Workflow: Using custom objects to manage assets in Zendesk

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<p class="p">Many Zendesk customers manage assets, such as hardware, software licenses, or physical
items. <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/5914453843994" target="_blank">Custom objects</a> can replace the external
systems you've used in the past to manage these assets. Bringing this data into Zendesk
streamlines agent productivity by providing all the information they need directly in
the ticket and can even improve your record keeping. </p>
<div class="p">This recipe uses custom objects, custom ticket fields, triggers, and Explore reporting.
The example includes:<ul class="ul" id="topic_scr_lsx_ryb__ul_a1z_t52_syb">
<li class="li"><a class="xref" href="#topic_ddz_jw2_syb">Workflow goal</a></li>
<li class="li"><a class="xref" href="#topic_rzz_kw2_syb">Planning your custom object workflow</a></li>
<li class="li"><a class="xref" href="#topic_o5m_h5f_syb">Defining custom objects to represent your assets</a></li>
<li class="li"><a class="xref" href="#topic_b5g_mw2_syb">Add a lookup relationship field to your tickets</a></li>
<li class="li"><a class="xref" href="#topic_kzn_qw2_syb">Import your asset data into Zendesk</a></li>
<li class="li"><a class="xref" href="#topic_zds_5w2_syb">Configure triggers to use your custom objects</a></li>
</ul>
</div>
</div>
<div aria-labelledby="ariaid-title2" class="topic nested1" id="topic_ddz_jw2_syb">
<h2 class="title topictitle2" id="ariaid-title2">Workflow goal</h2>
<div class="body">
<p class="p">You work in the IT department of a software development company. Your company already
has a process in place for employees to submit software requests to your team
through Zendesk. You want to make this process more efficient by maintaining all
records of approved software and the licenses you have for them in Zendesk,
alongside the tickets your coworkers submit about them. You also want to reference
the custom objects in business rules to assign tickets to the right agents at each
step.</p>
</div>
</div>
<div aria-labelledby="ariaid-title3" class="topic nested1" id="topic_rzz_kw2_syb">
<h2 class="title topictitle2" id="ariaid-title3">Planning your custom object workflow</h2>
<div class="body">
<p class="p">Before you create custom objects, it's important to <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/6070642803610" target="_blank">plan out your custom object workflow</a>. In this case, you
know you want to track assets within Zendesk, but you still need to <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/6070642803610-Planning-your-custom-objects-workflow#topic_xgn_zr3_myb" target="_blank">identify which details you need to capture</a>
for each object and <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/6070642803610-Planning-your-custom-objects-workflow#topic_gxg_2tj_myb" target="_blank">how the object is related to other objects</a>
in your account. Sketching out a plan before you start will save you time in the
long-run.</p>
<p class="p">After going through this planning exercise, you find that you need three custom
objects: <em class="ph i">Software</em>, <em class="ph i">License</em>, and <em class="ph i">Project</em>.</p>
<p class="p"><img class="image" id="topic_rzz_kw2_syb__image_mgh_xht_bzb" src="https://zen-marketing-documentation.s3.amazonaws.com/docs/custom_objects_asset_management_graphic.png" width="500"></p>
<p class="p">You make a spreadsheet for each object, with the field names and types serving as
column headings.</p>
<div class="p">
<div class="tablenoborder">
<table border="1" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="0" class="table" frame="border" id="topic_rzz_kw2_syb__table_j3g_v5f_syb" rules="all" summary="">
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<thead class="thead" style="text-align:left;">
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<th class="entry cellrowborder" colspan="6" id="d52e147" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;">Custom object:
<em class="ph i">Software</em>
</th>
</tr>
<tr class="row">
<th class="entry cellrowborder" id="d52e155" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;"> </th>
<th class="entry cellrowborder" id="d52e157" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;">Software name</th>
<th class="entry cellrowborder" id="d52e160" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;">Description</th>
<th class="entry cellrowborder" id="d52e163" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;">OS compatibility</th>
<th class="entry cellrowborder" id="d52e166" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;">Needs approval?</th>
<th class="entry cellrowborder" id="d52e170" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;">Status</th>
</tr>
</thead>
<tbody class="tbody">
<tr class="row">
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e147 d52e155" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;"><strong class="ph b">Field type</strong></td>
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e147 d52e157" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;"><em class="ph i">(standard: Name)</em></td>
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e147 d52e160" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;"><em class="ph i">(multi-line)</em></td>
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e147 d52e163" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;"><em class="ph i">(drop-down)</em></td>
