Question 1

Which Intercom objects accept writes from MySQL?

Accepted Answer

Users, leads and companies. Tickets, conversations and tags are source only, so this pairing is about enriching who Intercom already knows rather than creating support activity. Users and leads support create, update and upsert, while companies go through Intercom's own upsert operation.

Question 2

Why should I match companies on company_id?

Accepted Answer

On company_id, meaning your own identifier rather than Intercom's internal one. That is the field the upsert is built around, and it means your MySQL table stays the system of record for company identity without having to carry Intercom IDs alongside your own.

Question 3

How do I keep this read off my production tables?

Accepted Answer

Two levers. Point the connection at a read replica, since the model only ever issues SELECT and needs no write path. And set a tracking column such as updated_at so each run filters forward rather than scanning. The connection needs SELECT on the database and nothing else, discovered through INFORMATION_SCHEMA, so it can be a genuinely read only user separate from whatever your application connects as.

Question 4

Can the sync create an Intercom custom attribute?

Accepted Answer

No. Existing Intercom custom attributes are discovered dynamically and can be mapped wherever Intercom marks them API writable, but the definitions have to exist first. Create the attribute in Intercom, refresh the connection schema, then map to it.

Question 5

How does a person get attached to a company?

Accepted Answer

Map an array of Intercom company IDs, or an array of your own company_id values which are resolved to internal IDs first. Each company is attached after the user is created or updated, and multiple companies are supported. Two caveats: a company that does not already exist is not created by this flow, and attaching adds associations rather than replacing what is there.

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Users, leads, companies

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Your company_id is the key

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