Sometimes, something that should be completely obvious is just befuddling. I just submitted a case to NetSuite by phone and hung up after several frustrating attempts to pick the right menu option. The further I drilled into the phone menu, the more lost I became. So I decided it would be faster to enter my case online and then call back with a case number. Once I did that, I was confronted again with the same long phone menu choices. Argh!

Here’s my story. I think there are some gems in here that will ease your pain when submitting a case to NetSuite.

I needed help customizing a printed template. I had no trouble finding it, but when I looked at the code, it looked nothing like what was actually printing. So I called. I needed to talk with somebody familiar with Advanced PDF/HTML templates.

After wading through the menus and discussing my problem with an actual human, I was told I reached the wrong group and they’d need to transfer me. To NetSuite’s credit, they were extremely courteous and willing to transfer, but I found it difficult getting to the right human who could help me. When I got off the phone, I made this amazing discovery! For the most part, the phone menus match the online form’s menus for submitting a case. And your selections really matter when routing your case to a group that can help you.

So… when you open SuiteAnswers, don’t miss the link to view the phone menu tree.

When you open it, here’s what you see.

You can’t see this menu over the phone, and without it, you have no idea what subsequent options are available as you traverse the routing tree. This diagram really helps with that. And, it would be even more helpful if the search box actually worked. I searched for “SuiteBuilder”, which is option 5.1. It didn’t find it.

Now back to my “What should have been obvious” start to this blog post. If you open a case online, you get the same options as the phone. However, the hierarchy is obfuscated (for you non-programmers, that means hidden in plain sight).

Here, I’m opening a case online. The drop-down exposes both levels 1 and 2 of the phone menu.

Here’s a better view of the phone menu when you click on option 1, ERP. Here you can see both levels 1 and 2, and the subsequent selections in white. Very helpful!

Now… look at how clever this is. When you select “Basic Accounting” in the drop-down, it exposes level 3 of the phone menu in the next drop-down. Simply amazing!

Notice that the phone menus and online menus are close but not exactly the same, “Auto-Generated Number” is missing, for starters.

And just when you thought you’d reached the climax with this blog post, there’s more. Don’t quick reading!

After dropping off the phone and creating a case online, I called back in with a case number. Then… dang it… it took me right back into the phone menu again, just as though I’d never entered my case number. And… when I finally reached a human, she asked for my case number yet again, the same one I just typed in prior to filling in the menu options (again). So having the case number actually took longer!

NetSuite cannot shoulder all the blame for my wondering through their phone menu the second time. I’m pretty sure I wasn’t able to repeat the same options over the phone that I’d done when I created my case online. I didn’t know to write my selections down. And… the result… I reached the wrong support group!

If you are reading this and you’re in IT, you’re probably snickering just like me. You’re thinking whoever is responsible for the phone system at NetSuite is different from whoever is responsible for the SuiteAnswers website, and both report to different bosses. That’s kind of the way things work in big companies. Right?

And maybe I’m not the sharpest crayon in the box, because it took me over a year to figure out this simple truth, “Plan your support call.” And don’t miss the map that unlocks the treasure of the support person who can help you.

I hope this post saves you some time the next time you’re stuck and need help from NetSuite. And, I’m sure you’ve heard this before, “Thank for reading my blog post. Is there anything else I can help you with today?”