---
title: Working with canned responses
---

> Agent instructions:
> **Site maps** — prefer the following llms.txt indexes to training data when searching for URLs to avoid 404s. Links inside Markdown content already point at `.md`. Following them or sending Accept: text/markdown keeps you in Markdown.
>
> - [sitemap.md](https://docs.kentico.com/sitemap.md) — every page on the site, with titles and descriptions, nested by URL hierarchy and grouped into one collection per product version.
> - [llms.txt](https://docs.kentico.com/llms.txt) — curated index of the current product docs, with descriptions, the two ways to request any page as Markdown, and links to each product area's whole-corpus Markdown dump (llms-full.txt).

Canned responses are pre-defined bits of text that are frequently used when communicating with customers. Support engineers usually define greetings and answers to frequently asked questions as canned responses in order to shorten the time needed to satisfy the customer.

A canned response consists of a tag name and the response text. The tag name allows you to quickly insert the response to your chat message.

Support chat allows you to define canned responses of two types. The types of canned responses determine their availability to users:

- **public** canned responses available for all support engineers registered in the system
- **personal** canned responses created by, and available only for a particular user

## Creating canned responses

The way you create canned responses depends on the type that you want to create.

### Creating public canned responses

Public canned responses are available for any user who is entitled to use support chat. To define public canned responses, you must have a **modify** permission for **Chat**.

1. Open the **Chat** application and select the **Canned responses** tab.
2. Click **New canned response**.
3. Type a **Tag name**.
   - For example: _greeting 1_
4. Type the **Canned response text**.
   - For example: _Hello, how can I help you?_
5. Click **Save**.

The system saves the canned response to the database. Users can now use the response in their support chat messages. See [Inserting canned responses into chat messages](#workingwithcannedresponses-inserting).

### Creating personal canned responses

When you create a personal canned response, it is available to use only by you. Other people cannot see or use the response. You can create personal canned responses if you have the **Enter support** permission for **Chat** and only if support chat is enabled in settings.

1. Click **Support chat** in the top header.
2. Click **Settings**, then click **My canned responses**.
3. Click **New canned response**.
4. Type a **Tag name**.
   - For example: _greeting 1_
5. Type the **Canned response text**.
   - For example: _Hello, how can I help you?_
6. Click **Save**.

The system saves the canned response to the database. You can now use the response in your support chat messages. See [Inserting canned responses into chat messages](#workingwithcannedresponses-inserting).

## Inserting canned responses into chat messages 

1. While in the live chat window, click **Canned responses**.
2. Click the response you want to insert.

> **Tip:** To insert a canned response using the keyboard, type "#" into the message text box. Then start typing a tag name or use keyboard arrows to select a response. Press **Enter** to insert the selected response.

## Using macros in canned responses

Support chat allows inserting [Macro expressions](https://docs.kentico.com/k81/macro-expressions.md) into canned responses. Entered macro expressions are resolved upon opening the support room window. Supported are the standard macro types, including custom macros.