Using Microsoft Outlook actions in action flows

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By connecting the
<a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/8855513857306" target="_blank">action builder</a>
to external systems, such as Microsoft
Outlook, admins can integrate Zendesk with external systems in automated
workflows,
improving collaboration and maintaining a seamless experience across multiple
platforms.
<div class="note note">
<span class="notetitle">Note:</span> The steps associated with external
systems in action flows are
referred to collectively as <em class="ph i">external actions</em>.
</div>
</div>
<div class="p">
This article contains the following topics:
<ul class="ul" id="topic_x4s_zrv_zgc__ul_jmk_zx4_zgc">
<li class="li">
<a class="xref" href="#topic_fwh_xdw_zgc">Connecting Microsoft Outlook to action builder</a>
</li>
<li class="li">
<a class="xref" href="#topic_agq_f2w_zgc">Using Microsoft Outlook actions in action flows</a>
</li>
<li class="li">
<a class="xref" href="#topic_ng5_q5v_2hc">Recipe: Email Sales team when a ticket is identified as a new prospect opportunity</a>
</li>
</ul>
</div>
</div>
<div aria-labelledby="ariaid-title2" class="topic nested1" id="topic_fwh_xdw_zgc">
<h2 class="title topictitle2" id="ariaid-title2">Connecting Microsoft Outlook to action builder</h2>
<div class="body">
<p class="p">
Before you can include external actions in your action flows, you must
connect the
action builder to the external system.
</p>
<div class="p">
When connecting to external systems for use in action flows, the following
best practices are recommended:
<ul class="ul" id="topic_fwh_xdw_zgc__d8e13">
<li class="li">
All external actions performed by an action flow are attributed
to the user who connected the
external system. Therefore, it's a best practice to use a dedicated
service
account rather than personal credentials when connecting to each
external
system.
</li>
<li class="li">
All integrations request access to necessary scopes. However,
it's important that you review and validate the scopes before
authorizing the connection to the external system.
</li>
<li class="li">
When managing credentials for API key-based tools, such as OpenAI,
it's best to store keys in a secure vault or credential manager.
</li>
</ul>
</div>
<div class="p">
<strong class="ph b">To connect Microsoft Outlook to action builder</strong>
<ol class="ol" id="topic_fwh_xdw_zgc__ol_psh_lk4_zgc">
<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_apps_integrations_icon.png">
<strong class="ph b">Apps and integrations</strong> in the sidebar, then select <strong class="ph b">Actions &gt; Action
flows</strong>.</span>
</li>
<li class="li">
<a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/8855601898266" target="_blank">Create</a>
or
<a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/9052312956570" target="_blank">edit</a>
an action flow.
</li>
<li class="li">Open the step sidebar.</li>
<li class="li">
Under <strong class="ph b">External actions</strong>, click
<strong class="ph b">Microsoft Outlook</strong>.
</li>
<li class="li">
Click <strong class="ph b">Connect</strong>.
</li>
<li class="li">
Use Microsoft to authenticate the account.
<p class="p">
Ensure the account used for
authentication has the necessary permissions to send and
read emails.
The following scopes are required:
<code class="ph codeph">Mail.Send</code> and
<code class="ph codeph">Mail.Read</code>,
<code class="ph codeph">Mail.ReadWrite</code>.
</p>
<div class="note note">
<span class="notetitle">Note:</span> All external actions
performed
by an action flow are attributed to the user who connected
the external
system. Therefore, it is a best practice to use a dedicated
service
account rather than personal credentials when connecting
to each
external system.
</div>
</li>
</ol>
</div>
<p class="p">
After you've connected to the system, you'll see an indicator that it's
connected and
details about the instance you're connected to, as well as the actions
available for
Microsoft Outlook.