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e147 d52e166" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;"><em class="ph i">(checkbox)</em></td>
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e147 d52e170" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;"><em class="ph i">(drop-down)</em></td>
</tr>
<tr class="row">
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e147 d52e155" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;"> </td>
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e147 d52e157" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;">Designs</td>
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e147 d52e160" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;">Collaborative design software for people to create, share,
and test designs for digital products and experiences.</td>
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e147 d52e163" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;">All</td>
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e147 d52e166" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;">Yes</td>
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e147 d52e170" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;">Pending</td>
</tr>
<tr class="row">
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e147 d52e155" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;"> </td>
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e147 d52e157" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;">Flowcharts</td>
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e147 d52e160" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;">Software that helps create flowcharts and manage
processes.</td>
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e147 d52e163" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;">Windows</td>
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e147 d52e166" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;">Yes</td>
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e147 d52e170" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;">Approved</td>
</tr>
<tr class="row">
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e147 d52e155" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;"> </td>
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e147 d52e157" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;">Photo editing</td>
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e147 d52e160" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;">Photo editing and raster graphic design software to create,
edit, and manipulate graphics.</td>
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e147 d52e163" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;">MacOS</td>
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e147 d52e166" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;">Yes</td>
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e147 d52e170" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;">Approved</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
</div>
</div>
<div class="p">
<div class="tablenoborder">
<table border="1" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="0" class="table" frame="border" id="topic_rzz_kw2_syb__table_fhf_hbg_syb" rules="all" summary="">
<colgroup>
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<col>
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</colgroup>
<thead class="thead" style="text-align:left;">
<tr class="row">
<th class="entry cellrowborder" colspan="5" id="d52e294" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;">Custom object:
<em class="ph i">License</em>
</th>
</tr>
<tr class="row">
<th class="entry cellrowborder" id="d52e302" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;"> </th>
<th class="entry cellrowborder" id="d52e304" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;">License Key</th>
<th class="entry cellrowborder" id="d52e307" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;">Software</th>
<th class="entry cellrowborder" id="d52e310" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;">Status</th>
<th class="entry cellrowborder" id="d52e313" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;">Assigned to</th>
</tr>
</thead>
<tbody class="tbody">
<tr class="row">
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e294 d52e302" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;"><strong class="ph b">Field type</strong></td>
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e294 d52e304" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;"><em class="ph i">(standard: Name)</em></td>
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e294 d52e307" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;"><em class="ph i">(lookup field &gt; Software object)</em></td>
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e294 d52e310" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;"><em class="ph i">(drop-down)</em></td>
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e294 d52e313" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;"><em class="ph i">(lookup field &gt; user)</em></td>
</tr>
<tr class="row">
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e294 d52e302" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;"> </td>
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e294 d52e304" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;">X67Z-8WFC-2V9M-QBJD</td>
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e294 d52e307" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;">Flowcharts</td>
