FAQs: Help center

FAQs: Help Center

What is help center in Desk?  

Help Center is a customer portal that allows users to learn about the product and understand its processes by accessing knowledge base articles. It provides a platform for self-help and learning, where users can find answers for their queries by going through FAQs and forums, raise a ticket or view other users tickets with similar problems, and more.

This portal helps customers to interact with your business via forums, feedback, tickets, and articles. Customers can interact with each other as well, which helps them to have a deeper understanding of your products and business. The customer can view the status of their tickets in real time, which helps in establishing good rapport with your business. The customer can give suggestions, process improvement ideas, and other valuable feedback, which helps business to evaluate and refine the processes.

Help center is a bridge between your business and your customers, where they can interact with you directly, resulting in good customer experience.
Below is the help center for Go India Travels. Go India Travels is a tour and travels company that offers different tour packages to individuals, such as educational tours, business trips, vacation packages, and so on. The knowledge base (or "KB") there talks about travel guidelines, SOPs, best practices, and FAQs related to tours and travels.

 



How can I access my help center portal?

When you create your Desk account, it also creates a portal with your company name as the URL. For example, if the company's name is Zylker, then the portal created for this account will contain Zylker in its URL: www.zylker.zohodesk.com/portal

 

To get your help center portal URL:
  1. Go to Zoho Desk Setup page
  2. Select Help Center under CHANNELS
  3. Click Access Setting in the help center page
  4. Copy your portal URL and use it.

Can end users view tickets in the Help Center?  

A user (your customer) can access the portal and is able to view and create tickets from within. As a support admin, you need to enable some permissions for end users in your desk account to be able to view tickets.

To change permissions for your users:
  1. Go to your Zoho Desk Setup page.
  2. Select Help Center under CHANNELS.
  3. Click Access Setting in the help center page.
  4. Under Permissions, you can enable or disable the access for your end users which you find suitable. For example, you can choose whether to allow your users to view tickets from hidden departments or let them view other users tickets in the departments.


How do I change the sender email when inviting customers to help center portal?  

A user with the support admin profile can change the from address of the customer self-service portal invitation email in desk account.

To change the sender email address:
  1. Go to your Zoho Desk Setup page
  2. Select Help Center under CHANNELS
  3. Click Email Template in the help center page
  4. Select the from address from the drop-down you want to send emails with.


How do I set the Add Ticket form as the default landing page for my help center?

You can choose to set the Add Ticket form as the default landing page for your help center. This way, your customers have access to an additional support channel without being overwhelmed by unwanted tabs.
Note:
  1. This option is not available with the Flat theme.

To set the Add Ticket form as your default landing page
  1. Click the Setup icon (  ) on the top bar.
  2. Click Help Center under the Channels menu. Select your desired help center.
  3. Click Help Center Customization under the Help Center submenu.

    The Themes page will appear.
  4. Click the Customize link corresponding to your current theme.
  5. From the Customization screen, select Tabs and then click Set as Default next to the Add Ticket form.

  6. Click Publish to save your changes and make them live on your website. 
    The Add Ticket form will now be the landing page for your help center website.


How can I manage ticket visibility for contacts that belong to the same account in the help center?

There can be multiple instances when tickets are submitted from different contacts who belong to the same account. For example, all employees of one organization may raise a ticket for new software.
In this case, as an Administrator, you can decide whether or not to allow the employees to view each other's tickets.

Let's look at the possibilities in detail:

Case 1: Allow contacts belonging to the same account to view each other's tickets
This can be beneficial, as employees can review other tickets and find solutions to their own issues, or anticipate the time it will take to reach a resolution. To allow this, you can enable the option to Show Tickets from Other Contacts.

Case 2: Do not allow contacts belonging to the same account to view each other's tickets
You may not want employees to view tickets raised by each other, or by their managers. In these cases, as an Administrator, you can disable the option to Show Tickets from Other Contacts. 

Case 3: You want some employees and managers to view tickets of other contacts
Based on role hierarchy, users can view their subordinates' tickets by default.  Users in the highest role can view tickets raised by the entire organization.

Say you want to give an organization's support manager a full view of all tickets, without extending this view to the sales manager or regional marketing head.
 
Similarly, you may want some support executives to have visibility into all tickets raised—even those raised by managers.
 
