Reply Bots
- 21 May 2025
- 2 minute read
- Print
- DarkLight
- PDF
Reply Bots
- Updated 21 May 2025
- 2 minute read
- Print
- DarkLight
- PDF
Article summary
Did you find this summary helpful?
Thank you for your feedback
Reply bots are one of the four types of bots you can create in Slate. When associated with SMS messages, they can complete actions in Slate.
Actions
Reply bots receive reply codes and take actions.
When the bot receives a reply code, like YUP, from a constituent, you can tell it to take some action, like registering the constituent for an event. The constituent receives an automated reply specific to that reply code.
Creating a reply bot
Go to Database → Bots.
Select New Bot.
Configure the following settings:
Status: Active
Name: Enter a name for the bot.
Type: Reply Bot
System Prompt: Enter directions for the reply bot. Find examples in the following section.
Session Lifetime (Days): Enter the number of days of inactivity after which the bot’s session with a constituent should expire.
Select Save.
You’re brought to the reply bot’s overview page.
Creating a reply group
Reply groups create logical groupings of possible inputs and their associated replies.
Select New Reply Group.
Select Insert Reply.
Configure the following settings:
Start: Defaults to Initial Communication for the first reply group. Reply groups after the first can have Start values set to other reply groups, so you can chain groups together.
Name: Enter a name for the reply group.
Replies: For each reply you want to handle:
Reply Code: Enter the exact message, for example, YUP, required to trigger this reply.
Reply Message: Enter the message to be sent in response to the reply code, for example, Thanks for your RSVP! See you there!
Action: Select the process to be carried out. Options include:
Event Outreach Actions: RSVP Yes or RSVP No to a given event.
Inboxes: Select an inbox group to which you want to route the conversation upon receipt of a given response.
Reply Groups: Select a reply group to which you want to route the conversation upon receipt of a given response. Pair this setting with a corresponding value in the Start field of another reply group to chain them together.
Select Insert Reply to create as many replies as you want for the reply group.
Select Save.
Create as many reply groups as your process requires.
Chaining bots 🔗
A reply bot’s action can be set to another bot. This means that you can, for example, have an SMS campaign start with a reply bot and, if the recipient asks for more assistance, progress to an AI chat bot.
Or, you might go in the other direction: have a natural language bot route the recipient to a reply bot.
You might also create a nested experience by chaining reply bots or reply groups together.
Associating the reply bot with a communication
With the bot’s repertoire of replies ready to go, we just need to associate the bot with a communication.
Go to Deliver.
Select an existing SMS communication, or create a new one.
Select Edit Message.
Configure the following settings:
Reply Bot: Select the reply bot you’ve created.
Sender: Select a sender number. If you don’t see any, provision a new one.
Recipient: Add a recipient number or merge field.
Message: Enter the text content of the message. Include all permissible replies (that is, all of the reply codes we created earlier).
Select Save.
Actions are tracked in the mailing’s statistics.
Was this article helpful?
