Configuring messaging responses for web and mobile channels

The Responses tab allows you to customize the default messaging response, which greets your customers when they initiate an interaction in the Web Widget or mobile channel. Here, you can apply a support schedule to create separate responses for your working hours, and customize automated responses.

You can also upgrade your channel to a conversational bot. When you do so, the messaging responses configured here are disabled, and replaced by the initial greetings included in your bot. See Using a messaging bot for your web and mobile channels.

This article includes the following topics:

• Applying Support schedules to a web or mobile
• Working with the default messaging response
• Enabling a messaging bot

Applying Support schedules to a web or mobile

When you apply previously established Support schedules to your web or mobile channel, you can create different responses for customers based on whether they contact you during your set office hours, or outside of those hours. You apply any of your Support schedules to the responses.

If you do not apply a Support schedule to your widget, customers receive the same response, regardless of the time or day they launch the widget.

Note: Support schedules are not available on all Suite plans. If your plan does not offer schedules, you can use out of office triggers to manage basic responses.

To apply a business hours schedule to your channel

1. In Admin Center, click Channels in the sidebar, then select Messaging and social > Messaging.
2. Click the name of the channel you want to edit. The Edit Web Widget page opens.
3. Click the Responses tab.
4. Expand the Business hours section, and use the drop-down to select a saved Support schedule.
5. Expand the Response during business hours section and update as described in the procedure below. Repeat for the Response outside of business hours section.
6. Click Save settings.

If you remove the business hours schedule, the Response during business hours settings are applied.

Working with the default messaging response

Once a messaging widget is enabled, the default messaging response is activated, which provides a functional, basic conversation to greet a customer when they launch the Web Widget, and transfers them to an agent.

The default messaging response includes a basic greeting for customers and a request for information about their support needs, then a message letting them know they’re being connected to an agent. Behind the scenes, agents are notified in the Agent Workspace that a support request has been received, and they can accept the request and begin responding to the conversation.

Without any configuration actions on your part, the default messaging response appears to the end user as follows:

There are a number of options available to customize this interaction, including requesting customer information and establishing business hours.

Note: If you have enabled end user authentication for messaging, signed-in end users will not be asked for their name or email address. See Authenticating end users in messaging for the web and mobile channels.

Whether you are using the business hours option or not, you can customize the response your customers receive when they launch the Web Widget.

To customize your automated response

1. In Admin Center, click Channels in the sidebar, then select Messaging and social > Messaging.
2. Click the name of the channel you want to edit. The Edit Web Widget page opens.
3. Click the Responses tab.
4. Expand the Response during business hours section. The default messaging response information is displayed in the text boxes.
5. Update the following:
   • First message: Enter the text that appears when a customer launches the Web Widget.
   • Customer details: Use the drop-down to select the information (Name and/or Email) you want to request from the customer before handing them off to an agent. Customers must enter information into these fields before being handed off to an agent. End user email addresses cannot contain accented characters.
     Note: These settings may be impacted by your end user authentication configuration.
   • Follow-up message: Enter the text that appears after the customer submits their details, if enabled.
6. If using business hours, expand the Response outside of business hours section and update the information as described in the previous step.
7. Click Save settings.

Enabling a messaging bot

At the bottom of the tab, you have the option to add a bot to your messaging configuration, which allows you to offer highly customized automated conversation experiences to your customers.

See Enabling a messaging bot.

If you have already enabled a messaging bot, you have the option of disabling it and returning to the default messaging response.