Human handoff
Human handoff to your team at the right moment
WOLE's chatbot to human handoff runs on rules you can see: four built in, any you write yourself, and your business hours. The AI answers what your store can answer, and your team gets the rest.
Example handoff settings: four built-in rules, all on: WOLE is not confident in its answer, money is involved, the shopper is upset, and the question is about a sensitive topic. Below them, your own VIP customer rule: when the shopper has an account and has the tag VIP, assign the chat to Mai.
Built in
Four rules, on from the first chat
When a rule fires, the shopper gets a handoff notice, the conversation moves to Needs a human, and the AI goes quiet in that thread. A shopper asking how refunds work doesn't count as money; a shopper asking for their money back does.
Low confidence works differently. Set a minimum on the slider, and after two answers in a row below it, WOLE offers the shopper a teammate. The shopper decides whether to take it.
- WOLE is not confident in its answer
- Money is involved: refunds, chargebacks and money already paid
- The shopper is upset
- The question is about a sensitive topic
Your rules
Chatbot to human handoff on rules you write
Your store knows which chats matter most. Build a rule from ten condition types and WOLE hands those chats over too. Your own rules come with paid plans: 3 on Starter, unlimited from Pro.
- Up to 10 conditions per rule, all of which must match
- Assign matching chats to a teammate, on Growth and above
- A live preview: “Matches N of M conversations in the last 30 days”
- Start from an example: VIP customer, Order problem, Wholesale or bulk order, Shopper in the cart
Business hours
Tell shoppers when you'll reply
Set your hours and WOLE tells shoppers what to expect when it brings in your team. Inside your hours they read:
“I'm bringing in a teammate — they'll reply here within a few minutes.”
Outside them, the notice says you're closed right now and a teammate will reply as soon as you're open again.
- Hours for each day, or closed
- Overnight shifts and your time zone
- Rewrite either notice, or leave it empty
Always there
A person is one tap away
A shopper never has to argue with a bot. If they ask for a person in the chat, WOLE answers “Of course.” and shows a Talk to a person button. Once a teammate joins, the assistant stays quiet until the chat is resolved.
- Talk to a person is always in the widget menu, and can't be switched off
- Pause the assistant once a human joins, on by default
- Ask for the shopper's email at handoff, so your reply still reaches them
Notifications
Your team hears about it
By default each teammate hears a sound in the admin and gets an email. Team defaults apply to everyone, and each teammate can change their own. A waiting shopper plays a sound at once and sends an email after 3 minutes unread. Emails carry a short snippet and a link, never the whole chat.
- A conversation needs a person
- A conversation is assigned to you
- A shopper is waiting on your reply
The details
The numbers behind each handoff setting.
- Built-in rules
- Four, all on by default. Each can be switched off and shows how often it fired in the last 30 days.
- Minimum confidence
- A slider from 0 to 100%, set to 50% by default.
- Your rules
- Up to 10 conditions each, all of which must match. Names up to 80 characters, in an order you choose.
- Condition limits
- Up to 50 phrases for “Message contains”, 20 languages, 20 tags, and 1 to 500 messages.
- Match preview
- Checks a rule against up to 2,000 conversations from the last 30 days.
- Business hours
- Per-day hours, overnight shifts and a time zone. Off until you switch them on.
- Shopper notices
- Two, inside and outside your hours. Up to 500 characters each, or empty to send nothing.
- Notifications
- Three events, by email and sound by default, with team defaults and per-teammate overrides.
Questions about handoff
Does low confidence force a handoff?
No. When two answers in a row fall below your minimum confidence, WOLE offers the shopper a teammate and the shopper decides. The other built-in rules hand the chat over straight away.
Can shoppers always reach a person?
Yes. Talk to a person is always in the widget's menu and can't be switched off. If a shopper asks for a person in the chat, WOLE shows a Talk to a person button for them to tap.
What do shoppers see outside business hours?
A notice that a teammate will reply as soon as you're open again. You can rewrite it, up to 500 characters, or leave it empty to send nothing.
Can a rule send chats to a specific teammate?
Yes, on Growth and above. Each of your own rules can assign the conversation to a teammate when it matches. Built-in rules leave the chat unassigned for anyone on your team to pick up.
Does the AI keep replying after a teammate joins?
Not by default. With Pause the assistant once a human joins switched on, the AI stays quiet in that conversation until a teammate resolves it.
Let the AI answer, and your team decide
Install WOLE free, set your handoff rules, and see which chats they'd match before you switch them on.