Application Branding

This article tells you how to customize the Service Portal with your company name and logo, and how to Customize Your Email Templates.

Add Your Logo, Company Name, and Custom Feeds

The first step is to make sure your users and visitors see an interface that includes your organization's name and logo.

1. Go to > Channels > Service Portal
2. In the Branding section, specify:

   Header Logo

   Upload your organization's logo image.

   Standard logo size is 98 pixels wide by 24 pixels high

   A realistic maximum size is up to 600 pixels wide by 32 pixels high

   Tip:

   Even at 32 pixels high, only very simple images and stylized text are readable.

   
   

   Web Site Url

   Enter the URL the users go to when they click on your logo.

   (Typically, that will be your organization's web site.)

   
   

   Favicon

   Upload a small favicon image that displays in the browser's address bar,

   in bookmarks, and in browser tabs.

   
   

   Mobile Logo

   Upload an image that will be seen by users who access the portal over a mobile device.

   
   

   Announcement Widget

   Specify the title and HTML text for a welcome message or any other announcement

   you would like to make on this page.

   
   

   Twitter Widget

   Use this option to display a Twitter feed in the Service Portal.

   To use it:

   • In your Twitter account, go to Settings, and create a new widget
   • Configure that widget to display an embeddable timeline, or one of the other feed types
   • The widget generates code that has two segments:

   An HTML link portion: <a ...> ... </a>

   A JavaScript portion: <script ...> ... </script>

   • Copy the HTML link portion of the generated code.
     (The JavaScript portion is not needed. That code has already been integrated into the platform.)
   • Paste HTML link portion into the Twitter Widget field

   
   

   Page Background Color

   Select a background color that matches your organization's theme.

3. While you're here, note that the Email Templates section contains links to the templates for messages that portal users will see. (You'll do some customizing momentarily. For now, just note where they are.)

4. Click [Save]

Note:

For a complete list of Service Portal configuration options, see the Service Portal Settings.

Customize Your Email Templates

Add Team Information to the Global Template Variables

The first step in customizing your email templates is to make sure that they contain the right name and email addresses. Variables have been defined for just that purpose, so you need to make the changes in only one place. To modify the variables:

1. Go to > Customization > Template Variables
2. Click [Manage Custom Template Variables]
3. Modify the first three default variables:

   Support Team Name

   Put the name of your support team here, so messages recipients know who the message is coming from.

   
   

   Support Team Email Address

   When users reply to a case-related message, their comments are automatically recorded as part of the case. This address lets them send messages to the support group for everything else.

   
   

   Support No Reply Email Address

   Some messages are informational, and do not allow replies. Use this value to display something for your users to see. For example: noReply@YourCompany.com

4. Add any other variables you need for use in multiple templates.

5. Click [Save]

Add Your Logo and other Information to the Templates

With the template variables set up, the default email templates are perfectly usable, just as they are. They aren't very stylish, however! To add a logo, additional text, and additional styling, you'll want to modify the templates:

1. Go to > Case Management > Email Templates to see a list of all email templates used in the system.
   -or-
   Go to > Channels > Service Portal to modify the templates that are used by the Service Portal.

   (Those are the only templates you really need to modify, for now.

   The other templates are for messages that go to your internal staff.)

2. When you're done making changes to a template, be sure to click [Save] at the bottom of the page.

Change Object Names

The concept of "Case Management" covers many different areas of activity. While many organizations work with things called "cases", others work with things called "Incidents", or "Investigations"--or they may have some other name entirely for the unit of work that comes in, gets handled, and then goes back out as "completed". They all work in fundamentally the same way--with defined processes, business rules, data forms, email communications stored in a history, and associated documents--but it's helpful for users if the interface gives them names they recognize.

In the AgileApps Cloud platform, the names displayed in the ServiceDesk can be modified to suit your organization. The label used for the Cases object can be changed, along with the labels used for Tasks, Contacts, and other objects.

To change an object name:

1. Go to > Objects > {object} > Object Properties
   You now have two options:
   • You can change the name of the object, if you like. The advantage is that any code you write will use the new object name. The disadvantage is that you will have to modify any and all Email Templates and Document Templates defined on the object, and change the names of the template variables they refer to--since those names all contain the object label (for example: $cases.description).
   • The more common solution is to change the Plural and Singular labels defined for the object. For cases, for example, those labels are "Cases", and "Case", respectively. Those changes affect the UI that users see. Template variables and code, on the other hand, continue to use the object name. As an added plus, code samples you get from others or find on the wiki will work with fewer modifications.

   Reviewing the interface, you will see that most labels and buttons the user sees automatically reflect the change. There are a couple of things that don't however. The next step is to change those.