No one likes to juggle multiple apps. Fragmentation causes many issues, including slower response times, an inability to see a holistic view of customer data, inconsistent support experiences, and a higher likelihood of errors. To ensure that your customers get the best possible experience when interacting with your business, it's a good idea to use integrations or a comprehensive support solution that unifies the organization's tools and removes the friction in your team's workflow.

Slack-Freshdesk integration lets you keep all your customer service discussions in both places so you can focus on serving customers faster. Setting it up only takes a few minutes, making it the perfect option for companies that want to improve customer service, visibility, and collaboration across their internal teams.

‍

What Is Freshdesk-Slack Integration?

Freshdesk-Slack integration is a feature that enables the integration of your Freshdesk helpdesk software with your Slack channels. This gives you real-time visibility into the conversations that matter most. As soon as a customer reaches out, agents can immediately tap into the collective knowledge of relevant Slack channels. With automated notifications on ticket assignments, status changes, and agent responses, everyone stays aligned without switching platforms.

‍

Does Freshdesk Integrate with Slack?

Yes, Freshdesk does integrate with Slack. The Freshdesk-Slack integration enables seamless communication between your support team and Slack workspace, providing real-time updates on ticket statuses. With automated notifications, your team can stay informed about any ticket changes in Freshdesk without having to leave the Slack environment.

Please note that to install the Freshdesk app in your Slack workspace, you must have administrative privileges in Freshdesk and be on a paid Freshdesk plan that offers API access.

‍

How to Integrate Slack with Freshdesk? 

Slack offers a built-in connector with Freshdesk, which allows basic synchronization and interaction between the two platforms. This makes navigating between both tools more convenient. Let's walk you through the steps to integrate Slack with Freshdesk:

1. Log in to your Freshdesk integration. You can find the Marketplace option in the top right navigation bar.

2. In the Apps section, you can download Slack from the list and install it for Slack workspace. Please note that you will need Admin access to do this. Once done, you can go to the app configuration page.
3. Select the public and private channels you want the helpdesk to access. You will be able to use these channels while setting up automation rules. Up to 20 channels, each of public and private types, can be added.

‍

If you want to configure automation rules to update agents via Direct Messages about changes to their tickets, make sure “Allow DM to agent” is selected. If you want agents to be able to use Slash Commands, Select “Allow slash command” and click Update.

‍

Key Features of the Native Freshdesk-Slack Integration

Are you eager to try the integration? Here's a short review of its features:

Creating & Updating Tickets from Slack Messages: If an issue arises during a Slack conversation that warrants a Freshdesk ticket, you can create a ticket using the slash commands and convert the message to a ticket. You can also update the status to public or private channels in Slack.

Put simply, any updates made to these tickets – like changes in status, priority, assignee, or addition of notes – will also trigger real-time notifications in the same channel. When a new ticket is created and assigned to a specific agent in Freshdesk, the agent will receive a direct message in Slack containing relevant details of the newly created ticket.

Collaborate with Internal Team Members: Sometimes, to resolve a customer query, multiple people are required and want to participate in the conversation. With Freshdesk's integration with Slack, you can enable the 'Collaborate' button on your ticket notifications to effortlessly allow internal team members to work on a ticket inside Slack.

For example, engineering teams can engage in discussions and leave private comments about a specific request. They can do this directly within a Slack message or thread, and the replies are automatically synced to the Freshdesk account.

Automation to Reduce Manual Work: Automation can make your support team more efficient and effective by reducing time spent on routine tasks. Slack-Freshdesk integration offers various automation to streamline ticket management and escalation processes. These automation rules can be triggered by certain conditions or events, such as

• Assigning tickets to the right agents
• Setting ticket properties like status, priority, and type
• Initiating email alerts for support agents and those who submitted the request

‍

‍

What Data Is Shared Through the Freshdesk-Slack Integration?

Slack-Freshdesk connection delivers vital ticket details to your team's channels, eliminating the need to toggle between apps. Now, agents can get real-time updates on critical info like issue descriptions, status changes, priority levels, and assignments without missing a beat. Even agent discussions around tickets are synced to provide full context. With this level of visibility and communication flow directly in Slack, your support teams can collaborate efficiently, resolve customer inquiries faster, and provide a more personalized service experience.

‍

3 Reasons Why the Slack Integration Is Not Working

If your Freshdesk-Slack integration is not working, there could be multiple reasons for the issue, and we’ve listed some possible ones, along with their potential solutions, below:

1. Incorrect Installation: Ensure you have installed the Freshdesk app in your Slack workspace. To properly do it, ensure you're logged into the Freshdesk admin account, go to the app directory, search for the Freshdesk app, and click "Add" to initiate the installation process.
2. Failed Authorization: Verify that Slack can connect to Freshdesk. In the Freshdesk application, you need to grant permissions to Slack by going to your profile settings and clicking "Authorize Slack."
3. Configuration Issues: Some users have reported having issues due to the non-availability of Slack channels in the configuration. Make sure you have selected the correct Slack channels during the setup process. Note that archived Slack channels might interfere with the integration.

To resolve these issues, you might want to verify each step of the integration process and ensure you're using updated versions of Freshdesk and Slack.

‍

What’s Missing from Native Freshdesk-Slack Integration?

Freshdesk-Slack integration is undoubtedly a power duo as it eases customer support with features like ticket creation, ticket assignment to agents within the group based on the urgency of requests, and more. However, some important features are missing from this integration, which adds limitations:

1. Channel number: You can’t add over 40 customer channels (20 private and 20 public) to Freshdesk on Slack. Also, Freshdesk does not support mapping multiple Slack channels to one Freshdesk group, which could limit the ability to coordinate ticket monitoring or group chats.
2. SLA violations: You can’t receive Service Level Agreements (SLAs) violation notifications. The responsibility of handling and getting notified about such SLA breaches lies with the supervisor.
3. Agent-based pricing: As your business grows and you need more support agents to handle increased customer queries, the cost of your Freshdesk subscription will also rise. Each new agent you add to the system means an additional paying user, which can substantially increase costs.

