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



      Zoho Campaigns Resources


        • Desk Community Learning Series


        • Digest


        • Functions


        • Meetups


        • Kbase


        • Resources


        • Glossary


        • Desk Marketplace


        • MVP Corner


        • Word of the Day


        • Ask the Experts


          Zoho CRM Plus Resources

            Zoho Books Resources


              Zoho Subscriptions Resources

                Zoho Projects Resources


                  Zoho Sprints Resources


                    Zoho Orchestly Resources


                      Zoho Creator Resources


                        Zoho WorkDrive Resources



                          Zoho CRM Resources

                          • CRM Community Learning Series

                            CRM Community Learning Series


                          • Tips

                            Tips

                          • Functions

                            Functions

                          • Meetups

                            Meetups

                          • Kbase

                            Kbase

                          • Resources

                            Resources

                          • Digest

                            Digest

                          • CRM Marketplace

                            CRM Marketplace

                          • MVP Corner

                            MVP Corner




                            Zoho Writer Writer

                            Get Started. Write Away!

                            Writer is a powerful online word processor, designed for collaborative work.

                              Zoho CRM コンテンツ



                                ご検討中の方

                                  • Recent Topics

                                  • Creating a Chart from a Report

                                    In Zoho Analytics, is it possible to create a chart from a Pivot View report? We are looking to use Zoho Analytics to replace Excel for Sales reports and would like to be able to show both the table and the chart together.
                                  • Ability to Set Client Name During Portal Invitation

                                    Hi Zoho Team, We would like to suggest an important enhancement to the Zoho Creator Client Portal functionality. Zoho Creator recently introduced the option to set a client’s display name in the Client Portal settings, which is very helpful for creating
                                  • Move email between inboxes?

                                    Is it possible to move emails from one team inbox to another? We would like to be able to have a single "catch-all" inbox for incoming requests, and then move the email to the appropriate department inbox. I was hoping we would be able to accomplish this
                                  • PDF Attachment Option for Service Reports

                                    Hello Team, I would like to check with you all if there is an option to attach PDF documents to the service reports. When I try to attach a file, the system only allows the following formats: JPEG, JPG, and PNG. Could you please confirm whether PDF attachments
                                  • 【Zoho CRM】データ一覧画面でのメモのバッジ機能リリースのお知らせ

                                    ユーザーの皆さま、こんにちは。コミュニティチームの藤澤です。2026年度もゾーホーユーザーコミュニティをどうぞよろしくお願いいたします! 今回は「Zoho CRM アップデート情報」の中から、新機能のデータ一覧画面でのメモのバッジ機能をご紹介します。 目次 概要 メモのバッジ機能について メモの作成について メモに関する様々な処理について 最近追加したメモについて メモのバッジの非表示について クライアントスクリプトの対応 概要  メモのバッジ機能について 既存の活動バッジに加えて、すべてのタブのデータ一覧表示画面に、各データごとに利用できる「メモのバッジ」(キャプチャ内の赤枠部分)が新たに導入されました。
                                  • is it possible to add more than one Whatsapp Phone Number to be integrated to Zoho CRM?

                                    so I have successfully added one Whatsapp number like this from this User Interface it seems I can't add a new Whatsapp Number. I need to add a new Whatsapp Number so I can control the lead assignment if a chat sent to Whatsapp Phone Number 1 then assign
                                  • Can’t find fsm in zoho one

                                    Every other app is available to me in Zoho one except fsm
                                  • Posibility to add Emoticons on the Email Subject of Templates

                                    Hi I´ve tried to add Emoticons on the Subject line of Email templates, the emoticon image does show up before saving the template or if I add the Emoticon while sending an Individual email and placing it manually on the subject line. Emoticons also show
                                  • Task Deletion Restriction & Strict Stage Control

                                    Hello Zoho Community, We have the following two issues currently pending and under testing, for which we require a workable and reliable solution: 1. Task Deletion Restriction We are testing ways to ensure that staff users are not able to delete tasks
                                  • Unable to mass update a picklist field

