Building a product catalog with custom objects for customers to use

<div class="article-banners">
<div id="docs-wmp-link">
<a href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/5411234991258-plan" rel="noopener" target="_blank">What's my plan?</a>
</div>
<div class="article-banner" id="suite_all">
<table>
<tbody>
<tr>
<td>
<strong>All Suites</strong>
</td>
<td>Team, Growth, Professional, Enterprise, or Enterprise Plus</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
</div>
<div class="article-banner" id="support_e">
<table>
<tbody>
<tr>
<td>
<strong>Support</strong>
</td>
<td>Enterprise</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
</div>
</div>
<div class="body">
<p class="p">Custom objects provide a way for Zendesk admins to build a product catalog with custom
objects and then make the data available to agents, customers, business rules, and
reporting. </p>
<p class="p">Previously, admins might have attempted to use drop-down fields rather than ticket lookup
relationship fields that point to a custom object to create a simple list of products. </p>
<p class="p">This recipe uses custom objects, custom object record permissions, the data importer,
lookup relationship fields, and ticket triggers.</p>
<div class="p">This article contains the following topics:<ul class="ul" id="topic_zyt_hy5_fdc__ul_ig2_21v_fdc">
<li class="li"><a class="xref" href="#topic_dzd_z1v_fdc">Workflow goal</a></li>
<li class="li"><a class="xref" href="#topic_kzk_vbv_fdc">Creating a custom object to use as a product catalog</a></li>
<li class="li"><a class="xref" href="#topic_skv_j4x_fdc">Configuring agent and end-user permissions for the product records</a></li>
<li class="li"><a class="xref" href="#topic_m53_5jx_fdc">Importing your products into the catalog</a></li>
<li class="li"><a class="xref" href="#topic_xmt_qmx_fdc">Incorporating the new product catalog into your ticket forms</a></li>
<li class="li"><a class="xref" href="#topic_mmp_41y_fdc">Group agents by the types of product they support</a></li>
<li class="li"><a class="xref" href="#topic_cx5_3zx_fdc">Creating ticket triggers to route requests based on the product selected</a></li>
<li class="li"><a class="xref" href="#topic_cbh_hfy_fdc">Reporting on your product catalog workflow</a></li>
</ul>
</div>
</div>
<div aria-labelledby="ariaid-title2" class="topic nested1" id="topic_dzd_z1v_fdc">
<h2 class="title topictitle2" id="ariaid-title2">Workflow goal</h2>
<div class="body">
<p class="p">ShoeLaLa is a shoe company that sells more than 5,000 models of shoes across multiple
categories, such as running shoes, lifestyle shoes, boots, and sandals. As the
Zendesk admin for ShoeLaLa, you've been asked to create a product catalog that can
be used in the ticket form, so customers must select the specific shoe they have an
issue with when submitting a complaint. You'll also use this information to help
route tickets to the correct agents and improve reporting on product issues.</p>
</div>
</div>
<div aria-labelledby="ariaid-title3" class="topic nested1" id="topic_kzk_vbv_fdc">
<h2 class="title topictitle2" id="ariaid-title3">Creating a custom object to use as a product catalog</h2>
<div class="body">
<p class="p">The first thing you need to do is <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/5392409465370" target="_blank">create a custom object</a> named <em class="ph i">Product</em>, which will
serve as your product catalog. Each record for the Product object represents a
different shoe sold by ShoeLaLa.</p>
<div class="p">
<strong class="ph b">To create your Product custom object</strong><ol class="ol" id="topic_kzk_vbv_fdc__ol_u5d_pcv_fdc">
<li class="li"><span class="ph">In <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/4581766374554#topic_hfg_dyz_1hb" target="_blank">Admin Center</a>, click <img class="image" id="topic_kzk_vbv_fdc__d8e1533" src="https://zen-marketing-documentation.s3.amazonaws.com/docs/en/ac_objects_rules_icon.png">
<strong class="ph b">Objects and rules</strong> in the sidebar, then select <strong class="ph b">Custom objects &gt;
Objects</strong>.</span></li>
<li class="li">Click <strong class="ph b">Create object</strong>.</li>
<li class="li">Under <strong class="ph b">Name</strong> enter <strong class="ph b">Product</strong>, and under <strong class="ph b">Plural display
name</strong>, enter <strong class="ph b">Products</strong>.</li>