Additionally, agent-based pricing can discourage full team collaboration. If only particular team members have access to the Freshdesk platform due to cost constraints, it distances the other members who could potentially contribute to resolving customer issues.

Note: If you're considering integrating Slack with Freshdesk, you may be initially drawn to the native integration provided by these platforms. However, the features offered in this package are somewhat limited and might fall short of your team's collaboration and productivity needs. But don't worry - this is where ClearFeed steps in to save the day.

‍

Introducing ClearFeed’s Slack-Freshdesk Integration

You can connect your Freshdesk account to Slack via ClearFeed, as it provides a seamless integration experience and various advanced features to boost team collaborations and customer response times. Here’s what you can expect from our Slack-Freshdesk integration:

1. Live 2-way Syncing: Ticket status and comments on Slack threads and Freshdesk tickets are replicated in real-time.
2. Single Click Ticket Creation: Users can convert an entire Slack thread to a ticket with a single click. All messages and attachments in the thread are automatically uploaded to the ticket, with ClearFeed generating a title using AI.
3. Automatic Ticketing: By enabling automatic ticketing - all new messages on Slack (from customers) are automatically converted into Freshdesk tickets (and synced in real-time) - keeping tracking, reporting, and SLAs within Freshdesk.
4. Update Ticket Fields from Slack: ClearFeed allows users to edit fields like ticket priority, assignee, and other custom fields from Slack - while controlling who (agents vs. customers) can edit each field.
5. Private Collaboration in Slack: Using ClearFeed Triage channels, engineers and support personnel can also collaborate on tickets privately from Slack, enabling easy cross-team collaboration.

With ClearFeed, customers, support personnel, and engineers can collaborate easily from Slack while capturing all required data in Freshdesk. In addition to convenience, increased collaboration, and faster resolution, this can help reduce Freshdesk license costs as a bonus!

‍

‍

How to Integrate Slack and Freshdesk Using ClearFeed?

Slack-Freshdesk integration is pretty straightforward with ClearFeed. Here’s how to get started:

1. The first step involves creating an account on ClearFeed. Navigate to ClearFeed's website and follow the steps to create an account.
2. Once signed in to ClearFeed, go to your ClearFeed Web App dashboard and select Settings from the left navigation bar. Select Integrations from the top navigation bar and Connect to integrate your Freshdesk account with Slack workspace. 

3. You must add your Freshdesk domain and API key. Once done, the integration process will be complete. To get started with ticketing, here’s a detailed documentation.

‍

Automate Customer Support with Slack and Freshdesk

Slack and Freshdesk are undeniably the two most popular collaboration solutions out there right now, and they also happen to be incredibly flexible platforms that can be used in conjunction with countless other services. Although these tools already bring plenty of benefits, integrating them can do even more for your business.

And via ClearFeed, you can easily open your Freshdesk tickets to your whole team and give them a quick way to communicate what they're working on. It only takes a few minutes to get both set up. So, why not pair the two with ClearFeed? Book a demo to find out how we can assist you in scaling your customer services while cutting down on your Freshdesk licensing expenses.

‍

FAQs

‍

Q1. Why Should You Integrate Freshdesk with Slack?

Integrating Freshdesk with Slack lets your team receive instant ticket updates directly in your Slack channels. This functionality streamlines communication and coordination among team members, significantly reducing response time to customer inquiries or issues.

‍

Q2. Can I Reply to Freshdesk Tickets Directly from Slack?

Yes, the Freshdesk-Slack integration is designed to let you not only receive notifications but also allow you to take action on Freshdesk tickets directly from within Slack. With the integration, you can reply to tickets, add notes, and perform other ticket operations without switching to the Freshdesk interface.

‍

Q3. Can I Assign Tickets to Agents from Slack Via Freshdesk Integration?

Yes, you can manage the Freshdesk ticket assignment from within Slack. The integration between these platforms allows agents to be aware of the tickets assigned to their group and perform actions toward resolving the issue quickly.

However, the documents did not specify whether tickets could be assigned to different agents directly from Slack. Typically, ticket assigning would depend on the agent's permissions in Freshdesk, and tickets can be assigned based on manual selection or automated rules set within Freshdesk.

‍

Q4. Is There a Limit to the Number of Tickets That Can Be Managed with Freshdesk Slack Integration?

There's no specific limit regarding the number of tickets that can be managed. However, the cost of the integration largely depends on your Freshdesk plan.

‍

Q5. Can You Use the Freshdesk Slack Integration for Free?

You can use the Freshdesk Slack Integration for free with an existing Freshdesk account. However, while the integration does not incur additional costs, Slack and Freshdesk have separate pricing. Therefore, you must have an active account with both services and be subscribed to their respective plans to use the integration features.

‍

Q6. Can I Customize My Notifications in the Freshdesk Slack Integration?

Yes, the Freshdesk-Slack integration allows you to customize what kind of notifications you want to receive on Slack, giving you control over the most relevant information.

‍

Q7. Do My Colleagues Need a Freshdesk Account to Update Tickets on Slack?

Yes, your colleagues would need a Freshdesk account to update tickets on Slack. The Slack-Freshdesk integration works reciprocally, allowing ticket updates and notifications on either platform. The permissions and capabilities of an individual within Slack regarding Freshdesk tickets depend on the permissions set for these users in Freshdesk. This ensures that access control policies are consistently applied across both platforms.