Follow Up Time

waitTime holds the HTTP request open waiting for a reply. followUpTime extends that window — but instead of holding the request open, it delivers late replies to your webhook. The two parameters can work together, or you can use just one:

Parameter	What it does	Where the reply goes
`waitTime`	Holds the request open for N seconds	HTTP response
`followUpTime`	Keeps listening for N seconds after `waitTime` closes	Your webhook

How it works

Message is sent

Poku sends the message to the recipient.

waitTime window opens

The HTTP request stays open. If the recipient replies, it’s returned immediately in the response and your agent continues with the received context.

waitTime expires

If no reply came in, your agent receives the no-response message and moves on.

followUpTime window opens

Poku continues listening in the background. If a reply arrives, it’s delivered to your webhook.

followUpTime expires

The channel closes. Any reply after this point is not captured.

Use case: manager replies after the call moves on

Your agent texts a manager mid-call asking about a customer’s car repair. The manager doesn’t reply in time, so the agent tells the customer no one is available. Ten minutes later, the manager replies — and followUpTime is still open. Your webhook receives the reply, and you can:

Text or email the customer with the manager’s response
Trigger a follow-up call to the customer
Log the response for your team

Example message to manager:

Customer John is asking about the status of his black Toyota Camry 2016. When is it ready for pick-up?

Request body:

{
  "message": "Customer John is asking about the status of his black Toyota Camry 2016. When is it ready for pick-up?",
  "to": "+12155550100",
  "waitTime": 30,
  "followUpTime": 3600
}

The agent gets a response within 30 seconds if the manager is available. If not, Poku keeps listening for up to an hour. When the manager replies, your webhook receives their message.

Webhook payload

When a reply arrives within followUpTime, Poku sends a POST to your webhook:

"interaction.response.received": {
  interactionId: "092f9eb4-3694-4718-9084-5c786afa87ec";
  message: "Toyota Camry 2016 will be ready for pick-up on Thursday.";
  metadata: { "customerId": "cust_123" };
  isWithinWaitTime: false;
  isWithinValidTime: true;
}

You can use a workflow tool like n8n or Make to act on this payload automatically — for example, sending the customer a follow-up text:

“Hi John, the manager just got back to us — your Toyota Camry 2016 will be ready for pick-up on Thursday.”

See the Webhook page for setup instructions.

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How it works

Use case: manager replies after the call moves on

Webhook payload

​How it works

​Use case: manager replies after the call moves on

​Webhook payload

How it works

Use case: manager replies after the call moves on

Webhook payload