Use this article to have your AI agent answer text messages for you, choose when it hands a conversation to your team, and get more customers texting your Upfirst number.
When someone texts your agent's Upfirst number, the AI replies in about 3 seconds. It answers from the same training your agent uses on calls.
Important: The AI can only reply to texts sent to your agent's Upfirst number, from people who already texted or called it. If you forward calls from another number, texts sent to that number never reach Upfirst.
Before you start
Texting must be turned on for your account: your agent needs a local US or Canadian number, and the account owner needs to verify a mobile phone. See How to reply to texts from your Upfirst inbox.
How to turn on AI replies
Go to Agents, choose your agent, and open General.
Scroll down to Texting and turn on Reply to texts automatically. It's off by default, and you turn it on for each agent. Click Save settings when you're done.
How to choose when the AI hands off
The other settings in Texting control when the AI stops and gives the conversation to your team.
Setting | What it does | Default |
Reply to texts automatically | The AI replies when someone texts this agent's number. | Off |
Hand off to a person when needed | The AI stops replying and notifies you when a customer asks for a person, is upset, or has an emergency. | On |
Also hand off when… | Other situations where the AI should hand off, in your own words. Up to 1,000 characters. | Empty |
Handoff message | The text the customer gets when the AI hands off. Leave it empty to send nothing. | Empty |
Close inactive conversations | Closes a conversation when no one has texted in a while. Choose 12, 24, 48 or 72 hours under Close after. | On, 24 hours |
For example, a law firm might add: The customer asks about fees for their specific situation, or needs to reschedule a consultation.
How to get more customers texting your Upfirst number
The best way to start text conversations is to have your agent text callers during the call. Set up a text in Agents > Send texts and end it with an invitation to reply.
When the caller replies, the AI picks up the conversation. See How to use the "send texts" feature.
What the AI does with each text
For every text, the AI does one of three things:
Replies. It keeps replies short, usually one text and never more than three.
Closes the conversation. It can send a short goodbye.
Hands off to your team. You'll see Handed off to your team in the conversation, with a short note on what the customer needs. If you set a handoff message, the customer gets it.
Here the AI answers a simple question from your training:
And here it hands off a question that needs the attorney, then sends the handoff message:
How to find conversations that need you
In Inbox, click Filters. Under AI reply, choose:
Needs attention for conversations the AI handed off.
AI handling for conversations the AI is replying to.
You're handling for conversations where someone on your team replied and the AI is paused.
At the top of each conversation you'll see its status: AI on, AI paused (someone on your team replied), or Handed off. Paused and handed-off conversations stay with your team until someone clicks Resume AI.
Note:
AI replies count toward your free trial's 25 texts, including goodbyes and handoff messages.
To change what the AI knows, edit your agent's Training. The same training powers calls and texts.
Troubleshooting
The AI didn't reply to a text
The AI stops replying when:
Someone on your team replied in that conversation. Click Resume AI.
The AI handed off the conversation. Check Needs attention and click Resume AI.
The customer replied STOP, or you blocked the contact.
The AI already sent 20 replies to this person in the last hour.
Your free trial has no texts left. See Texting limits and rules.
The AI isn't answering texts sent to my business number
The AI only sees texts sent to your agent's Upfirst number. Call forwarding doesn't forward texts. Have your agent text callers during calls so they reply to your Upfirst number instead.