Auto-Reply Rules and Triggers

Auto-Reply Rules and Triggers

Triggers define *when* an auto-reply or chatbot flow activates. HelpKit offers a rich set of trigger conditions to handle any scenario.

Available Trigger Types

#### 1. Keyword Match Activates when the incoming message contains a specific word or phrase.

•Exact match: Only triggers if the entire message equals the keyword (e.g., "STOP")

•Contains: Triggers if the keyword appears anywhere in the message (e.g., "price")

•Starts with: Triggers if the message begins with a phrase (e.g., "track order")

•Regex: Advanced pattern matching (e.g., ^ORDER-\d{6}$)

#### 2. First Message Fires once for each new contact on their very first message. Ideal for welcome flows.

#### 3. New Conversation Fires at the start of every conversation session (resets after 24 hours of inactivity).

#### 4. Outside Business Hours Fires when a message arrives outside your configured work schedule.

#### 5. No Agent Response (Timeout) Fires if no agent replies within a set time (e.g., 5 minutes). Use this to send a "We'll be with you shortly" message.

#### 6. Contact Tag Added Fires when a specific tag is applied to a contact. Useful for segmented automation.

#### 7. Webhook / API Trigger Activates a flow via an external API call. Perfect for e-commerce order events.

Trigger Priority

If multiple triggers match the same message, HelpKit applies them in this order:

1.Exact keyword match

2.Starts with match

3.Contains match

4.Regex match

5.Event-based triggers (first message, new conversation)

Setting Conditions (Filters)

Add conditions to narrow when a rule fires:

•Contact tag is/isn't: Only trigger for tagged segments

•Conversation status: Only for open/resolved conversations

•Agent assigned: Only when unassigned

•Previous message contains: Chain-based triggers

Preventing Trigger Loops

Use the "Don't trigger if already in a flow" setting to prevent auto-replies from firing inside active chatbot sessions.