How to Create Help Desk Tickets from Google Calendar in 5 Steps (or Less)

Girl Talk's new mash up makes the crowd go wild. Mojo's will too.  (photo credit: milkshake media)

It's a Google Calendar event. It's a help desk ticket. It's a do-it-yourself mash up that can be configured in 5 steps or less. If you've ever wanted your Google Calendar events to flow straight into helpdesk a ticket, here's how you do it:

(Author's note: You'll need a Mojo Helpdesk account to get started. Sign up on our home page for a 30-day free trial.)

Step 1 (Optional). Create a new queue for your Google Calendar events

From your Mojo Helpdesk navigation bar, click 'manage' >> 'Queues and email addresses' and click the 'New' button.  Enter a queue name and an email address and then click the 'create queue' button.  Make note of the email address you created because you'll need it for Step 3.

For this example, I created a new queue called Google Calendar and set my email address as calendar@ryanluedecke dot mojohelpdesk dot com :

Instead of creating a new queue, you may prefer to use an existing queue that you've already setup. To use an existing queue, click 'manage' >> 'Queues and email addresses' and find the email address associated with the queue you plan to use. Take note of this email address because you'll need it for Step 3.

Step 2. Set up email reminders in Google Calendar. 

Open Google Calendar. Click the gear icon in the upper right, then select Settings. In the Calendars Settings screen, click the 'Calendars' link. On the Calendars page, click the link for 'Reminders and notifications' and then set up email reminders as shown below (don't forget to hit the Save button). 

Step 3. Set up a forwarding address in Gmail.

Open Gmail. Click the gear icon in the upper right, then select Settings. Click the Forwarding and POP/IMAP tab. 

Enter the queue email address from Step 1. Gmail sends a confirmation code that you need to grab from your 'Unassigned' tickets view (or 'Unassigned' >> 'Guest Requests' view if you have special filters or automations set up). 

After verifying your code, click the 'Disable' forwarding button and scroll down and click the 'Save Changes' button. When you finish this step, your settings will look like this:

Step 4. Set up a filter in Gmail. 

Keep Gmail open. Click the gear icon in the upper right, then select Settings. Click the Filter tab. Click the 'Create a new filter' link and fill in the filter pop up form as follows:

From: <calendar-notification@google.com> 

(this is the email Google uses to deliver every Calendar reminder as of 4/29/13)

To: your Gmail address
(I entered my Gmail address: ryan |at| metadot dot com) 

Subject: Reminder

(Optional) Has the words: #mojo
(If you only want certain events to show up as tickets, set this filter and tag your Google Calendar events with '#mojo' in the title or description. In the example below, I want all Google Calendar events to create Mojo tickets so I didn't use this filter.)

Leave the 'Doesn't have' field blank. When finished, click the 'Create filter with this search' link.

Now you need to check the 'Forward it to:' box and select the forwarding address you set up in Step 1.  Click 'Create filter' and you're finished (see example screen shot below).

Step 5. (Optional) Auto-assign the Google Calendar tickets to yourself.

Now that your Google Calendar event reminders are creating tickets in your help desk, you may want to auto-assign them to yourself using an automation. 

To get started, click 'manage' >> 'Automations' then click the 'new' button. Give the automation a title and then scroll down to the 'Assign to:' field and select yourself from the drop down menu. From there, click 'Create & Activate'. When this automation is activated, you'll be able to manage your Google Calendar tickets from your My Assignments view as shown below. 

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Did you enjoy this mash up? If so, please tweet this message and help us spread the word about Mojo Helpdesk. Every tweet is appreciated.

Questions about this mash up or about our ticket tracking software in general? Send them to me at ryan (at) metadot

All the best,

Ryan

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Sync Google Apps users instantly with Mojo Helpdesk

Mojo Helpdesk is excited to announce our new Google Apps User Sync integration. With user sync you can import all your Google Apps users into Mojo Helpdesk in a few mouse clicks. For example:

• Businesses that have large classes of new hires starting every summer can now import them all seamlessly from Google Apps.  
• School or universities with hundreds of new students enrolling each fall can now add them to Mojo with no manual data entry.  
• Government agencies now have the ability to quickly add temp workers and seasonal employees as Mojo users. 

If you've already integrated Mojo Helpdesk with Google Apps, all you have to do is click the 'Google Apps Users Synchronization' in the Admin menu and you'll be given the option to import all your Google Apps users (see below).

If you haven't integrated Mojo Helpdesk with Google Apps, you'll need to do so in order to take advantage of the user sync feature. As a first step, watch this short video on how to integrate with Google Apps. As a final step in the integration process, check the box for 'Import Google users' as shown below and you'll be all set.

Here are a few additional things you should know about the Google User Sync integration:

1. All of your Google Apps users are imported as 'users' in Mojo Helpdesk, so if any help desk staff are imported you'll need to change their 'Role' status from 'user' to 'technician.'
2. During the synchronization, existing Mojo users will not be duplicated but Mojo will update their user profile to be consistent with Google Apps.
3. Users whom you've suspended in Google Apps will be imported to Mojo Helpdesk as inactive users.

