Overview
What is Zendesk Sell: Zendesk Sell is a cloud-based sales CRM and sales force automation platform for managing contacts, deals, activities, lead generation, and pipeline forecasting. Its Sales CRM API serves JSON over HTTPS at api.getbase.com across Core, Sync, Firehose, and Search API groups. Zendesk has announced Sell's retirement for August 31, 2027, after which Zendesk will delete Sell data; APIs and documentation remain active until that date.
How to integrate Zendesk Sell with Datagrid
Datagrid connects to Zendesk Sell, so AI agents can read and act on CRM records directly, pulling the records needed for qualification, reporting, and enrichment workflows and cross-referencing that data against project files, spreadsheets, and other connected platforms. Use Zendesk Sell's native interface for one-off record review and manual sales activity; use Datagrid when the workflow needs repeatable extraction, enrichment, routing, or playbook enforcement across systems. Set up the integration in three steps: configure it, authorize it with OAuth 2.0, and sync records and changes.
Configure the integration
Start in Datagrid integration settings and choose the CRM objects that agents need for the workflow.
Open Datagrid and go to your integration settings.
Select Zendesk Sell from the integration list.
Choose OAuth 2.0 as the authentication method.
Grant access with a user that holds administration management privileges, since only admins can register OAuth applications.
Select the objects to sync, such as leads, contacts, deals, tasks, notes, and call records.
Confirm the connection and run an initial sync before assigning the data to an agent workflow.
An integration configuration can use this structure inside the Datagrid setup flow:
integration: zendesk_sell
authentication:
type: oauth2
token_type: bearer
sync:
objects:
- leads
- contacts
- deals
- tasks
- notes
- calls
writeback:
enabled: true
strategy: core_api_create_update_upsertAuthorize with OAuth 2.0
Datagrid connections to Zendesk Sell use OAuth 2.0 with a Bearer access token; the Datagrid integration has no API key fallback. Register the OAuth application with an admin user in Zendesk Sell, then connect Datagrid through the authentication guide. Per Sell's own OAuth reference, the Authorization Code Grant is the recommended flow for web applications like Datagrid.
In the Zendesk Sell OAuth application, configure the Datagrid redirect URI shown in Datagrid's integration setup. Use the provider authorization URL from the same Datagrid OAuth setup. Choose requested scopes based on the objects selected for the workflow: read scopes for synced objects and write scopes only for objects Datagrid will update, such as leads, contacts, deals, tasks, notes, and calls.
Use the provider authorization URL from the Datagrid OAuth setup with this request shape:
GET <zendesk_sell_oauth_authorization_url>?response_type=code&client_id=<client_id>&redirect_uri=<datagrid_redirect_uri>&scope=<requested_scopes>The token response provides a Bearer token and refresh token that Datagrid stores for ongoing sync:
{
"access_token": "<access_token>",
"token_type": "Bearer",
"expires_in": "<ttl_seconds>",
"refresh_token": "<refresh_token>"
}When the access token expires, Datagrid uses the refresh token to request a replacement and keep the connection active, unless the refresh token itself expires or loses authorization.
Sync records and changes
Use the Core API for bidirectional read and write across Zendesk Sell resources. Use streaming APIs only when the Sell plan tier supports them.
The Core API supports resources including Leads, Contacts, Deals, Tasks, Notes, and Calls. To prevent duplicates, Datagrid can write contact updates via the contacts endpoint using POST /v2/contacts/upsert.
POST https://api.getbase.com/v2/contacts/upsert
Authorization: Bearer <access_token>
Content-Type: application/json
{
"data": {
"first_name": "<first_name>",
"last_name": "<last_name>",
"organization_name": "<company_name>",
"custom_fields": {
"external_system_id": "<external_record_id>"
}
},
"filter": {
"email": "<work_email>"
}
}The Sync API streams inbound data from Sell to Datagrid with eventual consistency guarantees. The Firehose API streams near real-time change events and retains 72 hours of event history. A Datagrid agent can convert those change events into an internal event shape for routing and reporting:
{
"source": "zendesk_sell",
"object": "deal",
"action": "updated",
"record_id": "<deal_id>",
"changed_fields": ["stage", "value", "updated_at"],
"route_to": "pipeline_reporting_agent"
}The Sync, Firehose, and Search APIs require Sell Growth or higher, so confirm the plan tier before designing pipelines that depend on streaming or search.
