Shared values: From classroom lessons to teaching moments in customer service

Shared values: From classroom lessons to teaching moments in customer service

While the world observes Teachers’ Day on October 5, in India, we celebrate a month earlier, on September 5, to mark the birth anniversary of Dr. Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan, a great teacher, renowned scholar, educationist, and advocate for empowerment.
We've all had different kinds of teachers in our school years. Their influence continues to shape us as professionals. Some inspired creativity, others instilled discipline, while many patiently walked us through challenging lessons. If we reflect, each teacher has made an impact on our lives, just as every customer interaction leaves a mark on both sides.


The common ground for teachers and customer service

Patience and endurance

Teaching and customer service require patience. Customers may come to us frustrated or overwhelmed by circumstances. Sometimes, the stress of the moment affects them more than the “issue”. Like teachers guiding students through confusion, customer service professionals' empathy and patience offer clarity and reassurance alongside solutions.

Simple communication

Teachers excel at breaking down complex concepts into simple, digestible lessons. Customer support agents require this skill to help customers find solutions with simple and easy navigation steps. A simplified process helps customers get hooked on our business. 

Empathy and encouragement

The best teachers are remembered for the way they made us feel: valued, encouraged, and raised our confidence to achieve more. Great customer service works the same way. A thoughtful email, a clear solution, or a proactive follow-up can turn frustration into trust and confidence.

Adaptability and continuous learning

Every student is different, and good teachers adapt their methods accordingly. In customer service, no two tickets nor two customers are alike. Support teams offer guided support through calls, live chats, webinars, and one-on-one sessions that mirror interactive lessons.

Beyond the issue

Teachers don’t just answer questions; they prepare us for future challenges. Likewise, customer service empowers agents to not only solve current tickets but also guide customers through proactive tips, tutorials, and community discussions that help them succeed long-term.

Feedback and growth

Teachers evaluate, correct, and encourage us to grow. Customer service thrives on feedback through CSAT surveys, community discussions, and follow-ups. Each interaction is a chance to improve, both for the organization and the customer relationship.

How does Zoho Desk embody teaching principles?

Knowledge base: Articles, FAQs, and screenshots serve as textbooks for customers.
Help center: A virtual classroom for customers to self-learn, track tickets, and stay informed.
Community: A space for peers and agents to exchange insights, like collaborative learning.
Continuous empowerment: Zoho Desk provides proactive support, product updates, product walkthroughs, and trainings to keep customers engaged and confident.

Time for reflection

Just like how our teachers have left lasting imprints on our lives, the service we provide to customers leaves an impression on them. Each successful issue resolution can help a person grow and thrive at work.

We’d love to hear your experiences:
  1. Which teacher has influenced you the most, and how have their lessons carried over into your professional life?
  2. Share teaching experiences you've had with customers: imparting knowledge, building trust, or guiding them through challenges.
  3. Can you recall a moment where your patience and empathy changed the course of a customer interaction?
At Zoho Desk, we believe in celebrating not just service, but the spirit of teaching that underpins it. Thank you for continuing to share your experiences with us; it helps us connect, learn, and grow together.

Happy Teachers’ Day to all the teachers who shaped us, and to every customer service professional who continues to teach, guide, and empower their customers.

Best wishes, 
Lydia | Zoho Desk

    • Sticky Posts

    • Register for Zoho Desk Beta Community

      With the start of the year, we have decided to take a small step in making the life of our customers a little easier. We now have easy access to all our upcoming features and a faster way to request for beta access. We open betas for some of our features
    • Share your Zoho Desk story with us!

