Building Your First Agent

Creating an agent takes 5 minutes. This guide walks you through each step with real examples.

What You'll Configure

Every agent needs these core settings:

Name & Role - What to call it and what it does
Instructions - How it should behave
Tone - Communication style
Autonomy Mode - How independently it operates
Escalation Rules - When to ask for help
Tools - What capabilities it can use

Step 1: Basic Information

Agent Name

Choose a descriptive name that reflects its purpose:

"Support Bot" - Clear and specific
"Sales Lead Qualifier" - Describes the function
"Billing Inquiries" - Domain-specific
"Bot 1" - Too generic

Role

Describe what the agent does in 1-2 sentences:

Example for Customer Support:

Customer Support Specialist who handles common questions about 
our products, provides troubleshooting steps, and escalates 
complex issues to the support team.

Example for Sales:

Sales Development Representative who qualifies inbound leads, 
answers product questions, and schedules demos with interested prospects.

Instructions

Write specific, detailed instructions for how the agent should behave. This is the most important field.

Good instructions are:

Specific and actionable
Include examples
Define boundaries
Mention tone and style

Example for Support Agent:

You are a friendly and helpful customer support specialist. Your job is to:

1. Answer common questions about our product features, pricing, and billing
2. Provide troubleshooting steps for technical issues
3. Be empathetic and patient with frustrated customers
4. Offer solutions before escalating

DO escalate to a human if:
- Customer mentions a refund or chargeback
- Issue is technical and you can't resolve it
- Customer is very angry or threatening
- Request is outside your knowledge

DO NOT:
- Promise features we don't have
- Offer discounts without approval
- Share internal information
- Make up information

Always be honest. If you don't know something, say so and escalate.

Step 2: Tone Selection

Choose how your agent communicates. Pick one:

Professional - Formal, business-like, respectful
"Thank you for contacting us. I'd be happy to assist you with your inquiry."

Friendly - Warm, approachable, conversational
"Hey! Thanks for reaching out. I'm here to help!"

Casual - Relaxed, informal, personable
"What's up! Let me help you sort this out."

Formal - Very professional, structured, official
"We acknowledge receipt of your inquiry and will respond accordingly."

Empathetic - Compassionate, understanding, supportive
"I understand how frustrating this must be. Let me help you resolve it."

Pro tip: Match your tone to your audience. Support agents are usually Friendly or Empathetic. Sales agents are often Professional or Friendly.

Step 3: Autonomy Mode

This controls how independently your agent sends emails.

Human in the Loop (Safest)

Agent creates draft responses
You review each one
You approve before sending
Best for: Getting started, complex domains, high-stakes emails

Semi-Autonomous (Balanced)

Agent sends after 2-minute delay
You can cancel before it sends
Good for: Routine emails, once you trust the agent
Best for: Support tickets, common questions

Full Auto (Fastest)

Agent sends immediately
No review step
Best for: High-volume, low-risk emails
Best for: Confirmations, simple responses

Recommendation: Start with Human in the Loop. After 50-100 emails, move to Semi-Auto. Only use Full Auto for routine, low-risk emails.

Step 4: Escalation Rules

Define when emails should be flagged for human review. This is critical.

How to Write Rules

Use natural language. The agent understands context:

Keyword-based:

Escalate if the email mentions: refund, lawsuit, legal, complaint, angry

Sentiment-based:

Escalate if the customer seems very angry or frustrated

Domain-based:

Escalate if the question is about pricing, contracts, or custom solutions

Priority-based:

Escalate if the sender is a VIP customer or enterprise client

Combination:

Escalate if:
- Customer mentions a refund AND the amount is over $500
- Email is from a VIP client
- Issue is technical and requires engineering knowledge
- Customer has escalated before on this topic

Example Escalation Rules

For Support Agents:

Escalate if:
- Customer mentions refund, chargeback, or legal action
- Customer is very angry or frustrated
- Issue requires technical/engineering knowledge
- Customer has been waiting more than 24 hours
- Request is for a feature we don't have

For Sales Agents:

Escalate if:
- Prospect asks for custom pricing or enterprise terms
- Prospect mentions a competitor
- Deal size is over $50,000
- Prospect asks about integrations we don't support
- Prospect is from a Fortune 500 company

Step 5: Enable Tools

Select which capabilities your agent needs:

Web Search

Agent can search the internet for information. Useful for:

Support agents answering questions
Sales agents researching prospects
Finding current information

Send Email

Agent can send emails. Always enabled for responding to customers.

Generate PDF

Agent can create PDFs. Useful for:

Invoices and receipts
Reports and summaries
Documentation

Generate Image

Agent can create images. Useful for:

Visual explanations
Diagrams and charts
Custom graphics

Integrations

Connect to external services:

Google Calendar - Schedule meetings
Google Contacts - Save contact information
Google Drive - Access documents
LinkedIn - Research prospects
Calendly - Check availability

Complete Example: Support Agent

Here's a full configuration for a customer support agent:

Name: Support Bot
Role: Customer Support Specialist

Instructions:

You are a friendly and helpful customer support specialist for Acme Corp.

Your responsibilities:
1. Answer questions about our products and services
2. Help customers troubleshoot common issues
3. Process refund requests (up to $100)
4. Escalate complex issues to the support team

Communication style:
- Be friendly and professional
- Use simple language
- Provide step-by-step instructions
- Always apologize for inconvenience
- Offer solutions, not excuses

DO escalate to a human if:
- Customer mentions legal action or lawsuit
- Customer is very angry or threatening
- Issue requires technical expertise
- Refund request is over $100
- Customer has contacted us 3+ times about the same issue

DO NOT:
- Promise features we don't have
- Offer discounts without approval
- Share customer data with third parties
- Make up information

If you don't know something, be honest and escalate.

Tone: Friendly
Autonomy Mode: Semi-Autonomous
Escalation Rules:

Escalate if:
- Customer mentions refund, lawsuit, or legal action
- Customer is very angry or frustrated
- Issue is technical or requires engineering knowledge
- Customer has contacted us more than twice about this issue
- Request is for a feature we don't have

Tools: Web Search, Send Email, Generate PDF

Testing Your Agent

Before going live:

Send test emails - See how it responds
Review drafts - Check quality and tone
Adjust instructions - Refine based on responses
Test edge cases - Try unusual scenarios
Monitor escalations - Ensure rules work correctly

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Vague instructions - "Be helpful" is too broad
Specific instructions - "Answer questions about billing, pricing, and features. Escalate technical issues."

No escalation rules - Agent might handle sensitive issues
Clear rules - "Escalate if customer mentions refund or legal action"

Too many tools - Slows down responses
Only needed tools - Enable what the agent actually needs

Full Auto immediately - High risk of mistakes
Start with Human in the Loop - Build confidence first

Generic tone - Doesn't match your brand
Consistent tone - Matches your company voice

Next Steps

Autonomy Modes - Deep dive into each mode
Escalation Rules - Advanced rule writing
Tools & Integrations - What your agent can do
FAQ - Common questions and troubleshooting

An agent is only as smart as the data it has access to. After creating your agent, make sure to attach relevant Knowledge Base documents.

You can upload PDFs, Word Docs, or link directly to your Help Center so the agent can reference your specific business rules and FAQs.

Building Agents