In these cases, you can enable the option to Display Tickets from Other Contacts only for the support manager and the desired support executives. This will allow you to set selective visibility as needed.
Points to remember
  1. By default, the option to Show Tickets from Other Contacts is disabled.
  2. You must enable the option to Show Tickets from Other Contacts for each contact that belongs to an account to grant them a view of others' tickets.
  3. If you leave the option disabled for a contact, they will not be able to view others' tickets.
    You must enable help center access to allow customers to view tickets of other users.
 
To manage ticket visibility in the help center, you have to take the following steps:
  1. Set help center access.
  2. Set ticket visibility under the Accounts module for each contact.
To set help center access, follow the steps below:
  1. Log into your Zoho Desk account with Administrative privilege.
  2. Go to Setup > Channels > Help Center > Access Setting.
  3. Under Permission, toggle on/off Customers can View Tickets of Other Users in their Account.


      To set ticket visibility for contacts:
  1. Log into your Zoho Desk account with Administrative privilege.
  2. Click the Customers module.
  3. From the left panel, scroll down and click Accounts.
  4. Select the account from the list view.  
  5. Click the Contacts subtab at the top of the Accounts Detail page.
    A list of contacts associated with the account will be displayed. You can click on an individual contact to view their role.
  6. Hover over the desired contact and click the More icon ( ).
  7. Toggle the Show Tickets from Other Contacts option.
  8. Repeat the above steps for other contacts on the account.



To disable the option to Show Tickets from Other Contacts:     
                

For more information, refer to these help docs: help center permission, roles and profiles.  
 

How do I moderate end-user signups in the help center?   

Self-signup allows end users to register themselves for an account with your help center. All you need to do is direct your customers to your help center so that they can register and gain access immediately. But self-signup can create opportunities for spammers to create and post from multiple accounts. This is where moderation can help. You can enable moderation for signups to keep spammers at bay.
 
To enable moderation for signups:
  1. Click the Setup icon () on the top bar.
  2. Click Help Center under the Channels menu.
  3. Select the help center you want to enable moderation for.
  4. Click Access Settings under the Help Center submenu.
  5. Turn on the Moderate Customer Sign-ups in the Help Center option.
    Your changes will be saved instantly.


  1. Once enabled, every time a user signs up for your help center, you will receive an email notification. You can follow the link in the email to view and approve the signup.
  2. You can also navigate to Channels>>Help Center>>Users, and approve users from the Pending Moderation list.
 
 For more information, refer to this help doc: Managing Help Center Users



You can remove or customize the header and footer of your help center pages by customizing the HTML.
 
To remove or customize the header and footer:
  1. Click the Setup icon ( ) on the top bar.
  2. Click Help Center under the Channels menu.
  3. Select a help center.
  4. Click Help Center Customization under the Help Center submenu.
  5. Click Customize corresponding to your live help center theme.

  6. Select the HTML tab to view the HTML code for the header.
    You can switch to the Footer tab to access the code for the footer.
  7. To remove the header, select the entire code under Header and click delete on your keyboard.
  8. To remove the Footer, select the entire code under Footer and click delete on your keyboard.
    You can Preview your header/footer to see how it will appear on a desktop, tablet, or mobile device.
  9. Click Publish for the changes to take effect.
 
Note:
  1. The HTML section contains the code for the default header and footer elements.
  2. You can click Reset to restore the HTML content to its previously published state.
 

 

How to set the add ticket form as the default landing page for my help center?

If you are a company just starting out and don't have a user community or knowledge base articles, you can choose to set the Add Ticket form as the default landing page for your help center. This way, your customers get an additional support channel without being overwhelmed by unwanted tabs. It also provides you time to build a functional and vibrant help center.

To set the add ticket form as the default landing page:
  1. Click the Setup icon (  ) in the top bar.
  2. Click Help Center under the Channels menu.
  3. Select the Help Center for which you want to set the default landing page.
  4. Click Help Center Customization under the Help Center sub-menu.
    The Themes page appears.
  5. Click Customize corresponding to the live theme and then select Tabs from the top of the page.



  6. On the Tabs panel, click Set as default next to the Add Ticket Form.
  7. Click Publish to save your changes.
Your end-users will now land on the Add Ticket form when accessing your help center.


Note:
  1. This option is not available on the Flat theme.


How to manage ticket visibility for contacts of the same account in the help center?

