- Enable your registered or unregistered (anonymous) Zendesk Support users to submit support requests from within the WordPress administrator dashboard (see Setting up anonymous ticket submissions with Zendesk Support for WordPress).
- Convert blog comments into tickets and add a public comment that can also be posted as a reply in the blog post.
- View all of the tickets in the tickets widget, which is added to the administrator dashboard.
- View details for each ticket and then open them in Zendesk Support to make updates.
- Add a contact form to the administrator dashboard so that your site users can quickly make support requests.
- Set the visibility permissions for each type of registered WordPress site user (administrators, editors, authors, contributors, subscribers), allowing them to either see the tickets widget or the contact form.
- Add Web Widget (Classic) to your WordPress site.
- Enable your users to sign in to Zendesk Support using single sign-on (SSO) (see Setting up single sign-on (SSO) for WordPress).
- Installing the Zendesk Support for WordPress plugin
- Uninstalling the Zendesk Support for WordPress plugin
- Configuring the plugin settings
- Setting the dashboard widget visibility by user type
- Customizing the contact form
- Adding Web Widget (Classic) to your WordPress site
- Submitting a request from the dashboard
- Using the ticket widget
- Converting a blog post comment into a ticket
Installing the Zendesk Support for WordPress plugin
You can add the Zendesk Support for WordPress plugin to your WordPress site just like any other plugin. Plugins are only supported in self-hosted WordPress sites (wordpress.org), not free-hosted sites on wordpress.com.
To log into the WordPress plugin in your account, make sure you enable password access in Zendesk Support.
To enable password access in Zendesk Support
- In Admin Center, click
Apps and integrations in the sidebar, then select APIs > Zendesk API.
- On the Settings tab, enable Password access.
- Download the plugin at https://wordpress.org/plugins/zendesk/.
- Log in to your WordPress site as an administrator.
Note: If you installed a beta version of the Zendesk Support for WordPress plugin, delete it in WordPress before installing the new version.
- In the dashboard, select Plugin > Add New.
- Select Upload.
- Click Browse to select the file you downloaded (zendesk.zip).
- Click Install Now.
- After the file is uploaded and installed, click Activate.
The next step is to configure the plugin with your account information and select the features you want to enable.
Uninstalling the Zendesk Support for WordPress plugin
You must log in as a WordPress site administrator to uninstall plugins from your site.
To uninstall the plugin
- Log in to your WordPress site as an administrator.
- In the left menu bar, go to Plugins > Installed
Plugins.
- Find Zendesk Support for WordPress in the list of installed
plugins, then click Deactivate.
- Click Delete.
Configuring the plugin settings
Activating the plugin adds a new panel to the WordPress administrator dashboard, as shown here:
You need to configure your subdomain to access Zendesk Support in WordPress.
- Click the set up link and you'll be prompted to enter
your subdomain.
- Enter your subdomain.Note: If you use host mapping, this is automatically detected when you save the account settings.
- Click Save Settings.
You will next be prompted to optionally set the visibility permissions for your registered site users, customize the contact form, allow support requests from unregistered (anonymous) users, and add Web Widget (Classic) to your WordPress site.
For information about allowing anonymous users to submit requests, see Setting up anonymous ticket submissions with Zendesk Support for WordPress.
You can set these options immediately or later by selecting the Zendesk Support settings from the Zendesk Support for WordPress panel, as shown here:
Setting the dashboard widget visibility by user type
You can add either the contact form or the Zendesk Support widget to the dashboards of the registered users (administrators, editors, authors, contributors, subscribers) of your WordPress site. The contact form allows them to submit support requests directly from WordPress and the ticket widget allows users who are also Zendesk Support agents to view tickets and quickly access Zendesk Support to make ticket updates. In other words, the contact form is for users who need to submit support requests, and the tickets widget is for agents to manage tickets.
- When you initially set up the plugin, the settings page is displayed after you've configured Zendesk Support. You can otherwise access this page by selecting Settings from the Zendesk panel. Visibility permissions are set in the Dashboard Widget Visibility section.
