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Inbox & Handoff
The merchant-facing view that maintains continuity between AI-handled conversations and human responses. When AI identifies a situation requiring merchant judgement, the thread — with full context — is surfaced here.
The problem
When AI-handled conversations need human resolution, merchants often lose context — they see a new message without knowing what the AI already said. This causes repeated questions and inconsistent buyer experience.
Who uses it
- ·Merchants managing AI-assisted channels
- ·Teams where multiple people handle buyer conversations
- ·Sellers needing to respond to scope or pricing changes
- ·Businesses that want structured broadcast consent management
What it does
Specific functions
Full conversation context
Merchant sees everything AI said — not just the handoff trigger — before composing a response.
Handoff states
"AI handling", "Needs merchant response" and "With team member" are distinct, actionable states.
Response templates
Pre-approved message templates speed up common reply scenarios (scope change, quote update, confirm booking).
Manual takeover
Merchant can take over any AI-handling conversation at any time — not only after a handoff is triggered.
Escalation rules
Merchants can configure conditions that always trigger handoff (e.g. scope change mentions, refund requests).
Step-by-step scenario
Scope change mid-conversation — illustrative example
Illustrative example. All figures fictional.
1
AI handles initial enquiry
Buyer enquires about workspace photography. AI presents service details from catalogue. Booking request submitted and pending.
2
Buyer changes scope
Buyer: "Can we extend to 3 hours and add drone footage?" — AI identifies this as a scope change outside its approval.
3
Handoff triggered
AI notifies buyer: "I'm handing this to the team." Thread appears in merchant inbox with state: "Needs merchant response".
4
Merchant reviews context
Merchant sees full conversation including original booking, original service terms and buyer's scope request.
5
Merchant uses template and responds
Selects "Scope change" template. Edits to add drone addition price (₦15,000 illustrative). Sends updated quote.
6
Outcome
Buyer receives updated quote. State transitions to "With team member". Booking amended if buyer accepts.
Inbox illustration
Inbox
Buyer A
Needs response
Buyer B
AI handling
Buyer C
Resolved
Conversation · Buyer A
B
Buyer A · 10:42
I booked a 2-hour workspace shoot — can we extend it to 3 hours and add drone footage?
F
Flur AI · 10:42
I can see the booking details. The scope change and drone addition require merchant confirmation — I'm handing this over now.
Y
You · 10:44
Happy to extend. Drone adds ₦15,000 (illustrative). I'll send an updated quote.
RESPONSE TEMPLATES
Quote update
Scope change
Confirm booking
Request info
Controls, approvals and outcome states
AI handling
Conversation is progressing within AI capability. No merchant action required yet.
Needs merchant response
Handoff triggered. Merchant must review context and respond.
With team member
A specific team member has taken ownership of the thread.
Resolved
Conversation concluded. Archived with full message history.
How this differs from Conversational AI
Inbox & Handoff
- ✓Merchant-facing interface
- ✓Receives threads after handoff
- ✓Merchant reads context and responds
- ✓Supports template-based replies
Conversational AI
- –Buyer-facing response layer
- –Operates from catalogue data
- –No merchant involvement while handling
- –Triggers handoff when limit reached
Frequently asked questions
Can I see everything the AI said before the handoff?
Yes. The inbox shows the full conversation thread from the beginning — not just the message that triggered the handoff. Merchant responses are composed with full context visible.
Can I take over any conversation, not just handoffs?
Yes. Merchants can initiate a manual takeover of any AI-handling conversation at any time from the inbox.
Are broadcasts always allowed?
No. Broadcast messages are subject to channel consent rules and provider restrictions. Sending broadcast messages without proper consent or outside provider-permitted categories is not supported. Check your channel configuration.
Can multiple team members respond to the same thread?
Threads can be assigned to a specific team member to avoid duplicate responses. Assignment is shown in the inbox.
What happens if a merchant doesn't respond to a handoff?
The thread remains in 'Needs merchant response' state. Buyers may receive an auto-acknowledgment depending on your configuration, but the merchant must respond for the conversation to progress.
Related features
Keep conversations connected
Set up your inbox, configure handoff rules and respond with full context every time.
Try the demo