Creating dialogues to define scripted conversation flows for AI agents

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<p id="docs-hc-snippet" style="display: none;">Thedialogue builderis where you create conversation flows, or dialogues, for your AI agents. Adialogueis a scripted conversation flow that uses branching logic to determine an AI agent's responses and actions during a conversation with a customer.</p>
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<p class="p">The <em class="ph i">dialogue builder</em> is where you create conversation flows, or dialogues, for
your AI agents. A <em class="ph i">dialogue</em> is a scripted conversation flow that uses branching
logic to determine an AI agent's responses and actions during a conversation with a
customer.</p>
<p class="p">Each dialogue is linked to a specific <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/9624068102682" target="_blank">reply</a>, and each reply is in turn linked to a <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/9041901679130" target="_blank">use case</a>.</p>
<p class="p">This article contains the following topics: </p>
<ul class="ul" id="using_the_dialogue_builder_to_create_conversation_flows_for_advanced_ai_agents__ul_pl4_gzm_g2c">
<li class="li"><a class="xref" href="#topic_ygq_4ym_g2c">Creating a new dialogue</a></li>
<li class="li"><a class="xref" href="#topic_krz_vym_g2c">Available block types</a></li>
</ul>
<p class="p">Related articles: </p>
<ul class="ul" id="using_the_dialogue_builder_to_create_conversation_flows_for_advanced_ai_agents__ul_egk_gzm_g2c">
<li class="li"><a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/9066753203738" target="_blank">Managing conversation flows in the dialogue
builder for AI agents</a></li>
<li class="li"><a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/8357751731610" target="_blank">Best practices for conversation design for AI
agents</a></li>
</ul>
</div>
<div aria-labelledby="ariaid-title2" class="topic nested1" id="topic_ygq_4ym_g2c">
<h2 class="title topictitle2" id="ariaid-title2">Creating a new dialogue</h2>
<div class="body">
<p class="p">In the dialogue builder, you can create a dialogue that contains the conversation
flow your AI agent should follow when interacting with a customer. </p>
<p class="p">You can create new dialogues in the following types of AI agents:</p>
<ul class="ul" id="topic_ygq_4ym_g2c__ul_zs4_m4j_lkc">
<li class="li">Messaging AI agents with <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/8966284087066" target="_blank">agentic AI</a>
</li>
<li class="li">
<a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/6970583409690#topic_y13_cgb_2jc" target="_blank">Zero-training</a> messaging AI agents</li>
<li class="li">Zero-training email AI agents</li>
</ul>
<div class="p">
<div class="note" id="topic_ygq_4ym_g2c__note_jn2_j4j_lkc">
<span class="notetitle">Note:</span> Email AI agents with agentic AI use a dialogue for the
Escalation reply <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/8357749481882#topic_edj_gnp_xfc" target="_blank">system reply</a>, but all other use cases
for this type of AI agent must use a <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/8979864563610" target="_blank">generative procedure</a> instead.</div>
</div>
<div class="p">
<strong class="ph b">To create a dialogue</strong><ol class="ol">
<li class="li"><span class="ph">In the AI agents workspace, <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/8357756913178#topic_t25_qvj_tdc" target="_blank">select the AI agent</a> you want to work
with.</span></li>
<li class="li"><span class="ph">Click <img class="image" id="topic_ygq_4ym_g2c__image_tkt_4xf_y3c" src="https://zen-marketing-documentation.s3.amazonaws.com/docs/en/ai_agents_content_icon.png">
<strong class="ph b">Content</strong> in the sidebar, then select <strong class="ph b">Use cases</strong>.</span></li>
<li class="li">Select the use case you want to create a dialogue for.</li>
<li class="li">Select the <strong class="ph b">Replies</strong> tab.</li>
<li class="li">Click <strong class="ph b">Add reply</strong>.<p class="p">The dialogue builder opens.</p>
<p class="p"><img class="image" id="topic_ygq_4ym_g2c__image_bqx_kkn_g2c" src="https://zen-marketing-documentation.s3.amazonaws.com/docs/en/ai_agents_dialogue_builder_example.png" width="600"></p>
<p class="p">To move around within the
dialogue builder, click and drag an empty area. To zoom in and out, use
the plus (+) and minus (-) icons in the top-right corner, or press CTRL
