A ticketing system is an incredible tool for managing service requests and improves a company’s problem-solving capacity. It can also streamline a company’s business processes by making them more effective and efficient.
You don’t need a third-party solution to set up your ticketing system. You can build a ticketing system with the help of a program you might already be using in your company.
Say hello to Microsoft SharePoint!
Who needs a SharePoint ticketing system?
It makes sense to think about using SharePoint as the foundation for a ticketing system, as 85% of Fortune 500 businesses use it for employee collaboration, document management, project management, etc.
Here are some reasons why implementing a SharePoint ticketing system might be a good idea.
First of all, SharePoint is a platform that encourages customisation and integration. Building a ticketing system per the requirements of the entire company or its individual departments can prove beneficial in the long run.
Consequently, a SharePoint ticketing system is appropriate for handling requests of different kinds, including:
- HR Department – Vacations, attendance, workshops, etc.
- IT Department – Customer support, network problems, intranet support like tutorials, permissions etc.
- Accounting & Finance Department– Cost approvals, generating invoices, etc.
- Legal Department– Review requests, validate documents, etc.
- Sales Department – Purchase orders, quotes, etc.
- Security – Requests for security checks, auditing, etc.
- Office Support – Maintaining office supplies, tracking mail and couriers, etc.
- Property Maintenance – Site repair, ordering equipment, scheduling maintenance, etc.
- Customer Service – Addressing problems with products and services.
Benefits of SharePoint ticketing system
There is no need to look further for a ticketing system if your company is already using SharePoint. As a ticketing system, SharePoint offers the following benefits over third-party solutions.
- If your company runs on Microsoft’s ecosystem, then your users are more or less accustomed to SharePoint and familiar with using it.
- You can use SharePoint’s built-in customisation and integration options in a ticketing system.
- With features like user permission levels, data encryption, two-factor authentication, and more, Microsoft ensured that SharePoint delivered excellent security to its users.
- SharePoint has a robust search function, and you can further fine-tune your search terms using Keyword Query Language.
- SharePoint makes reporting simple by quickly and easily linking your data to PowerBI for robust reporting and analytics.
- Automated workflows make it possible to collaborate more quickly and to work more efficiently.
- Users can access SharePoint Sites anytime and from any device without compromising user experience across all platforms.
- By removing the need for users to log in each time they visit a website, the single sign-on functionality also improves user experience.
- SharePoint provides a budget option that costs just $5 per user per month if you seek a low-cost platform.
Important points to remember before developing SharePoint ticketing systems
There are plenty of settings and features in SharePoint that you can customise as per the requirements of your business. You can configure it to help you with the distribution of tickets, assign priorities, send email notifications, generate an open ticket from email, and other operational tasks that help you run your business more efficiently. This SharePoint ticketing system can significantly improve your team’s productivity while ensuring that your organisation has the capability to handle every issue properly.
Notification and reports are crucial to a company’s success, especially in the security, law, IT, and finance sectors. Businesses in these sectors often rely on customised ticketing solutions for their needs. Now your business may not be from the sectors mentioned above, but it is important to ensure that you include the following features while developing your own customised SharePoint ticketing system.
- Creation of automatic notifications for new tickets, client responses, deadlines, and other business-centric triggers. Users responding immediately to the notification and having their replies appear on the ticket can prove helpful.
- The system must allow for direct ticket creation from emails. This is particularly helpful if your company uses email-based ticketing.
- The ticketing system’s robustness, which includes the capability to upload photos to request forms and handle duplicate tickets, is also beneficial.
- Don’t overlook the system’s integration with other essential tools such as CRM and ERP systems.
On a side note, make sure you remember the following points:
A customised SharePoint ticketing system sometimes is more expensive and takes a little longer to develop than simply using a ready-made ticketing solution. However, on the plus side, you can customise the system to suit your company’s requirements better.
How to create a SharePoint ticketing system
Building your ticketing system in SharePoint is now easier than ever. You might not even need a lot of time to complete it.
If you wish to create a SharePoint ticketing system by yourself, simply adhere to these instructions:
- In a SharePoint site where you want to host the ticketing system, click the “New” button.
- Select “List” from the options menu. You can make a list using the buttons on the window that will appear.
- After that, select “Issue Tracker” from the list of templates.
- Select “Use template” on the preview screen.
Well, it might seem a little anticlimactic, but if you follow these steps, you will have a working ticketing system built with SharePoint. Simple out of the box application is the way to go if you are on a tight budget and need a ticketing system right away. Although functional, it lacks some additional features because we only use SharePoint out-of-the-box elements.
In the future, you can always hire a developer, or reach out to us, to add new features and customise your ticketing system as per your requirements. We have a team of experts who can build you a bespoke SharePoint ticketing system from scratch or add new features to the existing system.
Conclusion
Although SharePoint is known mainly for its document management features, it is also incredibly good at streamlining and automating several internal processes. One such process commonly used by businesses worldwide is its ticketing system.
A SharePoint ticketing system is the obvious and most practical choice for companies that already use SharePoint for their business needs. It can ensure that your business can address every issue effectively and promptly.
If your company already uses SharePoint Online or Office 365, you might save money using a ticketing system built using SharePoint instead of integrating with external third-party systems. Lowering additional subscription expenses and aids in maintaining a uniform digital working environment for businesses.
Furthermore, creating a feature-rich ticketing or SharePoint helpdesk system could demand resource and time-intensive customisation. If you need assistance, make sure you reach out to us, and we will get back to you as soon as possible.
