Second Insight - Let's talk Layouts

Second Insight - Let's talk Layouts

The Wheels of Ticketing - Desk Stories

Let's talk Layouts


What are layouts?

Layouts refer to the arrangement or design of elements in a space, whether on a physical surface, like a room or a piece of furniture, or in digital contexts, such as web pages or graphic designs. 
InfoUser interface layout: In software design, various interface elements, such as buttons, forms, and menus, are arranged to create an efficient and user-friendly experience. 
Layouts control how fields and related sections are organized on a department's module page. Each department can have its own design, which includes a combination of default and custom fields. These layouts dictate which fields are visible, read-only, and required.
 
Customer support agents need specific information to handle tickets for different products or processes effectively. As a result, help desks frequently incorporate multiple custom fields into the ticket forms that customers complete. This may lead to customers facing irrelevant fields that don't apply to their specific issues. The most effective solution to this confusion is to create and use an appropriate layout.

How can you benefit from using layouts?

Layouts are used in a wide range of software applications and platforms to enhance communication and user experience.
 
In Zoho Desk, you can use layouts to tailor the fields on module pages like Tickets and Tasks. The drag-and-drop feature enables you to add new fields easily, remove unnecessary ones, and rearrange fields to match your preferences. 

Key functions of a layout: 

  • Visual hierarchy: Clarifies the significance of various elements and directs the viewer's attention to the essential information.
  • Readability: Enhances the clarity and legibility of text and images, making it easier for the audience to digest the content.
  • Aesthetic appeal: Creates an attractive design that engages users and encourages them to interact with the content.
  • Consistency: This ensures a uniform look and feel across different pages or sections, which helps with branding and recognition.
  • Navigation: Facilitates user navigation by organizing content logically and allowing users to find information quickly and intuitively.
  • Functionality: Supports the intended function of the design, whether to inform, persuade, entertain, or provide a service.
Quote
A well-designed layout is crucial for effective communication and user engagement in any visual medium. 

A story for better interpretation of layouts

The Perfect Layout - A Tech Story

At Heaven Solutions, a bustling tech company, they proudly call their help desk software 'Heaven Desk'. It was the go-to place for agents facing tech troubles, but the overall situation was chaotic. The desks were cluttered, information was scattered, and the agent teams were overwhelmed with requests.
 
Ross, a bright and passionate senior tech support, was part of the help desk team. He loved helping others but often found himself frustrated when navigating through heaps of information to assist his team. One day, while dealing with a particularly perplexing issue, he had a revelation: the team needed structure to tame the chaos!
 
Inspired, Ross gathered his team for a brainstorming session. “What if we redesigned our help desk layout?” he suggested. The team was intrigued but skeptical. “How can a layout make a difference?” one seasoned tech support asked. 
 
Ross smiled and began to explain: “Let’s think of it this way: a well-organized layout can guide users to find solutions quickly. It can reduce confusion, streamline processes, and enhance productivity.” 
 
The team's curiosity was piqued, and they experimented with Ross's idea. They mapped out ideas on a whiteboard and discussed different elements of a successful help desk layout. 
  • Categorization: They categorized issues into clear sections—hardware, software, network, and general inquiries. This way, users could quickly find the category relevant to their problem. 
  • Search functionality: Ross proposed implementing a robust search feature on their help desk platform. Users could type in keywords or phrases, making finding solutions more manageable.
  • Visible layout: The team agreed that a cleaner, visually appealing design would help declutter the experience. They envisioned a layout with ample white space, easy navigation buttons, and tabs representing different categories.


  • FAQ guides: Recognizing that many questions were often repeated, they created an easily accessible FAQ section and a library of troubleshooting guides. This would empower agents to solve minor issues independently.


  • Quick feedback: They incorporated a feedback mechanism where users could rate their experience after each interaction, allowing continuous improvement based on user input.

