How to Automate Ticket Answering in LiveAgent with FlowHunt

Automating customer support responses can significantly improve your team’s efficiency while maintaining high-quality customer service. This comprehensive guide walks you through integrating FlowHunt’s AI-powered flows with LiveAgent’s automation system to create intelligent, automated ticket responses.

Overview

This integration allows you to:

• Automatically respond to incoming customer tickets
• Leverage AI to provide contextual, intelligent answers
• Reduce response times and improve customer satisfaction
• Free up your support team for complex issues

Prerequisites

Before starting, ensure you have:

• An active FlowHunt account with flow creation permissions
• LiveAgent administrator access
• Basic understanding of HTTP requests and JSON formatting

Step-by-Step Implementation

1. Create and Test Your FlowHunt Flow

First, build your automated response flow in FlowHunt:

1. Design Your Flow: Create a flow that can process ticket information and generate appropriate responses
2. Test Thoroughly: Use FlowHunt’s dashboard to validate that your flow responds correctly to various inputs
3. Optimize Performance: Ensure your flow handles edge cases and provides meaningful responses

2. Publish Your Flow

Make your flow accessible via API:

1. Navigate to your flow in the FlowHunt dashboard
2. Click the Publish button to make it publicly accessible
3. Important: Remember to republish whenever you make changes to your flow

3. Generate FlowHunt API Key

Secure API access is essential:

1. Go to your FlowHunt account settings
2. Navigate to the API Keys section
3. Generate a new API key specifically for LiveAgent integration
4. Security Note: Store this key securely and never expose it in client-side code

4. Configure LiveAgent Automation Rules

Navigate to LiveAgent’s automation system:

1. Open LiveAgent admin panel
2. Go to Configuration → Automation → Rules
3. Prepare to create a new automation rule

5. Create the Automation Rule

Set up the rule that will trigger your FlowHunt integration:

1. Click Create New Rule
2. Name your rule (e.g., “FlowHunt Auto-Response”)
3. Configure the trigger and conditions as outlined below

6. Set Rule Trigger

Configure when the rule should activate:

• Trigger: Select “When message group is added”
• This ensures the rule fires when new customer messages arrive

7. Define User Role Condition

Specify which users trigger the automation:

• Condition: User role equals “Customer”
• This prevents the rule from triggering on internal messages

8. Set Message Type Filter

Ensure the rule only applies to relevant message types:

• Condition: Message group type is “Incoming Email”
• Customize this based on your preferred communication channels

9. Configure HTTP Request Action

This is the core integration step:

9a. Construct the API URL

Use this URL format:

https://api.flowhunt.io/v2/flows/{flow_id}/invoke?workspace_id={workspace_id}

Replace:

• {flow_id}: Your specific FlowHunt flow identifier
• {workspace_id}: Your FlowHunt workspace identifier

9b. Set Request Method

• Method: POST

9c. Configure HTTP Headers

Add these essential headers:

Content-Type: application/json
Api-Key: YOUR_FLOWHUNT_API_KEY

Replace YOUR_FLOWHUNT_API_KEY with the key generated in step 3.

9d. Prepare Request Body

Use this JSON structure:

{
  "human_input": "{$conv_conversationid}"
}

This sends the ticket ID as input to your FlowHunt flow.

9e. Set Encoding

• Encoding: JSON Encoded

Testing Your Integration

Initial Testing

1. Create a Test Ticket: Send a test email to your LiveAgent system
2. Monitor Flow Execution: Check FlowHunt dashboard for flow invocations
3. Verify Response: Ensure the automated response appears in LiveAgent

Advanced Testing

• Test various ticket types and content
• Verify error handling when FlowHunt is unavailable
• Check response times and system performance

Best Practices

Security Considerations

• API Key Management: Rotate API keys regularly and restrict permissions
• Input Validation: Ensure your FlowHunt flow validates incoming data
• Rate Limiting: Monitor API usage to avoid exceeding limits

Performance Optimization

• Flow Efficiency: Keep your FlowHunt flows optimized for speed
• Conditional Logic: Use LiveAgent conditions to minimize unnecessary API calls
• Monitoring: Set up alerts for failed automation rules

Customer Experience

• Response Quality: Regularly review automated responses for accuracy
• Escalation Path: Ensure complex issues can still reach human agents
• Feedback Loop: Collect customer feedback on automated responses

Troubleshooting Common Issues

API Connection Problems

Issue: HTTP request fails or times out Solutions:

• Verify API key validity and permissions
• Check FlowHunt service status
• Ensure correct URL formatting

Incorrect Flow Responses

Issue: FlowHunt returns unexpected responses Solutions:

• Test flow independently in FlowHunt dashboard
• Verify input data format and content
• Check flow logic and conditions

Rule Not Triggering

Issue: LiveAgent automation rule doesn’t activate Solutions:

• Review rule conditions and triggers
• Check user roles and message types
• Verify rule is enabled and published

Advanced Configuration

Multiple Flow Integration

For complex support scenarios, consider:

• Creating different flows for different ticket categories
• Using LiveAgent conditions to route to appropriate flows
• Implementing fallback flows for edge cases

Custom Response Handling

Enhance your integration by:

• Processing FlowHunt response data in LiveAgent
• Adding custom fields based on AI analysis
• Implementing response confidence scoring

Monitoring and Maintenance

Regular Maintenance Tasks

• Monthly: Review automation rule performance metrics
• Weekly: Check FlowHunt flow accuracy and update as needed
• Daily: Monitor for failed API requests or errors

Performance Metrics

Track these key indicators:

• Automation rule success rate
• Average response time
• Customer satisfaction with automated responses
• Reduction in manual ticket handling

Conclusion

Integrating FlowHunt with LiveAgent creates a powerful automated customer support system that can handle routine inquiries while freeing your team to focus on complex issues. Regular monitoring and optimization ensure the system continues to provide value as your support needs evolve.

Remember to start with a limited scope, test thoroughly, and gradually expand the automation as you gain confidence in the system’s performance.