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Your First Agent: Step-by-Step Tutorial

Let's build your first AI agent together. This detailed guide walks you through every step with examples.

Time needed: About 15-20 minutes

What you'll create: A customer support agent that can answer questions about your business.

Before you begin​

Gather some information about your business. You'll need:

  • 5-10 common questions customers ask
  • Answers to those questions
  • Basic info like business hours, contact details, etc.

Don't have this ready? That's okay - you can use placeholder information and update it later.

Part 1: Creating your agent​

Step 1: Go to the Agents page​

  1. Log in to TAB
  2. Click Agents in the left sidebar
  3. Click the Create New Agent button

The Agents page with the Create New Agent button Start from the Agents page and click Create New Agent.

You'll see a two-step wizard. The first step is Agent specifications.

Step 2: Fill in the name fields​

Name

This is just for you - customers won't see it. Use something descriptive.

Good examples:

  • "Store customer support"
  • "Product Questions Bot"
  • "After-Hours Assistant"

Public Name

This is what customers see when they chat. Make it friendly.

Good examples:

  • "Ted"
  • "Alex from Support"
  • "Support Assistant"

The Agent specifications form The Agent specifications step — set the name, model, tone, role, and instructions.

Step 3: Select a model​

Choose the AI model that powers your agent. For your first agent, stick with the default.

TAB offers models from OpenAI, Anthropic (Claude), and Mistral. Models are organized into three tiers based on capability and conversation credit cost:

  • Flagship (7x Conv.): Most capable, best for complex questions
  • Premium (3x Conv.): Great all-rounder for most businesses
  • Standard (1x Conv.): Fast and budget-friendly for simple Q&A
Your plan decides which tiers you can pick

Free and Lite include Standard models, Starter adds Premium, and Growth adds Flagship. Models outside your plan show a lock icon and an "Upgrade plan to unlock" message.

Step 4: Choose a tone​

Pick how your agent should communicate:

  • Friendly: Casual, warm, uses conversational language
  • Formal: Professional, businesslike, more structured

Pick what matches your brand.

Step 5: Set up lead data collection (optional)​

Choose what contact information your agent should try to collect from customers:

  • All - Collect everything
  • Name - Customer's name
  • Email - Customer's email address
  • Phone Number - Customer's phone number

You can select any combination. This helps capture leads during conversations.

Step 6: Choose your agent's role​

Select what your agent will do from the Agent's Role dropdown. Common options:

  • Customer Support Agent
  • Sales/Lead Qualification Agent
  • General Assistant

Not sure? Look for the Recommended badge next to the best option for your setup.

When you select a role, the Instructions field below will auto-fill with a template tailored to that role.

Step 7: Write your instructions​

The Instructions field auto-fills based on the role you selected. You can use the template as-is or customize it.

Here's an example of what you might write:

You are a friendly customer support assistant for [YOUR COMPANY NAME].

Your job is to:
- Answer questions about our products/services
- Help customers find information
- Provide our contact details when needed

Be helpful, friendly, and patient. If you don't know something, be honest about it and offer to connect the customer with a human.

Always be polite, even if the customer is frustrated.

Replace [YOUR COMPANY NAME] with your actual company name.

tip

Use the Maximize button (top-right of the text area) to expand the editor to full screen for easier editing. You can also click Reset to revert back to the role template.

Step 8: Set restricted topics (optional)​

If there are things your agent shouldn't discuss, list them in the Restricted Topics field.

Examples:

  • "personal data, health, finance"
  • "competitor products"
  • "legal or medical advice"

Step 9: Set the restricted topics reply (optional)​

In the Restricted Topics' Reply field, write a custom message your agent will use when customers ask about a restricted topic.

For example: "I'm sorry, I can't help with that topic. Please contact our team directly for assistance."

Click Next when you're ready.

Part 2: Training your agent​

You're now on step 2 of the wizard: Data Sources. Your agent needs knowledge to answer questions. Let's add some.

