How to Send Help Scout Ticket Updates to Slack with Zapier

zapier.com > Dashboard > Create Zap

Create a new Zap in Zapier

Log in at zapier.com and click the orange 'Create Zap' button in the left sidebar. You'll land on the Zap editor, which shows a two-panel layout: the left panel lists your steps, and the right panel is where you configure each one. The editor starts with a single trigger step labeled 'Trigger' and prompts you to search for an app. You're building from Help Scout outward to Slack, so start by setting up the trigger.

1. 1Click the orange 'Create Zap' button in the left sidebar
2. 2Click the 'Trigger' step in the left panel to open the app search
3. 3Type 'Help Scout' in the search bar
4. 4Select 'Help Scout' from the results list

Zap Editor > Trigger > Trigger Event

Choose your trigger event

Click the 'Trigger Event' dropdown. Help Scout's Zapier integration offers several conversation events. For status changes, the most useful trigger is 'Conversation Status Changed' — this fires when a ticket moves to closed, active, pending, or spam. If you also want to catch reassignments, you'll need a separate Zap using 'Conversation Assigned'. Pick one trigger per Zap; don't try to combine them here.

1. 1Click the 'Trigger Event' dropdown
2. 2Select 'Conversation Status Changed' from the list
3. 3Click 'Continue' to move to the account connection step

Zap Editor > Trigger > Choose Account

Connect your Help Scout account

Zapier will prompt you to sign into Help Scout. Click 'Sign in to Help Scout' and a pop-up OAuth window will appear. Log in with your Help Scout credentials and authorize Zapier's access. Once authorized, the pop-up closes and you'll see your Help Scout account appear in a dropdown labeled 'Choose account'. Select it and click 'Continue'.

1. 1Click 'Sign in to Help Scout'
2. 2Complete the OAuth login in the pop-up window
3. 3Select your Help Scout account from the 'Choose account' dropdown
4. 4Click 'Continue'

Zap Editor > Trigger > Configure

Configure the trigger filters

After connecting, Zapier shows a 'Configure' panel for the trigger. You can optionally filter by Mailbox — if you have multiple mailboxes in Help Scout and only want updates from one (e.g., 'Support' but not 'Billing'), select it here from the Mailbox dropdown. If you want all mailboxes, leave it blank. You can also filter by Status if you only want to catch closed tickets, for example. Once configured, click 'Continue'.

1. 1Optional: Select a specific mailbox from the 'Mailbox' dropdown
2. 2Optional: Select a specific status from the 'Status' dropdown (e.g., 'closed')
3. 3Click 'Continue' to proceed to test the trigger

Zap Editor > Trigger > Test Trigger

Test the Help Scout trigger

Click 'Test trigger' so Zapier polls Help Scout for a recent conversation that matches your configuration. Zapier will return up to 3 recent conversations where the status changed. You'll see a list of records — click into one to see all the available data fields, including subject, status, assignee name, customer email, and a URL. These are the fields you'll map into your Slack message in the next steps. Verify the data looks correct before continuing.

1. 1Click 'Test trigger'
2. 2Wait 5–10 seconds for Zapier to pull records from Help Scout
3. 3Click on a returned record to expand its fields
4. 4Confirm you can see fields like 'Subject', 'Status', 'Assigned To', and 'Web URL'

Zap Editor > Action > Choose App

Add Slack as the action app

Click the '+' button below the trigger step to add an action. Search for 'Slack' in the app search and select it. Then choose an action event from the dropdown. 'Send Channel Message' is the right choice here — it posts to a public or private channel. If you need to notify a specific person directly, use 'Send Direct Message' instead. For team-wide ticket visibility, 'Send Channel Message' is the standard approach.

1. 1Click the '+' button below the trigger step
2. 2Type 'Slack' in the app search bar
3. 3Select 'Slack' from the results
4. 4Choose 'Send Channel Message' as the action event
5. 5Click 'Continue'

Zap Editor > Action > Choose Account

Connect your Slack workspace

Click 'Sign in to Slack' and authorize Zapier in the OAuth pop-up. You'll need to select the correct Slack workspace if you're a member of multiple. Zapier requests permission to post messages on your behalf. Once you authorize and close the pop-up, your workspace name appears in the 'Choose account' dropdown. Select it and click 'Continue'.

1. 1Click 'Sign in to Slack'
2. 2Select the correct workspace in the Slack OAuth screen
3. 3Click 'Allow' to grant Zapier posting permissions
4. 4Select your workspace from the 'Choose account' dropdown
5. 5Click 'Continue'

Zap Editor > Action > Configure

Configure the Slack message

Select the target channel from the 'Channel' dropdown — type the channel name to search if you have many. In the 'Message Text' field, build your message using a mix of static text and dynamic fields from Help Scout. Click inside the Message Text box and then click the purple data picker icon (looks like a lightning bolt) to insert Help Scout fields. A well-structured message includes the ticket subject, new status, assignee, and a clickable link. Slack supports basic markdown here: use asterisks for bold and angle brackets for links.