With the advent of the contact to multiple accounts feature, you may want to allow or restrain contacts from seeing others' tickets from their account, particularly when you have chosen to allow your contacts to view the tickets of other users in their account in the help center. This is when the more granular setting of specifying individual contacts to see only their tickets from their account becomes an admin's best friend.

Let's consider two use cases to know precisely how it works in real-time.

Case 1:
Consider a customer whose employees and managers submit tickets to your customer service team. It is typical for managers or employees at the VP level to view all tickets raised from their company (read as account) on the help center. However, they wouldn't desire their employees to view tickets submitted by the managers. As an administrator, you can configure the managers (read as contacts) to view all tickets from their account, while other employees only view theirs in the help center.

To show tickets:
  1. Click the Customers module.
  2. Click Accounts on the lower-left corner.
  3. Open an account to view its details.
  4. Click the Contacts subtab at the top of the page.
  5. Click the More icon (  ) corresponding to the manager contact to whom you want to show all tickets from this account.
  6. On the More options menu, turn on the Show tickets from other contacts option.
  7. Repeat the above step for other managers in the account.

Case 2:
Consider a trading company that deals with a vendor and multiple customers. Since the customers and the vendor buy and sell the same product, they belong to the same account (e.g., Green Banana Grocers). Ideally, the company's conversation with the vendor should be privy to its customers and vice versa. The vendor should be only able to view their tickets in the help center, and not of those created by the company's customers, although they all belong to the same account. As an administrator, you can configure both the vendor and the customers to only see their tickets from the account.

To hide tickets:
  1. Click the Customers module.
  2. Click Accounts on the lower-left corner.
  3. Open an account (e.g., Green Banana Grocers) to view its details.
  4. Click the Contacts subtab at the top of the page.
  5. Click the More icon (  ) corresponding to the contact you want to only show their tickets from this account.
  6. In the More options menu, turn off the Show tickets from other contacts option.
  7. Repeat the above step for the other contacts and the vendor.

Note:
  1. By default, a contact can track all tickets raised from their primary account, which can be disabled if needed.


Can end users view all tickets raised by their organization?

End users can view all tickets submitted by their company in your help center. This is particularly useful when you have multiple contacts submitting tickets from the same account, or the account's managers want to view a list of tickets raised by their company. Such tickets can be viewed within the My Area tab of the Help Center.

However, this setting is disabled by default and must be enabled by an administrator of a Zoho Desk help center.

To enable this setting, follow the steps mentioned below:
  1. Click the Setup icon (  ) in the top bar.
  2. Click Help Center under the Channels menu.
  3. Click the name of the Help Center for which you want to enable this setting.
    The Rebrand screen appears.
  4. Click Access Settings under the Help Center sub-menu.
  5. Enable Customers can view tickets of other users in their account option under Permissions.
    The changes will be saved instantly.

How to change the "from" email address on the help center invitation?

When you add an end user or a customer signs ups for your help center, customers will receive an email invitation welcoming them with instructions for logging on. This welcome email uses the standard invitation template that can be customized under Setup >> Help Center >> Email Templates. Additionally, the email gets sent from your default support email address. You can, however, change this to an email address of your choice before inviting your customers.

To do the same, follow the steps mentioned below:
  1. Log in to your Zoho Desk with administrator privileges.
  2. Click the Setup icon (  ) in the top bar.
  3. Click Help Center under the Channels menu.
  4. Click the name of the Help Center for which you want to customize the 'from' address.
  5. On the Setup pane on the left, under Help Center, click Email Templates.
  6. On the Invitation template, click the drop-down for the from address and select a custom email address.
  7. Click Save.
    Follow the same steps to customize user Activation and Deactivation templates.


How to customize help center themes in the sandbox?

Personalizing your help center is a must if you believe in making it look appealing for your end users. But it gets frustrating to tweak your help center to perfection while it’s live. What if a new theme renders your help center inaccessible? Or it makes your help center look terrible? It’s far from ideal, sure, but not anymore!

Zoho Desk enables you to create sandbox themes where you can test and experiment without fear of affecting your live instance.  You can create a new sandbox anytime you want, but you can only have one per theme at a time.

Creating a Sandbox Theme:
The sandbox theme is created with settings from the current production instance of your Help Center. This means that you will be able to see the tabs, buttons, widgets, and contents that are available in the production instance.

