Channel deployment is a feature for quickly integrating chatbots. You can deploy chatbots on web pages to provide an Instant Messaging (IM) chat interface. This feature supports various operational tools, such as cards and templates, to enrich the chat home page and enable quick integration with customer websites. Support for other deployment methods, such as WeChat and Alipay, will be added in the future.
Features
You can use channel configuration to customize your IM chat channels. Both PC and H5 versions are supported. You can attach the channel to a page as a widget or provide a direct link for users to start a chat.
Channel deployment supports three service patterns:
Bot only: The chatbot handles all customer interactions. Conversations cannot be transferred to a human agent.
Agent only: No chatbot is involved. Customers are connected directly to a human agent.
Bot and agent: The chatbot handles initial interactions. Conversations can be transferred to a human agent.
If you enable a chatbot, you can use the bot and agent pattern for a hybrid service.
Channel management in the Cloud Customer Service System
After you enable the workbench, you can navigate to the Channel Management page to configure and create channels. Click a channel configuration to view the corresponding channel instance.
You must select a channel instance before managing channels. A single channel instance can support multiple channels. If you enable the chatbot feature for an instance, you can use a hybrid service pattern where bots and agents work together. You can activate one or more channel instances to use this shared service model.
Entry Point
Click Channels to view the list of channel instances. Click an instance to open its configuration page. If you have a chatbot enabled for the instance, you are redirected to the chatbot channel configuration page to complete the setup.
Create a new channel
Click Create Channel Application and enter a name to create a new channel. You can create multiple channels, attach them to different chatbots, and deploy them to different locations.
A channel is not active until you configure required information, such as the chatbot and perspective.
Configure the service pattern
Click Service Pattern to select a service pattern.
Configure the service interface
In Channel Management, you can configure the service interface to create a personalized experience. The configuration items include the following:
Top title, input box placeholder text, bot profile picture, and welcome message: After you configure these styles, a real-time preview appears on the right. You must provide an accessible image URL for all images. Image uploads are not currently supported.
Redirection URL: Configure a URL that users are redirected to when they click the link.
Suggested questions configuration: Configure suggested questions. A card with these questions automatically appears when a user enters the chat interface.
Quick replies, skill cards, activity templates, and category module configuration: Configure different card formats for the home page to quickly build a personalized interface.
Pinned announcements, FAQ, and Developer Tools configuration: Configure pinned announcements and operational widgets. After configuration, modules such as announcements and FAQs appear on the interface to enrich its appearance.
Configure the chatbot
A channel must be attached to a chatbot to become active. After you attach a chatbot, all question and answer (Q&A) pairs in the channel use that chatbot's knowledge base. You must also configure a perspective, which the channel uses to filter answers. You can configure multiple perspectives to provide different answers for different scenarios.
Configure agent skill groups
Channels support the configuration of agent skill groups. In the agent service settings, you can select a skill group that you have already configured in the Cloud Customer Service System. Currently, you can configure only one skill group per channel.
Configure channel deployment
You can generate different deployment links for a channel. When a user clicks a link, they are taken directly to the channel interface. You can also customize the interface name that appears in the browser tab.
Channels support multiple connection types, such as WeChat H5, Alipay H5, standalone interface, and floating widget. Choose the connection type that best suits your needs. For more information, see Channel Deployment Methods.