Managing Conversations
Every conversation in Fyncall follows a lifecycle — from the moment a customer reaches out, through AI handling and human involvement, all the way to resolution. This guide walks you through every action you can take along the way.
Conversation Lifecycle
Conversations move through distinct stages. Here is an overview of the full lifecycle:
Here is what each stage means:
| Stage | What's Happening |
|---|---|
| AI Mode | Fyncall's AI agent is handling the conversation automatically |
| Escalation | The AI has flagged the conversation for human review |
| Human Mode | A human agent is actively managing the conversation; the AI pauses |
| Snoozed | The conversation is deferred and will resurface at a scheduled time |
| Resolved | The conversation is marked as complete |
Claiming a Conversation
Claiming assigns an unassigned conversation to yourself without changing the AI/Human mode. This is useful when you want to own a conversation and receive notifications about it, while still letting the AI continue to respond.
How to claim:
- Open the conversation from any queue (Unassigned, Needs Agent, or a channel list).
- Click the Claim button in the conversation header.
- The conversation is now assigned to you, and you will receive all notifications for it.
Claiming is different from taking over. When you claim, the AI keeps responding. When you take over, the AI pauses and you respond directly.
What happens when you claim:
- You become the assigned agent for the conversation.
- You are automatically added as a watcher (see Watching a Conversation below).
- Any open support tickets linked to this conversation are also assigned to you.
- Your teammates will see your name on the conversation.
If the conversation is already assigned to someone else, only an admin can reassign it.
Taking Over from AI
When you need to step in and respond to a customer directly, you can take over the conversation from the AI.
How to take over:
- Open the conversation.
- Click the Take Over button in the conversation header.
- The conversation switches to Human Mode immediately.
What happens when you take over:
- The AI stops responding to this conversation until you release it.
- You become the assigned agent.
- You are automatically added as a watcher.
- A system message appears in the conversation timeline noting the takeover.
- Any open support tickets linked to the conversation are assigned to you.
- If the conversation is on the web widget, the customer will see that a human agent has joined.
If the conversation is already assigned to another agent, only an admin can take over. Non-admin agents will see a notice showing who currently owns the conversation.
Releasing to AI
When you have finished helping a customer or the issue no longer requires human attention, you can hand the conversation back to the AI.
How to release:
- Open the conversation you are handling.
- Click the Release to AI button in the conversation header.
- The conversation switches back to AI Mode.
What happens when you release:
- The AI resumes responding to customer messages.
- You are unassigned from the conversation.
- A system message appears in the timeline noting the release.
- Watchers of the conversation are notified.
Before releasing, Fyncall will let you know if there are open support tickets or pending follow-ups linked to the conversation, so you do not accidentally leave unfinished work behind.
Resolving a Conversation
When a customer's issue has been fully addressed, you can mark the conversation as resolved.
How to resolve:
- Open the conversation.
- Click the Resolve button in the conversation header.
- The conversation moves to the Resolved state.
What happens when you resolve:
- The conversation disappears from active queues and moves to the Resolved filter.
- A system message is added to the timeline.
- All watchers are notified.
- If a satisfaction survey (CSAT) is enabled, it may be sent to the customer.
You do not need to worry about losing a resolved conversation. If the customer sends a new message, the conversation automatically reopens — see When a Customer Messages a Resolved Conversation below.
Snoozing a Conversation
Sometimes you need to pause work on a conversation and come back to it later. Snoozing temporarily hides the conversation from your active queue and brings it back at the right time.
How to snooze:
- Open the conversation.
- Click the Snooze button.
- Choose when you want the conversation to resurface:
| Option | When It Comes Back |
|---|---|
| 1 hour | In one hour from now |
| 4 hours | In four hours from now |
| Tomorrow | Tomorrow at 9:00 AM |
| Next week | Next Monday at 9:00 AM |
| Next customer reply | As soon as the customer sends a new message |
What happens when you snooze:
- The conversation moves to the Snoozed view in your sidebar.
- It disappears from your active queues.
