Escalation Path Design (Onboarding)
A checklist with 7 steps: Map the client's top 20 inbound question types before configuring any bot flow.
By InnovaAI ResearchPublished
What are the steps?
Escalation Path Design (Onboarding)
- 01
Map the client's top 20 inbound question types before configuring any bot flow
Pull 90 days of chat transcripts, support tickets, and email threads, then tag each by intent. This baseline determines which intents the bot owns outright and which route to a person.
- 02
Define the three escalation triggers in writing: confidence threshold, sentiment signal, and explicit request
A confidence floor near 0.7, a frustration keyword list, and any variation of 'talk to a human' should each force a handoff. Document the exact trigger values in the client-facing scope so nobody negotiates them mid-campaign.
- 03
Assign named human owners per channel and per business hours window
Platforms like Social Intents route conversations into Microsoft Teams, Slack, or Google Chat, so the owner list must match the client's actual staffing, not a generic queue. An unowned escalation is worse than no bot.
- 04
Write the after-hours script and the fallback capture form
When no agent is available, the bot should collect name, contact method, and issue summary, then confirm a response window. State the window in hours, not 'shortly'.
- 05
Test every escalation path with at least 10 scripted adversarial prompts
Include prompt-injection attempts, competitor questions, pricing pressure, and profanity. Record which prompts the bot answered when it should have handed off, then tighten guardrails before go-live.
- 06
Set the handoff SLA and put it in the retainer agreement
A common agency standard is a first human reply within 5 minutes during business hours and within 12 hours outside them. If the client cannot staff that, the bot's scope shrinks accordingly.
- 07
Log the escalation design in a one-page client sign-off document
Include trigger values, owner names, hours of coverage, and the SLA. This page becomes the reference when a client later asks why the bot 'did not just answer' a sensitive question.