Organize custom fields with sections

A flat list of 20 custom fields on a contact panel is unreadable. Sections group related fields into named blocks so agents can scan the panel and find what they need.

Before you start

• Admin permissions on Custom Fields
• An answer to “what natural groups do these fields fall into?” Common patterns:
  Account Details (account number, contract type, industry)
  Billing (billing contact, payment terms, invoice address)
  Preferences (preferred channel, language, contact times)
  Internal (account manager, notes, risk level)

Steps

1. Open Settings → Custom Fields.
2. Pick the entity tab (Contacts, Conversations, or Cases).
3. Click Sections in the toolbar (or the Manage Sections link, depending on UI version).
4. Click New section.
5. Give the section a name. Order sections by importance or by workflow — agents will read top to bottom, so put the most-used groups highest.
6. Save.
7. Assign fields to the section by dragging them into the section on the builder canvas. You can drag a field from another section, from the unsectioned field list, or within the same section to place it exactly where it belongs. If your UI version still uses field settings, edit each field and set its Section to the new section.

Verify it worked

Open a record in the chosen area. The custom field panel should now show fields grouped under their section names, in the order you set.

Patterns that work

• Account Details — Account ID, contract tier, industry, region — Almost every B2B tenant
• Billing — Billing email, payment terms, currency, invoice address — When billing is part of support scope
• Preferences — Preferred channel, preferred language, contact times — When tenants serve customers across regions / channels
• Internal — Account manager, account notes, risk score, internal tier — When you want internal-only context separated from customer-facing data
• Order Context (conversations) — Order number, product, region — E-commerce support
• Issue Details (conversations / cases) — Affected system, severity, root cause — Technical support

Anti-patterns

• Too many sections. If every field has its own section, you’ve just renamed “no organization” to “lots of organization.” Aim for 3–6 sections per entity.
• Sections that span more than one workflow. “Random Stuff” and “Misc” defeat the purpose. If a field doesn’t fit cleanly into any section, the field’s name probably needs a rethink.
• Sections with one field. A section needs at least two fields to earn its place. Move solo fields to the most-related neighboring section, or rename the section to fit.

Reordering

Both sections and fields support layout changes:

1. To reorder sections, drag them up/down in the Sections list (or edit each section’s display order).
2. To move a field to a different section, drag it into that section on the builder canvas.
3. To reorder fields within a section, drag them up/down in that section.

Higher-priority items go to the top. If your UI version still exposes display-order values, treat them as a fallback/admin detail: give each field a unique value only when drag-and-drop ordering is not available or you need to resolve an ordering conflict.

Troubleshooting

• Symptom: New section doesn’t appear on records. Fix: Confirm at least one field has been assigned to the section. Empty sections may not render in the record view.
• Symptom: Fields show in the wrong order. Fix: Drag the field to the correct position in the builder canvas. If your UI version uses display-order values, remember that display order is per-field, not per-section. If two fields share a display-order value, ordering is undefined — give each a unique value.

See also

• Set up custom field tabs in CRM
• Create a custom field