Bots are an excellent tool offered by many platforms, for the purpose of run code and automate tasks in an ingenious way. Specifically in the case of Slack, the programming of a bot is controlled by a user token.
This one has access to one or more Slack API. The most interesting thing is that they work the same as a common user, because they can carry out activities that people normally do such as posting messages, uploading files, having profiles, etc..
If you want to get the most out of it and enjoy its great benefits, we invite you to continue reading about How to create a bot in Slack for your workspace and automate certain tasks?.
What tasks can I automate with a Slack Bot and what are the benefits of doing so?
Bots can help you considerably streamline any process, because you program it to execute the task that you decide.
Apart from that, you can also perform other series of activities such as:
- Assist and supervise the activity of a specific channel.
- Write messages and post them on a channel.
- React to the activity of the members of a channel.
- Make interactive messages of a channel via buttons.
What does it take to create a bot in Slack, and which workspace users can do it?
For create a bot in Slack, there are not a large number of requirements to meet. Basically all you need is to have a Slack account and join a workspace. Thus, you can begin to enjoy all the advantages that this interesting functionality has to offer.
You have to take into consideration, that bots can only do what they are programmed to do. This means that a member cannot “log in” like the bot and perform tasks that other members of your space can do. Also, they cannot become the owner or administrator of any workspace.
Learn step by step how to create a bot for your Slack workspace
A rather interesting aspect of Slack, is that it allows you create your own bot to execute the tasks you need.
In this sense, if you don’t know how to do it, you just have to follow the procedure below:
- Log in in Slack.
- Connect to a workspace or create your own.
- Go to the Slack API.
- Click on the button Start building to start the process. Then, a screen is displayed where you have to write the name of the app and the workspace where you want to create it.
- Now it is time to start the configuration. So if you go to create a chatbot, select the option Bot located in the section of Add features and functionality.
- When you select bot, you will be located at App Home. From there, you will see a section called First, assign a scope to you bot token and a green button. Here you can add the permissions and scopes that the bot will have within the workspace.
- Go to section Scopes and add the permissions. Is the permission Bot Token Scopes which is a bot associated with the app installed in a workspace, and they are not linked to the identity of a user. There is also the User token scopes, which are basically members of the workspace and are issued to the user who installed the app and those who authenticate it.
- Select the permissions that you require and add them to the previous sections.
- Go up in the menu and you will see that the button of Install app to workspace. Proceed to install the app.
- Press on Allow and you will have the app installed.
After creating the bot, if you want to add it to your workspace you have to:
- Go to the left sidebar and click on the tab OAuth and permissions.
- Below the section Bot token scopes, choose one or more scopes.
- Select in Add an OAuth scope.
- Click on the tab Application dwelling, located in the left sidebar. This way, you will be able to see the bot user and the settings you added.
Added to that, It is worth mentioning that there are different ways to get the most out of a bot user.
We will explain below about these points, which go a little deeper into the efficiency and productivity of a bot user in your workspace:
To monitor and help process the activity of a channel
If you wish monitor and process the activities of public and private channels to whom you are invited, the use of a bot user is very convenient. Added to that, you can be aware of direct messages sent to you.
To post messages on a channel and react to members’ activity
Apart from receiving messages, a bot user helps you post previously set messages in all those channels of which you are a member. This can be very useful to save you time while you are working.
To make channel messages interactive with buttons
By the time it is add a bot to a Slack app, it’s possible add interactive components such as buttons to messages. With them, members have the opportunity to interact. As a consequence, certain actions are generated on the servers, with which you can perform certain tasks.
List of the best Bots you can use in Slack to get the most out of the tool
The Choosing a good bot will largely depend on the type of project you have, because each one fulfills different functionalities.
If you don’t know which ones to start with, we will share with you the 5 best ones to get the most out of the tool:
Trello
One of the more efficient bots that you can use within the platform, is Trello. Simply put, it can be said that is a task management tool, which makes it perfect for use with a workgroup. Consequently, from the same space you can organize your common personal tasks, slightly more professional tasks. One of the most interesting features is that it can manage your tasks and notify the team if any have been modified, added or deleted.
Jira Cloud
This application is commonly used for manage projects in which there is a work team. Thanks to it, the work of each of the members is controlled and monitored. Apart from that, it shows real-time updates to keep abreast of the progress of each task.
Another very useful point is that only administrators have the power to determine who can perform certain actions in each of the assigned tasks. In this way, you always keep track of your work no matter how many people are on a team.
Polly
If you want a simpler workflow, taking advantage of Polly is a great idea. With her, it is possible conduct voting and surveys to different members of the Slack channels and monitor the results in real time.
Added to that, results can be checked directly from Polly’s website, to later analyze them. Here you will not only have organization, but also allow your team to be part of important project decisions, know their opinions and other details through votes and surveys.
Kyber
This is another of the most interesting project management options that you can use within Slack. One of its distinctive features is that you can keep the entire work team within the same productivity line, monitoring progress, setting tasks, planning strategies, etc.
In addition to this, it is capable of reviewing the amount of work that remains to be finished and, in its free version, allows a maximum of 5 people per workgroup. Finally, you should know that Kyber has an integration to the platform for automation known by the name of IFTTT.
MailClark
If you want to start send Gmail emails through Slack, you can already do it through MailClark. You can have all the number of email accounts of Google that is desired. Thus, it is possible connect to every Slack channel in use, an email account with which you can keep in touch with an entire team.
It’s so good email manager, which is capable of configuring them in such a way that an email that is of interest to some people can be received and sent to a specific channel. Thanks to this, excellent internal company communication is maintained.
If you have any questions, leave them in the comments, we will answer you as soon as possible, and it will also be of great help to more members of the community. Thank you!
Author: Patricia Jimenez
Graduated in Social Communication, with a lot of experience as Copywriter and Content Writer, passionate about Apple products, MacOS, iPhone …
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