Zendesk AI - the virtual assistant in customer service
Zendesk AI is no longer an add-on function – it is a strategic building block for modern customer services that ensures your competitiveness. Thanks to generative AI, intelligent ticket processing and automated responses, Zendesk AI is your ultimate virtual assistant in customer service. Are you ready for a new level?
Whether you are just introducing Zendesk or already using it: We’ll show you what the Zendesk AI features can do, what they cost and how you can benefit from them. Used correctly, they not only reduce costs and increase efficiency, but also improve the experience of customers, agents and administrators.
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The AI hype and Zendesk AI in customer service
Even though Leafworks was already training customer-specific models for automation with LLMs (Large Language Models) before the official ChatGPT launch in 2022, the breakthrough for generative AI came with ChatGPT and OpenAI; since then, the customer service market has also changed dramatically.
Today, every platform promises AI-supported solutions – from automated responses to standalone service bots – but the differences in usability are huge. (Read more about this in our article AI in customer service)
Zendesk has not only kept up with this trend, but has also driven it forward with its progressive Zendesk AI features and systematically integrated them into its suite. Here, we not only explain which functions this covers and what specific advantages this means for you, but also provide you, as a Zendesk partner, with targeted support for meaningful implementation – focussing on measurable added value instead of mere enthusiasm for technology.
The 3 core areas where Zendesk AI can help
Customer Experience
Customers receive relevant answers more quickly - even outside business hours. Intelligent Triage recognises requests and urgency, AI agents take over recurring enquiries.
- Increased customer satisfaction
- Relief for the team
Agent Experience
Simple answers are completely taken over by the AI; for more complex questions, the agents do not start from scratch: Suggested answers and automatic ticket summaries reduce processing time and manual work.
- A happier team
- More net working time for really relevant answers
Admin Experience
Admins benefit from concrete suggestions and well-founded analyses: Macro recommendations, automatic classifications and AI-supported workflows help to further develop support in a targeted manner - data-based and comprehensible.
- Relief for the administration
- More efficient setup
How Zendesk AI can increase your efficiency
Zendesk AI can help exactly where time is lost in customer service, knowledge is lacking or processes come to a standstill. Here are a few typical application examples:
24/7 support - without night shift
With Zendesk AI, you too can offer 24/7 support, even if your customer service team may only be manned from 9am to 6pm on weekdays. This means that a bot can answer enquiries at 1 a.m. that don't appear in the team's backlog the next morning.
Automatic summaries for more context
Long ticket histories, voice recordings, email threads - Zendesk AI automatically summarises previous exchanges. This saves time and quickly provides the right context.
Answers directly from your knowledge database
AI-supported bot flows access existing help centre content and use it to provide precise and up-to-date answers to enquiries - automatically, but always on a verified basis.
Intelligent classification through "Intelligent Triage"
Zendesk AI automatically recognises concerns, language, mood and priority and classifies tickets accordingly - for targeted routing and less manual routing
Extend or rewrite texts
With Zendesk AI, texts can be expanded, made more formal or more relaxed at the touch of a button. A personalised response can be created with just a few keywords. This also works when creating new knowledge articles in Zendesk Guide.
Automated recognition of relevant data
Product names, order numbers or serial codes: Zendesk AI automatically recognises this information in the enquiry and saves it in the ticket - for more efficient routing and reporting.
Macro suggestions for agents and Zendesk admins
Macros are one of the most commonly used features in any Zendesk configuration. Zendesk AI makes it possible to display suggestions for suitable macros to answer the enquiry. In addition, missing macros are displayed to Zendesk administrators to make the setup even more efficient.
Analysing AI performance and automation
Included in the AI Agents - Advanced add-on: Analyses of the performance of automated responses, success rates and potential improvements to your AI-based processes.
... and much more
Zendesk AI is constantly being developed further. In addition, ideas are needed on how AI can provide further added value for the personal setup. Contact us to find out more.
