Every ticket in initdesk has an ID your team uses to find and track conversations. Two settings control how those IDs are created and whether customers see a ticket reference.

Ticket ID format chooses the shape of new ticket IDs for the whole organization. Customer interaction style on each inbox chooses whether customers see a ticket reference on messages from that inbox.

Your team’s inbox, ticket detail, and internal workflows stay the same either way.

Ticket ID format (organization-wide)

Ticket ID format controls how new ticket IDs are written across your organization.

Go to Settings → General and open Ticket ID format. Choosing a format saves it. You do not need a separate save button.

The format applies only to tickets created after the change. Existing ticket IDs stay as they are.

To choose whether customers see ticket numbers, set Customer interaction style on each inbox.

Customer interaction style (per inbox)

Customer interaction style controls the ticket reference customers see on messages from one inbox. Inboxes in the same organization can differ.

1. Go to Settings → Inboxes and open the inbox.
2. Under General, choose Customer interaction style.
3. Click Save changes.

The change applies to new messages.

Helpdesk

Customers see a ticket reference on every message. The subject looks like [#ACME-412] Re: Invoice question.

Conversational

Replies read like an ordinary email from a colleague. The subject looks like Re: Invoice question.

Your team still sees the full ticket ID inside initdesk either way.

An auto-reply uses its own text. That text includes the ticket number only when the message contains {{ ticket.id }}. WhatsApp leaves that placeholder blank. Helpdesk still shows a ticket reference on customer messages, as in the subject sample above.

How the two settings work together

1. Ticket ID format is how initdesk creates ticket IDs for new tickets, for the whole organization.
2. Customer interaction style is whether customers see a ticket reference on messages from that inbox.

For example, you might use automatic numbering for the organization, and set a VIP inbox to Conversational so those customers do not see a ticket reference. A billing inbox on the same account can stay on Helpdesk.

Common setups

Formal support desk

• Ticket ID format: Automatic numeric or random numeric
• Customer interaction style: Helpdesk

Mixed teams, one organization

• Ticket ID format: one format for the whole organization
• Customer interaction style: Helpdesk for ops or billing, Conversational for sales or success

Conversational brand, structured internally

• Ticket ID format: Alphanumeric or random numeric
• Customer interaction style: Conversational on customer-facing inboxes

What does not change

• Associates still see ticket IDs, statuses, and the full thread in initdesk.
• Changing Ticket ID format does not rewrite IDs on existing tickets.
• Customer interaction style does not hide tickets from your team.

Edge cases

Customers still see ticket references after switching to Conversational

Confirm you saved Customer interaction style on the right inbox. Each inbox has its own style, and the change applies to new messages.

Ticket IDs look different after we changed the format

The format applies to new tickets only. Older tickets keep the ID they were created with.

We use multiple inboxes

Set customer interaction style per inbox. Ticket ID format still applies to every new ticket.

We use Telegram or another channel

Customer interaction style applies to customer-facing messages from that inbox on the channels it supports, not only email.

Related articles

• Handle support email
• Channels
• Auto-reply to new tickets
• Organization profile and avatar

Questions?

If ticket references in customer threads do not match what you expect, use Open a ticket at the bottom of this page and tell us which inbox and style you saved.