Auto-triage Gorgias tickets using native Rules

low complexityCost: $0 (included)Recommended

Prerequisites

Prerequisites
  • Gorgias account on any paid plan (Rules are not available on the free tier)
  • A defined list of support categories and the keywords that signal each one

Overview

Gorgias Rules are event-driven automations that fire when tickets are created, updated, replied to, or assigned. Each Rule has conditions (what to check) and actions (what to do). For triage, you'll create one Rule per tag category — each matching keywords in the ticket subject and message body.

Step 1: Define your tag taxonomy

Before building Rules, list your categories and the keywords that signal each one. A practical starting set for e-commerce:

TagTrigger keywords
billinginvoice, charge, payment, refund, overcharged, receipt
shippingshipping, tracking, delivery, delayed, package, lost
returnsreturn, exchange, refund, cancel, RMA
technicalbroken, error, bug, not working, issue, crash
accountlogin, password, access, account, locked, reset
feedbacksuggestion, feedback, love, hate, would be great

Keep it to 6–8 categories initially. You can always add more once the basics are running.

Step 2: Navigate to Rules

In Gorgias, go to:

Settings → Automation → Rules

Click Add rule in the top right.

Step 3: Create a Rule for each category

Repeat this for each tag category. Here's the full setup for a Billing Rule:

Rule name: Auto-tag: Billing

When: Ticket is created

Conditions (ANY of these match):

  • Message body contains: invoice
  • Message body contains: payment
  • Message body contains: refund
  • Message body contains: overcharged
  • Message body contains: receipt
  • Subject contains: billing

Actions:

  • Add tag: billing
Use 'ANY' not 'ALL' for conditions

Set the condition logic to ANY (OR), not ALL (AND). A ticket mentioning "invoice" alone should get the billing tag — it doesn't also need to mention "payment."

Repeat for each category in your taxonomy, adjusting the keywords and tag name.

Step 4: Add a catch-all for untagged tickets

Create one final Rule that flags tickets that didn't match any category:

Rule name: Auto-tag: Needs Triage

When: Ticket is created

Conditions (ALL must match):

  • Ticket does not have tag: billing
  • Ticket does not have tag: shipping
  • Ticket does not have tag: returns
  • Ticket does not have tag: technical
  • Ticket does not have tag: account
  • Ticket does not have tag: feedback

Actions:

  • Add tag: needs-triage
  • Assign to team: Support (or your triage team)
Rule ordering matters

Gorgias executes Rules in the order they appear in your list. Your catch-all Rule should be the last Rule. Drag it to the bottom of the Rules list after saving.

Step 5: Create Views by tag

Tags are only useful if your team can see them. Create a View per tag so each sub-team has a focused queue.

Go to Views in the left sidebar → Add view:

  • View name: Billing Tickets
  • Filters: Tag is billing, Status is open
  • Assigned to: Billing team or relevant agents

Repeat for each tag category.

Step 6: Test the Rules

Create a test ticket via your support email with body text that matches each category. Verify:

  1. The correct tag appears within a few seconds of ticket creation
  2. The ticket appears in the right View
  3. The catch-all needs-triage tag fires when no keywords match
Keywords in replies don't trigger creation Rules

Rules with "When: Ticket is created" only fire on the first incoming message. If a customer sends a vague first message and clarifies in a follow-up, the triage tag won't update automatically. Add a second Rule with "When: Message is created" if you want to re-evaluate on every reply.

Cost

Gorgias Rules are included in all paid plans at no additional cost.

Need help implementing this?

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