Zendesk AI: Functions and availability
| Feature | What it does | Availability |
|---|---|---|
| Agent tools | Reply suggestions, ticket summaries, and tone adjustments directly in the workspace – to support agents. | From Suite Professional |
| Intelligent Triage | Automatically categorizes topic, language, sentiment, and urgency – ideal for prioritization and routing. | From Suite Professional |
| Macro suggestions | Analyzes past tickets and recommends suitable macros for recurring issues – to ease the burden on admins. | From Suite Enterprise |
| AI Agents – Standard | Handles common requests automatically – based on your existing macros and Help Center content. | From Suite Professional (AI Agents – Standard) |
| AI Agents – Advanced | Conducts full conversations using generative AI – including logic, API access, and escalation handling. | Add-on (AI Agents – Advanced) |
| AI Analytics | Provides data on AI performance – e.g. quality of automated replies. | Only with AI Agents – Advanced |
Optimise your customer service with Zendesk AI!
Contact us for a non-binding initial consultation. Let’s find out together how Zendesk AI can further optimise your individual Zendesk setup. For a better customer/agent/admin experience. Let’s revolutionise your customer service together!
It is always a pleasure to work with Leafworks as a customer. Direct and easy contact, quick response and the stuff just works as it should!
Our customers
We support a large number of customers (300+) in the Zendesk environment. Many have been using Zendesk AI features for a long time. Our customers range from startups with 3 agents to large organisations providing customer service in 30 countries with 999+ agents.
“With the help of Leafworks, we were able to realise a mammoth project without any negative impact for users and customers. On the contrary – we were able to standardise customer satisfaction across the entire Staffbase Group at a high level and can now offer efficient multi-product support.”
“The collaboration with Leafworks was very pleasant and professional. Switching to a new support system was a big step for us. Leafworks understood our needs very well, clearly communicated opportunities and obstacles and gave us excellent advice during the transformation process.”
“The collaboration with Zendesk and Leafworks was characterised by the utmost professionalism and reliability from start to finish! […] We were able to start 2 months after the go-live decision and hardly had any teething troubles, which is amazing for such a big changeover.”
‘Thanks to Leafworks, we had a CSM ready for use in a short space of time. The speed and simplicity of the support, the knowledge of our setup and the creative solutions are impressive. I would definitely recommend Leafworks.’
More customers
What can Zendesk AI do for you? Let’s find out.
Zendesk AI offers powerful functions – from automated response suggestions to fully generative conversations. However, it’s not the technology that makes the real difference, but its application, the specific setup.
We support companies in using Zendesk AI in a targeted manner: comprehensible, data-supported and with a clear view of the impact on processes, roles and systems. Whether ticket classification, macro optimisation or integration into existing workflows – we have the necessary experience.
Would you like to know what AI can do for you? Which add-ons are worthwhile for you? Talk to us. We will analyse your current system, prioritise sensible steps and support you from strategy to implementation. Get started now with Zendesk AI – and Leafworks as your partner for pragmatic, scalable solutions.
Robert Cwicinski
Zendesk expert
- AI
- Automation
- Integrations
- Business Intelligence / BI
- Zendesk
- Digital Transformation
- Custom MVPs
Zendesk AI FAQ
Many functions can be easily activated to generate a direct benefit. It is important for us to understand the specifics of each business in order to make the best possible recommendations.
Yes, Zendesk AI can be activated in any existing Zendesk instance.
Although AI has a reputation in many places for making human interaction obsolete, personal support and personal relationships are and will continue to be necessary. It is more about providing support (e.g. outside of business hours) and, for example, smoothing out the support volume during peak times. More complex cases in particular will continue to be handled by people, at least over a longer period of time.
*** Translated with www.DeepL.com/Translator (free version) ***
Yes, please contact our team at any time for a demo. We will be happy to show you the possible functions within Zendesk.
Ja, melden Sie sich für eine Demo gerne jederzeit bei unserem Team. Wir zeigen Ihnen gerne die möglichen Funktionen innerhalb von Zendesk.
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Mit Hilfe von Zendesk realisieren wir Projekte im Customer Service Umfeld. Wir übernehmen die vollständige Anpassung an das interne CI/CD, Automatisierungen innerhalb von Zendesk bis hin zu Custom-Apps und Integrationen in Ihre Backend-Systeme, sowie der Nutzung von AI. Lassen Sie uns darüber sprechen, wie wir Ihre CX verbessern können.
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