Why use Zendesk Sell with Datagrid
Datagrid is useful when sales leaders need CRM data to drive consistent execution.
Automated CRM data entry: Datagrid's AI agents extract data from PDFs, spreadsheets, and notes, then convert it into standardized records ready for Sell.
Bidirectional record sync: Agents read Sell records and write enriched data back via the Core API, keeping CRM data current across connected platforms.
Real-time change detection: The Firehose API streams deal and contact change events, so agents trigger follow-up actions the moment a deal moves to a new pipeline stage.
Lead enrichment and scoring: Agents append company size and industry data to lead records, add intent signals and then apply scoring so reps see prioritized leads in Sell.
Data quality controls: Agents preserve external system IDs, apply record-matching rules, and standardize CRM fields before records move between systems.
Type-safe transformation: Values without decimal places are returned as integers, and values with decimal places are returned as strings. Datagrid agents normalize this type inconsistency before the data reaches downstream systems.
What you can build with Zendesk Sell Datagrid integration
These workflows turn Zendesk Sell from a system of record into an execution layer for qualification and follow-up, with built-in pipeline governance.
Automated lead enrichment pipeline: Build an agent that pulls new leads from Sell, appends company size, industry, and intent data from external sources, then writes scored records back to Sell. Reps open the CRM to prioritized, enriched leads.
Real-time pipeline reporting: Connect the Firehose API stream to a live dashboard. When a deal moves to a new stage or a call outcome changes, the agent updates revenue forecasts and flags stalled deals for review.
Meeting-to-CRM sync: Deploy a meeting notetaker agent that captures customer calls, extracts action items, and writes structured notes to the correct lead, contact, or deal in Sell through the notes endpoint.
Customer profiling and sentiment analysis: Build an agent that reads notes, call summaries, and outcome IDs from the calls endpoint, then scores customer health and flags accounts at risk across your combined CRM and support data.
Resources and documentation
Resource index: The available Core API objects.
First call guide: A step-by-step API test using a Personal Access Token for manual testing only; Datagrid's own setup uses OAuth 2.0.
Authentication guide: Zendesk Sell OAuth setup for production connections.
Sync API: Inbound streaming behavior for Sell data.
Firehose API: Near real-time change events and event history for workflow triggers.
Frequently asked questions
Which authentication method does the Zendesk Sell integration use?
The Datagrid integration uses OAuth 2.0 with a Bearer access token via the Authorization Code Grant flow. Personal Access Tokens are only for manual API testing.
Which Zendesk Sell data objects can Datagrid sync?
Datagrid can sync the objects selected during integration setup, including leads, contacts, deals, tasks, notes, and calls. Validate broader coverage of the Sell object before production.
Do I need a specific Zendesk Sell plan for real-time sync?
Yes. The Core API is available on all Sell plans. The Sync, Firehose, and Search APIs require Sell Growth or higher.
How does the integration avoid creating duplicate contacts?
Datagrid uses the contacts upsert endpoint (POST /v2/contacts/upsert). The endpoint matches on filter parameters, can carry external system IDs as custom fields, and returns a 409 error if multiple contacts match the filter.
Does the integration handle the deal value format inconsistency?
Yes. The deals endpoint documentation confirms that deal values can return as 1000 or '1000.50'. Datagrid agents normalize the type before the data reaches downstream systems.
Similar integrations
Freshdesk: Sync support tickets and customer records between Sell and Freshdesk to enable smooth sales-to-support handoffs and a consolidated view of customers.
HubSpot: Combine Sell and HubSpot to unify marketing, sales, and contact enrichment workflows and sync leads and contacts in both directions.
Salesforce: Stream Sell deal, contact, and activity data into Salesforce for enterprise reporting, consolidation, or staged migrations.
Drift: Send conversational leads and meeting bookings from Drift into Sell to accelerate qualification and track conversion in your sales pipeline.