Excited about their ideas, the team presented the new layout to their manager. To their delight, he loved the vision and approved the redesign. With everyone's input, they built the new Heaven help desk. When they launched the redesigned help desk, it was like transforming a maze into a designated path.


On the first day after the launch, Ross was buzzing with anticipation. As employees began using the new layout, he watched their faces light up. Help desk requests decreased as many users could now find what they needed through the FAQs and guides. The search functionality quickly became a hit, with colleagues excited about how quickly they could resolve issues.
 
Because of their collaborative effort, the help desk now serves as a support system and empowers employees to help themselves. The structured layout improved efficiency and user satisfaction, proving that a thoughtful design could transform chaos into clarity.
 
In the end, the purpose of layouts became clear: they weren't merely about aesthetics; they were powerful tools that guided users, reduced frustration, and ensured a seamless experience. Through Ross's idea and the team's collaboration, Heaven Desk became a model help desk, demonstrating that a little structure could lead to immense success.

Takeaway

A well-designed layout organizes information and resources in a coherent way and makes the system intuitive and easy to use, which reduces frustration and improves user satisfaction. It ensures that users can find what they need quickly and efficiently, whether it involves accessing a knowledge base, submitting a ticket, or tracking the status of their request. 

Please stay tuned for more Desk Module stories.

 

Cheers,


Kavya Rao

The Zoho Desk Team


      • Recent Topics

      • Unable to enter manual journal entries in AR/AP.

        Hi there, i am facing some problem relating to AR/AP. I want to make some entries in AR/AP through manual journal. for example. some time I send cash 500 to Mr. A (Customer) for any purpose and then after 2 or 3 days Mr. A returned back 700 to me and
      • Questions regarding WorkDrive

        Here are my questions regarding WorkDrive: Does WorkDrive have a limit on the number of downloads? What will happen if a file is downloaded excessively? Does WorkDrive have any restrictions on download speeds? Are there any limitations on downloading
      • How to record tips from customers

        I run a cleaning service business and on occasion customers include a tip with their check payment. How can I record the amount paid for service and the tip separately? Any amount over the invoice is looked at as an overpayment and suggest a credit note
      • Multi-currencies in Zoho Books

        I'd like to request multiple currencies in Zoho Books. I have customers paying in USD, CAD, CNY. I need to bill customers in these currencies too. I can set up a base currency, and then set up a exchange-rate table to convert these currencies.
      • I want refund of Zoho standard subscription on WEB payment

        Hi, Kindly help to refund the WEB payment made on 13/07/2025 for Zoho standard annual subscription. I didn't find the software useful for my project. Regards
      • Is Conditional display of field(s) possible in a Canvas Customer Portal?

        Is Conditional display of field(s) possible in a Canvas Customer Portal? How?
      • Automate Backups

        This is a feature request. Consider adding an auto backup feature. Where when you turn it on, it will auto backup on the 15-day schedule. For additional consideration, allow for the export of module data via API calls. Thank you for your consideration.
      • View Linked Subscription on Invoice list

        When looking at the list of invoices in billing is it possible to see the subscription that an invoice is for. This would allow you to see if it's a subscription a customer is behind on, or they simply haven't paid a one time invoice.
      • Recording Credit Card Fees when Recording Payment for Bills

        It seems I am unable to record credit card fees when paying a bill. I pay close to 100% of my bills with a company credit card via online portals. I'm happy for the CC fess to be recorded as Bank Charges but it will not allow that field to be used if
      • Workerly/Zoho One Pricing

        Hi What is the pricing model that is suppose to be as a Zoho One user? If i use the services of a freelancers or temp workers (Sometimes for a few hours a week/month), I need to purchase a zoho one license for each of them as well as workerly licenc
      • DKIM

        I have my DKIM in Titan, which is another email service provider. I get this notification on my portal. What shall I do? ( Improve the deliverability of emails sent from Zoho Social by adding DKIM (DomainKeys Identified Mail) records to your DNS settings.
      • Show All Notes For A Single Record

        I would like to be able to view a list of all Notes for a particular record. We can add several (unlimited) Notes for the Leads, Contacts, Accounts and Potentials records. The subject line and some of the note content for up to 10 notes is visible on the first page. You can select the arrow to view additional notes in the list. I would like a button next to the New Note button that says View All. This would bring up a printable list of all notes listed in descending order by Modified Time (newest
      • Zoholics Europe 2025: Build Smarter with the Zoho Creator Low-code Workshop!

