The FAST framework
Every customer-facing conversation about Thread should map to one of four outcomes.Product messaging for end users
For each product, the structure is the same: what changed under the hood, what it means for the customer, the key benefit in one line, and a way to bring it up in conversation.Thread Messenger (chat support)
What changed: Real-time chat support is now embedded in Microsoft Teams and Slack. What it means for the customer:“You can reach us instantly right inside Teams or Slack — no phone holds, no email chains. Just send a message and you’re connected.”Key benefit: No new apps, no friction — support lives where they already work. Conversation starter: “Did you know you can now get IT help without leaving Teams? Let me show you how.” For a new customer: “As part of your new IT support plan, you have access to [Your Company Name] Chat — a direct line to our team right inside your Microsoft Teams or Slack workspace.” For an existing customer: “We’ve added something that’s going to make your life a lot easier — instant chat support, right inside Teams.”
Triage Agent (AI first response)
What changed: An AI agent responds immediately to every support request, gathers details, and routes to the right tech. What it means for the customer:“The moment you reach out, you get a response. No waiting. Our AI gathers a few quick details so the right expert is already briefed when they pick up your ticket.”Key benefit: Instant acknowledgment, zero wait time, fully briefed tech. Conversation starter: “Have you noticed your support requests get acknowledged instantly now? Here’s what’s happening behind the scenes…” For a new customer: “When you reach out for IT help, you’ll immediately hear back — our AI will ask a couple quick questions so we can get the right person on it fast.” For an existing customer: “You may have noticed faster response times lately — that’s our new AI-powered intake system. It means your issues get to the right tech immediately.”
Voice AI (phone support)
What changed: AI now handles inbound calls for after-hours support, overflow, and call intake. What it means for the customer:“Even if you call us at 2am or on a holiday, you’ll speak with an intelligent assistant that captures your issue and creates a ticket — no more voicemail black holes.”Key benefit: 24/7 phone coverage, no missed calls, every issue logged. Conversation starter: “Do you ever worry about getting help outside business hours? Here’s how we handle that now…” For a new customer: “If you need to call outside business hours, you’ll reach our AI assistant instead of voicemail — it captures your issue and creates a ticket so our team sees it first thing.” For an existing customer: “We’ve upgraded our phone support — after hours, instead of voicemail, you now reach an AI that captures your issue and ensures someone follows up.”
Magic AI (assistive automations)
What changed: AI automatically categorizes, prioritizes, and titles every incoming ticket. What it means for the customer:“Your issue automatically goes to the right expert the first time — no bouncing between teams, no wasted time explaining your issue twice.”Key benefit: Right person, right away. No reroutings. Conversation starter: “Have you noticed fewer ‘let me transfer you’ moments lately? Here’s why…” For a new customer: “Our system automatically identifies the type and urgency of your issue — so it goes straight to the right expert without any detours.” For an existing customer: “We’ve added AI-powered routing that’s eliminated the ‘bouncing between teams’ problem our customers used to experience.”
Thread Intelligence (Contact + Client Intelligence)
What changed: AI builds a running profile of every user — devices, past issues, resolutions, preferences. What it means for the customer:“Our techs know your setup before the conversation starts. No more explaining your system every time you call.”Key benefit: Personalized, context-aware support every interaction. Conversation starter: “Tired of re-explaining your setup every time you call? We’ve fixed that.” For a new customer: “Over time, our system builds a profile of your environment — so every tech you work with already has full context.” For an existing customer: “We’ve upgraded how our team tracks your history — so you’ll never have to re-explain your setup again.”
Reminder Agent
What changed: Automated follow-ups ensure no ticket goes stale. What it means for the customer:“If your ticket is waiting on you, we’ll send you a friendly nudge — we won’t just let it disappear.”Key benefit: Nothing falls through the cracks. Conversation starter: “If you’ve ever had a ticket go quiet and not know what happened to it, that won’t happen anymore.”