- For each type of registered site user, you can
specify the following:
- Don't display anything
- Show a contact form
- Show the tickets widget
- Choose a visibility setting for all user
types:
- Administrators
- Editors
- Authors
- Contributors
- Subscribers
- Click Save Changes.
Customizing the contact form
Using the contact form, your registered site users can submit support requests.
- Select Settings from the Zendesk Support panel.
- In the Contact Form Settings section, enter text for the form title, summary label, details label, and submit button label.
- Click Save Settings.
Adding Web Widget (Classic) to your WordPress site
Using the Zendesk Support for WordPress plugin, you can easily add Web Widget (Classic) to your WordPress site. After integrating your WordPress site with Zendesk Support, the Web Widget code is automatically pulled into WordPress.
- If you haven't already done so, set up Zendesk Support Web Widget (Classic) (see Using Web Widget (Classic) to embed customer service in your website).
- In WordPress, select Settings from the Zendesk panel.
- Select one of the following widget display
settings:
- Do not display the Web Widget anywhere (this is the default)
- Display the Web Widget on all posts and pages
- I will decide where the Web Widget displays using a template tag
- If you selected to use a template tag, you can
then place the widget where you would like it on
your site using the following template tag:
<?php if ( function_exists( 'the_zendesk_webwidget' ) ) the_zendesk_webwidget(); ?>
- Click Save Settings.
Web Widget (Classic) behaves as it would when added to any other website. For example, you can configure it to also allow users to chat with agents and search your knowledge base.
Submitting a request from the dashboard
Registered site users who have been granted permission to see the Zendesk Support contact form (shown above) on their dashboards may submit support requests. These users can either be registered users in Zendesk Support or you can allow unregistered (anonymous) users to submit requests (see Setting up anonymous ticket submissions with Zendesk Support for WordPress).
Users fill out the contact form and click Submit. If you've configured the plugin to allow anonymous submissions, then the requester is not prompted to sign in to Zendesk Support; an agent acts as the delegate for anonymous requests. If not, all your users must sign in before submitting requests. After a request is submitted, the requester receives the usual email notification.
Using the ticket widget
Using the tickets widget, agents can view tickets using all of the shared views in Zendesk Support.
By selecting Change View you see and can switch to any of the shared views in Zendesk Support.
By clicking on a ticket, you see summary information about the ticket and make updates.
Converting a blog post comment into a ticket
You can convert blog comments into tickets in the dashboard. Only comments that have been submitted along with an email address can be converted into a ticket. The commenter's email address is used to add them to your instance of Zendesk Support and enable follow-up communication about the ticket.
- Sign in to the WordPress administrator dashboard, and select Comments.
- Locate the comment you want to convert to a ticket and click Convert to Zendesk Ticket.
- You'll be prompted to enter a comment, which can be
posted as a response in the post. Enter your comment
and then optionally select either or both of these
two options:
- Make this a public comment in the ticket
- Post as a reply on this blog post
- Click Create Ticket.
All follow up on the ticket occurs within Zendesk Support.
22 comments
Terry Hale
Hi all,
Last update to this plugin was 8 months ago. Any news on ongoing updates to make it compatible with latest WordPress version? Would really like this in a forum site I am creating, which will include companies that use Zendesk so that it can be integrated directly into their private forums.
Thanks!
2
Dave Dyson
Hi Terry,
We were able to install this with the latest version of Wordpress, despite the warning messing, so you should be able to use it.
0
Shlomo Asaf
Hey @..., Terry Hale got a point. This plugin haven't seen an update for more then a year. Its lack of features (like creating custom tickets) and force you as a zendesk paying client to purchase solutions provided by other plugin developers.
Besides that, wordfence warn regarding the plugin and does not allow to use it.
2
Shlomo Asaf
The plugin have not not been tested against the last 3 major WP versions. It might have security bridges. And I guess it has, if wordfence alerts regarding it.
2
Steve
It's now mid-2023, the plugin is still showing on version 1.8.4 and hasn't been tested or updated in ages. I'm interested in using it, but only if Zendesk is still supporting activity, which doesn't appear to be the case.
I can see this support article was updated a few months ago.
