Creating callback requests via Zendesk AI Agents

This article showcases a custom Zendesk AI Agent use case: enabling callback requests via Messaging. By combining Voice, API integrations, and phone validation, it bridges native gaps and lets customers request a call—fully automated, no agent needed to start.

Thomas Verschoren

Jul 8, 2025 — 8 min read

As an omnichannel solution Zendesk gives companies the ability to support their customers over tickets, voice and conversations. Tickets is the channel that provides support over email, regardless of those requests being raised via email, a webform, API. Conversations means messaging via the web widget and mobile SDK, as well as social messaging channels like WhatsApp, Instagram or Facebook Messenger. And voice, that's your phone conversations over via Zendesk Voice.

When Zendesk still offered their classic Web Widget all these channel types were available right from that one embed on your website. Customers could chat to agents, leave a message via a webform, and request a callback from your team.

With the move to Messaging and the new Zendesk Web Widget we gained a lot. Messaging turned synchronous chat into asynchronous conversations, replacing the chat and webform option into one channel that allows for chat conversations without the need for all parties to be online at the same time.

And with the new Digital Voice option in Zendesk, customers can call your support team directly from the Web Widget. That new channel however is not as tightly integrated as the old Zendesk Talk was. There's no easy way to add a Call me button, and there's no built-in way to handle callback requests.