How to put the month or quarter in recurring Zendesk ticket subjects

To put the month or quarter in a recurring Zendesk ticket, type a run placeholder in the schedule's Subject or Description in Everytide, for example "Access review {{run.month}} {{run.year}}" or "{{run.quarter}} vendor audit". Each placeholder is filled from the run's own date, so a ticket created late still names the right period. Next ticket shows the filled-in text before you save.

Steps

1. Open the schedule in Everytide, or choose New schedule.
2. Go to The ticket and click into Subject or Description.
3. Type the placeholders from the table below, with the text around them.
4. Check Next ticket on the right. It shows the subject and description exactly as Zendesk will receive them for the next run.
5. Click Save schedule.

Every placeholder

Subjects that work well

Note that {{run.previous_month}} in a January run gives December, while {{run.year}} gives the run's own year. For a January report on December, write the year yourself or use {{run.date}}.

Use them in the description too

Placeholders work the same way in the Description, which goes on the ticket as an Internal note or a Public reply. A quarterly review might read:

{{schedule.name}} for {{run.quarter}} {{run.year}}, run {{run.number}}.
Created for {{run.date}}. Please finish by {{run.due_date}}.
1. Export the user list.
2. Remove anyone who left in {{run.previous_month}}.
3. Attach the export and solve this ticket.

With Type set to Task and Due (days after the run) set to 7, each ticket names its own quarter and deadline, and Next ticket shows the filled-in text for the next run before you save.

Zendesk placeholders are flagged

Zendesk's own {{ticket.*}} placeholders are not filled in tickets created through the API, so the Everytide editor flags them before you save. Use the {{run.*}} and {{schedule.*}} placeholders instead.

Find the tickets later

Every ticket carries the tags everytide and everytide_<schedule id> (the id is shown on the schedule's page), and the external id everytide:<schedule>:<run time>. Use the schedule's tag in a view to see which periods are still open, in a trigger to notify a team, or in Explore to report on completion by month.

What it costs

Everytide is $120 a month per Zendesk account, Standard plan, unlimited schedules. Zendesk bills it monthly after a 14-day trial and asks for a card at install. See the Everytide documentation.