Learn the tips & tricks you need to complete a successful data migration into Zendesk

1. Zendesk Data Migration
Tips & Tricks

2. We’ve Got You Covered With…
• Methods of migrating your
tickets, users, organizations
and knowledgebase
articles into Zendesk
• Helpful tips to make this
migration go as smoothly
as possible for minimal
disruption to your customer
support teams

3. Methods Available to You
• Bulk User/Organization Import Tool:
It’s a CSV-based tool, allowing you to
import users and organizations only. You
can find it under Admin/People section in
your Zendesk account. Requires no
technical expertise.
• API: It
allows you to migrate all helpdesk
objects, including tickets, users,
organizations and knowledgebase
articles. Be ready for hands-on coding.
• Import2:
A fully automated service to migrate
tickets, users, organizations and
knowledgebase articles

4. Before You Begin…
• Setup all agents to ensure
that migrated tickets are
assigned correctly
• Create all custom fields
that you wish to transfer
• Backup your data!

5. When new users are created in Zendesk, each user will
receive a welcome email. Make sure to disable this notification
prior to migrating.
Beware Notifications!
• Uncheck the Send
Notification Email box in your
settings (instructions here)
• If using API, make sure to set
{“verified”: true} as mentioned
in this guide

6. Disable All Triggers
• Make sure you have disabled triggers or that you use
Ticket Import API to bypass the triggers during the
import
• For example, what if you have triggers to send SMS
notifications to customers each time their tickets are
updated? If you do not turn these triggers off, your
customers will receive SMS notifications for each
migrated ticket.

7. Know Your Agent Types
If you are on the Zendesk Enterprise plan, make sure
you are not creating Light Agents for the migration.
You cannot assign tickets to Light Agents in Zendesk.

8. Bypass API Limits
Zendesk has set API limitations for each plan. For example, if you are on
the Enterprise plan, you have an allotment of 700 API requests per
minute. At this rate, an import of 300,000 records will take approximately
7 hours in the case of a perfect migration (which happens…never). So, to
avoid any major delays:
• Ask your Zendesk rep to
temporarily increase your API limits
• Read best practices for avoiding
rate limiting on the Zendesk help
center

9. Understanding Data Errors
Zendesk is strict on data validation requirements.
During your migration, you may receive data
validation errors that require you to ensure that
importing data is correct.
Use our Zendesk FAQ site to find explanations and
guidance to fix the most common data validation
errors.

10. If Things Go Wrong…
Make sure to keep track of each record you import
into Zendesk, so that if you make any mistakes
during the migration process, it is simple to locate
problematic records and/or delete erroneous data.

11. Keep Calm and Import2: Zendesk
Good luck with your migration!
If you are intimidated by doing the import yourself, or if
you are currently struggling with the process, let us
know! We will be happy to help you complete a
successful data migration.