Narrative 16: Simplify with workflows

Narrative 16: Simplify with workflows

Behind the scenes of a successful ticketing system: BTS Series 

Narrative 16: Simplify with workflows

What is a workflow?  

A workflow organizes business tasks in a defined sequence that makes each step clear to all participants. This ensures work is completed on time, minimizes miscommunication among team members, and directly improves service quality. 

Ultimately, workflows boost team efficiency and help organizations meet customer expectations more reliably. Workflows use triggers and rules to send order confirmations and updates to customers as orders progress, keeping them informed about status and delivery.

Application of workflows

Workflows let teams automate repetitive support tasks so agents can focus on real problem‑solving work that requires human judgment and creativity rather than manual busywork. 

Assign tickets for new employees onboarding process

New employee onboarding includes assigning tickets for laptops, access, ID cards, and workspace. Help desk workflows automate routing and subtasks for IT, facilities, and security based on role, location, or department. SLA timers and reminders ensure all prep is ready for day one without manually tracking every task.

Read incoming emails and identify fields

Workflows convert incoming emails into organized tickets. This reduces manual effort and minimizes errors, which leads to more accurate data, faster response times, and improved reporting.

Automatically create relevant tickets

When requests involve multiple teams, workflows streamline actions. Choosing a category automatically generates tickets for the right departments and keeps stakeholders updated. Customer info and other key data points are updated as needed with appropriate transparency regarding changes. Teams can address urgent issues quickly and collaborate in real time.

Automatically merge similar tickets

Workflows merge similar tickets automatically to avoid creating duplicate work on issues that affect multiple customers. Workflows identify redundant tickets using subject lines, order numbers, or tags, then consolidate them and send updates to all affected customers. This reduces clutter and organizes reports to help the team focus on delivering solutions.

Automatically relate tickets based on triggers

Automatically link related tickets based on triggers to streamline handling complex issues. Linking tickets through workflows helps agents spot ongoing issues, analyze them quickly, and improve problem resolution. Workflows boost efficiency and keep information organized.

Leverage integrations and webhooks

Support teams need to use multiple systems and respond to events, such as deployments, alerts, CRM, and billing. Integrations and workflows automate ticket creation and linking in response to triggers such as webhooks or alerts. Monitoring tools generate and link tickets for incidents regardless of origin, updating links as statuses change. Agents get critical context during releases or resolutions.

Automatically reply and close repetitive tickets

Common requests, such as password resets, can flood agents with tickets. Workflow rules can detect these requests using keywords or customer actions and automatically send relevant guides or direct the user to the FAQ page. Tickets close automatically after a period without customer response, but can reopen if needed. A strong knowledge base and AI suggestions keep queues clear and speed resolution. Use cases are clear and help solve issues faster.

Parent-child relationship between tickets

Parent-child ticket workflows help teams organize related issues and ensure consistent communication, efficient customer service, and compliance. 

Advantages of implementing workflows

  • Lower costs
  • Accelerated processes
  • Decreased support requests
  • Error-free operations
  • Enhanced customer satisfaction
  • Increased user efficiency
  • Regulatory compliance

How Zia's AI capabilities add value to workflows

Tickets contain key customer information, such as contact details, preferences, subscription plans, account types, and clear descriptions of inquiries or complaints.

Tickets are classified, triaged, routed, and prioritized based on this data. Zia plays a pivotal role by extracting relevant details from newly created tickets, significantly enhancing the efficiency of automation workflows.

AI-powered workflows automate key manual tasks and help teams analyze data, predict outcomes, send automated replies, and handle ticket responses for more efficient operations.

Bringing it all together  

When set up effectively, workflows boost reliability and efficiency in support operations. They automate routine work, enforce step-by-step progress, and bring consistency to processes. This frees up agents to solve complex challenges and equips managers with better insights for constant improvement. Share your own workflow experiences or questions—your feedback helps us create more helpful posts.


Please stay tuned for more in the Desk behind-the-scenes series.


