AI first responder
The AI assistant that answers a customer's first message. It replies from your knowledge when it is confident, and hands over to a person when it is not or when the customer asks for one.
AI First ResponderAI customer support,
in plain words.
The terms you will meet when you look at AI customer support software, each explained in a few plain sentences.
The assistant
Action
A task an AI assistant can perform in another system, such as looking up an order or booking a visit. Actions let the assistant give an answer specific to the customer.
Actions & WorkflowsGuided flow
A short set of questions shown to a visitor to collect structured details, such as what they need and how to reach them, before routing the request.
Guided FlowsWorkflow approval
A step in an automated process that waits for a person to review and approve before it continues. It keeps a human in control of steps that change records.
Knowledge and accuracy
Knowledge base
The content an assistant answers from: help articles, policies, documents and web pages. Its quality and freshness is the biggest influence on the quality of the answers.
Knowledge & InsightsKnowledge gap
A question customers ask that your content does not answer. Reviewing knowledge gaps tells you which article to write or fix next.
Grounding
Writing an answer from specific source passages instead of from general knowledge. A grounded answer can show where it came from and is less likely to be invented.
Hallucination
When an AI states something that is not true, often with confidence. Grounding in your content, confidence thresholds and human review reduce it.
Confidence score
How sure the assistant is that an answer is right. A threshold on this score decides whether it answers, drafts for review or hands over.
Handing over
Human handoff
Passing a conversation from the AI to a person. A good handoff includes the context, such as what was asked and what the assistant already said, so the customer does not repeat themselves.
Escalation
Moving a request to someone with more authority or expertise. In AI support, it often means the assistant sending a conversation to your team because it is sensitive or beyond what it can answer.
Triage
Sorting incoming requests by topic, urgency and customer mood so the right ones get attention first.
Shared inbox
One workspace where a team handles customer conversations from several channels, with ownership, status and history visible to everyone.
Shared InboxMeasuring support
Deflection
A customer's question is answered without a person getting involved. It counts volume that did not need an agent, and it is only useful if the customers were actually helped.
Resolution
A conversation where the customer's issue was settled. Counting resolutions, not just messages or tickets, ties the measure to the outcome.
First response time
How long a customer waits for the first reply. An assistant that answers at once removes the wait for the questions it can handle.
SLA
Service level agreement. A promise about how fast you will respond or resolve, such as replying to every request within a set time.
CSAT
Customer satisfaction score. A short survey asking how satisfied a customer was with a specific interaction, usually on a scale.
Surveys & FeedbackNPS
Net Promoter Score. A survey asking how likely a customer is to recommend your company, which measures the wider relationship and not one interaction.
Channels and leads
Omnichannel support
Offering support on several channels, such as chat, email, messaging and phone, with the conversation history kept together so customers do not start over when they switch.
All channelsLead qualification
Working out whether a prospective customer fits what you offer, by asking about their needs, and passing the useful ones to your team with the answers attached.
AI lead qualificationGlossaryBetter support starts
Talk to our teamBetter support starts
with your team.
Let’s find the right setup for the way you help customers.