Template variables in canned responses
All 13 placeholders you can use in canned responses, the fallback syntax, and what happens when a value is empty.
Updated October 5, 2026Also available in: Deutsch, Português
Canned responses can contain placeholders that Deskwoot fills in the moment an agent inserts the response into the reply box. Write a placeholder as {{ variable }}; spaces inside the braces are ignored. Every variable below works in every canned response, on every channel.
All variables
| Variable | Filled with | Example |
|---|---|---|
{{agent.name}} | Full name of the agent inserting the response | Maria Lopez |
{{agent.first_name}} | The agent's first name | Maria |
{{agent.last_name}} | The agent's last name | Lopez |
{{agent.email}} | The agent's email address | maria@yourcompany.com |
{{contact.name}} | Full name of the customer | Jonas Weber |
{{contact.first_name}} | The customer's first name | Jonas |
{{contact.last_name}} | The customer's last name | Weber |
{{contact.email}} | The customer's email address | jonas@example.org |
{{contact.phone}} | The customer's phone number | +49 170 1234567 |
{{contact.company}} | The customer's company | Weber GmbH |
{{conversation.id}} | The conversation number shown in the inbox | 4821 |
{{inbox.name}} | Name of the inbox the conversation belongs to | Website Live Chat |
{{account.name}} | Name of your workspace | Your Company |
Fallback text for empty values
Not every contact has a name or a company. Add a fallback after a pipe and it is used whenever the value is empty: Hi {{contact.first_name | there}} becomes "Hi Jonas" for a known customer and "Hi there" for an anonymous visitor. A fallback may contain any text except | and }.
What happens when a value is empty
- With a fallback, the fallback text is inserted.
- Without a fallback, the placeholder is removed and nothing is inserted.
- The automatic name "Visitor" that live chat gives anonymous contacts counts as empty, so
{{contact.first_name | there}}never greets someone as "Visitor". - A variable Deskwoot does not know stays in the text exactly as written, so a typo is visible before you send.
Good to know
- The agent variables always refer to the person inserting the response, not to the conversation's assignee.
- Values are filled in when the response is inserted. You can still edit the text before sending.
{{contact.name}}falls back to first and last name combined when the contact has no full name on record.
Frequently asked questions
Can I use variables in macros or automation rules?
Not yet. Variables are filled in when a canned response is inserted into the reply box. Macros and automation rules send their text as written.
Which variables should always have a fallback?
The contact fields (name, first name, last name, company) and the agent fields, because they can be empty or unknown. Deskwoot highlights these when you save a canned response without a fallback.
Do variables work on every channel?
Yes. They are resolved in the reply box, so email, live chat, WhatsApp, Telegram, LINE, SMS and X all get the filled-in text.