Say this, not that
Replace technical or internal language with outcome-focused customer language.Handling objections
Each objection follows the same structure: acknowledge the concern, reframe it, reassure them, and offer a way forward.I don't want to talk to a bot.
I don't want to talk to a bot.
- Acknowledge: “That’s a completely fair reaction — and you’re not alone in feeling that way.”
- Reframe: “What we’ve actually found is that the AI handles the quick stuff instantly, so when a human tech joins the conversation, they’re already briefed and focused on solving your problem — not asking questions you’ve already answered.”
- Reassure: “You can always ask for a human at any point. The AI is there to speed things up, not get in the way.”
- Offer: “Want to try it once and see? Most people are surprised by how smooth it is.”
Is my data safe?
Is my data safe?
- Acknowledge: “Security is our top priority, so I’m glad you asked.”
- Reframe: “The AI we use is entirely private and ring-fenced to our environment. It doesn’t train public models or share data outside of our secure ticketing system.”
- Reassure: “It meets the same strict compliance and encryption standards that the rest of our IT infrastructure follows.”
- Offer: “I can send you our quick one-pager on our AI security practices if you’d like to share it with your team.”
Why are you changing things? The old way worked fine.
Why are you changing things? The old way worked fine.
- Acknowledge: “I know change can be frustrating when you’re used to a specific routine.”
- Reframe: “While the old way worked, we noticed there were times when you had to wait in a queue or repeat your issue. This upgrade eliminates that friction entirely.”
- Reassure: “You can still call or email us just like before, but now things happen much faster behind the scenes.”
- Offer: “Let’s stick with what you’re comfortable with for now, but keep an eye on how quickly we resolve your next ticket.”
Will the AI understand my specific issue?
Will the AI understand my specific issue?
- Acknowledge: “That’s a great question, especially since your environment has unique systems.”
- Reframe: “Our AI isn’t generic; it uses Contact Intelligence to know exactly who you are, what devices you have, and what issues you’ve had in the past before it even says hello.”
- Reassure: “And if it ever gets confused, it instantly hands the chat over to our human technicians.”
- Offer: “Next time you have a specialized issue, test it out. You’ll see it categorizes your problem perfectly.”
I hate chat — I prefer to call.
I hate chat — I prefer to call.
- Acknowledge: “I completely understand. Sometimes it’s just easier to talk it out.”
- Reframe: “The good news is, you can still call us! The new system just means that if you call after hours, you won’t be stuck leaving a voicemail that might get missed.”
- Reassure: “Our Voice AI ensures your call is transcribed and a ticket is instantly created so we can jump on it first thing.”
- Offer: “Keep calling us during the day exactly as you do now. The AI is just a safety net for when we aren’t at our desks.”
This feels impersonal. IT support should be human.
This feels impersonal. IT support should be human.
- Acknowledge: “We agree 100%. The human relationship we have with your team is the most important part of our service.”
- Reframe: “We actually brought in AI so our humans have more time to be human. By letting the system handle routine categorization and data entry, our techs spend their time actually talking to you and fixing problems.”
- Reassure: “Our same great team is still here, they’re just empowered with better tools.”
- Offer: “Reach out to us on Teams next time, you’ll still get the same friendly tech, just a lot faster.”
What if the AI gives me wrong information?
What if the AI gives me wrong information?
- Acknowledge: “It’s natural to worry about AI making mistakes or ‘hallucinating’.”
- Reframe: “Our AI isn’t allowed to guess. It operates within strict guardrails based only on our secure knowledge base and your past tickets.”
- Reassure: “If the system doesn’t know the exact answer with 100% certainty, it simply routes the ticket to a human expert.”
- Offer: “We track the accuracy constantly, and it currently categorizes tickets with over 96% accuracy. It’s incredibly reliable.”
How do I know my ticket won't get lost in the system?
How do I know my ticket won't get lost in the system?
- Acknowledge: “There is nothing worse than sending an issue into a black hole.”
