Ever feel like you’re drowning in support tickets, struggling to keep up with trending issues in real-time? Don’t worry, you're not alone! Let’s chat about how you can quickly spot these trends in Zendesk without reading through every single ticket or building complex reports.
Here are some straightforward ways to track the biggest issues without the headache.
1. Use Categories and Tags for Quick Insights
Start by creating simple categories for your tickets. For example, you could have categories like "Product Bugs," "Customer Feedback," or "Shipping Issues." You can even break them down further with subcategories like "Payment Issues" under "Billing." This way, you don’t need to dig through every ticket—just check your dashboard to see where most of your tickets are stacking up.
By categorizing tickets from the start, you quickly identify and prioritize the most common issues without feeling overwhelmed. It’s like walking into a clean room instead of a messy one—everything is in its place!
Source: Zendesk
Some teams set up Slack channels that automatically pull ticket details from Zendesk, so whenever a specific type of ticket comes in, it gets sent straight to a channel where your team can jump on it fast.
2. Set Up a ‘Known Issue’ Tracker
Got a recurring problem? Instead of reading through dozens of similar tickets, create a "Problem" ticket in Zendesk. For example, if you’re getting lots of tickets about a login issue, link all those individual tickets to this one "Problem" ticket. It’s like a place to group everything related to the same issue. Everyone can check the Problem ticket to see how many people are affected and how it’s being resolved in real-time. Bonus: You can even sync this up with PagerDuty if you’re using it for incident management—no more scrambling!
Source: Zendesk
By organizing tickets under a "Problem" ticket, you save time and reduce redundancy. Your team can work more efficiently on solving issues since all the info is in one place. Plus, it gives you a centralized view of all ongoing problems, making it easier to communicate updates to the team and customers.
3. Use Analytics to Get a Jump on Things
If you’re handling phone support, Amazon Contact Lens is a game-changer. It listens to calls and can pick up keywords, giving you real-time alerts if something’s trending, like "billing" or "outage." This is useful when you're dealing with lots of phone tickets, so you don't have to wait until the issue blows up.
Using real-time voice analytics helps you catch issues early, so you can jump into action before they escalate. It’s like having a second set of ears, ensuring nothing gets missed—especially important during busy periods!
For text-based tickets, AI tools can analyze customer messages to surface trends. If a lot of people suddenly start mentioning a specific bug, the tool will highlight it for you. It’s like having a virtual assistant that spots trends for you!
4. Let AI Help You Track Customer Sentiment
Zendesk’s AI features, like Intent Modeling, can track customer sentiment automatically. For example, if lots of customers start submitting tickets with words like “broken” or “not working,” the AI flags those tickets for you. It’s like having a robot that reads between the lines!
Source: Zendesk
AI-driven sentiment tracking helps you understand your customers’ emotions quickly—whether they’re frustrated or happy. This insight allows you to prioritize tickets based on urgency, ensuring that high-priority issues are handled first.
You can also use auto-tagging to spot certain keywords, like "bug" or "outage." It’s not perfect, but it helps catch trends as they begin to surface, so you don’t have to manually sift through every ticket.
5. Check Out Third-Party Tools for a Boost
If you want something simple to set up, tools like Qvasa might be what you need. With Qvasa, you get live reporting that shows you what issues are trending, plus they send you alerts via email or Slack when things start picking up. Think of it like getting a text notification when a major issue is trending, so you can jump on it right away.
Live reporting makes it easy to see trends as they happen. You won’t have to wait for end-of-day reports or sift through tons of tickets manually. You get real-time alerts, meaning you’re always in the loop.
Another tool to consider is Pathlight, which is great if you want an easy setup and don’t want to deal with the technical stuff. It’s a great choice if you’re looking for simplicity and efficiency.
Wrapping It Up
Tracking trending issues in real-time doesn’t have to be complicated. By using simple categories, AI-driven tools, or third-party solutions like Qvasa, you can get a clear picture of what’s going on without wasting time on complex reports. These tools help you stay on top of things and make sure you’re addressing the biggest issues as they happen—no more manual tracking or feeling overwhelmed. Simple, right?
The biggest benefit is peace of mind. You can stop stressing about missing important issues, knowing you have a system in place that alerts you to the things that matter most. Plus, your team’s efficiency will skyrocket, and your customers will be happier with faster, more accurate responses.
