A step-by-step guide to Zendesk create side conversations via email or Slack

Let’s be honest, we’ve all been there. A customer ticket comes in that looks simple on the surface, but it quickly evolves into a multi-departmental puzzle. Before you know it, you might be looking at a trail of internal emails, Slack DMs, and forwarded messages. Key details can occasionally get lost, resolutions might slow down, and your support agents spend time just trying to connect the dots.

It’s a common support scenario. Thankfully, Zendesk’s side conversations feature was built to tackle this exact situation. It lets you kick off separate discussions with internal teams or even external partners, all from within the original ticket. This helps maintain context and keeps information centralized.

This guide will walk you through exactly how to use Zendesk to create side conversations via email or Slack. We'll cover the initial setup, the step-by-step process for both channels, and a few tips to ensure your team is collaborating smoothly.

What you'll need to create side conversations in Zendesk

Before you can jump in, there are a couple of things you need to have in place. Side conversations are available on specific Zendesk plans, and you’ll need the right permissions to get everything switched on.

• The right Zendesk plan: This feature is available on the Suite Professional plan and higher. According to the Zendesk pricing page, these plans start at $115 per agent per month when billed annually, providing a robust enterprise-grade platform for your support operations.

• Admin access: You'll need to be an administrator in your Zendesk account to enable and configure side conversations for your team. If you’re not an admin, you’ll have to ping someone who is to get this turned on.

• Slack or Microsoft Teams setup (optional): If you’re planning to use Slack or Teams for these conversations, you’ll need to have the respective app already installed and configured in your Zendesk instance.

How to create side conversations in Zendesk via email or Slack in 5 easy steps

Ready to get started? Here’s how to get side conversations up and running for your team.

Step 1: Turn on side conversations in the admin center

Side conversations can be enabled by a quick visit to the Zendesk Admin Center. It's easy to find once you know where to look.

1. Head to the Admin Center and find Workspaces in the left-hand sidebar.

2. From there, select Agent tools > Side conversations.

3. You’ll see toggles for the different channels. Activate each one you want to use.

   • Turn on emails outside the main conversation: This is the one you need for starting email-based side conversations.
   • Turn on side conversations in Slack: This enables the Slack integration.

4. Make sure you also select Turn on the side conversations view under the Context panel heading. This makes the feature visible to your agents inside a ticket.

5. Click Save, and you’re good to go.

Step 2: Create a side conversation with email

Once it’s enabled, starting a side conversation over email is very straightforward. This is a great option when you need to loop in someone who isn't active in your company's Slack, like a third-party vendor, a shipping partner, or a colleague in another department.

1. Open any ticket and look for the Side conversations icon (it looks like a plus sign) in the context panel on the right. Click it.

2. Select Email from the options that pop up.

3. A composer window will appear, similar to a standard email client. Fill in the details:

   • To: Pop in the email addresses of your recipients. You can add up to 100 people here, including up to 48 non-agents. You can also click CC/BCC if needed.
   • Subject: Write a clear subject line. This field is required.
   • Message: Write out your message. You've got a rich text editor to format your message for clarity.

4. To give your recipient the full picture, you can attach files or even specific ticket comments. Just click the little paperclip icon and choose From computer or From ticket. This is a great way to keep everyone aligned.

5. Click Send.

The person you emailed will receive a standard email. When they reply, their message will thread directly back into this side conversation within the Zendesk ticket. Everything stays organized in one place.

Step 3: Create a side conversation in Slack

For quick internal chats, Slack is often a very efficient option. Need a quick answer from engineering or a status update? This brings the discussion into the tool your team already uses.

1. From the ticket, click the Side conversations icon (+) again, but this time, select Slack.

2. The composer will ask you to choose a Slack channel to post the message in. If your company uses multiple Slack workspaces, they'll be clearly labeled.

3. Type out your message. You can use Slack’s usual Markdown for formatting and attach files just like you would with an email.