- Reframe: “This system actually prevents that entirely. Because the AI acknowledges every request instantly and logs it directly into our main board, human error in data entry is eliminated.”
- Reassure: “Plus, our new Reminder Agent automatically nudges both our team and yours if a ticket sits idle.”
- Offer: “You’ll receive an instant confirmation for every request, giving you total peace of mind.”
I don't have time to learn a new system.
I don't have time to learn a new system.
- Acknowledge: “I hear you. You have a business to run, not software to learn.”
- Reframe: “That’s exactly why we chose this integration. It lives right inside Microsoft Teams (or Slack). There are no new portals to log into, no new passwords to remember.”
- Reassure: “If you know how to send a chat message to a coworker, you already know how to use this.”
- Offer: “Let me send you a test message right now, and you’ll see how easy it is.”
What if I have an emergency? Can I still get a real person fast?
What if I have an emergency? Can I still get a real person fast?
- Acknowledge: “Emergencies are exactly when you shouldn’t be dealing with an automated system.”
- Reframe: “In an emergency, this system actually gets you to a human faster than our old phone queue did.”
- Reassure: “The AI is programmed to recognize panic words and urgency. If you say ‘emergency’ or ‘server down’, it instantly bypasses normal triage and alerts our top-tier engineers.”
- Offer: “We have a dedicated workflow for critical issues. I’ll make sure your team knows the exact keywords to use.”
I'm skeptical AI will actually save me time.
I'm skeptical AI will actually save me time.
- Acknowledge: “A lot of tech promises time savings but just adds extra steps.”
- Reframe: “Instead of promising, let me share what happened with another client. They saw a 92% reduction in response times because tickets didn’t sit waiting for a dispatcher.”
- Reassure: “The time savings aren’t from you doing more work; it’s from the AI doing the administrative work instantly so our techs can start fixing immediately.”
- Offer: “Let’s review your ticket resolution times at our next QBR, and I’ll prove it to you with your own data.”
My previous IT company tried chat and it was terrible.
My previous IT company tried chat and it was terrible.
- Acknowledge: “I’m sorry you had a bad experience. Poorly implemented chat can definitely feel like a roadblock.”
- Reframe: “Most IT companies use disjointed chat tools that don’t talk to their main systems. Our chat is directly wired into our ticketing system and powered by AI that knows your history.”
- Reassure: “It’s a completely different architecture designed specifically so you never have to repeat yourself.”
- Offer: “I don’t expect you to trust it immediately. But next time you have a low-priority issue, give the chat a try. I think it will change your mind.”
Conversation scripts
Five common situations with sample dialogue.New customer onboarding call
New customer onboarding call
Skeptical customer ('I heard you're using AI now — I'm not happy')
Skeptical customer ('I heard you're using AI now — I'm not happy')
QBR presentation
QBR presentation
Complaint handling ('Since you changed your support system, things feel worse')
Complaint handling ('Since you changed your support system, things feel worse')
Upsell / expansion (introducing Voice AI to an existing customer)
Upsell / expansion (introducing Voice AI to an existing customer)
Metrics translation
When sharing performance numbers with customers, translate them from internal metrics to outcomes that matter to them.Customer FAQ
What has changed about my IT support?
What has changed about my IT support?
Will I still be able to speak to a real person?
Will I still be able to speak to a real person?
Is my company's data safe with AI?
Is my company's data safe with AI?
Why is there an AI responding to my messages?
Why is there an AI responding to my messages?
How do I get IT help now?
How do I get IT help now?
What happens when I call after hours?
What happens when I call after hours?
How does the system know about my previous issues?
How does the system know about my previous issues?
What if the AI doesn't understand my problem?
What if the AI doesn't understand my problem?
Do I need to download anything new?
Do I need to download anything new?
How do I give feedback about my support experience?
How do I give feedback about my support experience?
What if I have an emergency?
What if I have an emergency?
How is this different from the IT support I had before?
How is this different from the IT support I had before?