</p>
</div>
</div>
<div aria-labelledby="ariaid-title3" class="topic nested1" id="topic_agq_f2w_zgc">
<h2 class="title topictitle2" id="ariaid-title3">Using Microsoft Outlook actions in action flows</h2>
<div class="body">
<p class="p">
Microsoft Outlook action steps can be used to send, reply to, forward,
and search for
emails in Microsoft Outlook. These steps use the
<a class="xref" href="https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/graph/use-the-api" target="_blank">Microsoft Graph API</a>
to provide secure and reliable email
automation, streamlining communication, reducing manual email handling,
and
improving response times.
</p>
<div class="p">
The following Outlook actions are available:
<ul class="ul" id="topic_agq_f2w_zgc__ul_o4b_l2w_zgc">
<li class="li">
<a class="xref" href="#topic_i4f_n2w_zgc">Search for email</a>
</li>
<li class="li">
<a class="xref" href="#topic_xql_r2w_zgc">Forward email</a>
</li>
<li class="li">
<a class="xref" href="#topic_owv_33w_zgc">Reply to email</a>
</li>
<li class="li">
<a class="xref" href="#topic_ddg_q3w_zgc">Send email</a>
</li>
</ul>
</div>
</div>
<div aria-labelledby="ariaid-title4" class="topic nested2" id="topic_i4f_n2w_zgc">
<h3 class="title topictitle3" id="ariaid-title4">Searching for an email</h3>
<div class="body">
<p class="p">
Use the <em class="ph i">Search for email</em> action to retrieve
an email based on the email's
subject or sender details for further use in the action flow.
</p>
<p class="p">This action has the following inputs and outputs:</p>
<div class="p">
<div class="tablenoborder">
<table border="1" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="0" class="table" frame="border" id="topic_i4f_n2w_zgc__table_jgd_mnd_tgc" rules="all" style="margin-left: 0px; margin-right: auto;" summary="">
<colgroup>
<col>
<col>
</colgroup>
<thead class="thead" style="text-align: left;">
<tr class="row">
<th class="entry cellrowborder" id="d52e221" style="text-align: left; vertical-align: top;"> </th>
<th class="entry cellrowborder" id="d52e223" style="text-align: left; vertical-align: top;">Variables</th>
</tr>
</thead>
<tbody class="tbody">
<tr class="row">
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e221" style="text-align: left; vertical-align: top;">Inputs</td>
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e223" style="text-align: left; vertical-align: top;">
<code class="ph codeph">sender's email</code>,
<code class="ph codeph">subject</code>
</td>
</tr>
<tr class="row">
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e221" style="text-align: left; vertical-align: top;">Output</td>
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e223" style="text-align: left; vertical-align: top;">
<code class="ph codeph">body</code>,
<code class="ph codeph">categories</code>,
<code class="ph codeph">change_key</code>,
<code class="ph codeph">conversation_id</code>,
<code class="ph codeph">conversation_index</code>,
<code class="ph codeph">created_datetime</code>,
<code class="ph codeph">from_address</code>,
<code class="ph codeph">from_name</code>,
<code class="ph codeph">has_attachments</code>,
<code class="ph codeph">id</code>,
<code class="ph codeph">internet_message_id</code>,
<code class="ph codeph">is_delivery_receipt_requested</code>,
<code class="ph codeph">is_draft</code>,
<code class="ph codeph">is_read</code>,
<code class="ph codeph">is_read_receipt_requested</code>,
<code class="ph codeph">last_modified_datetime</code>,
<code class="ph codeph">parent_folder_id</code>,
<code class="ph codeph">received_datetime</code>,
<code class="ph codeph">replyTo_address</code>,
<code class="ph codeph">replyTo_name</code>,
<code class="ph codeph">sent_datetime</code>,
<code class="ph codeph">subject</code>,
<code class="ph codeph">web_link</code>
</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<div aria-labelledby="ariaid-title5" class="topic nested2" id="topic_xql_r2w_zgc">
<h3 class="title topictitle3" id="ariaid-title5">Fowarding an email</h3>
<div class="body">
<p class="p">
Use the <em class="ph i">Forward email</em> action to forward an
existing email to a specified
recipient.
