We will be winding down Google Business Messages on July 31, 2024. Read more
here.
The Business Messages Helper Bot
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The Business Messages Helper Bot lets you quickly start a conversation with your
agent so you can experience what the platform has to offer. Enabling the Helper
Bot is optional but highly recommended when creating your first agent.
The Helper Bot allows you to do the following:
- Explore rich features
- Learn how to implement features
- Find resources for agent setup
When the Helper Bot is enabled, it sends and receives messages for your agent;
no webhook is required.
Since the Helper Bot handles the messaging flow, it must be disabled
before you can do any of the following:
Enable the Helper Bot
You can enable the Business Messages Helper Bot during or after agent creation.
The Helper Bot is enabled by default when creating your first agent.
To enable the Helper Bot during agent creation, see Create the agent.
To enable the Helper Bot after agent creation, follow these steps:
- Open the Business Communications Developer
Console.
- Select your agent.
- In the left navigation, click Integrations.
- For Helper Bot, click Enable.
Start a conversation with the Helper Bot
Once you've enabled the Business Messages Helper Bot for your agent, you can
have a conversation with it.
- If you enabled the Helper Bot after agent creation, follow the steps in
Test an agent.
- If you enabled the Helper Bot during agent creation, a dialog opens
immediately to help you start the conversation. Take the following steps
from this dialog:
Access the agent's test URLs. There are a few ways you can do this:
- Click the Android button or iOS button. Then scan the QR code
with the corresponding mobile device and click Launch.
Alternatively, click Copy Android URL or Copy iOS URL to copy
the agent's test URL.
- Click Send to send the URLs to your email address.
Open the URL in your mobile device. (iOS devices require the
Google Maps
app.)
Disable the Helper Bot
To customize your agent so it can be verified
and launched,
you need to disable the Business Messages Helper Bot first.
To disable the Helper Bot,
- Open the Business Communications Developer
Console.
- Select your agent.
- In the left navigation, click Integrations.
- For Helper Bot, click Disable.
When the Helper Bot is disabled, Business Messages sends user messages to your
webhook.
Next steps
Now that you've explored the Business Messages features, you can start
developing your agent.
Except as otherwise noted, the content of this page is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License, and code samples are licensed under the Apache 2.0 License. For details, see the Google Developers Site Policies. Java is a registered trademark of Oracle and/or its affiliates.
Last updated 2024-11-14 UTC.
[[["Easy to understand","easyToUnderstand","thumb-up"],["Solved my problem","solvedMyProblem","thumb-up"],["Other","otherUp","thumb-up"]],[["Missing the information I need","missingTheInformationINeed","thumb-down"],["Too complicated / too many steps","tooComplicatedTooManySteps","thumb-down"],["Out of date","outOfDate","thumb-down"],["Samples / code issue","samplesCodeIssue","thumb-down"],["Other","otherDown","thumb-down"]],["Last updated 2024-11-14 UTC."],[[["\u003cp\u003eThe Business Messages Helper Bot allows you to quickly experience the platform's features and learn implementation without needing a webhook.\u003c/p\u003e\n"],["\u003cp\u003eIt provides a guided exploration of rich features, implementation techniques, and helpful resources for agent setup.\u003c/p\u003e\n"],["\u003cp\u003eBefore launching your agent, the Helper Bot must be disabled to enable webhook integration, Dialogflow handling, and agent verification.\u003c/p\u003e\n"],["\u003cp\u003eYou can enable or disable the Helper Bot through the Business Communications Developer Console within your agent's integration settings.\u003c/p\u003e\n"],["\u003cp\u003eOnce you've explored the features, you can proceed to set up a webhook and customize your agent for launch.\u003c/p\u003e\n"]]],[],null,["# The Business Messages Helper Bot lets you quickly start a conversation with your\nagent so you can experience what the platform has to offer. Enabling the Helper\nBot is optional but highly recommended when creating your first agent.