A webhook bot added to a team can read that team's tickets and propose draft replies, but it cannot send anything to a guest. Sending requires the bot to be assigned to the ticket itself. That extra step is what stops several bots on the same team answering one guest at the same time.
There are two ways to get a bot onto a ticket: assign it yourself, or set up a rule that does it automatically.
Assigning a bot by hand
Use this when you want a person to decide, case by case, that a bot should take over.
Open the ticket in the Unified Inbox.
Open the ticket details panel on the right.
Assign the ticket to the bot, the same way you would assign it to an operator.
The bot can now send messages on that ticket.
Assigning a bot automatically with a rule
Use this when a bot should pick up a whole category of tickets without anyone deciding each time.
Go to Messaging > Inbox Settings > Bots.
Select the bot.
Select Select rules.
Select a rule, or add an inner group if you need more than one.
Set the conditions a ticket has to match, for example a keyword or a channel.
Select Save.
Every incoming message is checked against your rules in priority order, and the first rule that matches assigns the ticket to that bot.
You can also work from the rules list itself. The Assignment rules button at the top of the Bots screen opens an overview of every bot assignment rule on your account, ranked from High Priority down to Low Priority, which you reorder by dragging. That is the place to go when you need to see how your rules stack up against each other rather than edit one bot at a time.
Choosing between drafting and replying
Both behaviours are useful, and which you want depends on how much you trust the bot with your guests.
Bot on the team only | Bot assigned to the ticket | |
What the guest sees | Nothing until an operator sends | The bot's messages, directly |
Who approves the wording | An operator, every time | Nobody |
Good for | A new bot, sensitive channels, complex requests | Routine, well-understood questions |
Speed for the guest | As fast as your operator | Immediate |
A reasonable way to start is to leave a new bot on team access only, watch the drafts it produces for a few weeks, and add an assignment rule once you are happy with what it writes.
What this does not do
A rule cannot un-assign a bot. If you want a ticket back with a human, assign it to an operator or a team as usual.
Team access alone never allows sending, no matter how many teams the bot is on.
Rules do not apply retroactively. A new rule affects incoming messages, not tickets already open.
Common questions
Is this the same as the AI Agent's assignment rules?
The rules described here decide which tickets a webhook bot is assigned to. The AI Agent has its own assignment rules, covered in Setting assignment rules and channel filters. Both webhook bots and AI Agents appear in the same list under Inbox Settings > Bots, and both use the same kind of rule, so read carefully which bot a rule is attached to. Changing a rule on one bot has no effect on another.
What happens if two rules match the same ticket?
Rules are evaluated in priority order and the first match wins, so put your most specific rules above your general ones. Use the Assignment rules overview to see and reorder that priority.
Can an operator still take over a ticket a bot is handling?
Yes. Assign the ticket to yourself or to a team as you would with any other ticket.
Does the bot keep working after I take a ticket over?
If it still has access to the team, and it is listening for Operator Messages, it keeps receiving the conversation and can propose drafts. It stops being able to send once it is no longer assigned to the ticket.
What to do next
If the bot is not behaving as expected, see Why your webhook bot is not responding.
Getting help
Open Help at the bottom of the left menu and choose Talk to Us, or email support@bookboost.io.