<li class="li">Under <strong class="ph b">Object key</strong>, enter <strong class="ph b">product</strong>.</li>
<li class="li">Select <strong class="ph b">Add image icons for individual records</strong>.</li>
<li class="li">Click <strong class="ph b">Create object</strong>.</li>
<li class="li">Click the <strong class="ph b">Fields</strong> tab, click <strong class="ph b">Add field</strong>, and <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/5392409465370-Creating-custom-objects-to-integrate-with-custom-data#topic_cq4_1sn_lwb" target="_blank">add the following fields</a>:<ol class="ol" id="topic_kzk_vbv_fdc__ol_ag5_32g_syb" type="a">
<li class="li">For the <strong class="ph b">Type</strong>, select <strong class="ph b">Drop down</strong> and then enter
<strong class="ph b">Category</strong> for the display name. Add your categories and
tags, and then click <strong class="ph b">Save</strong>. <div class="note tip">
<span class="tiptitle">Tip:</span> If your
categories change frequently, consider creating a separate
custom object called <em class="ph i">Product category</em> instead of relying
on a custom field called <em class="ph i">Category</em>.</div>
</li>
<li class="li">For the <strong class="ph b">Type</strong>, select <strong class="ph b">Drop-down</strong> and enter <strong class="ph b">Style</strong>
for the display name. Add your style values and tags, and then click
<strong class="ph b">Save and add another</strong>.</li>
<li class="li">For the <strong class="ph b">Type</strong>, select <strong class="ph b">Multi-line</strong> and enter
<strong class="ph b">Description</strong> for the display name. Click <strong class="ph b">Save and add
another</strong>.</li>
<li class="li">For the <strong class="ph b">Type</strong>, select <strong class="ph b">Checkbox</strong> and then enter
<strong class="ph b">Active</strong> for the display name. Click <strong class="ph b">Save and add
another</strong>.</li>
<li class="li">For the <strong class="ph b">Type</strong>, select <strong class="ph b">Multi-select</strong> and then enter
<strong class="ph b">Colors available</strong> for the display name. Add your color
values and tags, and then click <strong class="ph b">Save and add another</strong>.</li>
<li class="li">For the <strong class="ph b">Type</strong>, select <strong class="ph b">Multi-select</strong> and then enter
<strong class="ph b">Sizes</strong> for the display name. Add the possible sizes and
tags, and then click <strong class="ph b">Save</strong>.</li>
<li class="li">For the <strong class="ph b">Type</strong>, select <strong class="ph b">Lookup relationship</strong> and then enter
<strong class="ph b">Product Article</strong> for the display name. Select
<strong class="ph b">Article</strong> as the related object.</li>
</ol>
</li>
<li class="li">Open the custom object's <strong class="ph b">Name</strong> field (field key
<strong class="ph b">standard::name</strong>), and then select <strong class="ph b">Require unique record name</strong> to
ensure each record's name is unique.</li>
<li class="li">Click <strong class="ph b">Save</strong>.</li>
</ol>
<div class="note note">
<span class="notetitle">Note:</span> Optionally, you can use the Cards page in Admin Center to configure which
fields are included and the order in which they are listed in the record preview
for agents. See <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/5768595554714#topic_hw5_yyd_mcc" target="_blank">Configuring cards to view additional
information in the Agent Workspace</a>.</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<div aria-labelledby="ariaid-title4" class="topic nested1" id="topic_skv_j4x_fdc">
<h2 class="title topictitle2" id="ariaid-title4">Configuring agent and end-user permissions for the product records</h2>
<div class="body">
<p class="p">In this workflow, you want agents and end users to be able to view and select product
records related to their tickets. </p>
<div class="p">
<strong class="ph b">To configure user permissions for your product catalog</strong><ol class="ol" id="topic_skv_j4x_fdc__ol_ddq_jrx_fdc">
<li class="li"><span class="ph">In <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/4581766374554#topic_hfg_dyz_1hb" target="_blank">Admin Center</a>, click <img class="image" id="topic_skv_j4x_fdc__d8e1533" src="https://zen-marketing-documentation.s3.amazonaws.com/docs/en/ac_objects_rules_icon.png">