To create a sandbox:
  1. Click the Setup icon (  ) in the top bar.
  2. Click Help Center under the Channels menu.
  3. Select the Help Center for which you want to apply the theme.
  4. Click Help Center Customization under the Help Center sub-menu.
    The Themes page appears.
  5. Create a sandbox theme by performing these steps:
    1. Click Preview corresponding the theme that you'd like to customize.
      This will open a preview of the theme.
    2. Click Save Draft at the top of the preview page.
    3. In the confirmation dialog box, click Save.
      You've now created a sandbox environment for the theme.
    4. Make changes to the theme, take a preview, and fine tune.
    5. Click Save Draft again, to save the changes you made.
    6. In the confirmation dialog box, click Save.

Here are some of the actions you can perform in the sandbox:
  1. Click the More icon (  ) at the top of the page and then click Draft to preview the Help Center on a new window. Note that this preview mirrors a production instance in configuration, enabling you to test signups, fine-tune widgets, and experiment with tabs without affecting your customers. You can also share the preview URL with other users to speed up decision-making at your organization.



  2. Click the More icon (  ) at the top of the page and then click Reset to default to reset your sandbox if you mess up and want to start from scratch.
  3. Click Preview at the top of the page to view the way your help center looks on desktoptablet, and mobile by toggling between each of the device views at the top of the window.



Publishing a Sandbox Theme:

Once you're satisfied with the changes, you must publish the sandbox theme in the production instance. You can do this while in the sandbox by clicking on the Publish button at the top of the page. On publishing the theme, click the More icon  ) at the top of the page and then click Published to view how it appears in the production instance.

How to moderate end user signups in the Help Center?

Self-signup allows end users to register themselves for an account on your Help Center. All you need to do is direct your customers to your Help Center so that they could register and start using the same immediately. But, there is a caveat. The self-signup model invites spammers who can create multiple accounts to post spam. This is where moderation can help. You can enable moderation for signups to keep spammers at bay.

To enable moderation for sign-ups, follow the steps below:
  1. Click the Setup icon (  ) in the top bar.
  2. Click Help Center under the Channels menu.
  3. Select the Help Center for which you want to enable moderation.
  4. Click Access Settings under the Help Center sub-menu.
  5. Turn on the Moderate customer sign-ups in the Help Center option.
    Your changes will be saved instantly.
Once turned on, every time a user signs up for your Help Center, you will receive an email notification. You can follow the link in the email to view and approve the signup.


Notes:
  • The moderation option is available only if you have enabled customer self-signup for the Help Center.
  • Moderation for sign-ups is not available for accounts that have enabled remote authentication.
  • Both administrators and agents with permission to Approve End User Signups will receive the moderation notification.

You can remove or customize the header and footer of your Help Center pages by customizing its HTML.

To remove or customize the header and footer, follow the steps mentioned below:
  1. Click the Setup icon (  ) in the top bar.
  2. Click Help Center under the Channels menu.
  3. Select the Help Center for which you want to customize the header and footer.
  4. Click Help Center Customization under the Help Center sub-menu.
  5. Click Customize corresponding to your live Help Center theme.



  6. Select the HTML tab to view the HTML code for the Header.
    You can switch to the Footer tab to access the code for the footer.
  7. Make the required changes or remove the code as per your liking.
  8. Click Publish for the changes to take effect.

Note:
  • The HTML section will contain the code for the default elements in the header and footer.
  • You can click Reset to restore the HTML content to the previously published state.


How to customize the Help Center?

In just a few easy steps, you can customize the Help Center platform which allows your customers to find answers for their queries by going through your articles and forums or by raising a ticket directly from the page. You can set colors, add custom sections and widgets to keep your customers engaged with the right content in the right place. And with a little bit of coding, you can also customize the sites HTML and CSS to make your Help Center look more stylish and user-friendly.

To customize your Help Center, please follow the steps mentioned below:
  1. Click the Setup icon (  ) in the top bar.
  2. Click Help Center under the Channels menu.
  3. Select the Help Center you wish to customize.
  4. Click Help Center Customization under the Help Center sub-menu.
    The Themes page will open.



  5. Click Customize corresponding to the live Help Center theme.
  6. Make the desired changes from the variety of options available on the customization page.
  7. Click Publish.

We hope that this list of frequently asked questions about Help Center is informative. If you still have questions that haven't been addressed, please let us know. We will be happy to discuss them with our subject matter experts and add them in the future. And please don't forget to share your rating below!


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