Chatbot builder basics

Chatbots help automate responses to common questions, collect contact information, handle customer requests, and guide users through the ordering process. Once set up, your chatbot works 24/7, saving you time and making your business more efficient.

SendPulse’s drag-and-drop chatbot builder makes it easy to design your own bot. With a variety of elements, you can process customer requests, collect data, and adapt your flows based on user behavior.

Key features:

Build live chats and chatbots for Instagram, WhatsApp, and Facebook Messenger, all from a single interface.
Use 10+ elements to build flows — from simple welcome messages to complex sales pipelines.
Save user data to variables and tags, personalize messages, and segment your audience.
Track sessions, messages, click-throughs, and conversions in every flow.
Integrate with SendPulse's CRM system, use webhooks or API, and build a single automated flow using emails and web push notifications.
Leverage AI models for content generation, intent recognition, and dynamic flow branching.

Let’s talk about how to create and run a chatbot using SendPulse.

Connect your chatbot

Connect your chatbot to the platform of your choice, such as Telegram, WhatsApp, Instagram, Facebook, Viber or your own website.

Most platforms will ask you to log in and select a page or chat.

Go to Chatbots > Manage bots > Add bot, select a platform, and follow the prompts.

Create a chatbot structure

Before jumping into flow design, take a moment to map out what your chatbot needs to do and how users will move through it. Start by answering a few key questions:

What do you want users to do: submit a request, make a payment, or schedule an appointment?
What’s the essential info you need from them?
How should your flow adapt based on their answers?

Go to Bot structure > Triggers and choose your flow triggers:

Bot subscription
Keyword reply
Button click in a message
API events

Then, use builder elements to create a flow that matches your business needs. Whether you’re greeting new subscribers, offering support, selling products, or collecting data, you can customize every part of your flow.

Here are elements you can use to build a chatbot:

Use a Message to send text, images, videos, or surveys.
Add an Action to save replies to variables or send data to the CRM system.
Use a Filter to segment users based on their replies.
Add an API request to connect to external systems.
Use a Repeat to follow up with users about unfinished actions.

Build with a task-to-goal mindset — every element should move users closer to your target action.

You can also use ready-made templates to quickly build flows that help users book an appointment, send a request, or sign up.

Use AI

You can integrate your chatbot with OpenAI models to understand what users want and guide them to relevant flows automatically based on their behavior and your goals.

A static menu helps users go back to key chatbot sections at any point in the conversation.

Go to Bot settings > Menu and add buttons. To give you an idea, you can include buttons named Home, Schedule an appointment, My orders, and Support.

Add variables and tags

Save user data to tags and variables to personalize messages and branch flows based on user interests or other criteria.

Go to Audience and click Create variable. Type in a name and select a variable type. You can add values manually or collect them through your flow. To add general info about your business that applies across flows, use global variables.

Grow your chatbot audience

On most social media platforms, you can trigger a flow when a user subscribes or interacts with your chatbot.

There are several ways to grow your chatbot audience:

Add a chatbot subscription widget to your website.
Share a link to your flow.
Trigger a chatbot flow after a successful payment.
Add the Messenger widget in other SendPulse tools (website builder, email marketing service, Automation, or pop-up service).

On WhatsApp, Telegram, and Viber you can also import existing contacts using a file or integration.

You can view all chatbot subscribers and their collected data in the Audience tab.

Track chatbot interactions

Use SendPulse's analytics features to see where users drop off, which buttons they click, and how far they progress in every flow.

Metrics like click-through rates, element views, and completed actions can show where you might need to adjust your flow.

Chat with subscribers

Your team members can join conversations and chat with users in real time.

To do this, use Chats in SendPulse. You can assign team members to conversations based on the platform or status.

Integrate with other SendPulse tools

Sync data between SendPulse’s chatbot builder and other tools to collect and update users' information and stay in touch with them afterward.

SendPulse uses email addresses or phone numbers to recognize contacts across all tools.

Here’s how you can send data from SendPulse’s chatbot builder to other tools:

CRM system	To manage data in the CRM system: Create a contact for every new subscriber in your chatbot settings. Add the Create deal and Update deal actions to your flows. Create deals once successful payments are made through your chatbot.
Courses	To add new students, use the Enroll in the course action in your flow.
Campaigns	To send emails or SMS messages, ask users for their email addresses and phone numbers so that you can automatically save them to your contact lists.
Automations	Trigger flows after certain events in other SendPulse tools: When a contact or deal is created in the CRM system. When a contact is added to your list. When a POST request is sent to an event URL using the Send webhook action.

Integrate with third-party tools

With API and webhooks, you can send and receive data between your chatbot and other systems. Use the chatbot builder's API to create requests or transfer data within your flows through the API request and Send webhook elements.

You can also develop custom solutions and monetize them by offering them as apps for other SendPulse users.

Choose a pricing plan

You can try SendPulse for free. To unlock more features, you'll need to pick a paid plan. Pricing is based on your subscriber count, making it easy to choose a plan that fits your goals. Learn more on the pricing page.

Last Updated: 02.05.2025

Rate this article about "Chatbot builder basics"

User Rating: 5 / 5 (6)

Popular in Our Blog