<strong class="ph b">Objects and rules</strong> in the sidebar, then select <strong class="ph b">Custom objects &gt;
Objects</strong>.</span></li>
<li class="li">Click <strong class="ph b">Product</strong> to edit the product object.</li>
<li class="li">Click the <strong class="ph b">Permissions</strong> tab.<ul class="ul" id="topic_skv_j4x_fdc__ul_hqf_mrx_fdc">
<li class="li">For <strong class="ph b">Customer</strong>, select <strong class="ph b">View</strong>.</li>
<li class="li"> Review <strong class="ph b">agent</strong> permissions to access the object's records. On
Enterprise plans, you can <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/6034260247066#topic_yv1_5xs_3yb" target="_blank">configure agent access to object
records</a>. On Team, Growth, and Professional plans, agent
permissions are <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/6034260247066#topic_n1g_bys_3yb" target="_blank">predefined</a>.</li>
</ul>
<div class="note note">
<span class="notetitle">Note:</span> You can also use <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/6034260247066#topic_o51_ybc_4gc" target="_blank">access rules</a> to restrict agent
access to the custom object's records that are relevant to their
responsibilities. For example, if you have agents who handle only
tickets related to shoes, you could define an access rule that restricts
access to only records with a <em class="ph i">Product category</em> value of
<em class="ph i">Shoes</em>, and then apply it to the agents' permissions for the
custom object's records.</div>
</li>
</ol>
</div>
<p class="p">For more details, see <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/6034260247066" target="_blank">Configuring access to custom object records</a>. </p>
</div>
</div>
<div aria-labelledby="ariaid-title5" class="topic nested1" id="topic_m53_5jx_fdc">
<h2 class="title topictitle2" id="ariaid-title5">Importing your products into the catalog</h2>
<div class="body">
<p class="p">When you use a custom object as a catalog, each product within the catalog is a
record. In this scenario, you have an existing set of products that ShoeLaLa already
sells that you need to import. For the purposes of this scenario, we're going to
<a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/6100391508250" target="_blank">use the data importer</a>. However, you can
also use the <a class="xref" href="https://developer.zendesk.com/api-reference/custom-data/custom-objects/custom_object_records/#custom-object-record-bulk-jobs" target="_blank">Custom Object Records API</a> to create
records in bulk. In both cases, you can use object triggers and webhooks to keep
your product data in Zendesk synchronized back to an external service, such as a
sales CRM.</p>
<div class="p">After the initial import, you can either perform additional bulk imports periodically
or admins and agents can manually add new products as needed.<div class="note note">
<span class="notetitle">Note:</span> To provide a
richer experience for agents and end users, after you import the product
records, admins and agents with permission can manually <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/6093145333786#topic_bdz_jxm_kfc" target="_blank">upload icons</a> to each product record to
make it visually recognizable.</div>
</div>
<div class="p">
<strong class="ph b">To import your product records</strong><ol class="ol" id="topic_m53_5jx_fdc__ol_t2s_4kx_fdc">
<li class="li">Create a comma-separated value (CSV) file with columns for each of the
object's fields you want to import values for, and add one product per
row.<p class="p">Make sure to include unique <em class="ph i">external ID</em> values for each
record to ensure you can update the records with the data importer and
API in the future. For additional guidelines, see <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/6100391508250#topic_pyb_pm3_qyb" target="_blank">Creating a custom object records CSV
file</a>.</p>
</li>
<li class="li"><span class="ph">In <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/4581766374554#topic_hfg_dyz_1hb" target="_blank">Admin Center</a>, click <img class="image" id="topic_m53_5jx_fdc__d8e1868" src="https://zen-marketing-documentation.s3.amazonaws.com/docs/en/ac_objects_rules_icon.png">
<strong class="ph b">Objects and rules</strong> in the sidebar, then select <strong class="ph b">Tools &gt; Data importer</strong>.</span></li>
