Automate customer replies without losing your tone
Build a three-tier reply system where templates handle the routine and people handle the rest.
- Ten tier-one templates saved as quick replies
- A drafting prompt for order-specific questions
- A written escalation rule
Step 1 — Inventory your last 50 messages
Sort them into routine, order-specific and sensitive. The proportions tell you where automation actually helps.
Step 2 — Write ten routine templates
Hours, location, delivery cost, payment methods, stock, warranty, refunds policy, lead time, sizes, and how to order.
Step 3 — Add an assistant for tier two
Give it your context file and instruct it to draft, never to send, and never to state a price not on the list.
Step 4 — Write the escalation rule
- Any complaint goes to a person immediately.
- Any refund request is acknowledged by a person within an hour.
- Anything the assistant is unsure about goes to a person, not to a guess.
We document the operating procedures, automations and templates that let a small team behave like a large one.
More from this desk →Keep reading
Guide to customer service automation
Automating speed and consistency while keeping judgement, apology and escalation firmly human.
WhatsApp customer service templates for small teams
Reusable replies for delays, complaints, refunds and after-sales check-ins that keep your tone consistent.
Use ChatGPT for customer support drafting
Set up a support drafting workflow with guardrails so replies stay accurate and on-brand.