---
sourceDocument: Brazil Conversational Interfaces
sourceDocumentLink: https://www.servicenow.com/docs/r/conversational-interfaces

 Release :

    - brazil

ft:locale :

    - en-US

ft:publication_title :

    - Brazil Conversational Interfaces

ft:clusterId :

    - convint

bundleId :

    - convint

workflow :

    - Platform


---

# Working with setup topics

# Working with setup topics {#ariaid-title1}

Release version: Brazil  
Updated September 10, 2026  
![](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/portal-asset/ico-clock) 5 minutes to read
Summarize  
![AI sparkle icon](https://servicenow.com/docs/portal-asset/ai-sparkle-icon) Summarized using AI  
This content was generated using new OpenAI-powered functionality. Results are provided on an as is basis and are not guaranteed to be accurate or complete.  

## Summary of Working with setup topics

Setup topics in ServiceNow Virtual Agent define a standard conversation structure, including greetings, fallback responses, and other key interaction points.
These topics run automatically based on conversation context, user inputs, and configured conditions within a Virtual Agent chat experience.
They help guide users effectively through conversations by providing predefined responses and options at appropriate moments.
Show full answer Show less  
Setup topics are configured using the Custom Greetings and Setup option within a chat experience. Only setup topics included in a configured chat experience are discoverable and accessible to users during chat sessions.

## How Setup Topics Operate in Conversations

* **Conversation start:** The Greeting topic welcomes users and presents available Virtual Agent capabilities.
* **User requests help:** The Explore Help topic lists what the Virtual Agent can assist with.
* **Unrecognized user input:** The Fallback topic is shown unless AI Search Fallback is enabled.
* **AI Search Fallback enabled:** If no clear topic match is found, AI Search generates relevant results; if results are unhelpful, the Fallback topic is triggered.
* **System errors:** The Error Handling topic runs and transfers the user to a live agent.
* **User requests live agent:** The Live Agent topic transfers the user to a live agent.
* **After completing a task:** The Anything Else topic asks if the user needs additional assistance.
* **Conversation end:** The Survey topic gathers feedback, followed by the Closing topic to end the session.

## Customizing Setup Topics

Default setup topics are read-only but can be duplicated and customized to suit your organization's needs. For example, you can modify prompts, add controls, or change closing messages by creating custom setup topics. Custom topics require corresponding intents or keywords defined in the NLU model or topic properties to function correctly.

Custom setup topics can replace default ones in your chat experience, allowing personalized and tailored conversational flows.

## Default Setup Topics and Their Purposes

* **Anything Else:** Offers users the option to continue with additional requests.
* **Live Agent Support:** Manages the transfer of users to live agents.
* **Error Handling:** Displays error messages and initiates live agent transfer upon unrecoverable errors.
* **Greetings:** Starts conversations with a welcome and options for user input.
* **Survey:** Collects user feedback on the Virtual Agent experience; occurrence rate is configurable via system property.
* **Closing Conversation:** Ends the conversation with a closing message.
* **AI Search Fallback:** Uses AI Search to provide fallback results when Virtual Agent cannot interpret user input.
* **Fallback:** Presents a default message when input is not understood and AI Search fallback is disabled or unhelpful.
* **Explore Help:** Shows users a list of Virtual Agent capabilities for assistance.

## Practical Benefits for ServiceNow Customers

By effectively leveraging setup topics, you can create consistent, user-friendly Virtual Agent experiences that handle a wide range of conversational scenarios---from welcoming users and guiding them through assistance options to managing errors and live agent transfers. Customization options empower you to tailor interactions to your organizational voice and processes, improving user satisfaction and efficiency in support interactions.

Proper configuration of setup topics within your chat experiences ensures that users receive relevant, context-aware responses that enhance engagement and help resolve issues smoothly.  
Setup topics are part of a standard conversation structure applied to all your
conversations, such as the welcome greeting or fallback responses. Setup topics run at the
appropriate spot in a conversation based on the context, keywords, or utterances entered by the
user, and any conditions that are specified for the setup topic.
You define setup topics in a Virtual Agent chat experience using the Custom Greetings and Setup option. A chat experience sets the context in which users run Virtual Agent. This context includes:

* Setup topics applied to bot conversations.
* A small list of topics, called promoted topics, initially displayed in the chat window.
* AI Search configuration used to display AI Search results for your users.

{#working-setup-topics__ul_ab5_4qp_ypb}For more information on chat experiences, see [Customizing a Virtual Agent chat experience](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/RHPDkiwRAOlCGR9TgpxETQ "Create different chat experiences for your end users based on the context in which they initiate a conversation with Virtual Agent."). For details on configuring a chat experience, see [(Legacy) Configure a Virtual Agent NLU chat experience](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/t8lGEJO0DoLGd22Y826l~g "Change the preconfigured Virtual Agent default chat experience or create a custom chat experience for your users. You can configure setup topics, specify promoted topics, and if needed, change the search profile.").  
Note:  
Setup topics in conversations are discoverable (via topic discovery) only when they're [configured in a Virtual
Agent chat experience](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/t8lGEJO0DoLGd22Y826l~g "Change the preconfigured Virtual Agent default chat experience or create a custom chat experience for your users. You can configure setup topics, specify promoted topics, and if needed, change the search profile.") using the Custom Greetings and Setup option. If any setup topics are not included in a chat experience, those setup topics are not listed in the chat window's All Topics menu (topic picker) and cannot be discovered by Virtual Agent.  
Setup topics run during a conversation as follows.