</p>
<p class="p">This action has the following inputs and outputs:</p>
<div class="p">
<div class="tablenoborder">
<table border="1" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="0" class="table" frame="border" id="topic_xql_r2w_zgc__table_ev1_knd_tgc" rules="all" style="margin-left: 0px; margin-right: auto;" summary="">
<colgroup>
<col>
<col>
</colgroup>
<thead class="thead" style="text-align: left;">
<tr class="row">
<th class="entry cellrowborder" id="d52e358" style="text-align: left; vertical-align: top;"> </th>
<th class="entry cellrowborder" id="d52e360" style="text-align: left; vertical-align: top;">Variables</th>
</tr>
</thead>
<tbody class="tbody">
<tr class="row">
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e358" style="text-align: left; vertical-align: top;">Inputs</td>
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e360" style="text-align: left; vertical-align: top;">
<code class="ph codeph">email ID</code> (identifying
the message you're
forwarding), <code class="ph codeph">recipient emails</code>,
<code class="ph codeph">comment</code>
</td>
</tr>
<tr class="row">
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e358" style="text-align: left; vertical-align: top;">Output</td>
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e360" style="text-align: left; vertical-align: top;">none</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<div aria-labelledby="ariaid-title6" class="topic nested2" id="topic_owv_33w_zgc">
<h3 class="title topictitle3" id="ariaid-title6">Replying to an email</h3>
<div class="body">
<p class="p">
Use the <em class="ph i">Reply to email</em> action to send a reply
to an existing email using
the email ID.
</p>
<p class="p">This action has the following inputs and outputs:</p>
<div class="p">
<div class="tablenoborder">
<table border="1" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="0" class="table" frame="border" id="topic_owv_33w_zgc__table_l3w_cbd_tgc" rules="all" style="margin-left: 0px; margin-right: auto;" summary="">
<colgroup>
<col>
<col>
</colgroup>
<thead class="thead" style="text-align: left;">
<tr class="row">
<th class="entry cellrowborder" id="d52e428" style="text-align: left; vertical-align: top;"> </th>
<th class="entry cellrowborder" id="d52e430" style="text-align: left; vertical-align: top;">Variables</th>
</tr>
</thead>
<tbody class="tbody">
<tr class="row">
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e428" style="text-align: left; vertical-align: top;">Inputs</td>
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e430" style="text-align: left; vertical-align: top;">
<code class="ph codeph">email ID</code> (identifying
the message you're
replying to), <code class="ph codeph">comment</code>,
<code class="ph codeph">additional
recipients</code>,
<code class="ph codeph">CC emails</code>,
<code class="ph codeph">BCC emails</code>
</td>
</tr>
<tr class="row">
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e428" style="text-align: left; vertical-align: top;">Output</td>
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e430" style="text-align: left; vertical-align: top;">none</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<div aria-labelledby="ariaid-title7" class="topic nested2" id="topic_ddg_q3w_zgc">
<h3 class="title topictitle3" id="ariaid-title7">Sending an email</h3>
<div class="body">
<p class="p">
Use the <em class="ph i">Send email</em> action to send a new email
to a specified recipient
with the defined subject and body.