                                    Hello, I have the records within our Accounts module divided between two account types: Parent Accounts & Member Accounts. I am attempting to mass update accounts from one picklist value to the other (within other specific criteria in our custom fields)
                                  • Process checklist in CRM

                                    Hi We've created a new sales process that I'm mapping into the CRM - issue I have is that some of the tasks / milestones I would like to capture require very simple tick box responses but there are quite a few under a variety of sub categories so I don't
                                  • CRM project association via deluge

                                    I have created a workflow in my Zoho CRM for closing a deal. Part of this workflow leverages a deluge script to create a project for our delivery team. Creating the project works great however, after or during the project creation, I would like to associate
                                  • Holidays - Cannot Enter Two Holidays on Same Day

                                    I have a fairly common setup, where part-time employees receive 1/2 day's pay on a holiday and full-time employees receive a full day's pay. Historically, I've been able to accommodate this by entering two separate holidays, one that covers full-time
                                  • Where is the settings option in zoho writer?

                                    hi, my zoho writer on windows has menu fonts too large. where do i find the settings to change this option? my screen resolution is correct and other apps/softwares in windows have no issues. regards
                                  • File emails in Shared email folder

                                    Hi, I am unable to allow users to collaborate in Shared email folders: User 1 shares a folder let's say "SharedTopic" with full permissions Users 2 and 3 can see this folder but are unable to add emails to this folder or search in this folder. For example,
                                  • How create a draft via workflow?

                                    I wish to create a workflow rule for specific emails that creates a draft response - not an automatic email reply, but just a draft with a set response ready to be verified by an agent who can then manually select recipients. Alternatively, the workflow
                                  • This user is not allowed to add in Zoho. Please contact support-as@zohocorp.com for further details

                                    Hi Team, when I,m trying to create a email account (imagixmidia.com.br) it's showing this error >>  This user is not allowed to add in Zoho. Please contact support-as@zohocorp.com for further details plz help me  thanks
                                  • How to manage task lists in Zoho Desk?

                                    Hello, I use Zoho Desk for IT customer support. I have a list of standard operating procedures (SOPs), including SOPs for onboarding new users, offboarding users, losing a device, etc. These are lists of tasks to be performed depending on the situation.
                                  • Zoho → ShipStation Integration – Sales Order–Driven Fulfilment Workflow

                                    Hello All, I’m reaching out to explore the best way to integrate a shipping tool into our inventory which will speed our process up. We are looking to integrate ShipStation into our existing order-to-fulfilment workflow, as we’re keen to standardise on
                                  • Business Day Logic Update: More Accurate Scheduling for Your Workflows

                                    Hello everyone, We’re improving how business-day calculations work in workflows, especially when triggers happen on weekends. This update ensures that offsets like +0, +1, and +2 business days behave exactly as intended, giving you clearer and more predictable
                                  • Convert Lead Automation Trigger

                                    Currently, there is only a convert lead action available in workflow rules and blueprints. Also, there is a Convert Lead button available but it doesn't trigger any automations. Once the lead is converted to a Contact/Account the dataset that can be fetched
                                  • Default Tagging on API-generated Transactions

                                    If one assigns tags to an Item or Customer, those tags get auto-populated in each line item of an Invoice or Sales Order when one creates those documents. However, if one creates the Sales Order or Invoice via the API (either directly coding or using
                                  • User

                                    If user is already part of manage engine endpoint central , what hapens when i try to add them to another Zoho org / directory? Are these users added as external users?
                                  • Adding a new section to the related details sidebar when creating a new ticket.

                                    Hello, I was wondering if you can add a new section to the related details sidebar when creating a new ticket. I was wanting to have it to where it also shows the account information related to the contact chosen as well. This is the section I am referring
                                  • Displaying only unread tickets in ticket view

                                    Hello, I was wondering if someone might be able to help me with this one. We use filters to display our ticket list, typically using a saved filter which displays the tickets which are overdue or due today. What I'd really like is another filter that
                                  • How to compare a subform lookup field that allows multiple entries when edited

                                    I have a form with a subform with multiple fields. One of the fields is a lookup field that allows a multi select. On edit validation, I want a workflow to execute only when the entries in that subform field has changed. The old. function is not working
                                  • Is Zoho Shifts included in the Zoho One plan?

