Zendesk migration 101Updated 3 months ago

Migrating from Zendesk

You can go through the entire migration process by following these steps:

1. Complete the Zendesk import
2. Enable channels
3. Pause the Zendesk sync
4. Disable channels

The import rate can vary per account, depending on the number of comments/messages in tickets - on average, it is around 720 tickets per hour. Therefore, if there is a lot of Zendesk data, the import can take a few days.

Limitations

• We don't advise connecting any integration currently connected to Zendesk (like Gmail on both platforms at the same time). Working on both platforms with the same integration might duplicate messages in a ticket and result in tickets not syncing properly.
• Gorgias can't automatically sync the statuses of tickets - if a Zendesk ticket imports as unsolved, it'll be open in Gorgias. If it is later solved/closed in Zendesk, we can't close the ticket in Gorgias automatically.
• With continuous sync, the initial import of 2 years of history will complete then sync any other remaining tickets so you don't lose any data.
• Once you begin using Gorgias, you should turn off all channels in Zendesk and allow the sync to import any remaining tickets left in Zendesk to Gorgias.
• You won't be able to bulk-apply Macros to imported tickets if no Email integration has been previously used in Zendesk - for example, with form submissions. This is because Gorgias simply won't know which Email integration to use to send automated responses in this event.
• You won't be able to use the Reply to Ticket or Apply Macro Rule action on these imported tickets if there was previously no used Email integration in your Zendesk account.
• You won't be able to use Rules with conditions regarding message body, sender, intents, or sentiments for the same reason as above if that was the case.

Imported data

Gorgias imports Macros, Users, Tags, and Tickets from Zendesk, with Macros being the first item to be imported. Any Macros imported from Zendesk can't be edited in Gorgias while the sync is enabled - the Zendesk original will override any edits in Gorgias unless the sync/import is paused.

If you have the same users in Gorgias as Zendesk, please delete them in Zendesk when the import is complete to get rid of duplicate accounts.

We don't import attachments on tickets nor rating information - this means survey data associated with the ticket won't port to Gorgias.

• Tickets that were updated in the last 2 weeks will be imported first. The rest is imported starting from 2 years in the past and ending when we reach the 2-week mark imported previously.
• There are 2 ticket statuses in Gorgias: Open and Closed. Open means you need to address the ticket, while Closed means you're done with it. As a result, Pending Zendesk tickets come into Gorgias as Closed but are tagged as pending automatically so you can create a View to see those pending tickets.
• On-hold, Solved, and Closed Zendesk tickets will all be imported as Closed Gorgias tickets. Channels will be imported as well - a closed Facebook Zendesk ticket will come in as a closed Facebook ticket in Gorgias as well.
• Depending on the amount of data, it can sometimes take several days to import ticket history, as we import about 720 tickets per hour.
• Tags added to existing tickets in Zendesk after the import has started won't appear/sync in Gorgias.

• The Ticket Fields from Zendesk can now be imported through the initial sync and also through the continuous sync. The values of the ticket fields are imported only for the tickets that weren't imported yet in Gorgias. 

  • If the field is of the type (decimal, boolean, date) → the type is preserved in Gorgias
  • If the field is of the type lookup → not imported
  • If the field type is integer → imported as decimal
  • If the field is of any other type → imported as text 
    Special cases:
  • Regexp → imported it as text, and the regex is saved as description
  • Multiselect → imported as text, and the options are saved as description
  • Credit Card → imported as text, added in the description

FAQs

Can I import more than once for the same Zendesk account?

Once the initial import is finished, we do a continuous sync so you don't miss any tickets!

Can I import multiple Zendesk accounts into one Gorgias account?

Yes, you can run several imports in parallel and you'll also be able to see the progress of each import separately.

Can I import the last 2 years of my emails before importing Zendesk?

You can, but we don't recommend it. If you import emails before Zendesk, there'll be discrepancies between open/closed tickets and some messages won't be imported properly.

Because of the way Zendesk and our Email integration work - you'll see that there are no replies sent from Zendesk in your email's Sent folder. In other words, importing from email before importing Zendesk will import only incoming messages, not outbound messages. After importing some of the messages from email we won't be able to match them with tickets from Zendesk.

If you start the import, as long as you don't have an email connected in Gorgias (if you're still replying in Zendesk) or connected in Zendesk (if you're replying in Gorgias) the import will only run on new tickets because we don't create duplicates. 