Cheers,

 

Kavya Rao

The Zoho Desk Team

Idea

Also, read:

Behind the scenes of a successful ticketing system (BTS Series)


      Zoho Campaigns Resources


        • Desk Community Learning Series


        • Digest


        • Functions


        • Meetups


        • Kbase


        • Resources


        • Glossary


        • Desk Marketplace


        • MVP Corner


        • Word of the Day


        • Ask the Experts


          Zoho CRM Plus Resources

            Zoho Books Resources


              Zoho Subscriptions Resources

                Zoho Projects Resources


                  Zoho Sprints Resources


                    Zoho Orchestly Resources


                      Zoho Creator Resources


                        Zoho WorkDrive Resources



                          Zoho CRM Resources

                          • CRM Community Learning Series

                            CRM Community Learning Series


                          • Tips

                            Tips

                          • Functions

                            Functions

                          • Meetups

                            Meetups

                          • Kbase

                            Kbase

                          • Resources

                            Resources

                          • Digest

                            Digest

                          • CRM Marketplace

                            CRM Marketplace

                          • MVP Corner

                            MVP Corner




                            Zoho Writer Writer

                            Get Started. Write Away!

                            Writer is a powerful online word processor, designed for collaborative work.

                              Zoho CRM コンテンツ



                                ご検討中の方

                                  • Recent Topics

                                  • How to install Widget in inventory module

                                    Hi, I am trying to install a app into Sales Order Module related list, however there is no button allow me to do that. May I ask how to install widget to inventory module related list?
                                  • Add specific field value to URL

                                    Hi Everyone. I have the following code which is set to run from a subform when the user selects a value from a lookup field "Plant_Key" the URL opens a report but i want the report to be filtered on the matching field/value. so in the report there is
                                  • error while listing mails

                                    I can't access email in any of my folders: Oops, an error occurred - retry produces the second error response: error while listing mails (cannot parse null string). I've signed in and out of Zoho, restarted my iMac.
                                  • Unlocking New Levels: Zoho Payroll's Journey in 2025

                                    Every year brings its own set of challenges and opportunities to rethink how payroll works across regulations and teams. In 2025, Zoho Payroll continued to evolve with one clear focus: giving businesses more flexibility, clarity, and control as they grow.
                                  • Introducing Connected Records to bring business context to every aspect of your work in Zoho CRM for Everyone

                                    Hello Everyone, We are excited to unveil phase one of a powerful enhancement to CRM for Everyone - Connected Records, available only in CRM's Nextgen UI. With CRM for Everyone, businesses can onboard all customer-facing teams onto the CRM platform to
                                  • Send Supervisor Rule Emails Within Ticket Context in Zoho Desk

                                    Dear Zoho Desk Team, I hope this message finds you well. Currently, emails sent via Supervisor Rules in Zoho Desk are sent outside of the ticket context. As a result, if a client replies to such emails, their response creates a new ticket instead of appending
                                  • form data load issue when saving as duplicate record is made

                                    Hello. I have a form with a lookup when a value is selected the data from the corresponding record is filled into all of the fields in the form. But the form is loaded in such a state that if any value is changed it will take all of the values pre loaded
                                  • CRM project association via deluge

                                    I have created a workflow in my Zoho CRM for closing a deal. Part of this workflow leverages a deluge script to create a project for our delivery team. Creating the project works great however, after or during the project creation, I would like to associate
                                  • Zoho Browser??

                                    hai guys, this sounds awkward but can v get a ZOHO BROWSER same as zoho writer, etc. where i can browse websites @ home and continue browsing the same websites @ my office, as v have the option in Firefox, once i save and close the browser and again when i open it i will be getting the same sites. If u people r not clear with my explanation, plz let me know. Thanks, Sandeep  
                                  • Where can we specify custom CSS in Zoho Forms custom theme ?