<li class="li">Under <strong class="ph b">Import type</strong>, select <strong class="ph b">Create only</strong>.</li>
<li class="li">Under <strong class="ph b">Target destination</strong>, select <strong class="ph b">Product</strong>.</li>
<li class="li">Under <strong class="ph b">File upload</strong>, drag and drop your file or <strong class="ph b">click to upload</strong>
and select your CSV file from the file browser.</li>
<li class="li">Click <strong class="ph b">Next</strong>.</li>
<li class="li">Review the <strong class="ph b">Field mapping</strong> list.<ul class="ul" id="topic_m53_5jx_fdc__ul_o3k_2mx_fdc">
<li class="li">If the field mapping is correct, click <strong class="ph b">Next</strong>.</li>
<li class="li">If the field mapping isn't correct, click <strong class="ph b">Back</strong>. Edit your CSV
file to adhere to the <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/6100391508250-Bulk-importing-custom-object-records#topic_pyb_pm3_qyb" target="_blank">format requirements</a>, and
then re-upload the file.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li class="li">Click <strong class="ph b">Start import</strong>.</li>
</ol>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<div aria-labelledby="ariaid-title6" class="topic nested1" id="topic_xmt_qmx_fdc">
<h2 class="title topictitle2" id="ariaid-title6">Incorporating the new product catalog into your ticket forms</h2>
<div class="body">
<div class="p">After you've created the Product object and added records, you need to do the
following:<ol class="ol" id="topic_xmt_qmx_fdc__ol_u4n_nnx_fdc">
<li class="li"><a class="xref" href="#topic_hjz_myy_ygc">Creating a ticket drop-down
field for the product category.</a></li>
<li class="li"><a class="xref" href="#topic_odj_pnx_fdc">Create a ticket lookup
relationship field that points to the Product object.</a></li>
<li class="li"><a class="xref" href="#topic_lgn_14x_fdc">Add the lookup relationship
field to your complaint ticket form.</a></li>
</ol>
</div>
</div>
<div aria-labelledby="ariaid-title7" class="topic nested2" id="topic_hjz_myy_ygc">
<h3 class="title topictitle3" id="ariaid-title7">Creating a custom ticket field named product category</h3>
<div class="body">
<p class="p">In this scenario, we want to be able to compare which product category a ticket
is about and the related custom object's product category. To do this, you must
create a custom drop down field for tickets that has identical values to the
<em class="ph i">Category</em> field you added to the product custom object.</p>
<div class="p">
<strong class="ph b">To create a custom ticket field named Product category</strong><ol class="ol" id="topic_hjz_myy_ygc__ol_zm2_lzy_ygc">
<li class="li"><span class="ph">In <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/4581766374554#topic_hfg_dyz_1hb" target="_blank">Admin Center</a>, click <img class="image" id="topic_hjz_myy_ygc__d8e1457" src="https://zen-marketing-documentation.s3.amazonaws.com/docs/en/ac_objects_rules_icon.png">
<strong class="ph b">Objects and rules</strong> in the sidebar, then select <strong class="ph b">Tickets &gt; Fields</strong>.</span></li>
<li class="li">Select <strong class="ph b">Drop down</strong> as the custom field type.</li>
<li class="li">For the <strong class="ph b">Display name</strong>, enter <strong class="ph b">Product category</strong>.</li>
<li class="li">Add your categories as <strong class="ph b">Values</strong> and <strong class="ph b">Tags</strong>, identical to those
specified for the Product object's <em class="ph i">Category</em> field.</li>
<li class="li">Under <strong class="ph b">Permissions</strong>, select <strong class="ph b">Customers can edit</strong>.<p class="p">This is
the only option that allows the field to be visible as part of the
request forms in the help center.</p>
</li>
<li class="li">Click <strong class="ph b">Save</strong>.</li>
</ol>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<div aria-labelledby="ariaid-title8" class="topic nested2" id="topic_odj_pnx_fdc">
<h3 class="title topictitle3" id="ariaid-title8">Creating a ticket lookup relationship field named product</h3>
<div class="body">
<p class="p">Lookup relationship fields are used to define how custom data is related to other
objects within Zendesk. In this scenario, you want customers to select a product
while submitting a ticket. That means the lookup relationship field must be
