We use a custom code action to generate a seven digit reference number for every ticket when it’s created. Essentially, the system looks at the highest reference number on any of the existing tickets and then gives the new ticket that number + 1. That actually gets assigned to a hidden system reference number property, which is then copied to the case reference number property that our team sees. The system reference number is a unique identifier to prevent accidental overlap, but the case reference number is often copied to related tickets in order to mark them as being part of the same case.
We do this because we need to be able to give a reference number for future follow up, particularaly with retail and service partners. Hubspot IDs are long and awkward to give out over the phone, whereas our retail partners are already accustomed to a 7 digit format that slowly counts up over time. And marking tickets as being part of the same case is especially important because of the lack of ticket to ticket associations.
This would all be a lot easier if generating IDs was a built in function. Even with our solution, the workflow that generates the reference number has to be prepared to try over and over again, as the action can fail several times before making it through.