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The Slack integration lets your BotSmith agent respond to messages posted in Slack channels and direct messages. You create a Slack app, connect it to BotSmith with your bot token, then invite the bot to the channels where you want it active. Your team can then chat with your agent without leaving Slack.

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Step 1: Create a Slack App

  1. Go to api.slack.com/apps and sign in to your Slack account.
  2. Click Create New App → From scratch.
  3. Give your app a name (this becomes the bot’s display name in Slack) and select the workspace where you want to deploy it.
  4. Click Create App.

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Step 2: Add Bot Scopes and Install the App

Your bot needs permission to read and send messages in channels, direct messages, and private channels.
  1. In your app settings, go to OAuth & Permissions.
  2. Under Scopes → Bot Token Scopes, add all of the following:
    • chat:write — to post messages.
    • channels:history — to read messages in public channels.
    • im:history — to read direct messages.
    • groups:history — to read messages in private channels.
  3. Scroll to the top of the OAuth & Permissions page and click Install to Workspace, then approve the requested permissions.
  4. Copy the Bot User OAuth Token that appears — it starts with xoxb-.

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Step 3: Get Your Signing Secret

  1. In your app settings, go to Basic Information.
  2. Under App Credentials, copy the Signing Secret.

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Step 4: Connect to BotSmith

1

Open the Integrations tab

In the BotSmith chatbot editor, click the Integrations tab.
2

Open Slack configuration

Find the Slack card and click Setup.
3

Enter your Slack credentials

Fill in the following fields:
  • Bot Token — Paste the xoxb- token from OAuth & Permissions.
  • Workspace URL (optional) — Your Slack workspace URL (for example, https://yourcompany.slack.com).
  • Signing Secret (optional) — Paste the signing secret from Basic Information.
4

Save the integration

Click Save Integration. The integration panel displays your unique Slack Webhook URL — copy it for the next step.
5

Enable the integration

Toggle Enable Integration on.

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Step 5: Set Up Event Subscriptions

Event subscriptions tell Slack to forward messages to BotSmith when someone posts in a channel where the bot is present.
  1. In your Slack app settings, go to Event Subscriptions.
  2. Toggle Enable Events to on.
  3. In the Request URL field, paste the BotSmith Slack webhook URL from the integration panel. Slack sends a verification request; BotSmith confirms it automatically.
  4. Under Subscribe to Bot Events, click Add Bot User Event and add:
    • message.channels — messages in public channels.
    • message.im — direct messages to the bot.
    • message.groups — messages in private channels.
  5. Click Save Changes.
  6. If Slack prompts you to reinstall the app, click Reinstall your app and approve the permissions again.

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Step 6: Invite the Bot to a Channel

Your bot only responds in channels it has been invited to.
  1. Open the Slack channel where you want the agent to be active.
  2. Type /invite @YourBotName and press Enter (replace YourBotName with your app’s bot username).
  3. The bot joins the channel and begins responding to every message posted there.
To have the bot respond only when directly mentioned rather than to every message, adjust the Response Mode in your chatbot’s Settings tab in BotSmith.