        Why should you attend? This year, Zoholics Europe 2025, Zoho’s official user conference, is your opportunity to connect directly with the teams behind the tools you use every day. Don’t miss one of the most requested sessions: dedicated, hands-on workshop
      • Assigning multiple roles to a user in Creator

        Hi I find we can assign only one role and permission to an user in creator. There is a requirement to assign multiple roles and corresponding permission to one user. Is there any solution or workaround for this? Refer the screenshot below
      • 【Zoho CRM】ウィザード機能のアップデート:セクション要素の追加

        ユーザーの皆さま、こんにちは。コミュニティチームの中野です。 今回は「Zoho CRM アップデート情報」の中から、ウィザード機能のアップデートをご紹介します。 ウィザード機能に新たに「セクション要素」が追加されました。 各ウィザード画面内で項目、テキスト、サブフォーム、ウィジェット要素などをより柔軟に整理できるようになりました。 セクション要素とは? ウィザードの中で、関連する項目や要素をひとつの「サブエリア」 としてまとめられる新しい構成要素です。 セクション要素活用メリット 入力内容やプロセスによっては、より細かな構造や階層化が求められる場合があります。
      • Edit PDFs from within your web app using Zoho Office Integrator

        Hi users, We are excited to introduce PDF editing capabilities in Zoho Office Integrator. You can now open, edit, and collaborate on PDFs from within your web app—in addition to documents, spreadsheets, and presentations—and save them in your configured
      • Zoho CRM Workflow and Function Backup Options

        Hi everyone! I have been able to make several backups of my CRM data and noticed that the Workflows and Functions are not included in these backups. To my knowledge, there is no backup feature for workflows and functions, which is problematic in of itself.
      • Zoho Recruit > Job Opening Module> Editing, Deleting, Adding (Fields)

        Hello All In the Job Opening Modules How do i go about deleting the Positing Title or changing to Job Title or can i hide it from all? I want to add a Look Up User Field, however when i select the look up field i do not see that Can i have the industry
      • Can you create a lead without assigning an owner?

        Here is the question I have:   Is there a way I can create a bunch of leads without assigning it an owner?   What I want is for my salespeople to pick and choose their own leads without me assigning them..   right now all leads are owned by me because
      • Bug - Incorrect example in the documentation

        I found an issue in the Zoho API documentation. The example "Sample Request" on this page is incorrect — it shows the example for "Get Email Attachment Info" instead of "Get Email Attachment Content". Wrong example: curl "https://mail.zoho.com/api/accounts/12345678/folders/9000000002014/messages/1710915488416100001/attachmentinfo"
      • Power of Automation :: Dynamically generate Tasklists based on values selected in Task Custom Fields

        Hello Everyone, A custom function is a software code that can be used to automate a process and this allows you to automate a notification, call a webhook, or perform logic immediately after a workflow rule is triggered. This feature helps to automate
      • WhatsApp Enhancements to Boost Customer Engagement

        We're excited to introduce a series of powerful enhancements to the WhatsApp integration in Zoho FSM, making customer interactions faster, smarter, and more actionable—right from your Zoho FSM interface. Here’s a quick rundown of what’s new: Try It Out
      • Store reviews module just got smarter in Zoho Apptics

        Hello, Apptics community! Every app deserves better visibility in the marketplace, and reviews play a crucial role in improving your app's App Store Optimization (ASO), rankings, and credibility across stores. That's why we've rolled out a set of enhancements
      • Try CRM for everyone button in the way of workflow

