They asked for an AI bot to reply faster. Quotes, discounts and confirmations were being typed by hand from chat into the ERP, late or never.
Every reply contained a decision — a price, a discount, a confirmation — with approval rules that lived in people's heads. A reply bot would have sent prices nobody approved and been switched off within a week.
Mapped the ten most common conversations and the copy step in each. Drew approval thresholds by amount and customer. Designed the agent to prepare the decision — request, record, suggested price — and put it in front of the right person for one-tap approval, then send.
Quotes generated from the system of record and sent into the chat. Approvals reach the owner on their phone. No more hand-copying between WhatsApp and the ERP for that flow.
Lesson Start with the approval, not the feature. The AI prepares; the owner decides. Related idea: Start with the approval, not the feature