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Creating Steps

Steps are the building blocks of your conversation flows. Each step represents a moment in the conversation where something happens—the chatbot speaks, asks a question, collects information, or performs an action.

Step Types Overview

Step Type Purpose Collects Input?
Message Display information No
Text Input Collect free-form text Yes
Choice Present options to choose from Yes
Email Collect email address Yes
Phone Collect phone number Yes
Name Collect visitor's name Yes
Number Collect a numeric value Yes
Contact Form Collect name, email, and phone together Yes
Email Form Show email-only form Yes
Phone Form Show phone-only form Yes
Appointment Form Collect date, time, and notes Yes
Contact Us Form Collect name, email, phone, and message Yes
Action Perform automated actions No

Input Steps

These steps collect information from visitors.

Text Input

Collects free-form text responses from visitors.

Use for:

  • Open-ended questions
  • Descriptions or details
  • Any response that doesn't fit predefined options

Configuration:

  • Message - The question or prompt to display
  • Store as - Variable name to save the response

Example:

"What brings you in today? Tell us a bit about what you're looking for."

Choice

Presents predefined options for visitors to choose from. Each choice can lead to a different conversation path.

Use for:

  • Service selection
  • Yes/No questions
  • Multiple choice decisions
  • Branching the conversation

Configuration:

  • Message - The question to ask
  • Options - List of choices (2-5 recommended)
  • Transitions - Where each choice leads

Example:

"Which service are you interested in?"

  • Haircut
  • Coloring
  • Styling
  • Not sure yet

Tip

Each option can lead to a different step. Use this to create personalized conversation paths based on visitor choices.

Email

Collects and validates an email address.

Use for:

  • Follow-up contact
  • Sending confirmations
  • Newsletter signups

Configuration:

  • Message - The prompt asking for email
  • Required - Whether they must provide an email
  • Store as - Variable name to save the email

Example:

"What's your email address so we can send you a confirmation?"

Note

The system automatically validates that the input is a properly formatted email address.

Phone

Collects and validates a phone number.

Use for:

  • Callback requests
  • Appointment confirmations
  • SMS notifications

Configuration:

  • Message - The prompt asking for phone number
  • Required - Whether they must provide a number
  • Store as - Variable name to save the phone

Example:

"What's the best phone number to reach you?"

Note

Phone numbers are automatically validated (10 digits required) and formatted consistently.

Name

Collects the visitor's name.

Use for:

  • Personalizing the conversation
  • Contact information
  • Lead capture

Configuration:

  • Message - The prompt asking for their name
  • Required - Whether they must provide a name
  • Store as - Variable name to save the name

Example:

"Great! And what's your name?"

Number

Collects a numeric value.

Use for:

  • Budget amounts
  • Quantities
  • Age or year information

Configuration:

  • Message - The prompt asking for the number
  • Required - Whether they must provide a number
  • Store as - Variable name to save the number

Example:

"What's your approximate budget for this project?"

Form Steps

Form steps display a structured form in the chat instead of a text input. These are great for collecting multiple pieces of information at once.

Contact Form

Displays an inline form to collect name, email, and phone number together.

Use for:

  • Lead capture
  • Appointment requests
  • Quote requests

What visitors see:

  • A form with three fields: Name, Email, Phone
  • A Submit button
  • A Decline button (optional skip)

Configuration:

  • Message - Text shown before the form
  • Decline transition - Where to go if visitor clicks Decline

Example message:

"To schedule your appointment, please provide your contact details:"

Tip

The Contact Form is ideal when you need all three contact fields. It's faster than asking for each separately.

Email Form

Displays a simple form with just an email field.

Use for:

  • Newsletter signups
  • Quick contact capture
  • When you only need email

What visitors see:

  • A form with one email field
  • A Submit button
  • A Decline button

Configuration:

  • Message - Text shown before the form
  • Decline transition - Where to go if visitor clicks Decline

Phone Form

Displays a simple form with just a phone field.

