Understanding Ticket Statuses

Overview

Ticket statuses help you track where each work request stands in your workflow. At a glance, you can see what needs attention, what's in progress, and what's complete.

Ticket Status Types

Open

What it means: The ticket is new or waiting for action

• Work hasn't been started
• May need to be scheduled
• Waiting for customer approval
• Parts may need to be ordered

When to use:

• Just received a work request
• Waiting on information before scheduling
• Work is paused/on hold

In Progress

What it means: Work is actively happening

• At least one job is scheduled or in progress
• Team member is working on it
• Active engagement with this ticket

When to use:

• When you schedule or start a job
• Work is actively being performed
• Multiple visits are in progress

Completed

What it means: All work is finished

• The requested work is done
• No more visits needed
• Ready for final invoicing
• Customer has been satisfied

When to use:

• All jobs associated with ticket are complete
• Customer has signed off
• Work is ready to invoice

Cancelled

What it means: Work won't be done

• Customer cancelled the request
• Work is no longer needed
• Job went to another contractor
• Not feasible to complete

When to use:

• Customer explicitly cancels
• Work is abandoned
• Scope change makes original request obsolete

Status Transitions

Common Paths

Typical workflow:

Open → In Progress → Completed

Cancelled work:

Open → Cancelled
In Progress → Cancelled

Complex jobs:

Open → In Progress → Open (waiting on parts) → In Progress → Completed

Automatic vs. Manual Changes

Automatic changes happen when:

• Creating a job from a ticket → In Progress
• Completing all jobs on a ticket → Completed (optional prompt)
• Job completion triggers status review

Manual changes:

• You can change status anytime from the ticket detail
• Add notes explaining why (especially for cancellations)
• Override automatic suggestions when needed

Filtering by Status

In the Tickets List

1. Open the Tickets page
2. Click the Status filter
3. Select the statuses you want to see:
   • View only Open tickets (what needs scheduling)
   • View In Progress (what's being worked)
   • View Completed (for review or invoicing)

Dashboard Widgets

Your dashboard may show:

• Count of Open tickets
• Count of In Progress work
• Recently Completed tickets

Status Best Practices

Keep Statuses Current

• Update status as work progresses
• Don't leave tickets in wrong status for long
• Review open tickets regularly

Use Notes When Changing

When changing status, especially to Cancelled:

• Add a note explaining why
• Document any customer communication
• Note any follow-up needed

Review Stale Tickets

Periodically check for:

• Open tickets that should be in progress
• In Progress tickets that should be complete
• Old tickets that need attention

Tips

• Use status filters to focus on what needs attention now
• Train your team on consistent status usage
• Review "Open" tickets daily to ensure nothing falls through
• Add notes when status changes for unclear reasons

Common Questions

Q: Can I create custom statuses? A: Currently, BlueClerk uses the standard four statuses. Custom workflows may be added in the future.

Q: Does changing status notify the customer? A: No, status changes are internal. Use explicit communication to update customers.

Q: Can I reopen a completed ticket? A: Yes, you can change a Completed ticket back to Open or In Progress for follow-up work.

Q: What's the difference between ticket status and job status? A: Ticket status is the overall work request. Job status is for individual scheduled visits. A ticket "In Progress" might have one "Completed" job and one "Scheduled" job.

Related Articles

• Creating a Ticket
• Completing a Job
• Job Reports