Integrating Zendesk with Iterable

Iterable can ingest Zendesk webhooks to enable the automation of user profile updates and messaging campaigns based on user actions taken and tickets filed in Zendesk.

# Table of contents

# Sending data from Zendesk to Iterable

You must have Zendesk admin access to set up this integration. Reference this Zendesk support doc for further help setting up the webhook in Zendesk.

# Step 1: In Iterable, create an API key

First, you'll need to create an API key in Iterable. To learn how to do this, read Creating API keys.

# Step 2: In Zendesk, create a webhook

1. In Zendesk Support, click the Admin icon () in the left sidebar. Then, select Settings > Extensions.

2. On the Targets tab, click Add Target.

3. Select HTTP Target. You will be taken to a page similar to this screenshot:

   

4. For the URL, enter:

   https://api.iterable.com/api/events/track?apiKey=<YOUR_API_KEY>`
   

5. For Method, choose POST.

6. For Content type, choose JSON.

7. Click Submit.

   You will be taken to a page where you can test a call to Iterable’s endpoint with your proposed JSON body. Please note that you need to structure the JSON body in accordance with the Iterable endpoint the Zendesk Webhook is pointing at. For more information, take a look at Iterable's API Docs.

   

8. In a new browser tab, open Business Rules > Triggers.

9. Click Create New Trigger and set up your logic. It should look something like this:

   

10. In the Actions section, map the trigger to the webhook you just created:

    • For the first dropdown, select Notify Target.

    • For the second dropdown, select Title of the webhook defined in step 3.

11. Provide a JSON body:

    • Format the JSON payload as specified by Iterable's POST /api/events/track API endpoint.

    • The JSON body should look similar to the screenshot above, and it must contain an email and eventName parameter.

    • Add merge parameters (placeholders) directly in the JSON body as necessary. For a list of available placeholders, click on the View Available Placeholders link, which will bring up a list similar to the following:

      

    • Example JSON body:

      {
          "email": "{{current_user.email}}",
          "eventName": "New Zendesk Ticket Created",
          "dataFields": {
              "Ticket_Id": "{{ticket.id}}",
              "Ticket_Description": "{{ticket.description}}",
              "Ticket_Priority": "{{ticket.priority}}"
          }
      }
      

12. Copy the JSON body into the webhook configuration in the previous browser tab.

    

13. Click Submit.

14. If you don’t get an error code, login to your Iterable account and check the event under the test user’s email you used.

15. Once you’ve confirmed Iterable ingested the test event, confirm that the trigger is active.

Your automated webhook from Zendesk to Iterable is now set up and you can use events ingested from Zendesk to trigger messaging campaigns.

# Sending data from Iterable to Zendesk (using workflow webhooks)

In Iterable, you can use a workflow webhook to send data to Zendesk. Complete these steps:

1. In Iterable, create a new workflow webhook by navigating to Integrations > Workflow Webhooks and clicking New Webhook. The Create workflow webhook page will appear:

   

2. Give the webhook a Name.

3. For Destination, choose Custom.

4. For Method, select POST.

5. For Endpoint, enter the URL of the Zendesk API you'd like the webhook to call. For example, to create a new user:

   https://<YOUR_ZENDESK_ORG>.zendesk.com/api/v2/users/create_or_update.json
   

   For a list of endpoints, see Zendesk's API docs.

6. If the webhook's endpoint requires authentication, set up Basic authentication or custom HTTP headers. To learn more, see Zendesk's support guide, How can I authenticate API requests?.

7. For Body, select JSON. Then, configure the webhook to send the data that Zendesk expects. For more information, see Zendesk's API docs.

8. Click Create webhook

Now, dd this webhook to one of your Iterable workflows. Send a test trigger to make sure everything works as expected, and activate the workflow when you're ready.