\n\nThe Helper Bot allows you to do the following:\n\n- Explore rich features\n- Learn how to implement features\n- Find resources for agent setup\n\n\nWhen the Helper Bot is enabled, it sends and receives messages for your agent;\nno webhook is required.\n\nSince the Helper Bot handles the messaging flow, it must be [disabled](/business-communications/business-messages/guides/how-to/agents/helper-bot#disable_the_helper_bot)\nbefore you can do any of the following:\n\n- [Set a webhook](/business-communications/business-messages/guides/how-to/agents?method=console#webhook)\n- [Use Dialogflow](/business-communications/business-messages/guides/how-to/integrate/dialogflow) to handle user messages\n- [Verify](/business-communications/business-messages/guides/how-to/verify) your agent\n- [Launch](/business-communications/business-messages/guides/how-to/launch/agents) your agent\n\nEnable the Helper Bot\n---------------------\n\nYou can enable the Business Messages Helper Bot during or after agent creation.\nThe Helper Bot is enabled by default when [creating your first agent](/business-communications/business-messages/guides/quickstarts/echo-agent#create_a_brand_and_an_agent).\n| **Caution:** If you already set up a [welcome message](/business-communications/business-messages/guides/how-to/agents/begin-conversation#welcome-message) or [conversation starters](/business-communications/business-messages/guides/how-to/agents/begin-conversation#conversation_starters) for your agent, the Business Messages Helper Bot will overwrite them.\n\nTo enable the Helper Bot during agent creation, see [Create the agent](/business-communications/business-messages/guides/how-to/agents?method=console#create_the_agent).\n\nTo enable the Helper Bot after agent creation, follow these steps:\n\n1. Open the [Business Communications Developer\n Console](https://business-communications.cloud.google.com?utm_source=/business-communications/business-messages/guides/how-to/agents/helper-bot&utm_medium=devsite&utm_campaign=business-messages).\n2. Select your agent.\n3. In the left navigation, click **Integrations**.\n4. For **Helper Bot** , click **Enable**.\n\nStart a conversation with the Helper Bot\n----------------------------------------\n\nOnce you've enabled the Business Messages Helper Bot for your agent, you can\nhave a conversation with it.\n\n- If you enabled the Helper Bot after agent creation, follow the steps in [Test an agent](/business-communications/business-messages/guides/how-to/agents?method=console#test-agent).\n- If you enabled the Helper Bot during agent creation, a dialog opens immediately to help you start the conversation. Take the following steps from this dialog:\n\n1. Access the agent's test URLs. There are a few ways you can do this:\n\n - Click the **Android** button or **iOS** button. Then scan the QR code with the corresponding mobile device and click **Launch** . Alternatively, click **Copy Android URL** or **Copy iOS URL** to copy the agent's test URL.\n - Click **Send** to send the URLs to your email address.\n2. Open the URL in your mobile device. (iOS devices require the\n [Google Maps](https://apps.apple.com/us/app/google-maps-transit-food/id585027354)\n app.)\n\nDisable the Helper Bot\n----------------------\n\nTo customize your agent so it can be [verified](/business-communications/business-messages/guides/how-to/verify)\nand [launched](/business-communications/business-messages/guides/how-to/launch/agents),\nyou need to disable the Business Messages Helper Bot first.\n\nTo disable the Helper Bot,\n\n1. Open the [Business Communications Developer\n Console](https://business-communications.cloud.google.com?utm_source=/business-communications/business-messages/guides/how-to/agents/helper-bot&utm_medium=devsite&utm_campaign=business-messages).\n2. Select your agent.\n3. In the left navigation, click **Integrations**.\n4. For **Helper Bot** , click **Disable**.\n\nWhen the Helper Bot is disabled, Business Messages sends user messages to your\n[webhook](/business-communications/business-messages/guides/concepts/webhook).\n\nNext steps\n----------\n\nNow that you've explored the Business Messages features, you can start\ndeveloping your agent.\n\n- [Set a webhook](/business-communications/business-messages/guides/how-to/agents#webhook) so your agent can send and receive messages.\n- [Customize your agent information](/business-communications/business-messages/guides/how-to/agents#update-agent)."]]