- When the snooze timer expires (or the customer replies), the conversation automatically returns to your active queue.
- A system message is added to the timeline.
If a customer sends a message while the conversation is snoozed, it unsnoozes immediately regardless of the timer, so you never miss an important reply.
To manually unsnooze a conversation:
- Go to the Snoozed view in your sidebar.
- Open the conversation.
- Click Unsnooze to bring it back to your active queue immediately.
Assigning to Teammates
You can assign a conversation to a specific teammate when the issue falls under their expertise or workload.
How to assign:
- Open the conversation.
- Click the Assign button (or the assigned agent name area) in the conversation header.
- Select the teammate you want to assign to from the dropdown.
- The conversation is transferred to them.
What happens when you assign:
- The selected teammate becomes the new assigned agent.
- They are automatically added as a watcher.
- A system message appears in the timeline noting the reassignment.
- Both the previous and new agents receive notifications.
- Any open support tickets linked to the conversation are also reassigned.
Non-admin agents can only assign conversations to themselves (self-assign). Admins can assign to any active team member.
Priority Levels
Every conversation has a priority level that helps you and your team focus on what matters most. Priority affects where conversations appear in the Needs Attention queue and how they are scored.
| Priority | When to Use |
|---|---|
| Normal | Standard conversations with no urgency |
| High | Important issues that should be addressed soon |
| Urgent | Time-sensitive problems requiring immediate attention |
How to change priority:
- Open the conversation.
- Click the priority indicator in the conversation header.
- Select Normal, High, or Urgent.
- A system message is added to the timeline noting the change.
Conversations marked High or Urgent are scored higher in the Needs Attention queue, so they appear at the top of the list for your team.
Watching a Conversation
Watching (also called "following") a conversation lets you stay informed about updates without being the assigned agent. Watchers receive notifications whenever key events happen — such as new messages, assignments, escalations, or resolutions.
How to watch:
- Open any conversation.
- Click the Watch (or Follow) button.
- You will now receive notifications for this conversation.
How to stop watching:
- Open the conversation you are watching.
- Click the Unwatch (or Unfollow) button.
When are you auto-added as a watcher?
You are automatically added as a watcher when you:
- Take over a conversation
- Claim a conversation
- Are assigned to a conversation
You can view all conversations you are watching from the Watching view in your sidebar under My Work.
Watching is separate from assignment. You can watch a conversation handled by the AI or by a teammate, without affecting who owns it.
When a Customer Messages a Resolved Conversation
Conversations in Fyncall are never truly "closed" from the customer's perspective. If a customer sends a new message after a conversation has been resolved:
- The conversation automatically reopens and returns to AI Mode.
- The AI begins handling the new message just like a fresh conversation.
- The conversation reappears in your team's active queues.
- The full message history from before the resolution is preserved.
This means you never need to worry about customers being unable to reach you after a conversation is resolved. They simply reply, and Fyncall picks right back up.
Similarly, if a snoozed conversation receives a customer reply, it unsnoozes automatically and returns to the assigned agent's active queue.
Quick Reference
Here is a summary of every conversation action and what it does:
| Action | What It Does | Who Can Do It |
|---|---|---|
| Claim | Assign to yourself without changing AI/Human mode | Any agent (if unassigned) |
| Take Over | Switch to Human Mode and assign to yourself | Any agent (if unassigned); admins can override |
| Release to AI | Switch back to AI Mode; AI resumes responding | Assigned agent or admin |
| Resolve | Mark conversation as complete | Assigned agent or admin |
| Snooze | Defer conversation until a specific time or next customer reply | Assigned agent or admin |
| Unsnooze | Bring a snoozed conversation back immediately | Assigned agent or admin |
| Assign | Transfer to a specific teammate | Admins (any agent); non-admins (self only) |
| Set Priority | Change to Normal, High, or Urgent | Assigned agent or admin |
| Watch | Follow a conversation for notifications | Any agent |
| Unwatch | Stop receiving notifications | Any agent |