TG Bot Multi-Agent Distribution Rule Configuration Guide: Online First, Round Robin, and Project Isolation Best Practices

When your Telegram Bot evolves from a casual chat tool among a few friends into a customer service channel handling hundreds or even thousands of user inquiries, a core issue arises: Who picks up? How are they assigned? Without a reasonable distribution rule, messages will be like an unattended counter—either missed, or multiple agents reply to the same person simultaneously, or some agents are overwhelmed while others are idle.

This article focuses on the configuration and best practices of TG Bot multi-agent distribution rules. Using TG-Staff as an example, we will detail two distribution modes (Round Robin and Online First), project customer service isolation, and the complete chain of distribution links. Whether you are just building a customer service team or need to manage multiple Bot projects, this article will provide you with a practical operational plan.

Why Does a TG Bot Need Multi-Agent Distribution Rules?

Consider a typical scenario: your community operations Bot launches a new activity, and suddenly 200 user inquiries flood in. Your team has 5 agents, but without distribution rules, everyone can see all conversations—resulting in:

• Duplicate responses: Two agents reply to the same user simultaneously, and the user receives two identical answers, leading to a poor experience.
• Missed messages: Everyone assumes someone else is handling it, and a user’s conversation is left unattended for half an hour.
• Idle agents: Some agents are overwhelmed, while others have nothing to do because they cannot see unassigned conversations.

Reasonable distribution rules solve all the above problems. They act like an intelligent front desk, automatically assigning each new visitor to the most suitable and available agent, ensuring every user receives timely responses while keeping the workload balanced among agents. TG-Staff, as a customer service and operations SaaS platform for Telegram Bots, has built-in two distribution modes, which we will break down below.

Detailed Explanation of TG-Staff’s Two Distribution Modes: Round Robin vs Online First

TG-Staff offers two distribution modes that you can switch between in the “Settings → Distribution Rules” of each project. The core difference lies in whether the agent’s real-time online status is considered during assignment.

Feature	Round Robin	Online First
Trigger method	Cycles through authorized agents in a preset order	Prioritizes assigning to currently online agents
Online status awareness	No	Yes
Behavior when all offline	Continues assigning in order (agents can see after coming online)	Falls back to Round Robin
Suitable scenarios	Fixed agents, consistent online hours	Cross-time zone, flexible scheduling, shift-based duty

Round Robin – Suitable for Teams with Stable Agents and Balanced Workload

Round Robin is TG-Staff’s default mode. Its working mechanism is simple: the system maintains an agent list (in the order of addition or custom order), and when a new conversation arrives, it assigns it to the next agent in sequence. For example, agents A, B, C: the first conversation goes to A, the second to B, the third to C, the fourth back to A, and so on.

Best use cases:

• Fixed number of agents, with roughly the same working hours (e.g., all agents work from 9 AM to 6 PM).
• Desire for each agent to receive a roughly equal number of conversations, avoiding over-assignment to some.
• No need for real-time online status monitoring, as everyone is assumed to be online by default.

Configuration method: In the TG-Staff console, go to “Project Settings → Distribution Rules” and select “Round Robin.” No additional adjustments are needed; the system will automatically cycle through the order.

Online First — Ideal for Shift-Based Duty and Unfixed Agent Availability

The Online First mode is smarter: the system monitors each agent’s login status in real-time (whether they are online in the web console). When a new conversation arrives, it is only assigned to currently online agents, and distributed among them via round-robin. If all agents are offline, the system automatically falls back to round-robin mode, assigning the conversation to authorized agents (even if offline). When agents come online, they can see messages assigned during their offline period in the conversation list.

Best Use Cases:

• Cross-Timezone Teams: Your agents are distributed across Asia, Europe, and the Americas, making simultaneous online presence impossible.
• Flexible Scheduling: Some agents are only on duty during specific hours (e.g., only 2 agents on weekends).
• Peak Elastic Scaling: Normally 3 agents, but temporarily add 2 part-time agents during promotions; Online First automatically utilizes the extra workforce.

Configuration: Go to “Project Settings → Routing Rules” and select “Online First”. Note: Agents must remain logged into the web console to be considered “online”. If an agent closes the browser or disconnects from the network, the system will automatically mark them as offline after a few minutes.

How to Configure Agent Scope: All Agents vs. Specified Agents

In addition to routing modes, TG-Staff supports project-level agent isolation. This allows you to assign different agent groups to different Bot projects, achieving precise permission and business line segmentation.

In “Project Settings → Agent Scope”, there are two options:

• All Agents: All agents under this account can view and handle conversations for this Bot.
• Specified Agents: Only selected agents can view and handle conversations for this Bot.

Scenario 1 — Single Bot with Multiple Agents: Choose “All Agents” for Full Coverage

If your team operates only one Bot (e.g., an after-sales support Bot) and all agents serve the same business line, selecting “All Agents” is the simplest. Combined with Online First or Round Robin, all agents can automatically handle new conversations without additional configuration.

Suitable for: Small customer service teams (3-5 people) where all agents share the same responsibilities.

Scenario 2 — Multiple Bots with Multiple Business Lines: Use “Specified Agents” for Project Isolation

Suppose your team simultaneously operates three Bots:

• Pre-Sales Inquiry Bot: Handles product introductions and pricing inquiries.
• After-Sales Support Bot: Handles returns, exchanges, and fault reports.
• Community Management Bot: Handles community events and user feedback.

