> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://docs.clearfeed.ai/clearfeed-help-center/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://docs.clearfeed.ai/clearfeed-help-center/getting-started/getting-started-guides/for-customer-support/using-clearfeed-ticketing.md).

# Supporting Customers using ClearFeed Ticketing

This guide helps you set up ClearFeed's native ticketing system to manage customer conversations across Slack and MS Teams channels, Discord, Telegram, Email, Web Chat, and other channels.

## Sign Up & Connect

1. Go to [ClearFeed Web App](https://web.clearfeed.app/)
2. Sign up with **Google, Microsoft, or Email** (use your Slack workspace email)
3. During onboarding, select:
   * **Primary use case:** `Supporting Customers`
   * **How to use ClearFeed:** `Create & Manage Tickets in ClearFeed`
4. **Authorize ClearFeed** when prompted to connect to your Slack workspace

## Understanding Your Setup

After signing up, ClearFeed automatically configures multiple channels and sources where customers can create support tickets:

* **`#cf-request-channel`** - Slack channel where customers post questions and issues
* **`#cf-triage-channel`** - Slack channel where your support team manages tickets
* **Support Email** - Email address where customers can email to create tickets
* **Web Chat** - Chat widget for embedding on your website

<figure><img src="/files/hj8clqVyrTLfgYDJp7KX" alt="" width="250"><figcaption><p>New Account Collection and Customer Setup</p></figcaption></figure>

{% hint style="info" %}
**Note:** ClearFeed automatically posts a test request in `#cf-request-channel` and a test email ticket which are both visible in `#cf-triage-channel` during setup. These are great for trying out the workflow before adding real customer channels.
{% endhint %}

### Request Channel (`#cf-request-channel`)

Your **request channel** is where customers post questions and issues. When a message is posted:

* ClearFeed starts tracking this as a request
* The request syncs bi-directionally between the Customer channel and the Triage channel
* Depending on the configuration - it may convert the request to a ticket
* If a ticket is created, customers see a message posted on the thread showing ticket details
* Customers can also get automated answers from AI Agents or OOO messages - depending on configuration

### Triage Channel (`#cf-triage-channel`)

Your **triage channel** is your support team's command center within Slack. Here you'll see:

* All incoming requests and tickets with status, assignment, and ticket IDs
* All messages posted in the request channel, email threads, or web chat sessions
* Reply to requests and manage tickets from this channel
* Post private comments (using `:lock:` emoji) visible only to your team, not synced to customers
* Private answer suggestions by the AI Agent (if configured)

### Support Email

ClearFeed creates an email address during onboarding where customers can email to create tickets:

* **Format:** `support@<subdomain>.clearfeed-mail.com`
* Emails sent to this address automatically create tickets in ClearFeed
* Each email becomes a ticket thread in the Triage channel and is visible in ClearFeed WebApp
* Replies to the thread in the Triage channel appear as email replies back to customers
* You can replace this with your own custom support email address (see [Email documentation](/clearfeed-help-center/sources/email.md))

### Web Chat

Web Chat is enabled for your account by default. To start using it:

* Go to [**Chat Setup**](https://web.clearfeed.app/settings/chat-widget)
* Follow the instructions to embed the WebChat widget on your website
* Customer messages from Web Chat will appear as tickets in ClearFeed and are visible in the Triage channel
* Replies from your team in the triage channel will sync back to the customer in the web chat

## Understanding Collections

Customer channels are organized as **Collections** in ClearFeed. When you sign up, ClearFeed creates an **All Customers** collection by default. This collection:

* Contains the `#cf-request-channel` channel ClearFeed created
* Includes a sample **Test Customer** associated with this channel
* Is where you can add more channels and customers

Collections are how you organize and manage your customer support sources in ClearFeed. Each collection can have its own settings, workflows, customer groups, and triage configuration.

### Adding Customer Channels

After testing with your sample customer, add real customer channels to your **All Customers** collection:

1. Hover over the **All Customers** collection in the left sidebar
2. Click the triple dot menu (⋯) and select **New Channel**
3. Follow the prompts to connect additional Slack channels

<figure><img src="/files/30bDDh3i9N72WRMbxTHt" alt="" width="300"><figcaption><p>Add new channels from the collection menu</p></figcaption></figure>

## Create Requests and Tickets

💡 **Tip:** New to ClearFeed? Learn about the difference between [Requests, Tickets, and Tasks](/clearfeed-help-center/how-it-works/request-tickets-tasks.md).

