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As a small or medium-sized business (SMB) owner or support manager, you need your support team to work quickly and focus on the right tasks. In Zendesk, the core tool for managing agent workload and driving efficiency is the Zendesk views.
Zendesk views are essentially customised, dynamic lists that automatically pull tickets together based on specific criteria, acting like smart folders. Without well-structured views, your agents have to manually sort and filter tickets, wasting precious time that could be spent helping customers. This guide will show non-technical managers how to design powerful Zendesk views to achieve perfect ticket filtering and organisation, turning a cluttered queue into a clean, actionable workflow.
By the end of this article, you will know how to set up the essential views that guide your team’s focus and ensure high-priority customers are always handled first.
1. Why Views Are the Foundation of Agent Efficiency
A successful support operation relies on every agent knowing exactly what they need to work on next. Zendesk views provide this crucial direction, eliminating decision fatigue and guaranteeing service standards are met.
The Role of Views in Organisation
- Prioritisation: Views are used to manage workflow, often requiring agents to address tickets in one view (e.g., 'Urgent') before moving to another (e.g., 'Open').
- Focus: They act as an organisation tool by grouping tickets into lists based on criteria, helping agents quickly determine which tickets need their attention.
- Preventing Overlap (The MECE Principle): The best practice is to design views so they don't overlap, meaning the same ticket doesn't appear in multiple lists at the same time. This prevents confusion and ensures only one agent works on a ticket.
Actionable Tip: Deactivate or edit unnecessary default views (except 'Suspended' and 'Deleted') to simplify the list your agents see when they start their day.
2. Essential Zendesk views for Every SMB
You don't need dozens of views. For an SMB focused on efficiency, a few well-designed views can cover 90% of your workflow. We recommend setting up views based on the urgency and status of the ticket.
The Core 4 Views for Workflow Management
| View Title | Purpose (Conditions) | Organisation Focus |
|---|---|---|
| Urgent SLA Breaches | Tickets that are already overdue or will be overdue in less than 2 hours. | High-priority tickets that require immediate action to maintain service standards. |
| New & Unassigned | All new or open tickets that have no assignee. | Triaging: Who needs to grab this new ticket and assign it to the right person/group? |
| Your Pending Tickets | Tickets assigned to the current user (the agent) that are in the 'Pending' status. | Follow-up tickets, awaiting customer response or internal information. |
| Recently Updated | All tickets updated by the customer in the last 24 hours. | Ensures quick responses to customer replies and helps with QA review. |
Leveraging Ticket Filtering by Priority
To ensure urgent tickets are always visible, create a dedicated view using a high-priority tag or custom field. You can then use the 'Order by' setting to sort them by who last updated the ticket or by time since creation.
Actionable Tip: Use the 'Group by' feature within a view to organise tickets by Assignee or Group. This is especially helpful in the 'New & Unassigned' view, allowing the manager to see workloads at a glance.
3. Advanced Ticket Filtering for Specialisation
As your business grows, you'll start handling different types of issues that require specialist attention. Zendesk views allow you to filter tickets so that only the right agents see them.
Filtering by Group or Channel
If you have dedicated teams or agents, restrict views using Groups:
- Group-Specific Views: Create a view that is only visible to agents in the 'Finance' group or 'Technical Support' group. This ensures agents only see tickets they are authorised and trained to work on.
- Channel-Specific Views: If live chat or phone calls have tighter Service Level Agreements (SLAs) than email, create separate views (e.g., 'Live Chat - Unassigned') to prioritise those channels.
Using Tags and Custom Fields for Filtering
Tags are your most powerful tool for custom ticket filtering.
- Low-Rated Feedback: Set up a view that filters all tickets tagged with a low CSAT score (or a negative sentiment tag). This allows managers or specific agents to address bad feedback immediately.
- Product-Specific Issues: If you sell multiple products, tag tickets with
product_A_bugorproduct_B_issue. You can then create views for each product, ensuring specialists handle those tickets.
Actionable Tip: If your company uses multiple brands, you can restrict agent access and ticket visibility to specific brands, ensuring organisation and data privacy. You can find more helpful advice and resources on streamlining your support here: Optimo Blog.
4. Setting Permissions and Personal Views for Agents
Once you've built the shared, core views, empower your agents with the ability to customise their own workspace.
Shared vs. Personal Views
| Type | Creator & Visibility | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
| Shared Views | Created by Admins; visible to all agents or specific Groups. | Standardised workflow and team organisation. |
| Personal Views | Created by Agents; visible only to the creator. | Custom ticket filtering based on individual tracking needs and preferences. |
Agents can create up to 8 personal views. Encourage them to set up a view for complex tickets they are collaborating on or for tracking specific customers.
Controlling Visibility (The ‘Available to’ Setting)
When creating a shared view, carefully select the 'Available to' setting:
- All Agents: Use only for fundamental views like 'New & Unassigned'.
- Agents in Specific Groups: Use for nearly all other views (e.g., tickets only visible to the 'Billing' group).
This precise control is crucial for maintaining organisation and preventing agents from being overwhelmed by irrelevant tickets.
Actionable Tip: Use the double colon syntax (e.g., Urgent::SLA Breaches) in the view title to create visual categories or a folder-like structure in the Agent Workspace.
Conclusion
Mastering Zendesk views is the single best way for an SMB to boost agent productivity and achieve service efficiency. They move your team beyond simply reacting to tickets and into a proactive, structured workflow. By implementing thoughtful ticket filtering and clear organisation standards, you ensure that every agent focuses on the most critical tasks at hand, leading to faster responses and happier customers.
If you’re struggling with Zendesk views and want a clean, customised setup that drives immediate efficiency, speaking with a Zendesk Partner can streamline your process from day one.