</p>
<p class="p">This action has the following inputs and outputs:</p>
<div class="p">
<div class="tablenoborder">
<table border="1" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="0" class="table" frame="border" id="topic_ddg_q3w_zgc__table_avy_x1d_tgc" rules="all" style="margin-left: 0px; margin-right: auto;" summary="">
<colgroup>
<col>
<col>
</colgroup>
<thead class="thead" style="text-align: left;">
<tr class="row">
<th class="entry cellrowborder" id="d52e505" style="text-align: left; vertical-align: top;"> </th>
<th class="entry cellrowborder" id="d52e507" style="text-align: left; vertical-align: top;">Variables</th>
</tr>
</thead>
<tbody class="tbody">
<tr class="row">
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e505" style="text-align: left; vertical-align: top;">Inputs</td>
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e507" style="text-align: left; vertical-align: top;">
<code class="ph codeph">recipient's email</code>,
<code class="ph codeph">subject</code>,
<code class="ph codeph">body</code>,
<code class="ph codeph">type</code>,
<code class="ph codeph">CC emails</code>,
<code class="ph codeph">BCC emails</code>,
<code class="ph codeph">save to sent
items</code>
</td>
</tr>
<tr class="row">
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e505" style="text-align: left; vertical-align: top;">Output</td>
<td class="entry cellrowborder" headers="d52e507" style="text-align: left; vertical-align: top;">none</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<div aria-labelledby="ariaid-title8" class="topic nested1" id="topic_ng5_q5v_2hc">
<h2 class="title topictitle2" id="ariaid-title8">
Recipe: Email Sales team when a ticket is identified as a new prospect opportunity
</h2>
<div class="body">
<p class="p">
The following example action flow automatically sends an email to the
Sales team
through Microsoft Outlook when a Zendesk ticket is determined to be a
new prospect
opportunity. This ensures prompt follow-up by the Sales team, who doesn't
work
directly with Zendesk tickets.
</p>
<div class="p">
Such an action flow would consist of the following steps:
<ol class="ol" id="topic_ng5_q5v_2hc__ol_hhj_pwf_dhc">
<li class="li">
Add an action flow trigger with the following details:
<ol class="ol" id="topic_ng5_q5v_2hc__ol_l2n_nwq_chc" type="a">
<li class="li">
Click <strong class="ph b">Add trigger</strong>.
</li>
<li class="li">
In the step sidebar, under <strong class="ph b">Zendesk</strong>,
click
<strong class="ph b">Tickets</strong>.
</li>
<li class="li">
Click <strong class="ph b">Properties</strong> and select
<strong class="ph b">Ticket tags changed</strong>.
</li>
<li class="li">
Click <strong class="ph b">Add condition</strong>.
</li>
<li class="li">
Under <strong class="ph b">Variable</strong>, click
<strong class="ph b">Ticket tags changed</strong> and
select
<strong class="ph b">Tags (added)</strong>.
</li>
<li class="li">
Set the <strong class="ph b">Operator</strong> to
<strong class="ph b">Contains at least 1 of</strong>.
</li>
<li class="li">
Under <strong class="ph b">Value</strong>, enter
<strong class="ph b">sales_prospect</strong>.
</li>
</ol>
</li>
<li class="li">
Add a step to look up ticket details:
<ol class="ol" id="topic_ng5_q5v_2hc__ol_u1q_wcx_chc" type="a">
<li class="li">
In the action builder, beneath the action flow trigger,
click the
<strong class="ph b">Add step</strong> icon (<img class="image" id="topic_ng5_q5v_2hc__image_ls5_1xr_1hc" src="https://zen-marketing-documentation.s3.amazonaws.com/docs/en/icon_action_flows_add.png" width="16">).
</li>
<li class="li">
In the step sidebar, under
<strong class="ph b">Zendesk actions</strong>, click
<strong class="ph b">Look up
ticket</strong>.
</li>
<li class="li">
Under <strong class="ph b">Ticket ID</strong>, click
into the field and then click
<strong class="ph b">Select a variable instead</strong>.
</li>
<li class="li">
Within the variable menu, select
<strong class="ph b">Ticket tags changed</strong> as
the
step that output the variable you want to use, and then
select
<strong class="ph b">Ticket ID</strong>.
</li>
</ol>
</li>
<li class="li">
Add a step to look up user details about the ticket assignee:
<ol class="ol" id="topic_ng5_q5v_2hc__ol_zjp_qdx_chc" type="a">
<li class="li">
In the action builder, click the
<strong class="ph b">Add step</strong> icon (<img class="image" id="topic_ng5_q5v_2hc__image_ox3_rdx_chc" src="https://zen-marketing-documentation.s3.amazonaws.com/docs/en/icon_action_flows_add.png" width="16">).
