We’ve put together this comprehensive guide to help you manage internal notes and public comments effectively in Zendesk. In this article, you’ll find everything you need to understand why email replies sometimes become internal notes, how to configure your settings for optimal workflow, and practical solutions to ensure your responses reach the right recipients.
But before we start, if you’d like to read more about Zendesk configuration and workflows, check out Zendesk’s official documentation here.
Here are our most useful pointers for managing internal notes and public comments:
1. Understanding Why Replies Become Internal Notes
Know the rules that determine comment privacy
Before diving into solutions, it’s crucial to understand why your email replies sometimes become internal notes instead of public comments. This knowledge will help you prevent issues before they occur.
Learn more: Understanding when email replies become public or private comments
Here’s what determines whether a reply becomes internal:
- The sender isn’t on the ticket – If someone replies who isn’t the requester or a CC’d user, it becomes internal
- Using Reply instead of Reply All – When CCs reply using just “Reply”, it becomes internal
- Agent settings – If “Agent comments via email are public by default” is disabled
- Third-party forwards – When someone forwards a ticket notification to someone not on the ticket
The most common scenario: You open a ticket to a recipient, then someone else from their organization replies to that email. Since they’re not listed on the ticket, their reply becomes an internal note – and any response from your team also stays internal.
2. Configure Your Settings for Public Comments
Adjust key settings to minimize internal note issues
While you can’t completely disable internal notes, you can configure settings to make public comments the default and reduce accidental internal notes.
Navigate to: Admin Center > Objects and rules > Tickets > Settings
Here are the key settings to configure:
| Setting | What it Does |
| Set composer to public channel by default | Makes public reply the default option when agents create comments |
| Agent comments via email are public by default | Ensures agent email replies are public unless specified otherwise |
| Make email comments from CCed end users public (not recommended) | Makes CC replies public even when using “Reply” instead of “Reply All” |
Important Consideration
The “Make email comments from CCed end users public” setting can help with your specific issue, but use it carefully. It means that when someone uses “Reply” instead of “Reply All”, their comment could still be visible to the requester – potentially sharing information that wasn’t meant for them.
3. Use CCs to Include Additional Recipients
Proactively add people to ensure their replies are public
The best way to prevent replies from becoming internal notes is to add potential responders as CCs when creating or updating tickets.
Watch: Using CCs and followers in Zendesk
How to add CCs effectively:
- From the ticket interface – Click “Public reply” then “CC” to add recipients
- From email – Add CCs to your email client when replying to ticket notifications
- Think ahead – Add likely responders (team members, stakeholders) as CCs preemptively
- Up to 48 CCs allowed – You can include multiple people on each ticket
Pro Tip: When opening tickets for organizations, consider who might respond besides the primary recipient. Add department members or common responders as CCs from the start.
4. Create Monitoring Triggers
Set up alerts for when internal notes are created
Since you can’t disable internal notes, create triggers to alert you when they occur so you can take action quickly.
Example trigger setup:
Navigate to: Admin Center > Objects and rules > Business rules > Triggers
Conditions:
- Ticket is updated
- Current user is agent
- Comment is private
Actions:
- Send Slack notification to manager
- Or send email alert to team lead
- Add tag “review-internal-note”
This helps you catch internal notes quickly and convert them to public comments if needed, ensuring important information reaches your customers.
5. Train Your Team on Email Reply Best Practices
Ensure everyone understands how to keep comments public
Team training is essential to prevent internal note issues. Make sure everyone understands these email reply rules:
| For Public Comments | For Internal Notes |
| Use “Reply All” to include all recipients | Use “Reply” to keep it private |
| Ensure requester is included in the email | Remove requester from recipients |
| Check that you’re replying from the ticket interface when possible | Add #note command in email if using Mail API |
Additional best practices:
- Add agents as followers, not CCs – This keeps their email addresses private from customers
- Review the CC list before sending – Ensure all necessary parties are included
- Use the ticket interface when possible – It gives you more control over comment privacy
6. Handle Third-Party Replies
What to do when someone not on the ticket responds
When someone who isn’t the requester or a CC replies to a ticket, Zendesk shows a warning and makes their comment internal. Here’s how to handle it:
You’ll see a warning like: “This reply was received from someone who is not a requester or CC on this ticket”
Your options:
- Copy and paste the content into a public comment on their behalf
- Add them as a CC for future replies to be public
- Create a new public comment summarizing their input
Remember: Once you add someone as a CC, all their future replies will be public (unless they intentionally make them private).
7. Use Webhooks for Advanced Control (Optional)
Create automated public comments with webhooks
For advanced users, webhooks can automatically add public comments to tickets, though this isn’t officially supported by Zendesk due to potential race conditions.
Basic webhook setup:
- Create a webhook in Admin Center > Apps and integrations > Webhooks
- Use the Ticket API endpoint
- Set “public”: true in the JSON payload
- Trigger it based on your conditions
Caution: Use webhooks sparingly and only for specific scenarios. They don’t follow the normal trigger cycle and can cause unexpected behavior.
8. Create Views to Monitor Internal Notes
Stay on top of tickets with internal comments
Create custom views to identify tickets that might have communication issues:
Example view conditions:
- Tags contains “review-internal-note”
- Status is not Solved
- Updated in the last 24 hours
This helps you quickly find and review tickets where internal notes might be blocking communication.
9. Converting Internal Notes to Public Comments
How to fix it when things go wrong
Unfortunately, you cannot directly convert an internal note to a public comment after it’s been created. However, you can work around this:
Manual conversion process:
- Copy the internal note content
- Create a new public reply
- Paste and edit the content
- Add context if needed (e.g., “Following up on our colleague’s message…”)
Note: You can convert public comments to internal notes (through the Events view), but this action is irreversible.
10. Implement a Long-Term Solution
Create processes that prevent the issue
To minimize internal note issues long-term:
- Standardize ticket creation – Always add potential responders as CCs
- Use organization fields – Add common CC emails at the organization level
- Create macros – Build macros that automatically add common CCs
- Regular audits – Review your trigger alerts weekly
- Team documentation – Maintain a guide for handling email replies
Key Takeaways
While you can’t completely disable internal notes in Zendesk, you can significantly reduce their occurrence and impact:
- Configure your settings to favor public comments
- Use CCs proactively to include all potential responders
- Set up monitoring to catch internal notes quickly
- Train your team on proper email reply practices
- Create processes that prevent the issue from occurring
That’s pretty much it! By implementing these strategies, you’ll ensure that your team’s responses reach all the right people, improving communication and customer satisfaction.
Got questions about Zendesk configuration? Check out the Zendesk Help Center or reach out to your Zendesk admin community.
Learn more: Understanding email reply rules
Configure settings: CC and follower permissions