In 2011 I wrote that customer service no longer happened only by phone and email. People also asked questions publicly on Twitter. My practical question was how a company could track those conversations without losing one. Zendesk offered a central view of tickets.
That basic idea remains. According to Zendesk's documentation, incoming email can still become tickets. The service also supports other channels, depending on setup and plan. I would no longer present the old method of marking a tweet as a favorite to create a ticket as a current instruction.
One question, clear responsibility
A ticket gives each customer request a place of its own. A colleague can see what has already been said, who is responsible and whether a reply is outstanding. That helps prevent two people doing the same work or a question disappearing into one person's inbox. It also helps when a conversation must move from public to private because order or personal details are needed.
A central help desk does not fix poor communication by itself. Agree how quickly you will respond, when to refer a question elsewhere and who reviews the answer. Do not make customers repeat their story unnecessarily. A system that receives every channel is useful only when the team has a clear process.
Start small
First identify the channels customers actually use. Connect the most important ones, test how messages appear as tickets and check that replies return to the right place. Measure not only how many tickets you close, but whether the question was resolved. The lasting value of Zendesk in my original article is visibility: everyone involved can see which customer still awaits an answer.