</li>
<li class="li">
In the step sidebar, under
<strong class="ph b">Zendesk actions</strong>, click
<strong class="ph b">Look up
user</strong>.
</li>
<li class="li">
Under <strong class="ph b">User ID type</strong>, select
<strong class="ph b">Zendesk user ID</strong>.
</li>
<li class="li">
For <strong class="ph b">User ID</strong>, click
<strong class="ph b">Add variable</strong>.
</li>
<li class="li">
Within the variable menu, select
<strong class="ph b">Look up ticket</strong> as the step
that outputs the variable you want to use, and then select
<strong class="ph b">Requester ID</strong>.
</li>
</ol>
</li>
<li class="li">
Add a step that sends an email based on the information
you
collected for the ticket, assignee, and organization:
<ol class="ol" id="topic_ng5_q5v_2hc__ol_wfl_lxf_dhc" type="a">
<li class="li">
In the action builder, click the
<strong class="ph b">Add step</strong> icon (<img class="image" id="topic_ng5_q5v_2hc__image_ixj_mxf_dhc" src="https://zen-marketing-documentation.s3.amazonaws.com/docs/en/icon_action_flows_add.png" width="16">).
</li>
<li class="li">
In the step sidebar, under
<strong class="ph b">External actions</strong>, click
<strong class="ph b">Microsoft Outlook</strong> and then
select <strong class="ph b">Send email</strong>.
</li>
<li class="li">
Under <strong class="ph b">Recipient's email</strong>,
enter the Sales team distribution
list. For example,
<strong class="ph b">sales@yourcompany.com</strong>.
</li>
<li class="li">
Under <strong class="ph b">Subject</strong>, enter
<strong class="ph b">Ticket <em class="ph i">Ticket ID</em> Identified as
New Prospect</strong>,
where <em class="ph i">Ticket ID</em> is a variable.
<p class="p">
Click
<strong class="ph b">Add variable</strong>, select
<strong class="ph b">Look up ticket</strong>, and
select <strong class="ph b">Ticket ID</strong>, to
insert the <em class="ph i">Ticket ID</em> variable
into the subject.
</p>
</li>
<li class="li">
Under <strong class="ph b">Body</strong>, enter the message
you want to send to the Sales
team for new prospects. Include relevant ticket and user
information
as variables from the Look up ticket and Look up user
steps,
respectively, to streamline their ability to follow up.
In the
following example, all variables are
italicized:
<pre class="pre codeblock wysiwyg-code-block"><code>Hi Sales Team,

Ticket <em class="ph i">Ticket ID</em> has been identified as a new prospect. Can you please follow up with <em class="ph i">User Name</em> as soon as possible?

User contact information:
- Email: <em class="ph i">User Email</em>
- Phone: <em class="ph i">User Phone</em>
- Locale and timezone: <em class="ph i">User Locale</em> - <em class="ph i">User IANA timezone</em>
- Notes: <em class="ph i">User Notes</em>

Here's more context on the ticket:
- Ticket subject: <em class="ph i">Ticket Subject</em>
- Ticket description: <em class="ph i">Ticket Description</em>
- Last ticket update: <em class="ph i">Ticket's Latest agent update</em></code></pre>
</li>
</ol>
</li>
<li class="li">
Click <strong class="ph b">Save</strong>.
</li>
<li class="li">
Click <strong class="ph b">Test</strong> to
<a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/9052312956570#topic_uyj_qsw_3fc" target="_blank">test the action flow</a>.
</li>
<li class="li">
Click the options menu (<img class="image" id="topic_ng5_q5v_2hc__image_uls_2xf_dhc" src="https://zen-marketing-documentation.s3.amazonaws.com/docs/en/options-menu-icon-small.png">)
and select <strong class="ph b">Activate</strong> to begin using
the
action flow to automatically send an email to the Sales team
when a ticket
is identified and tagged as a new sales prospect.
</li>
</ol>
</div>
</div>
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