Use for:

  • Callback requests
  • SMS opt-in
  • When you only need phone number

What visitors see:

  • A form with one phone field
  • A Submit button
  • A Decline button

Configuration:

  • Message - Text shown before the form
  • Decline transition - Where to go if visitor clicks Decline

Appointment Form

Displays a form for scheduling with date, time, and optional notes.

Use for:

  • Booking appointments
  • Scheduling consultations
  • Service requests with timing

What visitors see:

  • Date picker
  • Time picker
  • Notes field (optional)
  • Submit and Decline buttons

Configuration:

  • Message - Text shown before the form
  • Decline transition - Where to go if visitor clicks Decline

Example message:

"Pick a date and time that works best for you:"

Contact Us Form

Displays a comprehensive contact form with name, email, phone, and a message field.

Use for:

  • General inquiries
  • Detailed requests
  • When visitors need to explain their needs

What visitors see:

  • Name field
  • Email field
  • Phone field
  • Message field (multi-line)
  • Submit and Decline buttons

Configuration:

  • Message - Text shown before the form
  • Decline transition - Where to go if visitor clicks Decline

Example message:

"Tell us how we can help. Fill out the form below and we'll get back to you shortly."

Message Steps

Message (No Input)

Displays a message without collecting any input. The conversation automatically continues to the next step.

Use for:

  • Welcome messages
  • Providing information
  • Transitions between sections
  • Confirmations

Configuration:

  • Message - What the chatbot says
  • Next step - Where to go automatically

Example:

"Thanks for your interest in our services! Let me help you find the right option."

Action Steps

Action steps perform automated tasks without requiring visitor input.

End Conversation

Gracefully ends the conversation flow.

Use for:

  • Thank you messages
  • Completing a flow
  • Wrapping up after collecting information

Configuration:

  • Final message - The closing statement

Example:

"Thank you! We've received your request and will be in touch within 24 hours. Have a great day!"

Search Inventory

Searches your documents or inventory based on collected information.

Use for:

  • Vehicle searches (car dealerships)
  • Product lookups
  • Finding relevant information

Configuration:

  • Response message - What to say with the results
  • Data to use - Which collected fields to use for searching

How it works:

  1. Uses information collected earlier in the flow
  2. Searches your uploaded documents/inventory
  3. Returns relevant results to the visitor

Example:

After collecting vehicle preferences, search for matching vehicles and display: "Here are some vehicles that match what you're looking for:"

Note

Search Inventory is available on certain subscription plans. Contact support if you need this feature.

Send Email (Notify Team)

Sends a notification email to your team when a visitor reaches this step.

Use for:

  • Lead notifications
  • Appointment alerts
  • Priority follow-ups

Configuration:

  • Notification emails - Set at the flow level (comma-separated list)
  • Response message - What to tell the visitor

How it works:

  1. Collects all information gathered during the flow
  2. Sends formatted email to your notification addresses
  3. Shows confirmation message to visitor

Example message to visitor:

"We've received your inquiry and our team will respond shortly."

Important

You must set notification email addresses in the flow settings for this action to work.

Send Email to Visitor

Sends an email directly to the visitor (requires their email to be collected first).

Use for:

  • Appointment confirmations
  • Sending documents or information
  • Thank you emails

Configuration:

  • Email subject - Subject line for the email
  • Email content - Body of the email (can include collected information)
  • File attachments - Optional PDF files to include as links
  • Response message - What to show the visitor after sending

Personalization:

You can include collected information in the email using placeholders:

  • {{.name}} - Visitor's name
  • {{.email}} - Visitor's email
  • {{.phone}} - Visitor's phone

Example email content:

Hello {{.name}},

Thank you for scheduling your appointment. We look forward to seeing you!

If you need to make changes, please call us or reply to this email.

Send SMS to Visitor

Sends a text message to the visitor's phone (requires their phone number to be collected first).

Use for:

  • Appointment reminders
  • Quick confirmations
  • Time-sensitive notifications

Configuration:

  • SMS message - Text to send (can include placeholders like emails)
  • Response message - What to show the visitor after sending

Example SMS:

Hi {{.name}}, thanks for your interest! We'll be in touch soon.

