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Administrators can create custom case fields to help Agents collect additional information. Custom fields can also be used in service level agreement policies, time-based automations, case views, and more.

As Administrators gain a better understanding of how a custom field helps Agents handle cases and reduce time to resolution, they can make further changes to them as needed. For example, they can deactivate the least used custom fields or update case field values to better reflect customer concerns.

Creating a Custom Field

1. Click in the upper-left corner [1].
2. In the side panel that appears, click the gear icon  [2].
3. On the “Configurations” page, click Case fields [4] on the Manage tab [3].
4. On the “Case fields” page, click Add field [5].
5. On the “Add case field” page, provide detailed information about the custom field.
   • “Field format” [6]: Select a field format for the custom field. The fields on this page may be different depending on the field format you select. For more information, see Understanding Case Fields and Field Formats.
   • “Behavior for agents” [7]: If “Required to resolve a case” is checked, Agents must specify this field before cases containing this field can be resolved.
   • “Name displayed to agents” [8]: The field name that appears on the case processing page.
   • “Description” [9]: A description of the case field that provides more information for Administrators. The value only appears on the “Case fields” page, which means it is not visible to Agents.
   • “Field Values” [10]: Enter values into the text boxes for this field. Click Add another row or press “Enter” to add additional values, or the trash bin icon to remove a value. This field is only applicable if you select Drop-down, Dependent field, or Multi-select for “Field format”. Added values appear in drop-down lists or multi-select fields as available options.
6. Click Save field [11].

Agents can use a custom field after it is created and added to the “Fields” section of case forms. For more information, see Creating and Managing Case Forms.

Creating a Dependent Field

You can configure a special type of custom drop-down fields, or dependent fields in Talkdesk Cases. A dependent field features a hierarchy of up to three levels.

When specifying a dependent field for a case, an Agent chooses a category at the first level. Then, it prompts the Agent to specify an additional field at the second level based on the value of the previous field. Likewise, a field at the third level, if it is available, appears depending on the subcategory selected at the second level.

On the “Add case field” page, perform the following steps to create a dependent field.

1. Select Dependent field for “Field format” [1].

2. Set the values for “Behavior for agents”, “Name displayed to agents”, and “Description” [2].

3. Under “Field Values” [3], specify the values for each level. After you enter a value into the text box, press “Enter”, and then an empty box appears automatically, allowing you to add another value. Keep in mind that to make sure the sub-values you add in “Level 2” or “Level 3” belong to the desired value at the previous level (namely, “Level 1” or “Level 2”), you need to click the value at the previous level first, and then enter sub-values for it. To remove a value, click the trash bin icon .

   Note: You can drag the six-dot icon to reorder the values at each level of the dependent field.

4. Optionally, click the Download button [4] to export all the field values in a dependent field as a CSV file.

5. Click Save field [5].

Managing a Custom Field

As you get more feedback from Agents on how a custom field helps them collect case information, you can make changes to the custom field if necessary.

1. On the “Case fields” page, go to the Active tab [1].
2. Click the ellipsis icon on the right of a custom field [2], and then select any of the following options.
   • Edit: Edits the desired properties of the field (except “Field format”). The operation is similar to creating a custom field.
   • Deactivate: Makes the custom field unavailable. Deactivated fields can be reactivated again. You can only deactivate custom fields. Standard fields cannot be deactivated. After a custom field is deactivated, it moves to the Inactive tab.
3. Go to the Inactive tab [3]. Click the ellipsis icon on the right of a custom field [4], and then select any of the following options.
   • Activate: Makes a custom field available so that Agents can use it to collect case information again. After a custom field is activated, it moves to the Active tab.
   • Delete: Removes a custom field from Talkdesk Cases permanently. To delete a custom field, you must deactivate it first.

Notes:

• On the Active tab, you can see that the ellipsis icon is also available for standard fields. Although you can edit standard fields, only few properties of them can be changed, depending on the field format. In general, you can update the “Description” field of all standard fields, the value of which is only displayed on the “Case fields” page. For more information about each standard field, see Understanding Case Fields and Case Formats.
• After you make changes to a custom field, it may affect a case where the field has been applied. For example, if a custom field has already been applied to existing cases, the field will be removed from case forms after deactivated, which means it will disappear from the “Properties” tab on the case processing page. To let it appear again, you need to reactivate it. For more information, see Understanding How Custom Field Changes Impact Existing Cases.
• Exercise caution when deleting a case field because the operation is irreversible.