How Categories Work
When a ticket is assigned to a team member, Serval reads the ticket, compares its contents to your team’s category names and descriptions, and chooses the most appropriate category. Categories are used for:- Ticket assignment — Assignment rules use categories as one of several conditions to determine ticket assignment
Example Categories
| Category | Description |
|---|---|
| Billing and Finance | Questions about invoices, payments, refunds, pricing, or subscription changes |
| Design Apps Access | Access requests for design tools like Figma, Sketch, or Adobe Creative Cloud |
| Device Issues | Laptop problems, peripheral malfunctions, hardware troubleshooting, equipment repairs |
| Password Reset Requests | Password resets, account lockouts, credential recovery |
| Onboarding Processes | New hire setup, orientation questions, first-day logistics |
| Device and Computer Requests | New laptop orders, monitor requests, equipment returns, device upgrades |
Managing Categories
Editing Categories
Category names and descriptions can be created and updated on the Categories tab.Deleting Categories
When you delete a category, any assignment rules that use it as a condition may be affected. You’ll see a confirmation warning before the deletion goes through.Best Practices
Make categories disjoint
Create categories that are sufficiently different from one another to avoid confusion.
Write descriptive names and descriptions
Include specific keywords and examples in your category descriptions. This helps Serval accurately infer the category from ticket content.
Match categories to subject-matter expertise
Align categories to your team’s areas of expertise so they pair naturally with assignment rules.
Review and iterate
Periodically check whether tickets are landing in the right categories. Adjust descriptions or add new categories as request patterns evolve.
Viewing a Ticket’s Category
When Serval infers a category for a ticket, you can see it in two places:Ticket Page
The inferred category is displayed on each ticket page on the side panel.
Ticket Activity
The category inference event is logged on each ticket page in the activity section.
Related
Assignment Rules
Use categories as conditions in assignment rules for automatic ticket assignment
Labels
Add flexible tags to tickets for filtering and reporting