        Please consider using the bottom bar for offers. Using the top bar for offers like "Try CRM for everyone" really gets in the way of my day to day workflow.
      • Include EVERYTHING in Language Files

        Hey, we are building out a system, that needs to be translated. The language files lack a few things though. 1. Blueprint names 2. Canvas View elements like tab names Please include everything into these files, otherwise it's not really a multi language
      • A way to create kits (groups of items) that do not require bundling and are added to an order as the individual items

        We are evaluating moving off of Sage BusinessWorks (which handles accounting, order entry, inventory control, accounts receivable, etc) to Zoho Books/Inventory. One of the things we heavily use is a feature called Kits, which allows creating a group of
      • Allocating Salesman To Customer

        Hello, please add a feature to allocate a salesman to a particular business customer/account. Regards
      • Shipment

        I have 70 shipments Out of which 40 delivery date are updated( since it is live tracked) 30 numbers i need to update manually. How to do it in bulk?
      • arabic not printing

        Qatar has a legal requirement to have invoices in English and Arabic. When writing invoice fields in Arabic, they don't print. Why?
      • How to show Order Number/SO Ref on Invoice emails

        When creating a sales order or invoice we have an option to input an order number or ref# (see attached images). For the Sales Order email template we can add a placeholder for the SO_REF. However, for the Invoice email template there's no option to reference
      • Specify in-line image size in question

        I have an image inserted into a file upload type question. I can click and drag the corner of the image to make it larger or smaller, but I would like to manually input the dimensions I need. No matter what size I make the image in photoshop before uploading
      • Can you limit who creates tags?

        Hi there, I'd like to find out if it's possible to limit which Agents create tags on Zoho desk. Thank you. 
      • Auto CC - Moving Departments

        We have Auto CC e-mail replies to your support mailbox enabled. We have two departments: Helpdesk (helpdesk@domain.com) Delivery (delivery@domain.com) If we create a Helpdesk ticket, and reply, replies are CC'd to helpdesk@domain.com (OK) We then move
      • Sudden Layout Issue After Last CSS Update for ZML (Temporary Fix Inside)

        Hi, Our clients have noticed today that every section laid out with ZML suddenly shows an unwanted top padding/blank space that interrupts the user screens. It appears that Zoho has changed the default CSS for the .zcp-col.zcp-panel-rowtype-auto element.
      • Customer paid excess. How do I record payment?

        A customer has paid me Rs. 7150 which is in excess. The amount due is Rs. 5388 I owe them Rs. 1762 back which I will be transferring to their account tomorrow. How do I get this entered into Zoho Books? I'm a little lost. :) Rishi
      • Tabular View Report | Scale To Fit Screen

        Please add the option to scale Tabular View reports to fit the screen. I constantly have to adjust the column size of Tabular View reports to fit various screen sizes and it just looks messy. You can see in the screenshot below there is a blank gap after
      • Why Server error in creatiing Landing Pages

        Hi Zoho Team, pls see my screenshot and tell me, what's wrong. Thx
      • Tip 31: How to make a field in a Zoho Creator form mandatory based on criteria

        Hi folks,   I'm sure most of you are familiar with the Mandatory property available in our form builder. It enables you to ensure that your users enter an input in a required field. If they don't enter an input in that field, they'll be unable to submit
      • Bulk update account type when adding a bill

        Hi I've only been using Zoho Books for a short while but I'm impressed so far, keep up the great work. One minor issue I'm coming up against is when creating a new bill from a scanned document (supplier invoice). In some cases, the supplier invoice could
      • How to start fresh after many years of using Zoho Books without deleting everything and creating a new organisation?

        Hi, I have used Books since 2016, but never reconciled with my bank account. I was thinking of trying to go back and fix that, but I don't just don't have the time it would take. Instead, I'd like back up my old records and start anew. What is the best
      • Next Page