Macros in Salesforce Service console

Posted on July 25th, 2024 by Anoop Kumar Giri

Using Macros in Salesforce Service Cloud's Service Console can significantly enhance agent productivity by automating repetitive tasks. Here are some scenarios where macros in Salesforce can be particularly useful:

1. Standardizing Email Responses

Scenario: Customer Service Representatives (CSRs) frequently receive similar inquiries about product availability.

Macro:

  • Trigger: New case creation.
  • Actions:
    • Open the case.
    • Insert a predefined email template addressing product availability.
    • Update the case status to "Awaiting Customer Response."
    • Log an activity noting the email was sent.

2. Updating Case Status and Fields

Scenario: CSRs often need to update several fields when a case progresses to the next stage.

Macro:

  • Trigger: Case status update.
  • Actions:
    • Change the case status to "In Progress."
    • Update the priority to "High."
    • Add a note in the case comments.
    • Assign the case to a specific queue or user.

3. Escalating Cases

Scenario: A CSR identifies a case that requires immediate escalation to a higher support tier.

Macro:

  • Trigger: Manual selection by the agent.
  • Actions:
    • Update the case status to "Escalated."
    • Change the priority to "Urgent."
    • Reassign the case to the Tier 2 support team.
    • Notify the new owner via email.
    • Add a comment detailing the reason for escalation.

4. Closing Cases

Scenario: A CSR completes the resolution of a case and needs to follow a standard procedure to close it.

Macro:

  • Trigger: Resolution confirmation.
  • Actions:
    • Change the case status to "Closed."
    • Update the resolution date and time.
    • Send a closure email to the customer with a satisfaction survey link.
    • Log a call with details of the resolution.

5. Logging Calls and Activities

Scenario: After speaking with a customer, a CSR needs to log the call details and follow-up tasks.

Macro:

  • Trigger: After call completion.
  • Actions:
    • Create a new activity record for the call.
    • Populate the call details, including date, time, and summary.
    • Create follow-up tasks if necessary.
    • Update the case comments with key points from the call.

6. Sending Follow-Up Emails

Scenario: CSRs need to send follow-up emails to customers after certain time periods or actions.

Macro:

  • Trigger: Time-based workflow rule or manual selection.
  • Actions:
    • Open the relevant case.
    • Select and insert a follow-up email template.
    • Update the case status to "Follow-Up Pending."
    • Log the email activity in the case record.

7. Creating Knowledge Articles

Scenario: A CSR identifies a recurring issue and needs to create a knowledge article based on a case.

Macro:

  • Trigger: Manual selection.
  • Actions:
    • Open the case details.
    • Create a new knowledge article.
    • Populate the article with case information.
    • Tag the article for easier searching.
    • Save and publish the article.

8. Assigning Cases to Specialists

Scenario: Certain cases need to be assigned to specific specialists based on case criteria.

Macro:

  • Trigger: Case creation or update.
  • Actions:
    • Evaluate case details (e.g., product type, issue complexity).
    • Assign the case to the appropriate specialist or queue.
    • Update the case status to "Assigned to Specialist."
    • Notify the specialist via email.

9. Managing Case Attachments

Scenario: CSRs frequently need to attach files to cases as part of their resolution process.

Macro:

  • Trigger: Manual selection.
  • Actions:
    • Open the case.
    • Navigate to the attachments section.
    • Upload the relevant files.
    • Update the case comments to indicate that attachments have been added.

10. Survey Requests

Scenario: After resolving a case, CSRs need to send a customer satisfaction survey.

Macro:

  • Trigger: Case closure.
  • Actions:
    • Change the case status to "Closed."
    • Send a predefined email with a survey link.
    • Log the email activity in the case record.
    • Update the case comments with a note about the survey sent.

Implementing these macros can streamline the workflow, ensure consistency in communication, and free up time for CSRs to focus on more complex tasks.

Creation of Macros

Creating macros in the Salesforce Service Console involves defining a set of actions that can be executed with a single click. Here’s an example of how to develop a macro to automate sending a standard email response and updating case fields:

Example: Macro to Send Standard Email Response and Update Case Fields

Scenario: Customer Service Representatives frequently need to send a standard email response to customers asking about order status and update the case status to "Awaiting Customer Response."

Steps to Create the Macro

Step 1: Open the Service Console

  • Login to Salesforce.
  • Navigate to the Service Console app.

Step 2: Access the Macros Utility

  • From the Service Console, click on the Utilities Bar (usually located at the bottom of the screen).
  • Click on the Macros utility.

    macro

    Figure 1: Add macro in utility item on Lighting App builder of services console.

Step 3: Create a New Macro

  • In the Macros utility, click the + (New) button to create a new macro.
  • Provide a Name and Description for the macro, such as "Send Order Status Email and Update Case."
  • Choose the Object the macro will apply to (in this case, Case).

    new Macro

    Figure 2: Create a new Macro on the service console.

Step 4: Define Macro Actions

  • After saving the macro ,the macro record view is displayed. This page shows you all the details of your macro. Click Edit Instructions to start telling the macro what to do.

    instruction on macro

    Figure 3: Click on edit instruction to add instruction on macro.

2. Update Case Status:

  • Click on add Instruction.
  • Select Case status field to update the field..
  • Choose the Status field and set it to Awaiting Customer Response.
  • Click on save

Case status field

Figure 4: Select the Case status field and change its value to Awaiting customer response.

3. Insert Email Template:

  • In the canvas, click "Email."
  • In the instruction panel, click "Add Instruction”.
  • Choose Insert Email Template.

Email Template in macro

Figure 5: Insert Email Template in macro.

  • Select the appropriate email template for order status inquiries.
  • Click on save.

Select email template

Figure 6: Select email template to insert email template in macro.

Step 5: Save the Macro

  • Once all actions are defined, click Save.

Step 6: Test the Macro

  • Navigate to a Case record in the Service Console.
  • Open the Macros utility.
  • Find the macro you created ("Send Order Status Email and Update Case") and click Run Macro.

    Run macro

    Figure 7: Run macro on service console.

4. Verify that the macro performs the following:

  • Opens the case record.
  • Updates the case status to "Awaiting Customer Response."

customer response macro

Figure 8: Case status has changed to awaiting customer response.

Logs an activity noting that the email was sent is shown in the Figure below.

email sent to the customer

Figure 9: An email has been sent to the customer that status has been changed.

Best Practices

  • Naming Conventions: Use clear and descriptive names for your macros to make it easy for agents to understand their purpose.
  • Testing: Thoroughly test each macro in a sandbox environment before deploying it to production.
  • Documentation: Document the macros and their usage instructions for your support team.
  • Training: Provide training for agents on how to use macros effectively.

Conclusion

By following these steps, you can develop and deploy macros in the Salesforce Service Console to automate repetitive tasks, improving efficiency and consistency in your customer service processes.

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