and scroll the mouse wheel.</p>
</li>
<li class="li">In the <strong class="ph b">AI agent message</strong> block that is always populated at the start
of a new dialogue, enter the text that your AI agent should greet a customer
with.</li>
<li class="li">To add additional message blocks, click the plus (+) icon.<p class="p">You can add
them before or after the initial AI agent message block, or anywhere
else the plus icon (+) appears. To learn more about the available
message blocks, see <a class="xref" href="#topic_krz_vym_g2c">Available block types</a>. </p>
</li>
<li class="li">To manage an added block, hover your mouse over the block, select the
options menu (<img class="image" height="14" id="topic_ygq_4ym_g2c__image_e5j_sln_g2c" src="https://zen-marketing-documentation.s3.amazonaws.com/docs/en/macros_edit_menu_icon_vertical.png" width="5">), and select one of the
following options:<ul class="ul" id="topic_ygq_4ym_g2c__ol_wdv_zbm_52c">
<li class="li">
<strong class="ph b">Collapse branch</strong>: Collapses the branch starting with the
selected block to make the overall dialogue easier to see. </li>
<li class="li">
<strong class="ph b">Move</strong>: Allows you to select another block to move the selected
block underneath. </li>
<li class="li">
<strong class="ph b">Copy</strong>: Copies the selected block and the branch it begins, if
applicable. </li>
<li class="li">
<strong class="ph b">Paste block</strong>: Pastes a copied block underneath the selected
block. </li>
<li class="li">
<strong class="ph b">Paste branch</strong>: Pastes a copied branch underneath the selected
block. </li>
<li class="li">
<strong class="ph b">Actions</strong>: Allows you to copy, paste, or remove an action
associated with the selected block. See <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/8357756623770#h_01JFDGYY1WPV42FCQ7KS3XAPVS" target="_blank">Creating and adding actions for
AI agents</a> for more information about actions at the block
level. </li>
<li class="li">
<strong class="ph b">Delete</strong>: Allows you to delete the selected block or the branch
starting with the selected block. </li>
</ul>
</li>
<li class="li">To link a block to another block, click the link icon (<img class="image" height="16" id="topic_ygq_4ym_g2c__image_hl2_cmn_g2c" src="https://zen-marketing-documentation.s3.amazonaws.com/docs/en/sell_icon_link.png" width="16">) underneath a block and
then select the block you want the first block to link to.<div class="note" id="topic_ygq_4ym_g2c__note_ync_bcm_52c">
<span class="notetitle">Note:</span> A customer message block can’t be linked to
another customer message block. </div>
</li>
<li class="li">To validate that all blocks are correctly configured, click the options menu
(<img class="image" id="topic_ygq_4ym_g2c__image_pf4_k11_52c" src="https://zen-marketing-documentation.s3.amazonaws.com/docs/en/macros_edit_menu_icon_vertical.png">) and select <strong class="ph b">Validate dialogue</strong>.</li>
<li class="li">To <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/8357758879130" target="_blank">test the dialogue</a> without
affecting the live AI agent, do either of the following:<ul class="ul" id="topic_ygq_4ym_g2c__ul_dt3_s1c_jfc">
<li class="li">Test the entire dialogue by clicking <strong class="ph b">Test dialogue</strong> in the
upper-right.</li>
<li class="li">Test a specific branch of the dialogue by hovering over the block
you want to start from and clicking the icon (<img class="image" id="topic_ygq_4ym_g2c__image_mlk_2vm_3fc" src="https://zen-marketing-documentation.s3.amazonaws.com/docs/en/aiaa_dialogue_builder_test_branch_icon.png" width="20">).</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li class="li">To save your progress without affecting the live AI agent, click either of
the following:<ul class="ul" id="topic_ygq_4ym_g2c__ol_ak4_hb5_z2c">
<li class="li">
<strong class="ph b">Save</strong>: Saves your changes.</li>
<li class="li">
<strong class="ph b">Save with note</strong>: Saves your changes and allows you to include
a note about what you changed. This information can be viewed in the
<a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/9066753203738#topic_tyw_5zt_z2c" target="_blank">Version history</a> pane. No
logic check is performed when saving as a draft. If multiple people
are working on the same dialogue at the same time, the person who
saves last overwrites everything.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li class="li">To make your changes live to customers interacting with the AI agent, click
