Service and Support Applications · Topic 1 of 1
Case Management and Case Automation
Salesforce service: cases and queues, case assignment rules, support processes, auto-response and escalation rules, and Einstein for Service features.
- 3 min
- Email-to-Case and Web-to-Case create cases; queues hold them.
- One active case assignment rule; entries in order; first match wins.
- Support processes control case status values per record type.
What it is
A case records a customer's question, problem or request. Service teams work cases from queues, and administrators automate the flow with assignment rules, auto-response rules, escalation rules and support processes. Einstein for Service adds AI help such as classifying cases.
How it works
Case sources
| Channel | Feature |
|---|---|
| Email-to-Case creates cases from emails | |
| Web | Web-to-Case creates cases from a web form |
| Phone or chat | Agents create cases manually or through integrated channels |
Queues and assignment
- Queues hold cases until an agent takes ownership; members see them in the queue's list view.
- Case assignment rules route new cases to users or queues by criteria. One active rule per org, with many ordered entries; the first matching entry wins.
- Omni-Channel can push work to available agents based on capacity and skills.
Support processes
A support process sets the case status values available, and is assigned to case record types. Different service teams can then follow different status flows.
Auto-response and escalation
| Rule | What it does |
|---|---|
| Case auto-response rules | Send an email reply to the customer based on criteria; one active rule with ordered entries |
| Case escalation rules | Escalate cases that remain open past a time limit: reassign, notify users or both; can respect business hours; one active rule with ordered entries |
Einstein for Service
Einstein features help agents and managers, for example case classification that suggests field values for new cases based on past cases, and AI-generated replies and summaries where licensed.
A worked example: premium customers must get a reply within 1 hour of business time, or their case goes to a team lead. A case assignment rule routes premium cases to the Premium queue, an auto-response rule sends a premium acknowledgment, and an escalation rule using business hours reassigns open premium cases after 1 hour.
Assignment decides who owns a case. Escalation acts later, when a case stays unresolved too long. Don't mix them up.
How the exam asks about this
- "Send customers an automatic email when they submit a case online." A case auto-response rule.
- "Cases open more than 4 business hours must go to a supervisor." A case escalation rule with business hours.
- "Two support teams need different case statuses." Two support processes with case record types.
What to remember for the exam
- Email-to-Case and Web-to-Case create cases; queues hold them.
- One active case assignment rule; entries in order; first match wins.
- Support processes control case status values per record type.
- Auto-response rules reply to customers; escalation rules act on unresolved cases over time.
- Einstein case classification suggests field values.
Escalation rules without business hours count nights and weekends. Set business hours if the service level only applies during working time.
Common mistakes
Using escalation rules to assign new cases. Use assignment rules.
Creating several active assignment rules. Add entries to the one active rule.
Forgetting queue membership. Agents must be queue members to see and take its cases.
Check yourself
What does a support process control?
The case status values available to records of the case record types that use it.
What is the difference between case assignment and escalation rules?
Assignment rules route new cases to an owner; escalation rules act on cases that stay unresolved past a time limit.
How do cases wait for an available agent?
In a queue, until a queue member takes ownership or Omni-Channel routes them.
Topic 1 of 1 in Service and Support Applications
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