a brief, one-line description of the issue or request. This is the text that appears in the ticket grid, so it should be concise but descriptive. Good subjects make it easy to scan a list of tickets and understand what each one is about without opening it.

Good examples:

• "Damaged item received in order #4521"
• "Requesting refund for overcharge on March invoice"
• "Product not working after installation"

Poor examples:

• "Help" (too vague)
• "Issue" (not descriptive)
• "Customer called about something" (not specific)

Description

The description is a multiline text field where you provide a detailed explanation of the issue. While the subject gives a brief summary, the description is where you capture all of the relevant context. Include information such as:

• What the customer reported
• When the issue occurred
• Any order numbers, product names, or invoice references
• Steps the customer has already taken to try to resolve the issue
• Any error messages or specific symptoms

A thorough description saves time later because anyone who picks up the ticket can understand the full situation without needing to contact the customer again for basic information.

Priority Dropdown

The priority dropdown lets you set the urgency level for the ticket. The four options are:

When you create a new ticket, the priority defaults to Medium. Change it based on the severity of the issue. The priority badge in the header updates immediately when you make a selection.

Status Dropdown

The status dropdown controls where the ticket stands in the resolution workflow. The four options are:

New tickets always start as Open. You change the status as work progresses. See the Status Transitions section below for detailed guidance on when and how to change each status.

Category Dropdown

The category dropdown is populated from your configurable list of ticket categories. The default categories are:

• General Inquiry
• Product Issue
• Billing
• Returns
• Technical Support
• Complaint
• Feature Request

Select the category that best describes the nature of the issue. If your administrator has added custom categories, those will appear in the dropdown as well. Choosing the correct category helps with reporting and makes it easier to filter and sort tickets.

Assigned To Dropdown

The Assigned To dropdown lists all employees at your current location. Select the person who will be responsible for working on this ticket. The assigned employee is the one who will see this ticket in their view (if the location uses owner_only visibility) and who is accountable for resolving it.

If you are not sure who should handle the ticket, assign it to yourself initially and reassign it later once you determine the right person. It is better to have a temporary owner than no owner at all, because unassigned tickets are easily overlooked.

Contact Dropdown

The Contact dropdown is populated from the customer's contacts list. If the customer has multiple contacts on file (for example, a primary contact, a billing contact, and a technical contact), you can select the specific person who reported or is affected by the issue. This helps your team know exactly who to follow up with.

If the customer has only one contact, that contact is selected by default. If no contacts exist for the customer, this dropdown will be empty.

Resolution Notes

The Resolution Notes field is a special text area that becomes visible when the ticket status is set to Resolved or Closed. This field is where you document how the issue was resolved.

When to Write Resolution Notes

You should write resolution notes whenever you move a ticket to the Resolved status. The notes should explain:

• What the root cause of the issue was
• What actions were taken to resolve it
• Whether any follow-up is needed
• Any credits, refunds, or replacements that were issued

Why Resolution Notes Matter

Resolution notes serve several important purposes:

• Knowledge sharing — If a similar issue comes up in the future, team members can search for past tickets and see how they were resolved.
• Customer communication — When following up with the customer to confirm resolution, the notes provide a clear summary of what was done.
• Quality assurance — Managers can review resolution notes to ensure that issues are being handled properly and consistently.
• Reporting — Resolution notes contribute to a complete audit trail for the ticket's lifecycle.

Examples of Good Resolution Notes

• "Issued a replacement for the damaged item. New shipment tracking number: TRACK-789456. Customer was notified via email."
• "Credit of $45.00 applied to invoice #3201 for the overcharge. Customer confirmed the adjustment is correct."
• "Walked the customer through the installation process step by step. The issue was a missing configuration file. Provided the file and confirmed the product is now working."

Status Transitions in Detail

Managing status transitions correctly is essential for accurate tracking and reporting. Here is a detailed guide to each transition:

Open to In Progress

When: An employee begins actively working on the issue.

What to do:

1. Open the Ticket dialog by double-clicking the ticket in the grid.
2. Change the Status dropdown from Open to In Progress.
3. Make sure the Assigned To field is set to the person working on the ticket.
4. Click Save.

This transition signals to the rest of the team that the ticket has been picked up and someone is handling it. It prevents duplicate effort where multiple people might try to work on the same issue.

In Progress to Resolved

When: The issue has been fixed, the question has been answered, or the request has been fulfilled.

What to do:

1. Open the Ticket dialog.
2. Change the Status dropdown from In Progress to Resolved.
3. The Resolution Notes field becomes visible. Enter a clear description of how the issue was resolved.
4. Click Save.

When you save the ticket with the Resolved status, the system automatically sets the resolved_at timestamp to the current date and time. This timestamp is used for calculating resolution time metrics.

Resolved to Closed

When: The customer has confirmed that the resolution is satisfactory, or enough time has passed that the ticket can be considered complete.

What to do:

1. Open the Ticket dialog.
2. Change the Status dropdown from Resolved to Closed.
3. Optionally update the Resolution Notes if there is additional information to add.
4. Click Save.

When you save the ticket with the Closed status, the system automatically sets the closed_at timestamp. Closed tickets remain in the grid for reference but are considered complete.

Resolved Back to In Progress (Reopening)

When: The customer reports that the issue has come back, or you discover that the original resolution did not fully address the problem.

What to do:

1. Open the Ticket dialog.
2. Change the Status dropdown from Resolved back to In Progress.
3. Add a note explaining why the ticket is being reopened (use the notes thread for this).
4. Click Save.

Moving a ticket back to In Progress clears the resolved_at timestamp. A new resolved_at will be recorded when the ticket is resolved again. This ensures that resolution time metrics reflect the actual time it took to fully resolve the issue.

Required Permissions

Access to ticket operations is controlled by CRM permissions. Your ability to create, edit, and delete tickets depends on which permissions your user role has been granted.

If you find that a button is grayed out or a field is not editable, check with your administrator to confirm that your role has the appropriate permissions.

Saving a Ticket

After filling in or editing the ticket fields, click the Save button at the bottom of the dialog. The system validates the required fields (Subject is required) and saves the ticket to the database. If this is a new ticket, the system assigns a Ticket ID and the header updates to show the new number.

After saving, the Customer Form's ticket grid refreshes automatically to reflect the changes.

Tips for Creating Effective Tickets

• Write clear subjects — A good subject line saves everyone time. Be specific about the issue rather than using vague terms.
• Fill in the description thoroughly — The more context you provide up front, the less back-and-forth is needed to resolve the issue.
• Set the category correctly — This helps with routing, reporting, and trend analysis.
• Assign the ticket immediately — Every ticket should have an owner from the moment it is created.
• Update the status as work progresses — Do not leave tickets in the Open status if you have already started working on them.
• Always write resolution notes — Even for simple issues, document what was done. This builds a knowledge base that helps your entire team.

The Notes Thread

Below the input fields, the Ticket dialog displays the Notes Thread. This is a scrollable, chronological list of all notes that have been added to the ticket. The notes thread is covered in detail in the next article, Ticket Notes & Communication.

What to Read Next

• Ticket Notes & Communication — How to use internal and standard notes for team communication and audit trails
• Task Management & Follow-Ups — Creating follow-up tasks linked to tickets and customers