1. 1Select your target channel from the 'Channel' dropdown (e.g., #support-updates)
2. 2Click into the 'Message Text' field
3. 3Type your message template and insert Help Scout fields using the data picker
4. 4Example message: '*Ticket Update:* <{{Web URL}}|{{Subject}}> — Status changed to *{{Status}}*. Assigned to: {{Assigned To First Name}} {{Assigned To Last Name}}'

📬 New entry: {{1.name}}
Email: {{1.email}}
Details: {{1.description}}

Zap Editor > Action > Configure > Advanced Options

Set optional message formatting

Scroll down in the Slack action configuration to find additional options. Set 'Send as Bot' to Yes — this is the default and required for channel posting. You can customize the 'Bot Name' field (e.g., 'Help Scout Bot') and add an emoji as the 'Bot Icon' (e.g., :mailbox:) to make the messages visually distinct in your Slack feed. Leave 'Link Names' set to Yes so @mentions in ticket subjects render correctly.

1. 1Set 'Send as Bot' to 'Yes'
2. 2Enter a bot name in the 'Bot Name' field (e.g., 'Help Scout Bot')
3. 3Enter an emoji code in the 'Bot Icon' field (e.g., ':mailbox:')
4. 4Set 'Link Names' to 'Yes'
5. 5Click 'Continue'

📬 New entry: {{1.name}}
Email: {{1.email}}
Details: {{1.description}}

Zap Editor > Action > Test Action

Test the Slack action

Click 'Test action' to send a real test message to your selected Slack channel using the sample Help Scout data pulled in Step 5. Open your Slack workspace and navigate to the channel — you should see the message appear within seconds. Review it carefully: check that the ticket subject renders correctly, the status field shows the right value, the assignee name is readable (not an ID), and the link is clickable. If anything looks wrong, go back and edit the Message Text field before publishing.

1. 1Click 'Test action'
2. 2Open your Slack workspace and navigate to the target channel
3. 3Confirm the message appears with correct subject, status, assignee, and link
4. 4Return to Zapier and click 'Continue' if the message looks correct

Zap Editor > Publish

Name and publish the Zap

Click 'Publish' in the top right corner of the Zap editor. Before it goes live, give the Zap a clear name — something like 'Help Scout Status Change → #support-updates Slack'. This matters when you have multiple Zaps and need to find this one quickly. Once published, the Zap status shows 'On' in your dashboard. Zapier will now poll Help Scout every 1–15 minutes (depending on your plan) and fire the Slack message when it detects a status change.

1. 1Click the Zap name field at the top of the editor and enter a descriptive name
2. 2Click the 'Publish' button in the top right corner
3. 3Confirm the Zap status switches to 'On' in your Zapier dashboard

This Code by Zapier step runs between the trigger and the Slack action. It formats a richer message with emoji status indicators and handles the blank-assignee edge case cleanly. Paste it into a 'Code by Zapier' step (action event: 'Run JavaScript'), then map the output fields into your Slack message instead of the raw Help Scout fields.

// Input data mapped from Help Scout trigger
const subject = inputData.subject || 'No subject';
const status = inputData.status || 'unknown';

// Input data mapped from Help Scout trigger
const subject = inputData.subject || 'No subject';
const status = inputData.status || 'unknown';
const assignee = (inputData.assigneeFirst && inputData.assigneeLast)
  ? `${inputData.assigneeFirst} ${inputData.assigneeLast}`
  : 'Unassigned';
const customerName = inputData.customerName || 'Unknown customer';
const webUrl = inputData.webUrl || '';
const ticketNumber = inputData.number || '';

// Map status to emoji
const statusEmoji = {
  closed: ':white_check_mark:',
  active: ':large_blue_circle:',
  pending: ':hourglass_flowing_sand:',
  spam: ':no_entry_sign:'
};

const emoji = statusEmoji[status.toLowerCase()] || ':grey_question:';
const statusLabel = status.charAt(0).toUpperCase() + status.slice(1);

// Build formatted Slack message
const message = webUrl
  ? `${emoji} *<${webUrl}|#${ticketNumber}: ${subject}>* changed to *${statusLabel}*\n> Assigned to: ${assignee} | Customer: ${customerName}`
  : `${emoji} *#${ticketNumber}: ${subject}* changed to *${statusLabel}*\n> Assigned to: ${assignee} | Customer: ${customerName}`;

output = [{ message, assignee, statusLabel, emoji }];