      Tell us how you use Zoho Desk for your business and inspire others with your story. Be it a simple workflow rule that helps you navigate complex processes or a macro that saves your team a lot of time; share it here and help the community learn and grow with shared knowledge. 
    • Tip #1: Learn to pick the right channels

      Mail, live chat, telephony, social media, web forms—there are so many support channels out there. Trying to pick the right channels to offer your customers can get pretty confusing. Emails are most useful when the customer wants to put things on record. However, escalated or complicated issues should not be resolved over email because it's slow and impersonal.  When you need immediate responses, live chat is more suitable. It's also quick and convenient, so it's the go-to channel for small issues. 
    • Welcome to Zoho Desk Community - Say hello here!

      Hello everyone! Though we have been here for a while, it’s time to formally establish the Zoho Desk Community; we’re really happy to have you all here! This can be the place where you take a moment to introduce yourself to the rest of the community. We’d love to hear all about you, what you do, what company or industry you work for, how you use Zoho Desk and anything else that you will like to share! Here’s a little about me. I am Chinmayee. I have been associated with Zoho since 2014. I joined here
    • Webinar 1: Blueprint for Customer Service

      With the launch of a host of new features in Zoho Desk, we thought it’ll be great to have a few webinars to help our customers make the most of them. We’re starting off with our most talked about feature, Blueprint in Zoho Desk. You can register for the Blueprint webinar here: The webinar will be delivered by our in-house product experts. This is a good opportunity to ask questions to our experts and understand how Blueprint can help you automate your service processes. We look forward to seeing

    Nederlandse Hulpbronnen


      • Recent Topics

      • Introducing WhatsApp integration in Bigin

        Greetings! In today's business landscape, messaging apps play a significant role in customer operations. Customers can engage with businesses, seek support, ask questions, receive personalized recommendations, read reviews, and even make purchases—all
      • Zoho CRM custom fields not showing in zoho creator

        Hi Team, I have created a Products form with Zoho CRM integration and connected it to Products module of CRM. But when I see the reports of Products in Zoho creator then I am not able to see custom fields of Products module. Only standard fields of Products
      • Sending email notifications based on language

        Hello. I would like to know how we can bypass the default notifications (which are just in English) for when a ticket is created/replied to/closed, to be in other languages, based on the language field in the ticket? I can create other email templates,
      • Error AS101 when adding new email alias

        Hi, I am trying to add apple@(mydomain).com The error AS101 is shown while I try to add the alias.
      • Zoho Error: This Operation has been restricted. Please contact support-as@zohocorp.com for further details

        Hello There, l tried to verify my domain (florindagoreti.com.br) and its shows this error: This Operation has been restricted. Please contact support-as@zohocorp.com for further details. Screenshot Given Below -  please check what went wrong. Thanks
      • Send Zoho Forms Link using Zoho CRM Email Templates

        I have set up Zoho Forms and CRM integration to pre-populate data from Zoho CRM to Zoho Forms. The setup is working fine. I have also created an email template in the Zoho CRM deals module to send Zoho forms links. So when I send an email using that template
      • Introducing parent-child ticketing in Zoho Desk [Early access]

        Hello Zoho Desk users! We have introduced the parent-child ticketing system to help customer service teams ensure efficient resolution of issues involving multiple, related tickets. You can now combine repetitive and interconnected tickets into parent-child
      • Duplicating report but custom layout does not

        Dear Zoho Creator, I need to duplicate a report into 10 copies, but unfortunately the custom layout (detail view) doesn’t copy along with it. I tried exporting and importing the custom layout, but the field mappings are incorrect. I believe everyone are
      • Download a file from within a zoho creator widget

        I have a widget running in Zoho Creator , it displays uploaded documents in a table file, and I have added a download link in the view. ( The widget is created with html, css and javascript). I do not succeed in getting the download working. Do I have
      • Correlated subqueries not supported in Zoho Analytics. This creates huge limitations

        Running into a major limitation in Zoho Analytics: correlated subqueries simply don’t work, even in completely standard SQL patterns inside a JOIN. Example: LEFT JOIN "Bills" b ON d."Id" = b."Deal ID" AND EXISTS ( SELECT 1 FROM "Bill
      • Zoho / Outlook Calendar sync