either of the following:<ul class="ul" id="topic_ygq_4ym_g2c__ol_zqw_4b5_z2c">
<li class="li">
<strong class="ph b">Publish</strong>: Publishes your changes.</li>
<li class="li">
<strong class="ph b">Publish with note</strong>: Publishes your changes and allows you to
include a note about what you changed. This information can be
viewed in the <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/9066753203738#topic_tyw_5zt_z2c" target="_blank">Version history</a> pane.<p class="p">A
logic check happens at this time. If you can't publish, fix any
errors highlighted in red.</p>
</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ol>
</div>
<div class="p">
<div class="note" id="topic_ygq_4ym_g2c__note_kk5_sb5_z2c">
<span class="notetitle">Note:</span> In the <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/9066753203738#topic_tyw_5zt_z2c" target="_blank">Version history</a> pane, you can add,
edit, or delete the notes a customer entered when they saved or published a
version of the dialogue.</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<div aria-labelledby="ariaid-title3" class="topic nested1" id="topic_krz_vym_g2c">
<h2 class="title topictitle2" id="ariaid-title3">Available block types</h2>
<div class="body">
<p class="p">Block types define where a customer goes next within the conversation flow, including
what information is asked for and expected.</p>
<div class="p">
<div class="tablenoborder">
<table border="1" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="0" class="table" frame="border" id="topic_krz_vym_g2c__table_wmd_yym_g2c" rules="all" summary="">
<colgroup>
<col>
<col>
</colgroup>
<tbody class="tbody">
<tr class="row">
<td class="entry nocellnorowborder" dir="ltr" style="vertical-align:top;"><strong class="ph b">Block type</strong></td>
<td class="entry cell-norowborder" dir="ltr" style="vertical-align:top;"><strong class="ph b">Description</strong></td>
</tr>
<tr class="row">
<td class="entry nocellnorowborder" dir="ltr" style="vertical-align:top;">AI agent message</td>
<td class="entry cell-norowborder" dir="ltr" style="vertical-align:top;">This is a scripted message that the AI agent should
say. If you’ve <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/10050437105946#topic_yf3_1gk_jhc" target="_blank">activated rich
messaging</a>, this block type supports HTML and Markdown
formatting.</td>
</tr>
<tr class="row">
<td class="entry nocellnorowborder" dir="ltr" style="vertical-align:top;">Customer message</td>
<td class="entry cell-norowborder" style="vertical-align:top;">
<p class="p" dir="ltr">This is where you define how the customer might
respond to an AI agent and how the dialogue should progress
based on that response. Cannot be the first block in a
dialogue.</p>
<p class="p" dir="ltr">For more information, see <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/9060613203610" target="_blank">Using the Customer
message block in conversation flows for AI
agents</a>.</p>
<div class="p" dir="ltr">
<div class="note" id="topic_krz_vym_g2c__note_atk_mpz_t2c">
<span class="notetitle">Note:</span> It's not possible to have two
consecutive customer messages.</div>
</div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr class="row">
<td class="entry nocellnorowborder" dir="ltr" style="vertical-align:top;">Generative replies</td>
<td class="entry cell-norowborder" dir="ltr" style="vertical-align:top;">This is an AI-generated response to a customer's
message. <p class="p">For more information, see <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/8357749315098" target="_blank">About the Generative
replies block in conversation flows for AI
agents</a>.</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr class="row">
<td class="entry nocellnorowborder" dir="ltr" style="vertical-align:top;">Conditional</td>
<td class="entry cell-norowborder" dir="ltr" style="vertical-align:top;">This is a way to personalize responses in a
dialogue based on certain conditions, including parameters and
segments.<p class="p">For more information, see <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/8357733406234" target="_blank">About conditional blocks
in conversation flows for AI agents</a>.</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr class="row">
<td class="entry nocellnorowborder" dir="ltr" style="vertical-align:top;">Integration or action flow</td>
<td class="entry cell-norowborder" dir="ltr" style="vertical-align:top;">This is a way to connect to business-specific