Note

SMS functionality must be enabled by your administrator. Visitors can opt out by replying STOP to any message.

Form Decline Behavior

All form steps include a "Decline" button that visitors can click if they don't want to provide information.

What happens when they decline:

  • If you configured a Decline transition: Goes to that step
  • If no transition configured: Shows a polite message and the form disappears

Best practice: Always configure a helpful decline path, such as:

  • Offering alternative ways to contact you
  • Providing self-service options
  • Ending with a friendly message

Creating a Step

In the Visual Editor

  1. Click + Add Step in the toolbar
  2. A new step appears on the canvas
  3. Click on the step to open the configuration panel
  4. Choose the step type
  5. Fill in the required fields
  6. Click Save or click away to save

Step Configuration Panel

When you click a step, a panel opens with:

  1. Step name - Give it a descriptive name (visitors don't see this)
  2. Step type - Select the type from the dropdown
  3. Message/Prompt - What the chatbot says
  4. Type-specific options - Varies by step type
  5. Transitions - Where to go next

Writing Effective Step Content

Be Conversational

Write like you're talking to someone:

  • "Great! What's your name?"
  • "What brings you in today?"

Avoid formal or robotic language:

  • "Please input your full legal name in the field below."

Keep It Short

Chat messages should be scannable:

  • "We have 3 locations. Which works best for you?"

Not lengthy paragraphs:

  • "We currently have three convenient locations throughout the metropolitan area and would like to know which location would be most accessible and convenient for you to visit."

One Thing Per Step

Each step should do one thing:

  • Step 1: "What service do you need?"
  • Step 2: "What's your name?"

Not everything at once:

  • "What service do you need and what's your name and when do you want to come in?"

Guide the Visitor

Make it clear what they should do:

  • "Choose an option below:"
  • "Type your email address:"

Configuring Transitions

Transitions define where the conversation goes next.

Simple Transition

Most steps have one next step:

[Ask for name] → [Ask for email] → [Confirm]

Just select the next step in the configuration panel.

Conditional Transitions

Choice steps can go to different places based on the selection:

[Which service?]
    ├─ Haircut → [Haircut details]
    ├─ Coloring → [Color options]
    └─ Styling → [Style consultation]

For each option, select where it should lead.

Decline Transitions

Form steps can have a special transition for when visitors click Decline:

[Contact Form]
    ├─ Submit → [Thank you]
    └─ Decline → [Alternative options]

Default Transitions

Set a default for unexpected responses:

[Which service?]
    ├─ Known options → specific paths
    └─ Anything else → [Help them decide]

Common Patterns

Linear Information Collection

Greeting → Ask name → Ask email → Ask phone → Confirm → End

Quick Contact Capture

Greeting → Contact Form → Send notification → Thank you → End

Branching by Service

What service?
├─ Service A → [A details] → Confirm → End
├─ Service B → [B details] → Confirm → End
└─ Not sure → [Help decide] → (back to choice)

Appointment Booking

Greeting → Contact Form → Appointment Form → Send confirmation email → End

Lead Qualification

Ask budget
├─ Low → [Self-service option] → End
├─ Medium → [Schedule call] → Contact Form → End
└─ High → [VIP treatment] → Contact Form → Priority notification → End

Troubleshooting

Step not appearing in conversation

  • Make sure the previous step is connected to it
  • Check that transitions are configured correctly
  • Verify the step was saved

Form not showing

  • Make sure step type is a form type (Contact Form, Email Form, etc.)
  • Check that the step is properly connected in the flow

Responses not being collected

  • Ensure the step type collects input (not a Message step)
  • Check that "Store as" field is configured
  • Test the flow to verify

Wrong path being taken

  • Review your transition conditions
  • Check for overlapping conditions in choice steps
  • Verify the default path is set correctly

Emails/SMS not sending

  • Verify notification emails are set in flow settings
  • Check that visitor provided required contact info
  • Ensure email/SMS is enabled for your account

Next Steps