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What “working a ticket” means

In the inbox, working a ticket usually involves:
  1. Reading the message thread and the customer’s profile context
  2. Replying via chat, email, or internal note
  3. Updating status — assign, snooze, mark as priority, resolve
  4. Optionally asking the AI to draft a reply or summarize the thread
This page covers each of those.

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Reply modes

The composer at the bottom of every ticket has four modes you can switch between:
ModeWhat it sendsWhen to use
ChatA message in the chat channel (web widget, voice, etc.)When the customer is in a chat conversation
EmailA real threaded email via your sending domainWhen the ticket originated by email or you want a longer-form async reply
NoteA note visible only to your teamCoordinating with teammates without notifying the customer
Inbox trainingDurable AI directives saved to Knowledge -> Inbox Training (scoped automatically; customer does not see them)When a conversation taught you something the AI should remember next time
Switch modes using the menu above the composer.

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Chat replies

Click Reply in chat mode and the message is delivered to the customer’s open widget session via WebSocket. If the user has the widget closed, the message queues and surfaces the next time they open it. You can also send chat replies as an alias user — a virtual sender (set up at Settings > Team > Alias Users). The customer sees the alias name and avatar instead of yours. Useful when you want consistent branding (“Support Team”) instead of individual names.

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Email replies

Email replies are sent as real, threaded emails through your configured sending address. Halo handles all the threading headers (In-Reply-To, References) and adds a unique Reply-To so when the customer replies, it routes back to the same ticket. Configure how email replies appear at Settings > Emails > Email Settings:
  • Default from address — which verified address replies come from
  • Reply-from behavior — inbound address, teammate address, or workspace default
  • Email signature — appended to outbound replies
If you’ve enabled teammate addresses (with a verified custom domain), each teammate replies from their own address ([email protected], [email protected]) for a personal feel. See Sending Emails.

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Internal notes

Internal notes appear inline with the rest of the conversation but are styled differently (yellow background, “Internal Note” badge) and never sent to the customer. You can @mention teammates in internal notes — they’ll get notified and the note appears in their Mentions view. Type @ and pick a teammate from the autocomplete. Notes are perfect for:
  • “Sarah, can you handle this one? It’s about the SAML setup”
  • “FYI: this customer has been complaining for weeks. Be careful with tone.”
  • “Reproduced — looks like a real bug. Filing a Linear ticket.”

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AI-assisted replies

Two flavors of AI assistance live in every ticket:

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AI Draft

Click AI Draft in the composer to generate a suggested reply based on:
  • The full ticket thread
  • The customer’s profile, traits, and context
  • Your knowledge base
  • The conversation channel (chat or email)
The draft fills the composer; edit before sending.

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HaloPilot

The HaloPilot panel (right sidebar of the ticket detail) is a chat-style AI assistant scoped to the current ticket. Use it for:
  • “Summarize this thread”
  • “Draft a reply that explains how to set up SSO”
  • “What plan is this customer on?”
  • “Generate three possible responses”
HaloPilot has access to the same context the AI agent does (knowledge base, customer data, integrations) and is designed for human teammates working tickets, not customers.

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Status updates

Change ticket status from the dropdown in the ticket header:
Status changeEffect
→ PriorityMarks as high priority. Often pre-set automatically by AI escalation matching priority filters.
→ In Progress”I’m working this.” Auto-set when you take over a live conversation.
→ SnoozedPick a future time. Ticket disappears from default lists until snooze expires. New activity unsnoozes immediately.
→ ResolvedCloses the ticket. Auto-resolves on AI email replies that successfully answer.
→ SpamMarks as junk. Trusted senders skip auto-spam detection.
→ ReopenManual or automatic when new activity arrives.
You can also use Send and update state → Resolved to send a final reply and resolve in one click.

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Assignment

Open the assignee dropdown in the ticket header to pick a teammate. Set to Unassigned to leave it open. With Auto-assign on reply enabled in Settings > Inbox Views, the first teammate to reply gets assigned automatically.

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Pass to AI

If a ticket is In Progress and you want the AI to take it back, click Pass to AI. This:
  • Clears your assignment
  • Sets status back to Open
  • Re-engages the AI email pipeline (for email tickets) or returns it to AI handling
Useful when you’ve handled the human-required part and want the AI to pick up the rest.

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Translating

If the customer’s language is detected (or you’ve identified them with a language trait), Halo can translate your replies inline. Click Translate in the composer to see how your reply will read in the customer’s language before sending.

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Merging tickets

When a single customer creates duplicate tickets across channels (e.g. emails twice, then chats), use Merge:
  1. Open one of the tickets.
  2. Click Merge tickets.
  3. Select the other tickets that should merge into this one (only Open or Priority tickets from the same email are eligible).
  4. Confirm.
The other tickets are marked Resolved and their messages join this one’s thread, preserving full history.

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Where to go next

Views & Segments

Filter, save segments, and build custom inboxes.

Live Conversations

Watch and take over live AI sessions.