4. Click Send.

Your message will show up in the chosen Slack channel as a new thread. Your teammates can reply directly in that thread, and their responses will pop up right back in the Zendesk ticket's side conversation panel.

Step 4: Add existing ticket comments for extra context

This is one of the most powerful aspects of the feature. Instead of re-explaining a customer's issue, you can share their exact words.

1. Start a new side conversation or open one you've already created.

2. Look for the comments icon (it looks like a speech bubble) at the bottom of the composer.

3. A list of all the comments from the main ticket thread will appear. Check the box next to each comment you want to include.

4. Click Add. The comments you picked will be embedded into your message, giving the person you're contacting all the context they need.

Step 5: Manage and wrap up your side conversations

Once you’ve gotten the information you need, you can mark the conversation as complete to keep your workspace organized.

• To close a conversation, just open it and click the Mark done button. This is an internal status change that helps you stay on top of your tasks.

• If someone replies to a "Done" conversation, it stays marked as done, but you can always reopen it by clicking the Reopen button if further discussion is required.

• Zendesk includes a helpful safety feature: if a ticket is closed and someone replies to a side conversation attached to it, Zendesk automatically creates a new follow-up ticket. This ensures all communication is captured.

Tips and best practices when creating side conversations in Zendesk

Side conversations are a significant enhancement to support communication. Here are a few ways to get the most out of them.

• Lean on macros for common requests. If you frequently ask a specific team for the same information, create a macro that starts a side conversation with a pre-written message. It’s a great way to save time and maintain consistency.

• Understand your channel options. Each channel has unique strengths. For example, when using Slack or Teams, keeping an eye on the original thread ensures you don't miss any files sent back by colleagues, as some attachments may need to be viewed in the native app.

• Organize information for long-term use. While side conversations are excellent for resolving active tickets, remember to document key outcomes in your internal resources so that the knowledge remains accessible for the whole team in the future.

Maximizing your collaboration in Zendesk

Zendesk side conversations are an excellent tool for organizing communication. They provide the framework for agents to:

• Initiate specialized collaboration when necessary.

• Reach out to the right contacts via the most effective channel.

• Package up relevant context to resolve issues faster.

• Manage internal feedback to create a polished, customer-facing reply.

Zendesk provides the core infrastructure for this collaboration, which helps your team leverage their personal knowledge effectively. To further enhance this, you can also look into ways to centralize the valuable information shared in these chats into a central knowledge base.

A complementary way to unify knowledge: eesel AI

In addition to using side conversations, you can further enhance your setup with eesel AI. It acts as an intelligent layer that connects your company knowledge and helps streamline the resolution process.

• Get up and running quickly with simple integration. eesel AI is designed for ease of use. You can connect your helpdesk and knowledge sources with one-click integrations. It’s built to work seamlessly across different Zendesk plans and the tools you already have.

• Actually unify your knowledge. eesel AI allows your team to leverage information from every source. eesel AI for Slack connects to all your knowledge, whether it's in Zendesk, Confluence, or Google Docs. It analyzes your data to ensure its assistance is always accurate and on-brand.

• Support your team with automated actions. An AI Agent from eesel AI can complement your agents' work. It can perform helpful actions like looking up order details in Shopify, checking subscription statuses, or triaging a ticket to the correct department.

• Test drive with confidence. eesel AI’s simulation mode lets you test your setup on historical tickets. You can see how the AI assists with responses and forecast resolution rates, giving you full confidence in your automated workflows.

Wrapping it up: From Zendesk side conversations to automated resolutions

Setting up Zendesk to create side conversations via email or Slack is a smart move for organizing your team's collaboration. By following these steps, you can maintain high levels of organization right where they belong: inside the ticket.

For teams looking to reach the next level of efficiency, unifying scattered knowledge and using AI to assist with responses can help your team focus on more complex tasks. This allows your agents to do what they do best: delivering exceptional support for your customers.

Ready to see how AI can complement your support workflows? Get started with eesel AI today.

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