You certainly don’t want after-sales agents to answer pre-sales questions, nor community managers to accidentally handle after-sales conversations. In this case, you can select only the agents responsible for each Bot project — for the pre-sales project, select only the sales team; for the after-sales project, select only the support team; for the community project, select only the operations team.

Configuration Steps:

1. Go to TG-Staff Console → “Project Settings”.
2. Select the target Bot project.
3. Under “Agent Scope”, switch to “Specified Agents”.
4. From the dropdown list, select the dedicated agents for this project.
5. Save settings. Repeat this process for each Bot project to configure different agent groups.

Diversion Link: The Complete Chain from Ad Traffic to Agent Handling

The diversion rule solves the “who handles it” problem, but “where users come from” is equally important. TG-Staff’s Diversion Link is designed specifically to bridge ad attribution.

A diversion link is a short URL under the TG-Staff official domain (formatted like https://app.tg-staff.com/{code}), which you can embed in ads, social media posts, emails, or QR codes. When a user clicks the link, the system will:

1. Capture visitor information: IP address, browser type, operating system, source URL, and any custom parameters you attach to the link (e.g., utm_source, campaign_id).
2. Redirect to Telegram Bot: The user is guided to your specified Bot to start a conversation.
3. Trigger diversion rules: The Bot’s auto-replies (greetings, menus) and human agent assignment execute according to the diversion rules you configured.

Complete chain: Ad/Social Media → Diversion Link → Bot Auto-Reply → Human Agent Handling

Configuration method:

1. In the TG-Staff console, go to the “Diversion Link” page.
2. Click “Create Diversion Link” and select the target Bot project.
3. Optional: Add custom parameters (e.g., ?source=facebook&campaign=summer_sale).
4. Generate the short link, copy and embed it into your promotional channels.
5. Ensure the Bot project has the corresponding diversion rules enabled (round-robin or online priority).

Practical Checklist: 5 Steps to Configure Multi-Agent Routing Rules

Here is a step-by-step checklist to help you quickly set up multi-agent routing in TG-Staff:

1. Confirm Your Plan and Agent Quota

   • Register for TG-Staff and enjoy a free 3-day trial to experience all features.
   • The Standard plan supports 3/5/20 agents, and the Pro plan also supports 20 agents. Check the official pricing page for exact quotas.

2. Add Agent Accounts and Assign Permissions

   • In the console, go to “Agent Management” to add team members and create independent login accounts for them.
   • Set different operation permissions for each agent (e.g., whether they can edit Bot profiles or view statistical reports).

3. Create or Select a Bot Project and Configure Customer Service Scope

   • Connect your Telegram Bot to TG-Staff (you need to provide the Bot Token).
   • In “Project Settings → Customer Service Scope”, choose “All Agents” or “Specified Agents”.

4. Choose a Routing Mode

   • Go to “Project Settings → Routing Rules” and select “Round Robin” or “Online First”.
   • For new teams, we recommend using “Online First” as it is more flexible. If your agents have fixed online hours, you can switch to “Round Robin”.

5. Configure Diversion Links (Optional)

   • For ad attribution, create short links on the “Diversion Links” page and embed them in promotional channels.
   • Ensure the Bot project linked to the URL has routing rules enabled.

After completing these steps, your Telegram customer service team will achieve automated and intelligent multi-agent routing.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: How many agents can be online simultaneously in TG-Staff?
A: TG-Staff provides agent quotas based on your plan: the free trial (3 days) offers full feature access, the Standard plan supports 3/5/20 agents, and the Pro plan also supports 20 agents. Check the official pricing page for exact quotas.

Q: What happens to routing rules if all agents are offline?
A: If you are using “Online First” mode, when all agents are offline, the system automatically falls back to “Round Robin” mode, assigning new conversations to authorized agents (even if offline). When agents come online, they will see messages assigned during their offline period in the conversation list.

Q: Can I set different routing rules for different Bots?
A: Yes. TG-Staff supports multi-project management. You can independently choose the routing mode (Round Robin or Online First) and configure the customer service scope (All Agents or Specified Agents) in each project’s settings, enabling customized routing strategies for different business lines.

Q: Do I need to configure Diversion Links separately?
A: Yes. Diversion Links need to be manually created in the TG-Staff console. After generating a short link, embed it in ads, social media, or email channels. The link automatically captures visitor source information and directs users to the corresponding Telegram Bot, which then assigns them to an agent via routing rules. This feature is available in Standard and above plans.

Q: How can I monitor agent routing and reception status?
A: TG-Staff Pro provides user profiles and data statistics, allowing you to view metrics such as the number of conversations per agent and average response time. Standard plan users can check the real-time reception status of each agent in the “Conversation List” on the right side of the console. For more detailed statistical reports, we recommend upgrading to the Pro plan.

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Try It Now: Register for TG-Staff’s free 3-day trial to fully test multi-agent routing and project isolation features.
Learn More: Check the TG-Staff Documentation for detailed configuration of Diversion Links and visual command flows.
Get Help: Contact our support Bot @tgstaff_robot for one-on-one guidance.