                                    I'm using a form with a dark theme. The OTP popup window is unreadable, because for some reason, the OTP popup background fixes color to white, but still takes the font color specified in the custom theme. This ends up as white on white for me, rendering
                                  • MCP no longer works with Claude

                                    Anyone else notice Zoho MCP no longer works with Claude? I'm unable to turn this on in the claude chat. When I try to toggle it on, it just does nothing at all. I've tried in incognito, new browsers, etc. - nothing seems to work.
                                  • Enable History Tracking for Picklist Values Not Available

                                    When I create a custom picklist field in Deals, the "Enable History Tracking for Picklist Values" option is not available in the Edit Properties area of the picklist. When I create a picklist in any other Module, that option is available. Is there a specific reason why this isn't available for fields in the Deals Module?
                                  • The reason I switched away from Zoho Notebook

                                    My main reason for switching to Zoho was driven by three core principles: moving away from US-based products, keeping my data within India as much as possible, and supporting Indian companies. With that intent, I’ve been actively de-Googling my digital
                                  • Add RTL and Hebrew Support for Candidate Portal (and Other Zoho Recruit Portals)

                                    Dear Zoho Recruit Team, I hope you're doing well. We would like to request the ability to set the Candidate Portal to be Right-to-Left (RTL) and in Hebrew, similar to the existing functionality for the Career Site. Currently, when we set the Career Site
                                  • Ability to Edit YouTube Video Title, Description & Thumbnail After Publishing

                                    Hi Zoho Social Team, How are you? We would like to request an enhancement to Zoho Social that enables users to edit YouTube video details after the video has already been published. Your team confirmed that while Zoho Social currently allows editing the
                                  • Free Webinar : Unlock AI driven business insights with Zoho Inventory + Zoho Analytics

                                    Are you tired of switching between apps and exporting data to build customized reports? Say hello to smarter & streamlined insights! Join us for this exclusive webinar where we explore the power of the Zoho Inventory–Zoho Analytics integration. Learn
                                  • Critical Issue: Tickets Opened for Zoho Support via the Zoho Help Portal Were Not Processed

                                    Hi everyone, We want to bring to your attention a serious issue we’ve experienced with the Zoho support Help Portal. For more than a week, tickets submitted directly via the Help Portal were not being handled at all. At the same time no alert was posted
                                  • Hide/Show Subform Fields On User Input

                                    Hello, Are there any future updates in Hide/Show Subform Fields "On User Input"?
                                  • Cloning Item With Images Or The Option With Images

                                    Hello, when I clone an item, I expect the images to carry over to the cloned item, however this is not the case in Inventory. Please make it possible for the images to get cloned or at least can we get a pop up asking if we want to clone the images as
                                  • Archiving Contacts

                                    How do I archive a list of contacts, or individual contacts?
                                  • WorkDrive and CRM not in sync

                                    1/ There is a CRM file upload field with WorkDrive file set as the source: 2/ Then the file is renamed in WorkDrive (outside CRM): 3/ The File in CRM is not synced after the change in WorkDrive; the file name (reference) in CRM record is not updated (here
                                  • Custom validation in CRM schema

                                    Validation rules in CRM layouts work nicely, good docs by @Kiran Karthik P https://help.zoho.com/portal/en/kb/crm/customize-crm-account/validation-rules/articles/create-validation-rules I'd prefer validating data input 'closer to the schema'
                                  • Adding Default Module Image into mail merge field

                                    As with most people finding their way to these forums i have a specific requirement that doesn't seem to be supported by Zoho I have created 2 custom modules to suit my purpose 1 is an inventory type module that lists aluminium extrusions, and all relevant
                                  • Sync Data from MA to CRM

                                    Currently, it's a one-way sync of data from the CRM to MA. I believe we should have the ability to select fields to sync from MA to the CRM. The lead score is a perfect example of this. In an ideal world we would be able to impact the lead score of a
                                  • Is it possible to roll up all Contact emails to the Account view?