### Create Request from Slack Channels

Create a Request in `#cf-request-channel` by simply posting a message in the channel (e.g., "How do I reset my password?"). You may see an automated response from the ClearFeed Bot using the default AI Agent that generates answers by doing a web search.

### Create Ticket from Email

Customers can email your ClearFeed support address:

* Emails automatically create tickets with public IDs
* Email tickets create Slack threads in the Triage Channel and are visible in ClearFeed Webapp.
* Replies to the thread in the Triage Channel appear as email replies to customers

## Reply to Requests and Tickets

### From the Slack Triage Channel

* Replying to the thread in `#cf-triage-channel` → syncs to the customer channel (or email thread)
* Update status, priority, or assignment → reflects in ClearFeed WebApp
* Add internal notes (prefix with :lock: emoji) → visible only to your team and not synced to customers

### From the ClearFeed WebApp

* You can see all requests and tickets from the ClearFeed WebApp
* Click on a specific request and post replies from there - these are also synced back to the customer Slack or Email thread and the corresponding thread in the Triage channel

## Enabling Ticketing in Slack

By default you will not see any ticket messages being posted in the Customer channels and the threads therein. While threads are tracked internally in ClearFeed - customers don't see any tickets being filed. This can be changed by enabling Ticketing in the Collection:

1. From the ClearFeed WebApp - go to the **Inbox** and click on the **All Customers** collection
2. Click **Settings** in the top right corner and expand the **Ticketing** section
3. Enable **Ticketing** and set the ticketing mode to **Manual** or **Automatic**
4. If automatic ticketing is enabled - ClearFeed creates a ticket immediately in every message
5. If manual ticketing is enabled - add 🎫 emoji to manually trigger ticket creation
6. A ticket message with the ID of the ticket will be posted as a reply on the Slack thread when a ticket is created

## FAQs

1. **How do I stop creating requests from my and my team's messages?**\
   When a new ClearFeed account is set up, it creates requests from all users. You can turn off request and ticket creation from your own team in the "Responders" section of the Collection Settings:

   * Click on the **All Customers** collection from the Inbox
   * Click **Settings** in the top right corner
   * Expand the **Responders** section
   * Turn off "Create requests from responder threads"

   <figure><img src="/files/gFGeqz4gP7ENa41xcHOv" alt="" width="300"><figcaption><p>Turn off request creation from responders</p></figcaption></figure>

## AI Agents

ClearFeed comes with an AI Agent pre-configured to answer questions from the World Wide Web by default. The AI Agent is triggered whenever a new customer request is detected in Slack, and when it finds relevant answers, it posts suggestions privately to your team. Your team can review the automated answer and copy and post it as a reply if it's correct.

### Customize or Disable

**To add your own knowledge sources:**

1. Go to **Settings > AI > Knowledge Sources**
2. Connect your documentation (Documentation site, Notion, Confluence, Google Drive, Github, etc.) and tag them
3. Go to **Settings > AI > Agent Studio** and click on the `Default Agent` pre-configured in your account
4. Add the Knowledge Sources added in Step 2 using their tags
5. Optionally - disable the Web Search option (to prevent answers beyond your knowledge sources)

**To change visibility of AI Agent Answers:**

1. Go to the **Inbox**
2. Click on the Collection where you want to enable/disable the AI Agent (e.g., **All Customers**)
3. Click on **Settings** from the top right and then click on **AI Agent** section
4. You can disable the AI Agent completely - or switch to **Virtual Agent** mode to provide automated replies to customers when they create tickets

## Next Steps

* [Whitelabeling the ClearFeed bot](/clearfeed-help-center/account-setup/whitelabel-clearfeed.md) to match your brand
* [Set up Out of Office responses](/clearfeed-help-center/clearfeed-helpdesk/workflows.md) - Automatic responses when your team is unavailable
* [Custom Email Domain](/clearfeed-help-center/sources/email.md) - Use <support@yourdomain.com> instead of the default
* [Customer Portal](/clearfeed-help-center/sources/portal.md) - Self-service portal for customers
* [Web Chat Widget](/clearfeed-help-center/sources/web-chat.md) - Live chat on your website
* [MS Teams Integration](/clearfeed-help-center/sources/teams-setup.md) - Support customers on Microsoft Teams

Need help? [Contact our team](https://clearfeed.ai/contact) for personalized onboarding.