        The current Marketplace -> Microsoft -> Meetings integration needs 2 changes. 1. The current language for the Two-Way sync option should be changed. It currently states, "Sync both your Zoho CRM Calendar and Office 365 Calendar meetings with each other."
      • Email content just contain 'OK' ,not what we expect

        create campaign API URL: https://campaigns.zoho.com/api/v1.1/createCampaign req params: {'campaignname': 'General_Outreach_d0cfc415-43aa-4b96-bb09-558e76a3dda3_50_20251117_214806_660', 'from_email': 'admin@allinmedia.ai', 'subject': 'ALL IN MEDIA', 'list_details':
      • Introducing the all-new email parser!

        Greetings, We are pleased to introduce to you, a brand-new, upgraded version of the Zoho CRM Email Parser, which is packed with fresh features and has been completely redesigned to meet latest customers needs and their business requirements. On that note,
      • Possible to connect Zoho CRM's Sandbox with Zoho Creator's Sandbox?

        We are making some big changes on our CRM so we are testing it out in CRM's Sandbox. We also have a Zoho Creator app that we need to test. Is it possible to connect Zoho CRM's Sandbox to Zoho Creator's Sandbox so that I can perform those tests?
      • Reopen ticket

        Hello! Can I reopen a ticket just using the API ticket/sendReply ? What's the rules to do it? I'm trying but it doesn't reopen the ticket, it just send the reply
      • Allow Admins to Transfer Ownership of Their Own Files & Folders

        Hi Zoho WorkDrive Team, Hope you are doing well. We would like to request an important enhancement to the ownership-transfer functionality in Zoho WorkDrive, specifically regarding administrator capabilities. As administrators, we have the ability to
      • Tip#46: Capture accurate log hours

        Hello everyone, Use the newly introduced timer settings that will streamline the usage of timers and help admins or workspace owners to manage the time entries of the workspace users better. Check out the below mentioned timer settings added to the Timesheet
      • Moving to app-specific authentication for Google integrations

        Hello everyone, We’re making an important change to how Google integrations work in our platform. Until now, we used a common Google project across Zoho to enable integrations like Google Drive, Calendar, and more. Going forward, we’ll be moving to an
      • Double opt-in notifications and customizable confirmation messages for your webforms

        Dear CRM Community, We are excited to announce a major upgrade to our Webforms feature. You can now customize the confirmation message shown to your users who double opt-in from your webform and also customize your confirmation emails when they submit
      • Lost the ability to sort by ticket owner

        Hi all, in the last week or so, we have lost the ability to sort tickets by Ticket Owner. Unlike the other columns which we can hover over and click on to sort, Ticket Owner is no longer clickable. Is it just us, or are other customers seeing this too?
      • Using a CRM Client Script Button to create a Books Invoice

        Hello, I need help handling error messages returned to my client script from a function. The scenario I have setup a client script button which is available from each Deal. This CS executes a crm function, which in turn creates an invoice based on the
      • Standalone custom function not generating logs

        Why dont't standalone custom functions generate logs when the're called from another function? I have some functions (workflow, buttons and blueprint) that have common parts, so I put that part in a standalone function which is called from the others.
      • How Can i put a form in Zobot

        Hi,how can i integrate a form which has a multiple options to choose from.the form should be opened or displayed by zobot after it meets a requirement in the conversation. Thanks in advance !
      • Has Anyone successfully integrated Zoho and Sage Intact?

