Reply to clients manually¶

You can reply to a client yourself at any time, even if the assistant is already talking to them. When you write to them, the assistant stops replying to that client. This way the client doesn't get answers from both of you.

How to reply to a client manually¶

Open the client's chat in the WhatsApp Business app, or in WhatsApp Web, and write to them as you always do. You don't need to turn anything on.

What the assistant does after your message¶

• It stops replying to that client for 6 hours.
• If you send another message, the 6 hours start again.
• 6 hours after your last message, the assistant starts replying again on its own.
• With all your other clients, the assistant keeps replying as usual.
• You keep receiving the client's messages on WhatsApp as usual.

If the assistant was preparing a reply at the same moment you wrote, that reply is not sent.

What happens when the assistant starts replying again¶

In its first message, the assistant says again that it is a virtual assistant. This way the client knows they are no longer writing to you.

If the client had already talked to the assistant before you stepped in, the assistant also reads what you wrote to them. It doesn't change it and doesn't add anything.

Turn the assistant off for one client: /bot off and /bot on¶

You can turn the assistant off or on for a single client by sending a message in their chat.

How to write them:

• Write only the command in the message, with no other words. If you put it inside a sentence, the assistant doesn't recognise it: it treats it as a normal message from you and stops for 6 hours.
• Capital letters and spaces don't matter: /BOT OFF works too.
• If the client is in the list on the Contacts page, you'll see their switch change there.

Turn the assistant back on from the dashboard¶

On the Contacts page of the dashboard, a client you wrote to has their switch off during the 6-hour pause.

• Want the assistant to reply to them again right now? Turn the switch on.
• Do nothing? After 6 hours the switch turns on by itself.
• The AI FOR ALL button also turns all paused clients back on straight away.

If the client isn't in your Contacts list, you won't find them in the dashboard. In that case, write /bot on in their chat.

Tip: turn off the app's automatic messages¶

The WhatsApp Business app has two automatic messages: the greeting message and the away message. If you have turned them on, turn them off. The assistant already replies to your clients: with those messages, the client would get two answers.

Frequently asked questions¶

Do I need to do anything to stop the assistant when I write? No. Just write to the client: the assistant stops by itself.

Can I change the 6 hours? No. If you want the assistant to stay off longer with a client, write /bot off. When you want it back on, write /bot on.

If I react to a client's message, does the assistant stop? No. Reactions (for example a thumbs up), edited messages and deleted messages don't count. The assistant only stops when you send a message: text, photo, audio, video or document.

Is /bot on the same as the word "bot" in Google Contacts notes? No, they are two different things. The word bot in the notes of a Google contact turns the assistant on for that contact when you import it into Wably (see Contacts). /bot on and /bot off are written in the client's chat and work straight away.