<a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/4408883152794#topic_ubz_ynk_xj" target="_blank">created as a ticket field</a> that points
to the Product object.</p>
<div class="p">
<strong class="ph b">To create a ticket lookup relationship field that points to the product
catalog</strong><ol class="ol" id="topic_odj_pnx_fdc__ol_xqt_dnx_fdc">
<li class="li"><span class="ph">In <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/4581766374554#topic_hfg_dyz_1hb" target="_blank">Admin Center</a>, click <img class="image" id="topic_odj_pnx_fdc__d8e1457" src="https://zen-marketing-documentation.s3.amazonaws.com/docs/en/ac_objects_rules_icon.png">
<strong class="ph b">Objects and rules</strong> in the sidebar, then select <strong class="ph b">Tickets &gt; Fields</strong>.</span></li>
<li class="li">Select <strong class="ph b">Lookup relationship</strong> as the custom field type.</li>
<li class="li">For the <strong class="ph b">Display name</strong>, enter <strong class="ph b">Product</strong>.</li>
<li class="li">Under <strong class="ph b">Related object</strong>, select <strong class="ph b">Product</strong>.</li>
<li class="li">Under <strong class="ph b">Permissions</strong>, select <strong class="ph b">Customers can edit</strong>.</li>
<li class="li">(Optional) Enter <strong class="ph b">Title shown to customers</strong> and <strong class="ph b">Description
shown to customers</strong>.</li>
<li class="li">Select <strong class="ph b">Required to submit a request</strong>.</li>
<li class="li">Under <strong class="ph b">Filters</strong>, click <strong class="ph b">Add filter</strong> and configure the
following filter that allows users to select only product records that
have the same category as the ticket's product category value.
:<p class="p">(Product object field) <strong class="ph b">Category</strong> | <strong class="ph b">Matches</strong> |
<strong class="ph b">Product category</strong> (Ticket field)</p>
</li>
<li class="li">Click <strong class="ph b">Save</strong>.</li>
<li class="li"><a class="xref" href="#topic_lgn_14x_fdc">Add the lookup field to
your ticket form.</a></li>
</ol>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<div aria-labelledby="ariaid-title9" class="topic nested2" id="topic_lgn_14x_fdc">
<h3 class="title topictitle3" id="ariaid-title9">Adding the product lookup field to your complaint ticket form</h3>
<div class="body">
<div class="p">After you create a custom ticket field, you must add it to your ticket form in
order for agents and end users to use it.<div class="note note">
<span class="notetitle">Note:</span> End users must be signed in to
see lookup relationship fields.</div>
</div>
<div class="p">
<strong class="ph b">To add the Product lookup field to your ticket forms</strong><ol class="ol" id="topic_lgn_14x_fdc__ol_hcm_fqx_fdc">
<li class="li"><span class="ph">In <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/4581766374554#topic_hfg_dyz_1hb" target="_blank">Admin Center</a>, click <img class="image" src="https://zen-marketing-documentation.s3.amazonaws.com/docs/en/ac_objects_rules_icon.png">
<strong class="ph b">Objects and rules</strong> in the sidebar, then select <strong class="ph b">Tickets &gt; Forms</strong>.</span></li>
<li class="li">
<a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/4408846520858" target="_blank">Create</a> a new ticket form or
<a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/5494868102426" target="_blank">edit</a> your existing ticket form
named <em class="ph i">Complaint</em>.</li>
<li class="li">Select <strong class="ph b">Editable for end users</strong>.</li>
<li class="li">Drag and drop the <strong class="ph b">Product</strong> ticket field into the form.</li>
<li class="li">Click <strong class="ph b">Save</strong>.</li>
</ol>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<div aria-labelledby="ariaid-title10" class="topic nested1" id="topic_mmp_41y_fdc">
<h2 class="title topictitle2" id="ariaid-title10">Group agents by the types of product they support</h2>
<div class="body">
<p class="p">At ShoeLaLa, agents are grouped by the shoe styles they support. For example, one
group of agents called <em class="ph i">Sports</em> is responsible for handling all complaints
related to sneakers, hiking boots, cleats, and so on, while another group of agents
called <em class="ph i">Formal</em> is responsible for handling complaints related to heels,
