Steps

Text

Ask an open question, wait for the customer's reply, and save it to use later in the chat.

What it does#

Text sends a question and waits for the customer to reply. Any reply is accepted. The reply is saved under the step name, so later messages can use it, for example {{@fullName}}.

Use	When
Text	You need an answer: a name, a request, a comment. The chat stops here until the customer replies.
Send Message	You only want to tell the customer something. The chat moves on at once.

Need a specific kind of answer? Number, Email, Date and Get Location check the reply before moving on. Options lets the customer pick from a list.

Add a Text step#

1
Drag Text onto the canvas
It's the first step under Flow in the Steps panel on the left. Click the step to open Step settings on the right.
2
Name the step
Click the name at the top of the panel (it starts as text1) and type a name that says what the answer is, such as fullName. Use letters and numbers only: no spaces or underscores.
3
Write the question
Under Message, replace the example text with your question. Use *bold*, _italic_ and ~strike~, and type @ or # to insert a variable.
4
Connect it
Connect the previous step into this one, then drag from this step's dot to the step that should run after the customer replies.
5
Check it
The Phone preview tab shows the question with the note Waits for a reply.

Example#

A restaurant booking bot asks for the customer's name, then uses it right away:

Text
fullName: What name should we book under?
Number
guests: How many guests, {{@fullName}}?

The Text step waits for the name; the next message uses it.

The customer sees What name should we book under? and replies Dana. The next step asks How many guests, Dana?

It looks the same on WhatsApp and on your website: a message, then the customer types their answer.

Use the answer later#

The reply is saved under the step name, exactly as the customer typed it. Type @ in any later message to pick it from the list, or write it yourself:

{{@fullName}} in a message, for example Thanks {{@fullName}}, see you soon!
In a Filter condition, to branch on what the customer wrote.
In an HTTP step body, to send it to your CRM or a Google Sheet.

If the same step is answered twice (for example after the customer types back), the newest answer wins.

Tips#

Ask one thing per step. "What's your name and phone number?" gets answers that are hard to reuse. Use two steps.
Say what you expect. What name should we book under? gets better answers than Name?.
Customers can go back. Typing back returns to the previous question, and beginning starts the chat over.
The step shows "This step isn't ready yet". Connect a step into this one and connect it to the next step.