services to retrieve information that can be used during the
conversation (for example, retrieving order status information
from a logistics provider). Available only if you have <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/sections/8264334170906" target="_blank">integrations
implemented</a>.</td>
</tr>
<tr class="row">
<td class="entry nocellnorowborder" dir="ltr" style="vertical-align:top;">Carousel</td>
<td class="entry cell-norowborder" dir="ltr" style="vertical-align:top;">This is a rich messaging type for displaying up to
10 different options with a visual card element. Available only
for certain CRMs and channels. Not available for email AI
agents.<p class="p">For more information, see <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/8357749513370" target="_blank">Adding carousels in
conversation flows for AI agents</a>.</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr class="row">
<td class="entry nocellnorowborder" dir="ltr" style="vertical-align:top;">Link to</td>
<td class="entry cell-norowborder" style="vertical-align:top;">
<p class="p" dir="ltr">This is a way to pass customers between dialogues.
Must be the last block in a branch. Cannot be the first
block in a dialogue.</p>
<p class="p" dir="ltr">For example, you can create one escalation flow and
link to it from other dialogues instead of creating an
escalation flow as part of each individual dialogue. </p>
<p class="p" dir="ltr">From this block, you can select the reply
(dialogue) you want to link to. In the first field, select
the <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/9041901679130" target="_blank">use case</a> or <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/8357756562330" target="_blank">template</a> you want
to link to. In the second field, select the specific reply
you want to link to within the use case or template. </p>
<p class="p" dir="ltr">For messaging AI agents, you can select the
“Auto-select reply method” value in the second field. The
effect that this value has depends on the type of AI agent: </p>
<ul class="ul" id="topic_krz_vym_g2c__ul_mdp_k2z_y2c">
<li class="li" dir="ltr">For <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/8966284087066" target="_blank">agentic AI
agents</a>, this value checks the <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/9041911005850#topic_elk_mcf_52c" target="_blank">Reply method</a>
setting for the selected use case and, if that setting
is set to: <ul class="ul" id="topic_krz_vym_g2c__ul_s4z_l2z_y2c">
<li class="li" dir="ltr">Use a procedure, this value
automatically selects the generative procedure
linked to the use case. </li>
<li class="li" dir="ltr">Use a dialogue, this value
automatically selects the active dialogue for that
use case in the relevant language of the
conversation. </li>
</ul>
</li>
<li class="li" dir="ltr">For AI agents without agentic AI, this value
automatically selects the active dialogue for that use
case in the relevant language of the conversation.</li>
</ul>
<p class="p">Actions that link to another flow do not increase the <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/5352026794010#topic_m1n_sq4_jwb" target="_blank">automated resolution
count</a>.</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr class="row">
<td class="entry nocellnorowborder" dir="ltr" style="vertical-align:top;">Availability</td>
<td class="entry cell-norowborder" dir="ltr" style="vertical-align:top;">This is a way to respect your business's operating
hours during a conversation to manage customer expectations and
check for agent availability before escalating. Not available
for email AI agents.<p class="p">For more information, see <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/8357749686554" target="_blank">Setting operating hours
for AI agents</a>.</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr class="row">
<td class="entry row-nocellborder" dir="ltr" style="vertical-align:top;">Escalation</td>
<td class="entry cellrowborder" dir="ltr" style="vertical-align:top;">This is how you define the escalation path to a
human agent, including the message the AI agent sends to the
customer and whether the escalation uses the messaging or email
channel. Must be the last block in a branch.<p class="p">For more
information, see <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/8357756604186" target="_blank">About escalation
strategies and flows for AI agents</a>.</p>
</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
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