Zendesk tickets and contacts
Work with Zendesk customer profiles, tickets and public or private comments beside an INSIDE conversation.
What it is
INSIDE can show a visitor's Zendesk profile and tickets during a conversation. You can edit customer details, create or update tickets, and post either a Public Reply or an Internal Note. An associated ticket can also receive the conversation transcript automatically.
Who uses it and why
- Operators handle customer issues without switching between the chat and Zendesk for each change.
- Visitors receive public replies according to the Zendesk ticket's notification setup. Internal notes remain private to agents.
Where to find it
Open the visitor's Tickets panel and select a ticket. Open in Zendesk opens the full record. In ticket details, use Click here to view comments, then Add Comment.
Customer profile actions are available through the Visitor menu, including Edit Contact. Powerfront manages forms and automatic-comment privacy at Settings › General Settings › Zendesk.
How it works
INSIDE uses the visitor's linked Zendesk user, or searches by email when no link is available. If a recognised website member email points to another Zendesk user, INSIDE can update the link to that user.
You can list the user's tickets, load further results and search for tickets. Select a ticket to inspect the configured details, edit it where available, or view comments.
To add a comment:
- Select Add Comment and enter Comment.
- Choose the resulting ticket status in Submit as.
- Select Public Reply for a customer-visible comment or Internal Note for a private agent note.
When an active conversation ends with an associated Zendesk ticket, INSIDE can append the transcript as a ticket comment. These automatic comments are private by default and exclude system messages.
Configure it
Ask Powerfront to connect Zendesk and configure the contact and ticket forms. A user with the Settings or Manager role should check each operator's Zendesk Email mapping at Settings › Account › Operators.
Ask Powerfront to keep Make automated comments private on for private transcript exports, or turn it off if those exports should be public. This setting concerns automated comments; you choose the visibility of each manually posted comment with its button.
Settings
| Setting | Where | Applies to | Default | Who can change it | What it does |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Make automated comments private | Settings › General Settings › Zendesk | website | On | Powerfront | Save automatically exported conversation transcripts as private Zendesk comments. Turning it off makes them public. |
Fields
| Field | Where | Required | What it is for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Zendesk contact form | Yes | Set the customer's name in the supplied contact form. |
| Zendesk contact form | Yes | Set the customer's email in the supplied contact form. | |
| Phone | Zendesk contact form | No | Set the customer's phone number. |
| Contact | Zendesk ticket form | Yes | Identify the ticket's customer. |
| Assignee | Zendesk ticket form | Yes | Show the assigned Zendesk agent in the supplied form. |
| Subject | Zendesk ticket form | Yes | Give the ticket a short subject. |
| Description | Zendesk ticket form | Yes | Describe the issue. |
| Priority | Zendesk ticket form | Yes | Choose Low, Normal, High or Urgent in the supplied form. |
| Type | Zendesk ticket form | Yes | Choose Problem, Incident, Question or Task in the supplied form. |
| Status | Zendesk ticket form | Yes | Choose the ticket's status. |
| Comment | Add Comment | Yes | Enter the public reply or internal note. |
| Submit as | Add Comment | Yes | Choose New, Open, Pending or Solved when posting the comment. |
Limits and good to know
- The default contact form requires Name and Email. Ticket forms can have different required fields after customisation.
- Updating a Zendesk user's details also reflects selected name, email and phone details locally. The local phone value is limited to 16 characters in this path.
- A changed email that already belongs to a Zendesk user can cause INSIDE to use that existing user. Check the customer before saving.
- The ticket edit control is hidden for closed tickets.
- After editing, check the saved status, assignee and comment. Some updates complete through a Zendesk background job.
- These are Zendesk tickets. Native INSIDE email tickets are a separate feature.
Depends on and works with
View all connections as a list
This feature uses
- Starting, ending and expiring chatsEnhances
Ending an active conversation can export its transcript to an associated Zendesk ticket.
- Customer contact detailsEnhances
Editing a Zendesk user reflects selected details into the INSIDE contact.
- Visitor data mapping for customer identityEnhances
A recognised member email can cause INSIDE to change the linked Zendesk user.
- Zendesk connection and operator setupRequires
Zendesk actions need the connection and a usable operator mapping for operator-driven changes.
- CRM form field configurationConfigured by
Configured contact and ticket forms select the displayed and submitted fields.
- Customer identity and conversation visibility permissionsConfigured by
Personal-data permissions and configured view fields affect CRM profile display.
Used by
- Visitor and conversation information panelsEnhances
An enabled Zendesk integration can provide external ticket context.
- Offline help for visitorsEnhances
Enabled Zendesk ticket creation sends the request to that integration.
- Zendesk connection and operator setupEnhances
The connection and operator mapping support Zendesk user and ticket actions.
- CRM form field configurationEnhances
Zendesk user and ticket actions use these forms.
- Custom CRM integrationEnhances
Zendesk ticket creation and updates can use custom behaviour.
FAQ and troubleshooting
Will the visitor see my note?
Internal Note is private. Public Reply is public. Automated transcript comments follow Make automated comments private.
Why are no tickets listed?
Check the visitor's email and linked Zendesk user. The customer may have no tickets, or the connection may not be able to read them.
Why can I not edit the customer's profile?
Your operator needs a Zendesk agent mapping. Ask a user with the Settings or Manager role to check Zendesk Email at Settings › Account › Operators.
Why did the linked customer change after an email update?
INSIDE can match the new email to an existing Zendesk user. Check the profile in Zendesk before making further changes.
Why is the transcript missing from a ticket?
Check that the conversation was associated with the intended Zendesk ticket and that the operator mapping and connection work. Give Powerfront the conversation and ticket identifiers if the export remains missing.