                                    In case the answer is no: there's any plan to make it available via One? Thank you
                                  • Zoho Tracking Image location

                                    So we've been having an issue with tracking email opens. Specifically in Gmail. Our emails are not that long either, maybe 4 sections of image/250 characters of text/button per section.  But all my test accounts I used via Gmail we're showing opens. But then come to find out the tracking image is at the very bottom of the email. So If the message is clipped (It always just clips our social icons on the bottom) and the user doesn't click the show more button it never tracks the open.  Looking at other
                                  • Is there a plan to integrate zoho voice with zoho books?

                                    Hello, Is there a plan to integrate zoho voice with zoho books? Right now we are using the Twilio SMS integration into zoho books, but have recently decided to switch to zoho voice for calls and sms. Is there a plan to integrate zoho voice natively into
                                  • Zoho Tables is now live in Australia & New Zealand!

                                    Hey everyone! We’ve got some great news to share — Zoho Tables is now officially available in the Australian Data Center serving users across Australia and New Zealand regions! Yes, it took us a bit longer to get here, but this version of Zoho Tables
                                  • Delivery and handling of documents e-stamped using Zoho Sign

                                    Hello everyone! Zoho Sign makes it easy to pay non judicial stamp duty online and automatically attach the digitally generated e-stamp challan to electronic documents. We also manage the delivery of physical e-stamped papers. We periodically receive these
                                  • Introducing Dedicated Modules for Plans, Addons, and Coupons in Zoho Billing

                                    We’ve enhanced the way you manage Plans, Addons, and Coupons in Zoho Billing. Previously, all three grouped together under Subscription Items. Now, each one has its own dedicated module, giving you a cleaner and more intuitive experience. This update
                                  • Sortie de Zoho TABLE ??

                                    Bonjour, Depuis bientôt 2 ans l'application zoho table est sortie en dehors de l'UE ? Depuis un an elle est annoncée en Europe Mais en vrai, c'est pour quand exactement ??
                                  • Issue with WhatsApp Template Approval and Marketing Message Limit in Zoho Bigin

                                    We are facing issues while creating and using WhatsApp message templates through Zoho Bigin, and we request your clarification and support regarding the same. 1. Utility Template Approval Issue Until December, we were able to create WhatsApp templates
                                  • How to install Widget in inventory module

                                    Hi, I am trying to install a app into Sales Order Module related list, however there is no button allow me to do that. May I ask how to install widget to inventory module related list?
                                  • Zoho Social - Feature Request - Non-US Date Format

                                    Hi Social Team, I have noticed that there is no option to change the date format from US mm/dd/yyyy to others like dd/mm/yyyy. It would be great to see this added as the platform matures. Thanks for considering this feedback.
                                  • Drop Down Value

                                    Hi, May I know why Zoho Flow treat this drop down as number and not as string. If so, how can I fetch the right value for filtering. This field is from Creator, in Creator upon checking by default it is a string since it's not a lookup field.
                                  • Zoho CRM's mobile apps: A 2025 Recap

                                    2025 marked a year of steady progress for Zoho CRM's mobile apps. We rolled out several updates and features to improve usability and make everyday CRM work a lot easier to manage. Here’s a look back at some of the key releases from 2025. Android releases
                                  • Facebook follower count doesn't match FB Analytics

                                    Hi all, I am wondering if anyone else has issues with follower counts for Facebook not matching FB's native analytics tool. On the Zoho dashboard, it's showing 1,007, but FB shows 1,060. All the other channels match up. Any insights are much appreciated!
                                  • Meta and Facebook data report discrepancy

                                    I have been currently gathering manually facebook follower data thru meta. In zoho marketing plus the social media reporting only allows for page likes, and so there is a discrepancy with the data. please the difference in files attached. Is there way
                                  • Next Page