loafers, fancy flats, and so on. This approach to grouping agents works well with
this product catalog workflow.</p>
<div class="p">
<strong class="ph b">To group agents by shoe categories they support</strong><ol class="ol" id="topic_mmp_41y_fdc__ol_ys4_gfj_hdc">
<li class="li"><span class="ph">In <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/4581766374554#topic_hfg_dyz_1hb" target="_blank">Admin Center</a>, click <img class="image" id="topic_mmp_41y_fdc__d8e626" src="https://zen-marketing-documentation.s3.amazonaws.com/docs/en/ac_people_icon.png">
<strong class="ph b">People</strong> in the sidebar, then select <strong class="ph b">Team &gt; Groups</strong>.</span></li>
<li class="li">
<a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/4408894175130" target="_blank">Create</a> or <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/4408821199258" target="_blank">edit</a> groups of agents to handle
complaints based on shoe style.</li>
</ol>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<div aria-labelledby="ariaid-title11" class="topic nested1" id="topic_cx5_3zx_fdc">
<h2 class="title topictitle2" id="ariaid-title11">Creating ticket triggers to route requests based on the product selected</h2>
<div class="body">
<p class="p">Because agents are grouped by the styles of shoes they support, you can use the
product style values as conditions in ticket triggers and automatically assign them
to the correct group.</p>
<div class="p">
<strong class="ph b">To create a ticket trigger that assigns groups based on the related products'
style</strong><ol class="ol" id="topic_cx5_3zx_fdc__ol_utz_4cy_fdc">
<li class="li"><span class="ph">In <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/4581766374554#topic_hfg_dyz_1hb" target="_blank">Admin Center</a>, click <img class="image" id="topic_cx5_3zx_fdc__d8e1594" src="https://zen-marketing-documentation.s3.amazonaws.com/docs/en/ac_objects_rules_icon.png">
<strong class="ph b">Objects and rules</strong> in the sidebar, then select <strong class="ph b">Business rules &gt;
Triggers</strong>.</span></li>
<li class="li">
<a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/4408886797466" target="_blank">Create</a> or <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/4408882237722#topic_dwq_zoy_tb" target="_blank">edit</a> a trigger.</li>
<li class="li">Under <strong class="ph b">Conditions</strong>, click <strong class="ph b">Add condition</strong> to set up the trigger to
meet <strong class="ph b">Any</strong> of the style conditions you want to assign to the group of
agents.<p class="p">For example, to assign all athletic styles of shoes to a group
named <em class="ph i">Sports</em>, you might use the following conditions:</p>
<ul class="ul" id="topic_cx5_3zx_fdc__ul_qqk_fpg_syb">
<li class="li">
<strong class="ph b">Ticket &gt; Product &gt; Style</strong> | <strong class="ph b">Is</strong> | <strong class="ph b">Running</strong>
</li>
<li class="li">
<strong class="ph b">Ticket &gt; Product &gt; Style</strong> | <strong class="ph b">Is</strong> | <strong class="ph b">Hiking</strong>
</li>
<li class="li">
<strong class="ph b">Ticket &gt; Product &gt; Style</strong> | <strong class="ph b">Is</strong> | <strong class="ph b">Cleat</strong>
</li>
</ul>
<p class="p">See <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/4408893545882#topic_i3y_fkz_1cb" target="_blank">Building trigger condition
statements</a>.</p>
</li>
<li class="li">Under <strong class="ph b">Actions</strong>, specify the following action:<ul class="ul" id="topic_cx5_3zx_fdc__ul_l4d_vqg_syb">
<li class="li">
<strong class="ph b">Ticket &gt; Group</strong> | <strong class="ph b">Sports</strong>
</li>
</ul>
<p class="p">See <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/4408893545882#topic_ncz_4kz_1cb" target="_blank">Building trigger action
statements</a>.</p>
</li>
<li class="li">Click <strong class="ph b">Save</strong>.</li>
</ol>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<div aria-labelledby="ariaid-title12" class="topic nested1" id="topic_cbh_hfy_fdc">
<h2 class="title topictitle2" id="ariaid-title12">Reporting on your product catalog workflow</h2>
<div class="body">
<p class="p">After setting up your custom object workflow, you can use Explore to <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/4408821589530" target="_blank">create reports</a> based on lookup relationship field data.