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If you have any questions about the Google Apps User Sync integration or want to learn more about request tracking, help ticketing, or ticket tracking software, please contact ryan |at) metadot (dot] com.

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How Ticket Tracking Software Helps Homeowners Associations Work More Efficiently

Homeowners associations and other property management organizations can streamline operations and handle requests more efficiently by using web hosted ticket tracking software.

Requests can include internal assignments related to the HOAs tech infrastructure (computers, laptops, phone lines, etc) as well as maintenance and support requests that come in from homeowners (landscaping, grounds keeping, security alerts, etc).

While using email to handle requests can seem simple at first, as your residential community grows, it becomes highly inefficient.

For example, how do you know all incoming requests are being followed up on and how do you know who is responsible for handling which requests? How do you keep track of projects that started months ago or years ago (such as a major park or pool renovation)? With email, it's impossible to track everything and keep everything organized but with a help desk & ticket tracking system you can monitor projects to completion.

Your residents will also feel comfort knowing they can email your support desk or login to the portal to create a support ticket. They can also track their issue with you until completion by logging into the portal to check the status. 

Below we provide an example of how a web hosted ticket tracking software, like Mojo Helpdesk, could be used by homeowners associations. Managing tickets with Mojo Helpdesk is simple and works much like a group email inbox. With Mojo Helpdesk's reporting tools you will be able to track issues assigned to your HOA staff members and know what issues are being handled in a timely manner and which are not. 

{Author's note: We've also included several references to one of our all time favorite cartoons. If you can name the cartoon, then send an email to ryan (at) metadot (dot) com and I'll send you a special prize.}

How Ticket Tracking Software Helps HOAs Work Efficiently

1. Centralizes homeowner requests for you

We're using the fictitious Orbit City HOA in our example and have assumed they have the following responsibilities:

1. Community landscaping
2. Maintain recreational facilities
3. Provide security
4. Arrange for maintenance of streets and curbs
5. Enforce deed restrictions

In this case, it will be helpful to centralize all the requests and then sort all the requests into topic specific queues:

Each queue is then assigned it's own email address where homeowners can send messages. The email addresses for each queue would be listed on the HOA's website for homeowners to reference.

In the example above, all landscaping requests are sent to landscaping@orbitcityhoa.com and then centralized in the 'Landscaping and Grounds' queue, all street and curb maintenance requests are sent to streets@orbitcityhoa.com and housed in the 'Streets and Curbs' queue, and so forth.

Orbit City HOA could assign staff members to each queue and have staff members automatically notified via email when a new ticket arrives in their queue. In the example above, Jane receives email notifications for all landscaping requests and Spencer receives all inquiries related to neighborhood security. 

If an HOAs responsibilities expand, new queues can be added. Similarly, staff members can be reassigned to different queues or added to new queues as necessary.

2. Helps you turn requests into tasks and assign those tasks to staff

Homeowner issues often require some kind of follow up. Maybe a tree has fallen in the street and  the debris needs to be hauled away. Maybe a sprinkler has gone haywire and needs to be repaired. Maybe  homeowners have been given notice to remove holiday decorations by the end of the month and someone on the HOA team needs to confirm compliance.

In these situations you need a system like Mojo Helpdesk that lets you delegate tasks to your HOA staff or outside suppliers and then monitor those tasks to completion.

In the example below, George assigns the task of curb repainting (also called a ticket) to the HOA team member in charge of streets and curb maintenance, Rosie. Once George clicks 'Submit Ticket', Rosie receives real time email notification that she has a task to complete. 

The ticket includes a text description of the task and priority level indicator (normal, low, urgent or emergency) so that the assignee knows how to prioritize the task.

3. Allows you to tracks tasks to completion

When assigned a task in Mojo Helpdesk users can add comments to the ticket and give status updates so that anyone with permission can view the progress made on the task. 

In the example above, George has added comments to the tickets indicating key milestones for a task as it moves towards completion.

4. Lets you search solved requests

Often times it's helpful to check previously solved tickets for instances of precedent. For example, if a new homeowner has a question about attaching a basketball goal to his garage, it may be helpful to search previous tickets relating to 'basketball goals' to ensure that the HOA response to similar questions is consistent.

Once you've completed a search you can save it for later reference and make the search available for others on your HOA team using the Saved Searches feature.

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The example above gives a basic overview of how ticket tracking software such as Mojo Helpdesk lets HOAs centralize, assign, and track requests until they're done. There's also other benefits to consider:

1. It's affordable for HOA's, especially those managed by volunteers on a tight budget.
2. You can easily add new HOA members and de-activate past members. 
3. Support tickets can be raised, tracked, and closed by residents.
4. HOA members can use the messaging feature to communicate with residents about important updates or notices, for example messages such as, "please remove all holiday decorations by the end of the month," can be sent to all residents.
5. All resident contact information is stored in the user profiles, so each time a ticket is raised you have their profile info and ticket history right in front of you.

If you have any questions about ticket tracking software or you'd like to receive a demo of Mojo Helpdesk, please send an email to ryan |at| metadot (d o t ) com.

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