Can I choose which tickets I want to import? For example, only chat tickets?

It's not possible at the moment to make a selection by channel or another condition.

Why have some of my imported tickets split into smaller tickets?

Tickets imported from Zendesk with more than 250 messages will be split into multiple tickets, each containing at most 250 messages. Older messages will be added to closed tickets as well.

Can I integrate my email with Gorgias and Zendesk at the same time?

If you integrate an email address with Gorgias, Zendesk continuous import is enabled, and that email is integrated with Zendesk as well (or you're forwarding from it to Zendesk), it'll create issues with syncing. 

This is because messages sync via the integrated email faster than through the Zendesk continuous sync (which runs every 5 minutes) - this will result in similar issues as the answer above. 

It's best to integrate your email with Gorgias:

1. After you have already migrated from Zendesk and your team is ready to manage support in Gorgias directly.

2. If you're going to disable that email specifically in Zendesk. You can keep other channels or emails enabled in Zendesk. The continuous import can be left enabled to pull new tickets/comments from other Zendesk channels or other emails, that aren't integrated with Gorgias yet, then you can do each email or channel one by one.

Do my ongoing conversations with customers have to pause during the Zendesk import time?

Thanks to the continuous import, we shouldn’t miss any messages, but they could be imported with some delay because they start only after we complete the historical import. 

The timeline of events is:

1. We import the last two weeks of tickets.
2. We import the tickets between 730 days ago and 2 weeks ago, from oldest to newest.
3. We start the continuous sync from where the historical import ended (so we fetch all new messages in tickets imported at step 1).
4. The continuous sync will keep running and importing all the events since the last time it was run.

Yes, you need to pause, because you may otherwise miss the messages sent from Zendesk during step 1. until step 2. completes and this could last weeks depending on how many tickets we have to import.

Is it OK if I delete all my imported tickets in Gorgias and run another import to start fresh?

No, you can only do one import per Zendesk domain.

How can I make sure my open Zendesk tickets that are just imported don't get mixed up with other tickets in Gorgias so I can quickly address those?

You can tag your open tickets with a unique name in Zendesk before you start importing. After the import is completed, you can easily create a View and find your tickets by the Tag name.

Will Aircall tickets port over, including the voicemails?

Yes, they'll all port over. The voicemail ticket will contain an external link that'll take you to Aircall.

I've turned off all the channels in Zendesk and completed the import. Why do I still receive tickets in Zendesk?

This is because you haven't disabled forwarding to Zendesk in your email account. Please log into your email account and disable email forwarding to Zendesk.

Why did some of our customers' accounts get duplicated upon importing?

This can happen only if the customer's email address was updated in Gorgias while the import from Zendesk was still running. If you change the email address of one of your customers in their Gorgias profile settings while the Zendesk import is still ongoing, that action will create a duplicate of that same customer with the new email address.

However, updating details such as the customer's first or last name won't cause this issue. The account will be updated, but not duplicated.

Can I do the import in phases?

Yes, you can use Zendesk with any channels that aren't in Gorgias. For example, you can have two emails in Zendesk such as [email protected], and [email protected] where x@ is integrated with Gorgias and disabled in Zendesk. Messages can still go to y@ in Zendesk, while you respond to x@ in Gorgias.

I've turned off Zendesk and have a backlog of open tickets in Gorgias. Can I apply Rules to these tickets?

You can use the Ticket Updated trigger and apply a Tag to these tickets to trigger a Rule. However, Rules are limited: you can't use Rules with conditions regarding the message body, sender, intents, and sentiments. Ticket subject, message source, Shopify, etc. should still work as intended.

Why am still I receiving emails in Zendesk?

Please check Google Workspace for Routing and Compliance settings to ensure Gmail emails are not going into Zendesk after integrating your direct Gmail integration.

Can I cancel my Zendesk account while the import is in progress?

You can, but we don't recommend it. The API token will expire as soon as you cancel, and the import will stop at whatever percentage it is at.

Can I restart my Zendesk import?

Yes, you can restart the Zendesk import and update the API credentials on your own.

When your Zendesk import is in progress, you'll be able to see a Restart button which will appear if the import failed because the user that started it doesn't have the necessary permissions. The same button will allow you to restart and re-enter the credentials so that your Zendesk import can continue.