Capture Requests the Catalogue Misses With Inline Forms

No catalogue covers every request. Some requests are useful but rare, and a service type for each one would make your catalogue long. This article shows how to let AI attach the right form to a ticket after it is created, so you can collect details without slowing the contact down.

The short version

• Keep your catalogue short. Don't create a service type for every rare request.
• Write a clear description and add tags on each form.
• When a ticket is created, a webhook triggers AI.
• AI looks up the available forms and decides whether one fits the ticket.
• If one fits, the form is added to the ticket. If not, nothing is added.

Why use inline forms

Contacts are often in a hurry. They want to know that their request was received. A long form at the start can slow them down or make them give up.

An inline form is different. The contact creates the ticket first. Then, if more details are needed, a form is attached to the ticket. By then the contact knows their request is being handled, so they are more willing to answer a few questions.

See Why a Small Service Catalogue Works Better for the reasoning.

How the flow works

1. A ticket is created, by any route.
2. Your system receives a ticket created notification through a webhook.
3. The full ticket is loaded, including its description.
4. AI looks up the available forms.
5. AI decides whether a form is needed, and which one.
6. If a form fits, it is added to the ticket.

For the webhook options (PSA webhook or DeskDirector webhook), see Use AI Categorisation Instead of Setup-Only Service Types. You can use the same trigger for both categorisation and inline forms.

Step 1: Prepare your forms

AI can only choose well if each form is described well.

Write a description for each form

Every form has a description field. Use it to tell AI two things:

• When this form should be used.
• What this form collects.

Example:

Use this form when a contact asks for a new laptop or other equipment for a new or existing employee. It collects the employee name, the equipment needed, the delivery location and the date needed.

Write it plainly. Think of it as instructions for a new team member.

Add tags to your forms

Tags group your forms. For example: onboarding, hardware, software, access.

Tags help when you have many forms. AI can search by tag first, then look only at the forms in that group. This is faster and more accurate than reading every form.

Step 2: Let AI look up your forms

Option A: Use MCP

MCP lets AI ask your system questions directly. With MCP, AI can:

• List the available forms.
• Read each form's description.
• Search forms by tag.

This works well even with a large number of forms, because AI can search by tag and go through the results quickly.

DeskDirector is working on MCP support. A separate article will cover the setup when it is ready.

Option B: Include a form list in the prompt

If MCP is not available yet, put the list of forms in the AI prompt. Include the ID, the name and the description of each form. AI will choose from this list and return the form ID.

This works well when you have a small number of forms. For a large number, the prompt becomes long, so use MCP when it is available.

Step 3: Add the form to the ticket

When AI selects a form, the flow needs to add it to the ticket. You can use a Power Automate action to do this.

Step 4: Write a good prompt

The prompt decides how much noise you create. The most important rule is: attach a form only when it is necessary. A form on every ticket annoys contacts and gives your team extra work.

Here is a sample prompt. Change it to match your own forms and process.

You are helping a service desk team.

You will receive a new support ticket, including its description.
Your job is to decide whether an additional form should be attached to it.

Rules:
- Attach a form ONLY if the ticket clearly needs information that the form collects.
- If the ticket already contains the information, do not attach a form.
- If no form clearly matches, do not attach anything.
- Attach at most one form.
- Do not guess. When unsure, attach nothing.

Use the form list to decide. Each form has an ID, a description of when to
use it, and a description of what it collects.

Answer with the form ID, or "none".

If you use Option B, add the form list below the rules:

Available forms:
- ID: 101 | New equipment request | Use when ... | Collects ...
- ID: 102 | New user setup | Use when ... | Collects ...

Step 5: Test and review

1. Test with a few sample tickets before you turn it on for everyone.
2. Check that AI attaches forms only when they are useful.
3. In your monthly review, look at tickets where a form was attached. Were the forms useful? Did contacts complete them?
4. Check tickets where no form was attached. Were any missed?
5. Adjust the form descriptions or the prompt based on what you find.

If AI attaches the wrong form, the first thing to check is the form description. A vague description is the most common cause.

What to expect

• Setup effort. You need to write form descriptions, add tags, set up the webhook and write the prompt.
• AI usage cost. Each ticket is read by AI, and form lookups may add more.
• Mistakes. AI will sometimes attach a form that isn't needed, or miss one that is. Review a sample each month.
• Contact response. Contacts may not fill in the form. Keep forms short.

Which forms to use

Good candidates for inline forms:

• Forms that are useful but rarely used.
• Forms that collect details after the request is understood, such as asset lists or approvals.
• Forms that were once service types but received few submissions.

Keep the most common requests as service types in your main catalogue. See Build a Small, High-Value Service Catalogue.