Metadata, Custom Issue Fields, and tags are different ways to represent data in Helpshift. Each of these data types has different functions which you should consider when planning your workflow.
Metadata
Metadata is device information that is collected out-of-the-box by our iOS/Android SDK when it is integrated into your app. This includes the user’s OS type, app version, device type, battery level, and more. All of your metadata is listed on the ‘Metadata’ tab on the Issue details page of any in-app Issue.
You will notice a section titled ‘Custom Data’ in your metadata tab for in-app Issues. Custom Data is data that is unique to your app that is not collected by default that your developers can configure our SDK to collect. This data could include anything you want, such as spend amount, User ID, install date, number of purchases, and anything else you’d like to know.
Metadata (including Custom Data) is read-only, though they can be configured by your developer to be automatically set as Custom Issue Fields and tags, which is how you use this data in your workflow. Instructions for your developer to pass through metadata and Custom Data are available in our developer documentation for iOS and Android.
Custom Issue Fields
Custom Issue Fields are the powerhouse of your workflow for passing through data from your app – they allow you to organize Issues based on a number of categories using fields made up of a label and a type. The label is where you provide the category of the field (tier, purchase date, country) and the type is where you define the kind of value which should be allowed to be entered into the field (a number, date, string, a drop-down, and more.)
Your developer can configure your SDK to map unique app data to Custom Issue Fields automatically when metadata or Custom Data thresholds are met.
We recommend using Custom Issue Fields to organize your Issues into specific, stable categories that benefit your workflow. As part of our Getting Started process, you’ll want to plan your Custom Issue Fields while planning your overall workflow.
They can also be configured to support the following platforms:
- Web Chat: Configure the Web Chat SDK to automatically map Web Chat data into Custom Issue Fields, including user responses to Bots.
- Email support: Use Custom Issue Fields with Automations to automatically route and assign new Issues based on the email address that the user has reached out to.
- Contact us form: When end users reach out via your Web Support Portal, you can configure that form to collect specific data about the end user’s inquiry and map that data to Custom Issue Fields.
To learn more about Custom Issue Fields and see examples of how to use them, please see our guide to Custom Issue Fields.
Tags>
Tags Tags are unique values that can be automatically applied using Automations when specific criteria are met, added by a Bot as part of a workflow, or added manually by Agents.
Tags can be manually created and applied from the Dashboard and are best for one-off, temporary, or trending issue types. They can be used to filter Issues into Smart Views or Queues based on the metadata associated with the Issue, which is helpful for quickly organizing Issues by smaller, more nuanced pieces of data.
Tags data can also be reviewed via Helpshift Analytics and Power BI. To review more use cases for tags, please see How do I create and use tags?
In Summary
Metadata (which includes Custom Data) is read-only, and can be used to automatically set Custom Issue Fields and tags upon Issue creation. Custom Issue Fields are action-driven, and should be used to power your overall workflow. Tags are useful for organizing one-off or trending Issue types into Smart Views.
The chart below defines how to think about each data type and what they are useful for.
