Custom actions for AI chatbots: examples and safe setup
What custom actions let an AI chatbot do in a conversation, from starting an exchange to sending a return label, with examples and the guardrails to set first.
Product pages: Order tracking, Custom actions
Answering questions is half the job. The other half is doing things: placing the order, starting the return, booking the slot, updating the address. If the assistant can only say "please email us to change your order", the customer still has to wait for a person.
Custom actions let the AI do those tasks against your own systems, inside the conversation, with guardrails you control. In Risolva they're a no-code chatbot API integration: a form, not a project.
What is a custom action made of?
Every action starts with a name and a plain-language description of when to use it. That description matters most: it is what the AI agent reads to decide whether this is the right moment.
- Name itA display name like "Start an exchange" and a technical name like create_exchange
- Say when to use it"Use when the customer wants a different size or color of an item they already received"
- Point it at your APIMethod, URL, headers and body, for example POST to /orders/{{order_id}}/exchange
- List what it needsParameters such as order_id and new_size, each with a type, constraints and whether it is required
- Decide the guardrailsRequires approval, signed-in user only, and how many times it can run per conversation
- Test itRun test sends a real request so you can see exactly what comes back
Requests support GET, POST, PUT, PATCH and DELETE, with authentication by bearer token, API key or basic auth. Secrets are stored encrypted. You can set a timeout and cap how large a response the AI is allowed to see.
How it plays out in a chat
The AI collects whatever the action needs from the conversation, asks for anything missing, and then runs it. With Requires approval switched on, it shows the customer what it is about to do first:
Fernwood HomeWhatsApp · example conversationAction ran: create_exchange · return-label-5132.pdf sent
The details are locked when the AI asks. If the customer says yes, exactly that request runs. The AI's own decision to call the action never counts as the customer's confirmation.
Custom action examples by type of business
Because you define them, actions fit whatever your systems can do. Some common ones:
| Business | Action | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Online store | place_order | Creates an order for an in-stock item |
| Online store | create_exchange | Starts a size or color swap |
| Clinic or salon | book_appointment | Books a slot in your booking system |
| Services | create_support_ticket | Opens a ticket in your helpdesk |
| Any | update_address | Changes a delivery or contact address |
| School | get_fee_statement | Sends a parent their latest statement as a PDF |
Each one is only as capable as the API behind it. Risolva does not come with ready-made Shopify orders or calendar booking. You connect your own system, which also means the action does exactly what your business needs and nothing else.
Sending files back
Some actions return a document: a return label, an invoice, a fee slip. Risolva can deliver that file straight to the customer as an attachment on their channel, with a filename and caption you template. The file goes to the customer without passing through the AI, so it cannot be changed or summarized on the way.
Built-in operations
A few operations are built in, without an API of your own:
- Google Sheets: read a range, append rows, update cells, create a sheet
- Google Docs: read, create, append and insert text
- Google Meet: create or look up a meeting
- Send an email from the platform
A simple pattern many small teams start with is appending every new inquiry to a Google Sheet, which takes a few minutes to set up and needs no developer.
Which guardrails should every action have?
Actions can only call public addresses. Requests to private networks, localhost or cloud metadata addresses are blocked. You can limit what part of a response the AI sees, cap calls per conversation, restrict an action to signed-in visitors on web chat, and require that one action runs before another, for example verifying a customer before showing their account.
Where to start
Pick the one request your team handles most by hand that is really just a lookup or a form fill. Order status, a booking change and an address update are the usual suspects. An order lookup is also how you answer "where is my order" chats. Build that as one action, switch on Requires approval if it changes anything, and test it in the bot's Testing tab before you publish.
If you would like help scoping your first action, book a demo. For the other side of the coin, our handoff playbook covers what the AI should hand to a person instead.
Frequently asked questions
What is a custom action in Risolva?
An action is a task the AI can run during a conversation, such as creating an order, starting an exchange or looking up an account. You describe when to use it, point it at your own API, and list the details it needs. The AI collects those details from the conversation and calls your system.
Do I need to write code to add an action?
No code in Risolva. You fill in a form with the request method, URL, headers, body and parameters. You do need an API on your side for the action to call, which most order, booking and CRM systems already have.
Can the AI run an action without the customer agreeing?
Only if you allow it. Turn on Requires approval and the AI pauses, tells the customer what it is about to do, and runs the action only after they confirm in the chat. The details cannot change between the question and the confirmation.
Which integrations are built in?
Google Sheets, Google Docs and Google Meet operations, sending email, and a school billing connector. Everything else connects through your own API as a custom HTTP action.
What can an AI chatbot do besides answering questions?
With custom actions it can call your own systems during a chat, for example to look up an order, start an exchange or book a slot, and send back what your system returns, such as a return label. It can only do what your API allows.
Should an AI chatbot ask before it changes an order?
For anything that changes data or costs money, yes. With Requires approval on, Risolva tells the customer what it is about to do and waits for a yes in the chat, then runs the action with exactly the details they agreed to. If a staff member should approve it, hand the conversation to a person instead.
