Inbound Process

Setup how other members contact your support organization and configure notification email

How to Update your Inbound Process

Process Details

• Process Name: This is the internal name of your process. Example Main Support Process

• Support Hours: This is the hours of support for your support organization. Example 7X24X365

• Products Supported: Used to list products supported if restricted. If no restrictions put All Supported Products. Basic and Premium Members can also contact TSANet to add a product selector as a field on the form

• Type: The type of process. Set by TSANet to indicate workflow. Examples are collaborative support, solution support, and critical escalation. Contact TSANet to change.

• To Email: Enter the email alias that will receive the inbound case request when configured as Standard Email process type. Example [e-mail]

• Cc Email: Enter and optional cc email to create more visibility. For example a manager could add their email address.

View/Test Form: This allows you to view your process form in the same way another Member would and send a test case. For more information contact TSANet.

Escalation Details

• Escalation Instructions: This information is included in the email to the caller as part of the initial request and is used by the caller as needed (For example non-response to a collaboration request). Example: Contact the duty manager at 555-1212 or [e-mail] if you need to talk to a manager

• Escalation Contacts: This information is not shared with the caller and is used to send internal system email alerts if your initial response to a request is not within the agreed response time. Response times are defined based on Membership level when collaborating on common customer issues or as set by the host of a Custom Group. Primary Escalation Contact is required, and you may optionally list a secondary contact or email alias.

Optional Fields (Contact TSANet)

TSANet can set the following settings on a Member process form. Contact TSANet for further information.

Admin Note: A note can be added to the top of the form to instruct users. For example, if a serial number is required, this could have some text linking to an article on how to find a serial number.

TAGs: Text TAGs can be added to enhance the search. A Tag will be displayed in the search if it is used. The following shows the search results and how this is used. This can be helpful if your company has various products marketed under different names.

Company | Department | TAG

Email Template: Different templates can be used to receive requests, such as Product in Subject, Token in Subject, and Priority in Subject. This can be used to assist with automation of inbound requests.

Inbound Process Best Practices

The table below summarizes the inbound process options, and each method is described in the sections below. The inbound volume for most Members is very low, with an average of 3 requests per month. The complexity of a multi-vendor case is also high, and it is recommended that your process route these issues to senior support agents.

Method	Pro	Con	Recommendation
(1) Define an alias to receive the inbound request. Assign a very small team to this alias for review and assignment of the request	Simple to setup and provides a level of review before assigning to an engineer	Team should be able to provide 7*24 coverage for P1 and P2 requests	For most new Members this is the best place to start. As volume increases you can move to more automation
(2) Use the Email-Case functionality on your ticketing system	Simple to setup and new request part of ticketing system workflow.	May require a separate queue to make sure it is properly responded to and assigned	For Members with systems such as Salesforce, Zendesk or Service Now this is a good option
(3) Integration to your ticketing system.	Provides full integration the Members CRM system	Requires Member IT involvement	Recommended for Elite Members

Define email alias with small team

Manually receiving and processing inbound requests is the most common option. This method is quick to setup and allows a small number of staff to work these complex issues. The requirement of the alias and the users are below:

1. The alias must be configured to accept external emails. All emails come from [e-mail]

2. To respond to the request users do not need to have a login to the TSANet Connect system as they can use the “Respond to” button in the email

Below are some strategies that Members have used when using an alias

1. Use an existing alias such as [e-mail] or [e-mail] and train those users on how to respond to and assign a collaboration request

2. Setup a new alias such as [e-mail] and assign a small team to respond and assign the cases

Use Email to Case

Most ticketing systems (Example, Salesforce, ZenDesk, Jira and Service Now) have a native email to case feature that can be configured to take the inbound email and create a case. Below are some strategies that Members have used when using this feature.

1. Create an Account in the CRM system for TSANet. Contact is [e-mail]

2. Place special handling rules or notes on that account to respond and assign the case

Integrate to your system

TSANet Connect can also be integrated into your ticketing system. Contact TSANet to discuss the details of this method. Integration options https://www.tsanet.org/api-integrations

Applies To

Shows what Groups and Departments are assigned to this specific contact process. No fields are editable. Contact TSANet with any modifications.

Custom Fields

Elite, Premium and Standard members may customize their forms with additional fields to provide members a more streamlined inbound experience. Members can add custom fields to both the “Problem” section and the “Customer” section. Some examples of custom fields are below:

• Problem Area: A pulldown field with defined list of values that allows a company to route the request to the correct team

• Product Version: A free text field that a user can enter product version information

• Serial Number: For members that sell hardware a serial number is often used to define entitlement and case routing

• Dynamic Dropdowns: It is also possible to design dynamic drop downs. For example, a product Area field could populate a related list of products that the user selects

Contact TSANet for assistance in creating customized fields.

Admin Notes

Members can add a NOTE to the top of the form highlighting specific instructions, form requirements, or more information about a specific field. For example, if a serial number is required, this could have some text linking to an article on how to find a serial number. Contact TSANet to add an Admin Note.

Email Templates

Members can request different email templates for inbound cases. The list of available templates is below and TSANet can work with Members as needed to create new templates.

• Default: This is the standard form

• Product in Subject: This form places the “Product” selected from a custom field in the subject. This is used for Members that may want to setup inbound rules to route based on Product

• TSANet Token in Subject: This form places the “TSANet Token” in the subject. This is used when a Member wants to look at the auto-response method

• Text Only: This form sends a text version of the email. This is helpful for Members that would like to program their system to extract data from the email

• Custom: For Elite Members we can also create a custom template