A complete guide to Intercom Fin follow-up automations

Managing customer conversations is a complex task. Support agents juggle multiple tickets, sales reps chase leads, and marketers nurture prospects. In this fast-paced environment, follow-ups are crucial, but they often fall through the cracks. This is where Intercom's Fin Follow-up Automations come in.

Fin is Intercom’s powerful AI chatbot that can handle a significant portion of customer queries instantly. However, not every conversation can be resolved in a single interaction. Sometimes, customers need more time to respond, or agents need to gather more information. Fin Follow-up Automations are designed to bridge this gap, ensuring that no conversation is left behind.

How do Fin Follow-up Automations work?

Fin Follow-up Automations are a set of proactive, AI-driven rules that automatically re-engage customers or prompt agents when a conversation stalls. They are built on the principle of "proactive support," aiming to resolve issues and answer questions before they escalate.

Here’s a breakdown of how they function:

• Time-based triggers: You can set up automations to trigger after a specific period of inactivity. For example, if a customer hasn’t responded for 24 hours, an automation can send a gentle nudge.

• Context-aware messaging: The follow-up messages aren’t generic. Fin uses the context of the conversation to craft relevant and helpful follow-ups. It might ask, "Were you able to find the information you were looking for?" or "Do you have any other questions about our pricing?"

• Agent assignment: If a customer responds to a follow-up, the conversation can be automatically routed to the right agent or team, ensuring a seamless handover from AI to human support.

• Automatic closing: If a customer doesn't respond after a series of follow-ups, the conversation can be automatically closed, keeping your inbox clean and your metrics accurate.

Key benefits of using Fin Follow-up Automations

Integrating Fin Follow-up Automations into your workflow can bring a host of benefits to your team and your customers.

Improved customer satisfaction

Proactive follow-ups show customers that you value their time and are committed to resolving their issues. This small touch can significantly boost customer satisfaction and loyalty. Instead of feeling ignored, customers feel heard and supported throughout their journey.

Increased team efficiency

By automating the tedious task of following up, you free up your agents to focus on more complex and high-value conversations. This leads to increased productivity and less agent burnout. Your team can handle a higher volume of conversations without sacrificing quality.

Better lead conversion

For sales teams, timely follow-ups are the lifeblood of their pipeline. Fin Follow-up Automations can be used to re-engage leads that have gone cold, remind them of an upcoming demo, or answer any lingering questions. This can lead to a significant increase in conversion rates.

Cleaner data and reporting

Abandoned conversations can skew your support metrics, making it difficult to get an accurate picture of your team's performance. By automatically closing inactive conversations, Fin Follow-up Automations ensure that your data is clean and your reports are reliable.

Use cases for Fin Follow-up Automations

The versatility of Fin Follow-up Automations makes them applicable across various departments and scenarios.

Customer support

• Checking for resolution: After providing a solution, Fin can follow up to ensure the customer's issue is fully resolved. A simple, "Did that solution work for you?" can prevent repeat tickets and frustration.

• Gathering feedback: After a conversation is closed, an automation can be set up to request feedback on the support experience, helping you continuously improve your service.

Sales and marketing

• Nurturing leads: If a prospect asks about pricing but doesn’t sign up, Fin can follow up a few days later with a special offer or a link to a relevant case study.

• Onboarding new users: For new users, a series of automated follow-ups can guide them through the onboarding process, highlighting key features and offering help along the way.

Proactive engagement

• Re-engaging inactive users: If a user hasn't logged in for a while, a friendly follow-up can remind them of your product's value and encourage them to return.

• Announcing new features: Use automations to inform relevant user segments about new features they might find useful, driving adoption and engagement.

How to set up Fin Follow-up Automations

Setting up Fin Follow-up Automations in Intercom is a straightforward process. Here are the basic steps:

1. Navigate to Fin settings: In your Intercom dashboard, go to the Fin settings and find the section for automations.

2. Create a new rule: Click to create a new follow-up rule. You'll be prompted to define the trigger conditions.

3. Define triggers: Choose the conditions that will trigger the automation. This could be time since the last response, specific keywords in the conversation, or customer data like their subscription plan.

4. Craft your message: Write the follow-up message that will be sent to the customer. You can use variables to personalize the message with the customer's name or other details.

5. Set the action: Decide what happens after the follow-up is sent. This could be assigning the conversation to a specific team, adding a tag, or closing it if there's no reply.

6. Activate the rule: Once you're happy with your setup, activate the rule, and Fin will start automating your follow-ups.

Final thoughts

Fin Follow-up Automations are more than just a convenience; they are a powerful tool for building stronger customer relationships and driving business growth. By ensuring that no conversation falls through the cracks, you can deliver a consistently excellent experience that sets you apart from the competition. Whether you're in support, sales, or marketing, these automations can help you work smarter, not harder, and achieve better outcomes.