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By default, customers submit new requests through a single open text field. Custom forms let you replace this with a structured intake form, collecting exactly the information your team needs upfront, like issue type, priority, or product area, so threads arrive in Plain ready to action.

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Creating a custom form

  1. Go to Help Center → Customer Inbox
  2. Click into the Custom Form section
  3. Add the fields you want customers to fill in
  4. Click Save

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Field types

When adding a field, choose from:
  • Dropdown: Let customers choose from predefined options. Good for issue type, product area, or request category
  • Text input: A short single-line field. Good for version number, account ID, or order reference
  • Text area: A longer freeform field. Good for a detailed description of the issue

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Automating actions on submission

You can configure actions that are applied to the thread automatically the moment a customer submits the form:
  • Add assignee: Route the thread to a specific team member
  • Add label: Tag the thread with a relevant label
  • Add priority: Set the thread priority based on the request type
  • Add thread fields: Populate custom thread fields with values from the form

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What your team sees

When a customer submits a form:
  • A new thread is created in Plain
  • A timeline entry shows the values the customer submitted
  • Any configured actions are applied to the thread automatically