        Hey all, We’re evaluating Zoho One + Sage Intacct and I’m trying to connect with anyone who has actually implemented the two together.Specifically, I’d love to know: -- Which functions you kept in Zoho vs. Intacct (e.g., Product Catalog, AR/AP, invoicing,
      • Admin asked me for Backend Details when I wanted to verify my ZeptoMail Account

        Please provide the backend details where you will be adding the SMTP/API information of ZeptoMail Who knows what this means?
      • Playback and Management Enhancements for Zoho Quartz Recordings

        Hello Zoho Team, We hope you're all doing well. We would like to submit a feature request related to Zoho Quartz, the tool used to record and share browser sessions with Zoho Support. 🎯 Current Functionality As of now, Zoho Quartz allows users to record
      • Zoho Analytics - Feature Request For Time Based Data Source Fetch

        Hi Analytics Team, I have a client using Zoho CRM and they want a weekly report at 4:30pm every Friday, emailed to the sales team showing a pie chart of Closed Won Deals for that week. This is easy to achieve in Analytics but not so easy to ensure the
      • Which user's capacity is used for Shared Mailbox storage?

        We use shared mailboxes at our company, and their size is increasing daily. Which user(s)'s total mailbox limit is being used up by this space?
      • Inserting the current date / time

        I'd like to use Zoho Notebook as a log - so it would be great to be able to insert the current date and time at the beginning (or end) of each my log/journal entries - or wherever I want. Something simple, like pressing a button/icon to insert it wherever my text cursor is. It could be formatted like "Mon Dec 11, 2017 - 11:43p". 
      • Migrate data from old to new account

        Hy, Have one Old Zoho Notebook Account with Data , want to migrate that whole Data to New Zoho Notebook Account which is in Zoho One . Is that possible ? If Yes then how?
      • Campaign editor overrides href value

        I've been trying to insert a deep link in an email campaign so recipients can directly open a native app on their device. My deep link looks something like "myapp://". The options to insert links in the campaign editor are limited to strict urls, emails,
      • Can't login IMAP suddenly

        Since this evening I'm getting the error: You are yet to enable IMAP for your account. Please contact your administrator... IMAP always been enabled in my account and was workign fine for the past 7 years. Already tried turning IMAP off and on again.
      • how to add subform over sigma in the CRM

        my new module don't have any subform available any way to add this from sigma or from the crm
      • Bug Report and Suggestions for Improvement in Zoho Applications

        Hi Zoho Team, I’d like to report a few bugs and improvement suggestions I’ve noticed while using Zoho products: Zoho Cliq Video Call: The camera sometimes turns off automatically during video calls. This seems to be a bug — please check and fix it. Zoho
      • Super Admin Logging in as another User

        How can a Super Admin login as another user. For example, I have a sales rep that is having issues with their Accounts and I want to view their Zoho Account with out having to do a GTM and sharing screens. Moderation Update (8th Aug 2025): We are working
      • Canvas Flex Box containers should not require a width/height.

        Flexbox containers are often used as organizational concepts, to ease re-flow on mobile etc. - I cannot use % for flexbox W or H - I cannot omit W or H This means that the content cannot dictate, and a Flexbox container cannot be used merely as an organizational
      • Zoho Desk Android app update: Filter enhancement, Save Filters

        Hello everyone! We have now enhanced the filter section on the ticket listing screen of Zoho Desk Android app as it is on the web(desk.zoho.com). Also, we have introduced an option to save filters for tickets on the mobile app. You can easily apply, rename,
      • Very long loading times | bad performance [ZOHO DC: EU]

        Hello there, we have recently noticed that the loading times have become extremely long when retrieving tickets and ticket details. For example, I open any ticket and get the following view. The subject and standard information (ticket owner, status etc.)
      • How to add to Subforms via Zapier with Zoho Writer?

        I have the following layout for a Zoho Writer Document. As you can see there is a repeating subform taking in "Items". I am trying to make a Zapier integration with it, and I can see there is 1 field saying: "Items", but it does not specify how I'm supposed
      • Zia Profile Summary now supports six languages and responds faster

        After numerous customer requests, we’ve expanded Zia Profile Summary to do more than just summarize resumes quickly. It can now summarize them in six different languages and deliver results even faster. What’s New 1. Extended language support Zia can
      • Next Page