2
Noly Maron Unson
Hi Steven,
The WordPress plugin is authored and supported by Zendesk. I understand the hesitation you have but you can rest assured that you can reach out to Zendesk for support if you encounter any issues with the integration itself.
Hope this helps.
-2
The Bitcoin Academy
Hello Noly,
With all due respect, I have some concerns regarding your statement that I feel need to be addressed. It appears that you might not have hands-on experience managing a WordPress website, or you would be aware that outdated and untested plugins with the latest WordPress versions are a well-known security risk.
Indeed, a plugin that isn't current is likely to leave us vulnerable to cyber threats, and I believe we should all proceed with caution when dealing with such plugins. Your offer to assist with the integration is appreciated, but it doesn't really tackle the underlying issue.
I kindly suggest that you consider updating and testing the plugin to match the current WordPress versions. It would go a long way in ensuring that we, as website administrators, won't be left picking up the pieces in the aftermath of a potential cyber attack due to outdated plugins.
2
DS RF
I just got an alert from our security team that this plugin was yanked from the Wordpress website and that it's not safe to use. What's going on?!?! Is this really temporary or do I need to remove it?
0
The Bitcoin Academy
Wordpress has spoken and they find your plugin as vulnerable. Could you please stop ignoring us and write an update? This is what I'm getting from my Wordfence plugin and they are correct.
Plugin contains an unpatched security vulnerability.
* The Plugin "Zendesk Support for WordPress" has been removed from wordpress.org but is still installed on your site.
They are ignoring us, so the only way I've gotten any response is to tweet them at @Zendesk
0
Viktor Osetrov
Noted. Please accept our apologies for all inconvenience with that,
My colleagues will back to you with a response as soon as they can,
Thanks
0
DS RF
Hi, it's been a month with no updates, so we've been required to remove this plugin from our site. Clearly there is a major security issue with it. Let us know when it's safe to re-install.
0
David Gillespie
Hi Folks,
Apologies for the lack of response from our development team about the plugin.
We have submitted an patched version of the plugin to the team at Wordpress who are currently reviewing and will republish shortly. The review process is managed by Wordpress and they are unable to provide a timeline for when it will be completed.
We appreciate your patience and are hoping this will be resolved soon.
Thanks,
David
0
David Gillespie
Hi Folks,
Wordpress have now approved our patched version of the plugin and made it available to customers. You can download the latest version of the plugin here.
Thanks,
David
0
DS RF
Thank you for the update. We'll give it another go. Please dedicate someone to this plugin and issue regular updates, even if it's just a "compatibility check" version so that WordPress doesn't consider it abandoned or a security risk again.
0
DS RF
@...
I just received an email from Zendesk saying that there will be changes to the way SSO is handled and that I have until May 1st, 2024 to fix it. I'm only using Zendesk SSO with Wordpress via this plugin.
When will Zendesk be updating their plugin to be compatible with this change?
0
Mike DR
Hope you're doing great! We'll update you the soonest the plug in has been updated.
0
DS RF
As long as it's before May 1st, sounds great! :)
0
DS RF
Hi Mike DR and Caroline Kello, can we get a status update on this plugin since the change is set to go into effect in less than 2 months? I commented a few months ago that anything before May 1st would be great, but, in reality, everyone will need sufficient time to test the new version on our dev servers prior to putting it into live production.
Zendesk's documentation makes it sound like the fix is a simple change of one line from GET to POST, so it's concerning that it's taking Zendesk this long to make the update to their own plugin.
If Zendesk does not publish an updated plugin by April 1st, can we assume that Zendesk will push this proposed change to at least 30 days after the plugin is fixed?
0
Mike DR
Hope you're doing well! I did check for any updates but can't find one yet. Our team will be updating the community once the fix has been released.
0
DS RF
Thank you for checking Mike DR
0
Mike DR
0
DS RF
Hi Mike DR, Zendesk sent out a follow-up notification last week that they would no longer be requiring the SSO change previously scheduled to take effect on May 1st. However, it still noted:
What is Zendesk's plan for this Wordpress plugin? Should we expect an update that aligns with these best practices?
0