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e294 d52e310" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;">Assigned</td>
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e294 d52e313" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;">Yuki Murakami</td>
</tr>
<tr class="row">
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e294 d52e302" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;"> </td>
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e294 d52e304" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;">HJ12-RP5E-7TZN-1XKQ</td>
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e294 d52e307" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;">Flowcharts</td>
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e294 d52e310" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;">Active</td>
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e294 d52e313" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;">-</td>
</tr>
<tr class="row">
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e294 d52e302" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;"> </td>
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e294 d52e304" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;">N9VB-6CQW-4LKZ-2XTE</td>
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e294 d52e307" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;">Photo editing</td>
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e294 d52e310" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;">Active</td>
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e294 d52e313" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;">Spencer Willig</td>
</tr>
<tr class="row">
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e294 d52e302" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;"> </td>
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e294 d52e304" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;">R4SD-8FJL-1PQX-5CGM</td>
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e294 d52e307" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;">Photo editing</td>
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e294 d52e310" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;">Expired</td>
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e294 d52e313" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;">-</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
</div>
</div>
<div class="p">
<div class="tablenoborder">
<table border="1" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="0" class="table" frame="border" id="topic_rzz_kw2_syb__table_jqn_scg_syb" rules="all" summary="">
<colgroup>
<col>
<col>
<col>
<col>
<col>
</colgroup>
<thead class="thead" style="text-align:left;">
<tr class="row">
<th class="entry cellrowborder" colspan="5" id="d52e436" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;">Custom object:
<em class="ph i">Project</em>
</th>
</tr>
<tr class="row">
<th class="entry cellrowborder" id="d52e444" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;"> </th>
<th class="entry cellrowborder" id="d52e446" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;">Project name</th>
<th class="entry cellrowborder" id="d52e449" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;">Project code</th>
<th class="entry cellrowborder" id="d52e452" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;">Status</th>
<th class="entry cellrowborder" id="d52e455" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;">Project Manager</th>
</tr>
</thead>
<tbody class="tbody">
<tr class="row">
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e436 d52e444" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;"><strong class="ph b">Field type</strong></td>
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e436 d52e446" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;"><em class="ph i">(standard: Name)</em></td>
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e436 d52e449" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;"><em class="ph i">(text)</em></td>
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e436 d52e452" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;"><em class="ph i">(drop-down)</em></td>
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e436 d52e455" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;"><em class="ph i">(lookup field &gt; user)</em></td>
</tr>
<tr class="row">
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e436 d52e444" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;"> </td>
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e436 d52e446" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;">Janus</td>
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e436 d52e449" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;">255</td>
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e436 d52e452" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;">Completed</td>
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e436 d52e455" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;">Keith Ellis</td>
</tr>
<tr class="row">
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e436 d52e444" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;"> </td>
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e436 d52e446" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;">Vesta</td>
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e436 d52e449" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;">256</td>
