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Slack knowledge mode vs notification mode

Written by , Founder, AskVault · Reviewed by Aashiq
Last updated: · 3 min read

Knowledge mode

Internal teams query the bot:

  • Employees ask /askvault What's our PTO policy? or mention @AskVault what's the dental coverage?
  • Bot answers from indexed docs (Notion, Confluence, etc.) with citations.
  • Used by HR, IT, engineering helpdesks. Common in companies with 50+ employees.

Setup: connect Slack via app manifest, enable knowledge indexing, invite bot to channels.

Typical impact: HR ticket volume drops 40 to 60% within 30 days. About 200 to 500 questions per month per team.

Notification mode

AskVault pushes events to Slack:

  • lead.captured. "New lead: Alice from BigCo, score 88."
  • conversation.escalated. "Conversation needs human attention: [link]."
  • knowledge.gap_detected. "Customer asked X 5+ times; not in knowledge base."
  • customer.frustrated. Sentiment alert.

Configure under Deploy Hub > Slack > Notification Channels. Map each event type to a Slack channel.

Useful for #sales-hot-leads, #urgent-support, #knowledge-team channels.

Both modes combined

Most teams enable both:

  • #engineering gets knowledge mode for runbook questions.
  • #sales-hot-leads gets notification mode for new qualified leads.
  • #urgent-support gets notification mode for escalations.

Different Slack channels can have different modes. Configure per-channel.

Configuration

Three places:

  1. Workspace mode. Deploy Hub > Slack > Default Mode.
  2. Per-channel overrides. Deploy Hub > Slack > Channels > [channel] > Mode.
  3. Per-event routing. Deploy Hub > Slack > Events > [event_type] > Target Channel.

Changes apply within 30 seconds.

Audience scoping

For knowledge mode in private channels:

  • Channel members are the audience.
  • Bot only responds in channels it's invited to.
  • Private channels require explicit /invite @AskVault.

For sensitive content (HR, legal, executive):

  • Restrict to private channels with the right members.
  • Apply audience tags like internal-hr to limit which docs surface.

Slack analytics

Per-channel metrics:

  • Questions asked (knowledge mode).
  • Notifications sent (notification mode).
  • Click-through rate on notification links.
  • Helpful votes on bot answers (thumbs up/down).

Visible under Analytics > Channel: Slack. Useful for tuning what each channel cares about.

Slash commands

Default commands in both modes:

  • /askvault [question]. Knowledge mode query.
  • /askvault-handoff. In a customer-facing channel, escalate to a human.

Custom commands available on Enterprise. Up to 10 per workspace.

Sample workflows

Knowledge: Engineer types /askvault how do we deploy hotfix? in #engineering. Bot replies with cited runbook in under 2 seconds.

Notification: New lead captured via website widget. Bot posts to #sales-hot-leads within 30 seconds: "New lead: Alice @ BigCo, score 88, intent: demo. View: [link]."

Limits

  • Knowledge questions per minute per channel. 30 (Slack rate limit).
  • Notifications per second per channel. 1 (Slack rate limit).
  • Slash commands. 2 default; up to 10 Enterprise.
  • Channels per Slack workspace. No hard cap.

FAQ

Can the bot read all messages in a channel?

Only when mentioned or via slash command (privacy mode default). The bot doesn't read every message in noisy channels.

Does this work with Slack Enterprise Grid?

Yes. Per-workspace install. Org-wide deploy available on Enterprise contracts.

Can I disable notifications during off-hours?

Yes via automation rules plus business hours config.

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