Test and deploy your agent

Setting up Signals and Notifications

Setting up Signals and Notifications in Unless allows you to proactively engage with your customers by detecting important events and delivering timely messages inside your product. This combination helps you identify risks like churn early and respond with relevant interventions, improving customer retention and satisfaction.

understanding signals

Signals are the triggers that enable the Customer Agent to move from reactive to proactive support. They detect key events such as churn risk, buying intent, or quality issues by analyzing conversation content, usage patterns, and engagement data.

types of signals

There are three main categories of Signals, each aligned with different Moments in the Customer Agent:

• Risk signals: Identify potential problems like churn risk in Retention or satisfaction drops in Support.
• Intent signals: Detect readiness to buy or qualify leads in Expansion and Acquisition.
• Quality signals: Highlight negative feedback or unresolved questions to improve knowledge bases.

configuring signals

To set up Signals:

1. Navigate to Deploy > Signals in the dashboard.
2. Select the Moment you want to configure, such as Retention.
3. Enable default Signals like “Churn risk” or “Reduced usage.”
4. Review and adjust detection rules to fit your data and customer behavior.
5. Optionally, add custom rules using Audience membership or Living Context values for more precise targeting.

linking actions to signals

Signals can trigger linked actions such as:

• Notifications: Send proactive in-app messages to customers.
• Procedures: Offer automated customer actions when a Signal fires.
• Routing: Direct inquiries to the appropriate team members.

This linkage ensures that when a Signal condition is met, the right response happens automatically.

setting up notifications

Notifications are proactive, in-app messages delivered by the Customer Agent inside your product. They appear where customers already are, without requiring them to ask for help.

notification delivery surfaces

Notifications can appear in three places:

• A dedicated inbox inside the Customer Agent (beta).
• A badge on the AI button (beta) indicating new messages.
• Snackbar banners—small, dismissible strips shown on the screen.

creating notifications

To create a notification:

1. Go to Deploy > Notifications for the relevant Moment.
2. Click “New notification” and give it a descriptive name.
3. Define the trigger condition, typically linking it to a Signal or usage threshold.
4. Enable or disable the notification as needed.
5. Optionally, set frequency caps to avoid spamming customers (e.g., once per session or week).

best practices for notifications

• Use notifications to reach customers proactively when Signals detect issues or opportunities.
• Avoid using notifications for marketing emails or team alerts; those are handled separately.
• Preview notifications before going live to ensure they display correctly.

integrating signals and notifications for retention

For example, in the Retention Moment, you might enable Signals like “Churn risk language” or “Reduced usage.” When these Signals fire, you can link Notifications that nudge customers with helpful messages or offers inside your product. This approach helps you intervene before churn happens, preserving customer relationships with minimal manual effort.

conclusion

By setting up Signals and Notifications in Unless, you empower your Customer Agent to detect important customer events early and respond with timely, relevant messages inside your product. This proactive approach enhances customer experience, reduces churn, and supports your team with automated, intelligent interventions. Following the configuration steps and best practices ensures you get the most value from these powerful features.