                                    Is there a way to track all emails associated with an Account in one single view? Currently, email history is visible when opening an individual Contact record. However, since multiple Contacts are often associated with a single Account, it would be beneficial
                                  • Update CRM record action

                                    Currently, MA only offers a "Push Data" action to push data to a CRM module. This action is built to cover the need to both create a new record and update an existing record. Because it has been implemented this way all required fields on the CRM module
                                  • Notes badge as a quick action in the list view

                                    Hello all, We are introducing the Notes badge in the list view of all modules as a quick action you can perform for each record, in addition to the existing Activity badge. With this enhancement, users will have quick visibility into the notes associated
                                  • What's new in Zoho One 2025

                                    Greetings! We hope you have all had a chance by now to get hands-on with the new features and updates released as part of ZO25. Yes, we understand that you may have questions and feedback. To ensure you gain a comprehensive understanding of these updates,
                                  • Good news! Calendar in Zoho CRM gets a face lift

                                    Dear Customers, We are delighted to unveil the revamped calendar UI in Zoho CRM. With a complete visual overhaul aligned with CRM for Everyone, the calendar now offers a more intuitive and flexible scheduling experience. What’s new? Distinguish activities
                                  • Add deluge function to shorten URLs

                                    Zoho Social contains a nice feature to shorten URLs using zurl.co. It would be really helpful to have similar functionality in a Deluge call please, either as an inbuilt function or a standard integration. My Creator app sends an email with a personalised
                                  • Edit default "We are here to help you" text in chat SalesIQ widget

                                    Does anyone know how this text can be edited? I can't find it anywhere in settings. Thanks!
                                  • Quick way to add a field in Chat Window

                                    I want to add Company Field in chat window to lessen the irrelevant users in sending chat and set them in mind that we are dealing with companies. I request that it will be as easy as possible like just ticking it then typing the label then connecting
                                  • How to create a two way Sync with CRM Contacts Module?

                                    Newbie creator here (but not to Zoho CRM). I want to create an app that operates on a sub-set of CRM Contacts - only those with a specific tag. I want the app records to mirror the tagged contacts in CRM. I would like it to update when the Creator app
                                  • Zoho Sheet for Desktop

                                    Does Zoho plans to develop a Desktop version of Sheet that installs on the computer like was done with Writer?
                                  • Allow Manual Popup Canvas Size Control

                                    Hello Zoho PageSense Team, We hope you're doing well. We would like to request an enhancement to the PageSense popup editor regarding popup sizing. Current Limitation: Currently, the size (width and height) of a popup is strictly controlled by the selected
                                  • Where is the settings option in zoho writer?

                                    hi, my zoho writer on windows has menu fonts too large. where do i find the settings to change this option? my screen resolution is correct and other apps/softwares in windows have no issues. regards
                                  • How to set page defaults in zoho writer?

                                    hi, everytime i open the zoho writer i have to change the default page settings to - A4 from letter, margins to narrow and header and footer to 0. I cannot set this as default as that option is grayed out! so I am unable to click it. I saved the document
                                  • Develop and publish a Zoho Recruit extension on the marketplace

                                    Hi, I'd like to develop a new extension for Zoho Recruit. I've started to use Zoho Developers creating a Zoho CRM extension. But when I try to create a new extension here https://sigma.zoho.com/workspace/testtesttestest/apps/new I d'ont see the option of Zoho Recruit (only CRM, Desk, Projects...). I do see extensions for Zoho Recruit in the marketplace. How would I go about to create one if the option is not available in sigma ? Cheers, Rémi.
                                  • How to import data from PDF into Zoho Sheet

                                    I am looking to import Consolidated Account Statement (https://www.camsonline.com/Investors/Statements/Consolidated-Account-Statement) into zoho sheet. Any help is appreciated. The pdf is received as attachment in the email, this document is password
                                  • Zoho Projects Android app: Integration with Microsoft Intune

                                    Hello everyone! We’re excited to announce that Zoho Projects now integrates with Microsoft Intune, enabling enhanced security and enterprise app management. We have now added support for Microsoft Intune Mobile Application Management (MAM) policies through
                                  • Next Page