How can I train my AI agent and improve suggestions?

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</script><div class="accordion"><h3 id="h_01KTTM2GTGWZMAEQ17ED8SET2K">Step 1: Optimize your help center content</h3></div><div class="panel">
<p>Your help center is the crucial source of the content your AI agent uses.</p>
<p>To tailor your articles to answer questions from your customers:</p>
<h4 id="h_01KTBWVERZESDSFYQC0QZGCPJG">Ensure your articles are public</h4>
<ul>
<li data-list-item-id="ebc5beb75ed6a1367f01b067e587f2ec5">Generative responses are mostly based on <a href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/4408893875610-How-can-I-limit-access-to-articles" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">publicly accessible</a> help center articles</li>
<li data-list-item-id="e29811f1f1283d058a66ad72cafdf5cdd">Restricted articles require login and are thus less likely to be retrieved and surfaced, unless your developers set up <a href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/4411666638746-Understanding-and-setting-up-end-user-authentication-for-messaging" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">authentication within messaging</a> and ensure your end users are authenticated</li>
</ul>
<h4 id="h_01KTBVRTYM2YNDMGKFWXQM9CZD">Keep your articles up-to-date</h4>
<ul><li data-list-item-id="e04d5a7ea8a9d1226d92ed68539d2dc8f">Avoid outdated or unreliable information, which AI agents use</li></ul>
<h4 id="h_01KTBW4B618HSNH5W8A1FVM3RY">Follow writing and structuring principles to tailor your content for AI agents</h4>
<p>The full list is available from the article <a href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/4408845739162-Optimizing-your-knowledge-content-for-generative-AI#ariaid-title3" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Optimizing your knowledge content for generative AI</a>.</p>
<h4 id="h_01KW1QN0VDZM7JXPNV2N92FTQR">Analyze common questions to create help center articles</h4>
<ul><li data-list-item-id="e4077470be542bf768747e51b0c7d9d70">Use the <a href="https://www.zendesk.com/sg/marketplace/apps/support/1201465/voc-patterns/#georedirect" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Voice of Customer (VOC) Patterns app</a>. VOC Patterns uses Zendesk AI to identify and explain patterns in your solved and closed support tickets. This helps you uncover customer trends, common issues, and improvement opportunities without needing complex analytics or custom reporting.</li></ul>
</div><div class="accordion"><h3 id="h_01KTTKZ7DKPHAMATYEY6DSMCWN">Step 2: Optimize the AI agent experience</h3></div><div class="panel">
<div><div class="note">
<span class="notetitle"><strong>Note</strong>:</span> As of May 11, 2026, the distinction between <strong>Essential</strong> and <strong>Advanced</strong> AI agents was removed. All Zendesk Suite and Support plans now include access to a single, unified AI agent offering with advanced capabilities. Technical development for legacy functionality, including the Essential AI agent, ceases by August 31, 2026, with a full service shut-off scheduled for December 10, 2026. Migrate to the upgraded experience to avoid disruptions.</div></div>
<p>To improve the performance of your AI agent:</p>
<h4 id="h_01KTBVT8Z5TXZETHHM20495NY9">Create instructions</h4>
<ul><li data-list-item-id="e96fdd3ba053e0c4e0fbea1fc3c2a8813">
<a href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/9203004883994-Using-instructions-to-influence-AI-agent-responses" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Create instructions</a> to control your AI agent's behavior when responding to specific customer requests</li></ul>
<h4 id="h_01KTBVTC54TSPJC2EA8WC7N2KB">Analyze AI agent performance data</h4>
<ul>
<li data-list-item-id="e91b5adbac48845e08d56e4fc955cf580">
<a href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/6847708774554-Monitoring-AI-agent-performance-with-the-Insights-dashboard" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Analyze AI agent performance data</a> in <strong>Admin Center</strong>, go to <strong>AI</strong> &gt; <strong>AI Agents</strong> &gt; click the name of your AI agent and use the <strong>Insights</strong> tab to review unresolved conversations and question resolution rates</li>
<li data-list-item-id="e1476d17850f7ff155f6aa158eb23da3e">Access the Zendesk <a href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/4408838386842-Overview-of-the-Zendesk-AI-agents-dashboard" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">AI agents dashboard</a> in Analytics to monitor resolved and unresolved conversations, search terms asked, and article recommendation performance</li>
</ul>
<h3 id="h_01KSQ343F040TDQXSA3EBZEF6T">Unlocked agentic capabilities</h3>
<p>Access to the most advanced, agentic capabilities is expanded across all Zendesk Suite and Support plans. You can now deploy AI agents faster and deliver a more consistent experience across messaging, email, and voice channels.</p>
<h3 id="h_01KSQ2J7SQDSAJSERJA6TQ7FK1">Features</h3>
<ul>
<li data-list-item-id="ea498da9a744973ce3f55adab14077f53">Agentic reasoning and multi-step procedures</li>
<li data-list-item-id="ee4eddd8b55a0e04ae0206ae37b4f3de9">External API integrations</li>
<li data-list-item-id="e5623e6aa0decf9f39c9ed675def38698">Expanded knowledge sources: Connect multiple external knowledge bases</li>
<li data-list-item-id="e00b1a72b9dfc3426a7b9c41c29be1d8e">Custom topic recognition: Train the agent to recognize business-specific terminology</li>
<li data-list-item-id="eef03ea2727d5e8b56e4a242dd03dec36">Advanced analytics: Detailed performance metrics and conversation analysis</li>
</ul>
<h3 id="h_01KSQ2JG7ER624ERD8YC1EFT39">Key training metrics to monitor</h3>
<p>Track these metrics to measure AI agent performance:</p>
<h4 id="h_01KTBXSTZE5627SXG23BSVNA9A">Resolution metrics</h4>
<ul>
<li data-list-item-id="e43f66793b8383fd13454f96e5ff2c000">
<strong>Resolution rate</strong> measures conversations fully resolved by AI with a 60-80% metric target</li>
<li data-list-item-id="ef082c06aceeb304692fb65c4bbef9e8e">
<strong>Deflection rate</strong> measures tickets handled without a human agent with a 40-60% metric target</li>
<li data-list-item-id="e79c805081c8b8e4f9d718cea79d141ec">
<strong>Answer accuracy</strong> measures correct answers provided with an 85-95% metric target</li>
<li data-list-item-id="e9e2a2cd0fe5724fc7b91f0dc13c993ae">
<strong>Confidence score</strong> measures AI's confidence in suggestions with a 70-90% metric target</li>
</ul>
<h4 id="h_01KTVMWQ74ECYPZ2XTDK53NGRS">Engagement metrics</h4>
<ul>
<li data-list-item-id="e4f295685884f7bdf8a3ade652a9c92aa">
<strong>Conversation length</strong> measures the average turns per conversation, optimize for 3-5 turns</li>
<li data-list-item-id="eaf81e63d4b24b9d8f1fefbf6ee0ccacd">
<strong>User satisfaction</strong> measures CSAT from AI conversations, optimize for 4.0+ out of 5.0</li>
<li data-list-item-id="ecda965addca6cbec19f90349cdc9f5c0">
<strong>Escalation rate</strong> measures conversations transferred to humans, optimize for 20-40%</li>
<li data-list-item-id="e6ab18639e522b025b8d84fa0f1b91418">
<strong>Repeat contact rate</strong> measures how many times a customer repeatedly reached out</li>
</ul>
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