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e436 d52e452" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;">Active</td>
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e436 d52e455" style="text-align:left;vertical-align:top;">Adele Arment</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<div aria-labelledby="ariaid-title4" class="topic nested1" id="topic_o5m_h5f_syb">
<h2 class="title topictitle2" id="ariaid-title4">Defining custom objects to represent your assets</h2>
<div class="body">
<p class="p">Next, use the data you gathered to create your custom objects in Admin Center. See
<a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/5392409465370" target="_blank">Creating custom objects to integrate with custom
data</a>. </p>
<p class="p">The following example demonstrates how to create the <em class="ph i">Software</em> custom object
you just planned.</p>
<div class="p">
<strong class="ph b">To create your Software custom objects</strong><ol class="ol" id="topic_o5m_h5f_syb__ol_lv3_c1f_lwb">
<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_o5m_h5f_syb__d7e1219" 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> and <strong class="ph b">Plural display name</strong>, enter
<strong class="ph b">Software</strong>.</li>
<li class="li">Under <strong class="ph b">Object key</strong> enter <strong class="ph b">software_asset</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_o5m_h5f_syb__ol_ag5_32g_syb" type="a">
<li class="li">For the <strong class="ph b">Type</strong>, select <strong class="ph b">Multi-line</strong> and then enter a
<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">Drop-down</strong> and then enter <strong class="ph b">OS
compatibility</strong> for the display name. Add the following
<strong class="ph b">Field values</strong>: <strong class="ph b">All</strong>, <strong class="ph b">Windows</strong>, and
<strong class="ph b">MacOS</strong>. 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">Needs
approval?</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">Drop-down</strong> and then enter
<strong class="ph b">Status</strong> for the display name. Add the following <strong class="ph b">Field
values</strong>: <strong class="ph b">Pending</strong>, <strong class="ph b">Approved</strong>, <strong class="ph b">Not
approved</strong>. Click <strong class="ph b">Save</strong>.</li>
</ol>
</li>
<li class="li">Click the <strong class="ph b">Permissions</strong> tab to review agent 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>
<li class="li">Repeat steps 1–8 to create the <strong class="ph b">Licenses</strong> and <strong class="ph b">Project</strong> objects as
planned in the spreadsheets.</li>
</ol>
</div>
<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 aria-labelledby="ariaid-title5" class="topic nested1" id="topic_b5g_mw2_syb">
<h2 class="title topictitle2" id="ariaid-title5">Add a lookup relationship field to your tickets</h2>
<div class="body">
<p class="p">Both your <em class="ph i">License</em> and <em class="ph i">Project</em> objects contain lookup relationship
fields pointing to other custom objects and users. This is a great start to
integrating your custom data into Zendesk. However, surfacing relevant custom data
in tickets is how you're going to improve agent efficiency. Agents will be able to
preview details about records related to the ticket without navigating away from the
ticket.</p>
<p class="p">In this example, you want to add all three objects to the tickets. That means you
need to create three lookup relationship ticket fields.</p>
<div class="p">
<strong class="ph b">To create ticket lookup relationship fields pointing to custom objects</strong><ol class="ol" id="topic_b5g_mw2_syb__ol_f3s_2jg_lwb">
<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_b5g_mw2_syb__d7e1158" 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">Click the <strong class="ph b">Fields</strong> tab, and then click <strong class="ph b">Add field</strong>.</li>
<li class="li">Add a lookup field pointing to the Software object:<ul class="ul" id="topic_b5g_mw2_syb__ul_f3n_5hp_tyb">
<li class="li">For <strong class="ph b">Field type</strong> select <strong class="ph b">Lookup relationship</strong> and enter
<strong class="ph b">Software requested</strong>.</li>
<li class="li">Under <strong class="ph b">Select a related object</strong>, select <strong class="ph b">Software</strong>.</li>
<li class="li">(Optional) To restrict valid values to approved software, you can
add a filter of <strong class="ph b">Status</strong> &gt; <strong class="ph b">is</strong> &gt;
<strong class="ph b">Approved</strong>.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li class="li">Click <strong class="ph b">Save and add another</strong>.</li>
<li class="li">Add a lookup field pointing to the License object:<ul class="ul" id="topic_b5g_mw2_syb__ul_rsc_xhp_tyb">
<li class="li">For <strong class="ph b">Field type</strong> select <strong class="ph b">Lookup relationship</strong> and enter
<strong class="ph b">License Assigned</strong>.</li>
<li class="li">Under <strong class="ph b">Select a related object</strong>, select <strong class="ph b">License</strong>.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li class="li">Click <strong class="ph b">Save and add another</strong>.</li>
<li class="li">Add a lookup field pointing to the Project object:<ul class="ul" id="topic_b5g_mw2_syb__ul_zfd_zhp_tyb">
<li class="li">For <strong class="ph b">Field type</strong> select <strong class="ph b">Lookup relationship</strong> and enter
<strong class="ph b">Project</strong>.</li>
