Migrate from Gmelius to Zoho Desk

Gmelius shared inboxes are Gmail label-backed workspaces. We map each shared inbox to a Zoho Desk Department, then create Views scoped to that Department that filter tickets by the label-equivalent tag. The Zoho Desk View configuration replicates the shared inbox's conversation scope. Multi-department Gmelius setups require a Zoho Desk Department per shared inbox with cross-department escalation routes configured separately in Blueprint.

Gmelius email threads export as full message chains via the Gmail API. We reconstruct each thread as a Zoho Desk Ticket with the initial message as the Ticket Description and subsequent replies as Thread entries. The original Gmail Message-ID headers are preserved in a custom Ticket field gmelius_message_id__c for audit traceability. Thread authorship (sender email) maps to Zoho Desk Contact or Agent resolution on the Thread record.

Gmelius Shared Labels are Gmail label names exported via the Gmail API. We recreate them as Zoho Desk Tags on the Ticket module and apply them during import based on the original Gmail label membership. For labels that represented inbox ownership or routing status, we create Zoho Desk Views with Tag-based filters rather than Tags alone, preserving the label's filtering behaviour as a live View.

Gmelius does not maintain a standalone contact database; contacts live in the Google Contacts layer. We export via Google Contacts API and map to Zoho Desk Contact records. The Google Contact email address becomes the Contact email field and the dedupe key. Any Gmelius-specific contact metadata (contact notes, custom contact properties) migrates as custom fields on the Zoho Desk Contact.

Gmelius companies are not a distinct object — company associations live as email domain annotations on contacts or as part of shared label naming conventions. We reconstruct Account records from Gmelius contact email domains and shared inbox naming, then link Contacts to the reconstructed Account via AccountId lookup. The Zoho Desk Contacts module supports this account lookup hierarchy natively.

Gmelius shared email templates store structured text with variable placeholders for merge fields. We export the full template library and recreate each as a Zoho Desk Macro. The Macro body preserves the original placeholder syntax as Zoho variable notation so agents can execute the Macro with the same dynamic field substitution. Macro categories map from Gmelius template folders.

Gmelius shared drafts are collaborative email compositions stored as draft messages in Gmail. We export them and convert to Zoho Desk Macro records tagged as draft variants, preserving the draft body text and recipient placeholders. Because Zoho Desk does not have a native shared-draft concept, Macro with draft-prefixed naming is the closest structural equivalent.

Gmelius Automation Rules are extension-local configuration with no export mechanism. We capture rule configurations during the discovery walkthrough by screen-recording the Automation Rules UI and documenting each rule's trigger, conditions, and actions. We deliver a written Blueprint inventory with trigger, condition, and action mapping to Zoho Desk Blueprint steps or Workflow Rule criteria. Complex multi-step rules with AI dispatching (Pro tier) require the most manual reconstruction effort.

Gmelius Kanban boards visualise email pipelines by status columns mapped to board cards. We map board columns to Zoho Desk ticket Status values and create Views grouped by Status to replicate the columnar pipeline view. Custom board layouts with non-standard column configurations are documented as View specifications for the Zoho Desk admin to build after migration.

Gmelius SLA analytics and first-response/time tracking are tier-gated features. We export SLA rule definitions as custom metadata fields on Zoho Desk Ticket records (e.g., first_response_due__c, resolution_due__c) populated at migration time. Native Zoho Desk SLA rules require Professional tier or above; we flag this during scoping so the customer can upgrade if active SLA enforcement is required post-migration.

Gmelius users are Google Workspace accounts. We export the user list via Google Workspace Admin SDK and map each to a Zoho Desk Agent record by email. Agent department assignment maps from the Gmelius shared inbox membership. Active versus inactive status is preserved from Gmelius account status.

Gmelius tags applied to conversations export as tag metadata from Gmail labels. We recreate the full tag taxonomy as Zoho Desk Tags and apply them to the corresponding migrated Tickets at import time. Tag-to-conversation associations are preserved by matching the original Gmail label-to-message mappings from the export data.

Gmelius thread notes and @mentions export as email notes or internal comments attached to specific messages in the thread. We convert these to Zoho Desk Ticket Comments with the comment type set to Internal so they are visible to agents but hidden from customers. Note authorship and timestamp are preserved in the Comment record.

Email attachments on Gmelius conversations export via the Gmail API as MIME-encoded files. We attach them to the corresponding Zoho Desk Ticket Thread record using the same file name, MIME type, and content hash. Files larger than 25 MB are linked as URL references in a custom field rather than stored inline, matching Zoho Desk attachment size limits.