1. Conversation beginning: Virtual Agent presents the Greeting topic and the list of available topics (Virtual Agent capabilities) that the user can select.  
   Note:  
   If you want the chat window to immediately take users to a live agent, do not select the Live Agent Support topic as a greeting. Instead, use the system method to [transfer to a live agent](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/yDpbUmfT1iTGKDMeeUTUGg "Manage live chat support, including the chat support interface used when a Virtual Agent conversation is transferred to a live agent.").
2. Conversation body: These setup topics are presented at different points in the conversation depending on the context:
   * User requests help: Virtual Agent presents the Explore help topic (Virtual Agent capabilities).
   * User enters a request or keyword that Virtual Agent doesn't understand: Virtual Agent presents the Fallback topic, unless the AI Search fallback topic is enabled.
   * If the AI Search Fallback topic is enabled and the user enters a request or keyword but Virtual Agent can't find a matching topic or keyword, or finds too many topics to determine the matching topic: Virtual Agent runs AI Search to generate relevant search results for the user. If the AI Search results do not help the user, or if the AI Search Fallback setup topic is not activated, Virtual Agent runs the Fallback topic.
   * An unrecoverable system error occurs during conversation: Virtual Agent runs the Error Handling topic, and then transfers the user to a live agent.
   * User requests a transfer to live agent: Virtual Agent runs the Live Agent topic, which transfers the user to a live agent.
   * After a task or user request is completed: Virtual Agent runs the Anything else topic to ask if the user wants to continue with another request or task.
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3. Conversation ending:
   * If the user doesn't want further assistance after a task or the request is completed, Virtual Agent presents the Survey topic for feedback on the conversational experience.
   * After the survey, Virtual Agent confirms that the feedback has been received, and runs the Closing topic to end the conversation.
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The default setup topics are read-only and have topic names with a period at the end of the
setup topic name, such as Greeting. You can create your own custom
setup topics by duplicating a setup topic and changing it as needed. You can also change
prompts or add other controls to the topic, just as you might when creating other topics.

If you want a closing message to be different from the default Closing topic, create a custom
setup topic that contains the revised closing text. You also need to create an intent for
that custom setup topic in the NLU model for setup topics, or define topic keywords in the
Topic Properties page. You can then select the custom setup topic to be used in a custom
chat experience instead of using a default setup topic.

The following table provides examples of the pre-built setup topics in the default chat
experience.  
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| Setup topic type | Setup topic name and description |
|-|-|
| Anything else | Anything Else Topic. Virtual Agent asks users if they need further assistance. ![Anything else topic in Virtual Agent web client.]() If users select Yes, Virtual Agent returns a list of related items that it can help with. |
| Live agent | Live Agent Support. Tells users that a live agent transfer is in process: |
| Error | Error Handling Topic. Displays a generic error message to the user when the Virtual Agent encounters a problem that it can't resolve (unrecoverable system error) and transfers the user to a live agent. |
| Greeting | Greetings. Starts a conversation by greeting users and giving them the option to enter a request or see the items that the Virtual Agent can assist with. Note: The pre-built setup topics include a personalized greeting called the Dynamic Greeting Topic, which welcomes the user by name. To change the default greetings topic, double click Setup topic name and then choose the personalized greeting from the list of available setup topics. |
| Survey | Virtual Agent Feedback topic. Gathers user feedback on the conversational experience with the Virtual Agent. The survey setup topic displays randomly in 33% of your Virtual Agent conversations. The survey topic includes an introductory sentence that admins can customize as needed. The survey then presents a choice list with options users can select to describe their experience. Figure 1. Example survey feedback choices After the users provide their feedback, a message confirms that their feedback has been received: Note: To change the probability (percentage) that the survey setup topic occurs in your conversations, change the value in the com.glide.cs.survey.probability system property. To display the survey setup topic randomly in 50% of your Virtual Agent conversations, set the Value to 0.50. |
| Closing | Closing Conversation. Displays a closing message to the user that ends the conversation: ![Closing topic in Virtual Agent web client.]() |
| AI Search fallback | AI Search Fallback. When enabled, this setup topic uses AI Search search to generate fallback AI Search results when Virtual Agent can't find a matching intent or it finds too many intents and can't determine the appropriate topic to display to a user. |
| Fallback | Fallback Topic. Displays a standard message to the user when: * When virtual agent doesn't understand a user utterance or keyword and the AI Search fallback setup topic is not enabled in the chat experience. AI Search fallback topic was deactivated in the chat experience, and the virtual agent doesn't understand a user statement or keyword. * Users indicate that the AI Search results aren't helpful. {#working-setup-topics__ul_dcl_4zk_3pb} |
| Explore help | Virtual Agent Capabilities. Enables users to ask for assistance during a conversation and view a list of items that the Virtual Agent can assist with (Virtual Agent capabilities). |
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