How to Integrate Birdie + Zendesk

This integration is dedicated to importing Support Tickets from your Zendesk account into Birdie. Below are key details about what we need to set up the integration and how tickets and data are imported.

For Birdie to authenticate with the Zendesk API and import data, you'll need to generate an API token, which is an auto-generated password that, along with your Zendesk email, can be used to authenticate API requests. You'll need to provide Birdie Team the following information:

• Subdomain of your Zendesk account (ex.: subdomain.zendesk.com)

• Valid email with admin access to Zendesk (this will only work for API requests)

• API Token

Additionally, if the identification of agents and customers is necessary, it's possible for us to request additional access to the sunshine conversation API.

API token access is disabled by default. To enable it, navigate to the Admin Center and go to the API settings. Make sure to enable API token access before users can start using API tokens for authentication.

Steps

1. In Admin Center, click Apps and integrations in the sidebar, then select APIs > API Configuration.

2. In the Settings tab, enable token access.

To generate an API token, you must be an administrator and have API token access enabled in your account.

Steps

1. In Admin Center, click Apps and integrations in the sidebar, then select APIs > API tokens.

2. Click the Add API token button in the top-right corner.

3. Enter a description for your API.

4. After clicking Save, the token will be displayed only once, so make sure to copy it and store it securely.

5. Click Save to go back to the Zendesk API page.

6. If you click on the token again, only a truncated version will be displayed.

Since an API token functions like a password, any verified user on the account or anyone with the email address associated with the account can use it to authenticate API requests. If you suspect that an API token has been compromised, delete it immediately. Deleting a token will deactivate it permanently.

Steps

1. In Admin Center, click Apps and integrations in the sidebar, then select APIs > Zendesk API.

2. In list of active tokens, find and select the token you wish to delete.

3. Click the Delete button located on the right side of the screen.

By default, Birdie only imports tickets with atleast one public comment from Zendesk. Public comments are comments visible to both the end user and the company's agents. These tickets make up the majority of support interactions, allowing the customer to view agents’ responses and interact with them directly on the platform. Private comments are ignored by default, but the integration can be configured to import private tickets/comments as well.

Note: If your team needs to include private or internal tickets in Birdie, this behavior can be configured to meet your needs. Contact us to modify the import settings accordingly.

Birdie also supports importing additional entities associated with tickets to improve segmentation. Below are the additional entities that can be imported:

• Groups captures team or department details associated with each ticket groups (see Zendesk's Groups documentation for more details).

• Users (see Zendesk's Users documentation for more details):

  • Agent: Include agent identifiers, roles, or other relevant agent-specific data.

  • Author: Bring in detailed info about the ticket requester (e.g., name, contact details).

• Organization captures company-specific fields, allowing tickets to be linked to specific organizations (see Zendesk's Organizations documentation).

Note: These imports are disabled by default but can be enabled based on your needs.

Steps

If your Zendesk setup includes custom fields for tickets, these fields can be mapped directly into Birdie, preserving your unique data structure. Zendesk allows you to store additional, flexible data within tickets beyond standard fields, accommodating various data types. You can define or modify these fields in Zendesk by visiting Zendesk’s Ticket Fields documentation.

Once imported, Zendesk custom fields appear as Birdie custom fields, maintaining consistency across both platforms. Mapped to Birdie’s data structure, these fields enhance data organization and filtering, supporting extended segmentation within Birdie’s interface. This allows for customized workflows and data displays based on the unique attributes of each ticket.