Specifically, you can use attributes of related custom object records to quantify
ticket data, such as number of tickets by product, style, or whether the product is
currently available.</p>
<div class="p">
<strong class="ph b">To create a report for number of tickets for a style of shoe</strong><ol class="ol" id="topic_cbh_hfy_fdc__ol_ubr_5bj_hdc">
<li class="li">Open Explore, or click the Zendesk Products icon (<img class="image" id="topic_cbh_hfy_fdc__image_j54_cr3_s2c" src="https://zen-marketing-documentation.s3.amazonaws.com/docs/en/admin_center_product_icon.png">) in the top bar, then select
<strong class="ph b">Analytics</strong>.</li>
<li class="li">Click the <strong class="ph b">New report</strong> button.</li>
<li class="li">Select the <strong class="ph b">Support - Tickets</strong> dataset.</li>
<li class="li">Click <strong class="ph b">Start report</strong>.</li>
<li class="li">Replace <strong class="ph b">New report</strong> with <strong class="ph b">Ticket number by shoe type</strong> as the
report name.</li>
<li class="li">Under <strong class="ph b">Metrics</strong>, click <strong class="ph b">Add</strong>.</li>
<li class="li">Select <strong class="ph b">Tickets</strong> &gt; <strong class="ph b">Tickets</strong>.<p class="p">This appears as <em class="ph i">COUNT
(Tickets)</em> in the report's list of metrics.</p>
</li>
<li class="li">Under <strong class="ph b">Columns</strong>, click <strong class="ph b">Add</strong>.</li>
<li class="li">Select <strong class="ph b">Ticket lookup relationships</strong> &gt; <strong class="ph b">Product - Style</strong>.</li>
<li class="li">Click <strong class="ph b">Save</strong>.</li>
</ol>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<script id="docs-schema-markup" type="application/ld+json">{
"@context": "https://schema.org",
"@type": "TechArticle",
"@id": "https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/8301334445082",
"url": "https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/8301334445082-Building-a-product-catalog-with-custom-objects-for-customers-to-use",
"headline": "Building a product catalog with custom objects for customers to use",
"description": "You can build a product catalog using custom objects to enable customers to select specific products in ticket forms, route tickets to appropriate agents, and improve reporting on product issues.",
"articleSection": "Workflow best practices and recipes",
"datePublished": "2024-11-01T15:09:20+00:00",
"dateModified": "2025-10-16T05:15:09+00:00",
"inLanguage": "en-US",
"mainEntityOfPage": {
"@type": "WebPage",
"@id": "https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/8301334445082"
},
"author": {
"@type": "Organization",
"name": "Zendesk",
"@id": "https://www.zendesk.com"
},
"publisher": {
"@type": "Organization",
"name": "Zendesk",
"@id": "https://www.zendesk.com"
},
"isPartOf": {
"@type": "WebSite",
"name": "Zendesk Help",
"@id": "https://support.zendesk.com/hc/"
},
"about": {
"@type": "SoftwareApplication",
"name": "Zendesk",
"@id": "https://www.zendesk.com"
}
}</script>