With a universal emphasis on digital transformation, IT workloads are constantly increasing for every organization. There is more to do than there is even talent available to do it, and CTOs and Directors of IT are responding by turning to sophisticated automation.
When it comes to interactions with users, however, appropriate solutions require serious consideration of the overall experience. The ServiceNow Service Portal gracefully blends automation and user-friendly functionality to help users address their own issues without requiring intervention from IT staff. This post will help you understand the main features of the Service Portal and how you can use templates within it to optimize the user experience.
The Portal
If the ServiceNow Service Portal excels at anything, it is the centralization of necessary services within a single platform. These services include ticket management, help articles, and community support. From this platform, users can:
- Request help on specific issues
- Browse support topics within a dynamic service catalog
- Chat with other users about how to solve common problems
While the magic of these features is that they enable users to help themselves, they would not be possible without predefined templates. These templates are especially important for support ticket submission because they enable your IT staff to specify how fields in request forms will automatically populate. They can be reused as needed to facilitate a unified experience for anyone who interacts with the platform.
Faceted Search
For users who need more detailed information about specific problems, the Service Portal’s faceted search can be configured with any number of filters to direct them to the right knowledgebase. You may want to consider the following filters to start:
- Date published
- Application type
- Frequency of use
Since the platform gives you complete control over these parameters, it is important to set them up in a way that reflects the data you capture through other forms or fields in the Service Portal. By doing this, you will ensure greater cohesion between different parts of the system and tap into the existing power of connected features.
Service Requests
When it comes to using templates in the Service Portal, another great application relates to service request forms. These forms are filled out by users who have experienced system errors or who need assistance with routine, repeatable tasks such as requesting software installations.
One of the most beneficial user experience elements in the Service Portal is a feature that allows users to “check out” with requests as though they were using an online shopping cart. This is a high-level step in the portal experience, and it reflects mature use of the system. For your IT staff, it represents a significant decrease in the time needed to provide direct support to users. It frees engineers to respond only at the delivery phase, rather than needing to walk users through the whole support process from the beginning.
Consulting with Trianz for Successful Implementation
Automation does not need to be sterile or impersonal. In fact, the main innovation of Service Portal is that it converts automaton into a positive user experience that also redirects service requests to the system (rather than to technical staff). If your support team is divided into tiers like many others, then you can think of the portal as a comprehensive first tier—the entry level for support needs.
Trianz has partnered with many Fortune 1000 companies to consult on topics like setting up instances of Service Portal. We want to help you maximize the benefits you gain from adopting ServiceNow. Our expertise also extends to the broader ServiceNow offering: we would be happy to help you implement a complete solution for your whole organization. Contact one of our specialists today to learn more.