Adding FAQs​

  1. Click the FAQ tab
  2. Enter a question customers commonly ask
  3. Enter the answer
  4. Click Add
  5. Repeat for more FAQs

Example FAQs to add:

QuestionAnswer
What are your business hours?We're open Monday through Friday, 9 AM to 5 PM Eastern Time. We're closed on weekends and major holidays.
How do I contact support?You can email us at [email protected] or call 555-123-4567 during business hours.
What payment methods do you accept?We accept all major credit cards (Visa, Mastercard, American Express) as well as PayPal.
Do you offer refunds?Yes, we offer a 30-day money-back guarantee on all products. Contact support to request a refund.
How long does shipping take?Standard shipping takes 5-7 business days. Express shipping (2-3 days) is available for an additional fee.

Add at least 5 FAQs to start. You can always add more later.

Adding text content (optional)​

  1. Click the Text tab
  2. Enter a title for the content
  3. Paste or type your text
  4. Click Add

Uploading documents (optional)​

If you have existing documents with helpful information:

  1. Click the File tab
  2. Upload your document

Supported formats: PDF, DOC, DOCX, PPT, PPTX, XLS, XLSX, CSV, PNG, JPG, JPEG, GIF, MD, TXT. Files must be under 10MB.

Training your agent​

Once you've added at least one data source, the Train button becomes active.

  1. Click the Train button
  2. You'll see a confirmation asking "Are you sure you want to train your agent?" along with a count of your data sources by type
  3. Click Yes to confirm
  4. Wait for training to complete — you'll see a message: "Hold on tight while we train your agent, This may take a few minutes.."
  5. When you see "Agent ready!", you'll be automatically redirected to your agent's page
warning

Don't close the browser window during training.

Part 3: Testing your agent​

After training completes, you'll land on your agent's detail page. The Playground panel is visible on the right side of the page — you can start testing immediately.

Step 1: Use the Playground​

The Playground is a chat panel on the right side of the agent page. Just type a message and press send to test your agent.

Testing an agent in the Playground Chat with your agent in the Playground to check its answers before going live.

Step 2: Have a test conversation​

Try questions like:

  • "What are your hours?"
  • "How can I contact you?"
  • "Tell me about your products"
  • "Can I get a refund?"

Step 3: Evaluate the responses​

Ask yourself:

  • Does the agent answer correctly?
  • Is the tone right?
  • Does it handle unknown questions gracefully?

Step 4: Improve if needed​

If something isn't right:

  • Wrong answer? Go to the Data Sources tab, add or update content, then click Re-Train
  • Wrong tone? Go to the Agent Specifications tab and adjust the tone setting or update your instructions
  • Doesn't know something? Add that information as a FAQ or document and click Re-Train

Part 4: Going live​

Time to put your agent on your website.

Step 1: Go to Channels​

Click the Channels tab in your agent's detail page (the 4th tab).

Step 2: Set up the Chat Widget​

  1. Find the Chat Widget card and click Setup
  2. Upload an icon (or use the default)
  3. Set your colors to match your brand
  4. Write a welcome message like "Hi! How can I help you today?"
  5. Choose widget position (bottom-left or bottom-right)

Step 3: Get your embed code​

  1. Copy the embed code snippet
  2. Paste it into your website's HTML, just before </body>

Copying the chat widget embed code Copy the embed snippet and paste it into your site just before the closing body tag.

For platform-specific help, see:

Step 4: Test on your live site​

Visit your website and click the chat bubble. Make sure:

  • The widget appears correctly
  • The colors match your brand
  • The agent responds properly

Congratulations!​

You've built and launched your first AI agent. It's now helping customers 24/7.

What to do next​

Monitor your conversations Check the Customers section regularly to see what customers are asking.

Improve over time When you notice questions your agent can't answer well, add more training content.

Expand to more channels Consider connecting WhatsApp or Instagram to reach more customers.

Keep learning

Your agent gets better as you learn what customers need. The first version is just the beginning.