<li class="li">Under <strong class="ph b">Select a related object</strong>, select <strong class="ph b">Project</strong>.</li>
</ul>
<p class="p">Because both the project's <em class="ph i">Name</em> and <em class="ph i">Project code</em>
fields are text-based, agents will be able to search for either value
when adding a project to a ticket.</p>
</li>
<li class="li">(Optional) To restrict valid values to active projects, add a filter of
<strong class="ph b">Status</strong> &gt; <strong class="ph b">is</strong> &gt; <strong class="ph b">Active</strong>.</li>
<li class="li">Click <strong class="ph b">Save</strong>.</li>
</ol>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<div aria-labelledby="ariaid-title6" class="topic nested1" id="topic_kzn_qw2_syb">
<h2 class="title topictitle2" id="ariaid-title6">Import your asset data into Zendesk</h2>
<div class="body">
<div class="p">In this example, you have an existing list of software you support, their licenses,
and projects. You probably want to add the current data into Zendesk all at once so
it's available to your agents. Bulk importing your existing data is the easiest way
to do this. You can use your planning spreadsheets with the following modifications
to do this:<ul class="ul" id="topic_kzn_qw2_syb__ul_jjf_4kg_syb">
<li class="li">Remove the first row with the custom object's name.</li>
<li class="li">Remove the third row with the field types.</li>
<li class="li">Ensure the column headings are identical to the custom object's field
names.</li>
<li class="li">Export your spreadsheet as a .CSV file.</li>
</ul>
</div>
<p class="p">Then, use the Data importer to upload each of your spreadsheets and generate your
initial records for your respective custom objects. See <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/6100391508250" target="_blank">Bulk importing custom object records</a>. </p>
<p class="p">Alternatively, if you only have a few records for an object, you can also manually
<a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/5402508938778" target="_blank">add the records</a>. </p>
</div>
</div>
<div aria-labelledby="ariaid-title7" class="topic nested1" id="topic_zds_5w2_syb">
<h2 class="title topictitle2" id="ariaid-title7">Configure triggers to use your custom objects</h2>
<div class="body">
<p class="p">Finally, you have your custom objects and data in Zendesk. Agents can connect tickets
to your custom object records through the lookup fields in tickets. Now you want to
leverage the custom data to route tickets to the right agents and notify
stakeholders when things change. To do this, you <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/4766535251610" target="_blank">create two triggers</a>: Approvals and Notifications.</p>
<div class="p">
<strong class="ph b">To create the Approvals trigger</strong><ol class="ol" id="topic_zds_5w2_syb__ol_oqk_fpg_syb">
<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_zds_5w2_syb__d7e1292" 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">All</strong> or <strong class="ph b">Any</strong> conditions under which you want to assign the
ticket to the project manager.<ul class="ul" id="topic_zds_5w2_syb__ul_qqk_fpg_syb">
<li class="li">
<strong class="ph b">Software &gt; Needs approval</strong> | <strong class="ph b">Is</strong> |
<strong class="ph b">Checked</strong>
</li>
<li class="li">
<strong class="ph b">Project &gt; Project code</strong> | <strong class="ph b">Is</strong> | <strong class="ph b">Present</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 actions:<ul class="ul" id="topic_zds_5w2_syb__ul_l4d_vqg_syb">
<li class="li">
<strong class="ph b">Ticket &gt; Ticket status</strong> | <strong class="ph b">Pending</strong>
</li>
<li class="li">
<strong class="ph b">Ticket &gt; Assignee</strong> | <strong class="ph b">Project &gt; Project
manager</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 class="p">
<strong class="ph b">To create the Notifications trigger</strong><ol class="ol" id="topic_zds_5w2_syb__ol_tc4_yrg_syb">
<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_zds_5w2_syb__d7e1292" 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">All</strong> or <strong class="ph b">Any</strong> conditions under which you want to notify the
requester and project manager.<ul class="ul" id="topic_zds_5w2_syb__ul_uc4_yrg_syb">
<li class="li">
<strong class="ph b">Ticket &gt; Ticket status</strong> | <strong class="ph b">Is</strong> | <strong class="ph b">Solved</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 actions:<ul class="ul" id="topic_zds_5w2_syb__ul_vc4_yrg_syb">
<li class="li">
<strong class="ph b">Notify by &gt; Email user</strong> | <strong class="ph b">Ticket &gt;
(requester)</strong><p class="p">Email subject: <strong class="ph b">Solved: Request for
{{ticket.ticket_field_17531163245847}}</strong></p>
<p class="p">Email body:
<strong class="ph b">{{ticket.ticket_field_17531163245847}} has been installed
for {{ticket.requester.first_name}}
{{ticket.requester.last_name}}.</strong></p>
</li>
<li class="li">
<strong class="ph b">Notify by &gt; Email user</strong> | <strong class="ph b">Project &gt; Project
manager</strong><p class="p">Email subject: <strong class="ph b">Solved: Request for
{{ticket.ticket_field_17531163245847}}</strong></p>
<p class="p">Email body:
<strong class="ph b">{{ticket.ticket_field_17531163245847}} has been installed
for {{ticket.requester.first_name}}
{{ticket.requester.last_name}}.</strong></p>
</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>
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