A bot step is any one action that you can configure a custom bot or a feedback bot to perform. Most custom bots and feedback bots contain multiple bot steps, which work together in sequence to meet a higher-level goal than any one bot step can meet in isolation.

Step Types

There are different kinds ("types") of bot steps available:

You can configure certain step types repeatedly within a single bot, with each step running differently. For example, your second and third steps might both submit API calls, but direct them to two different external systems.

Other step types cannot be used more than once within the same bot. For example, it would make no sense to reopen a specific resolved issue more than once per conversation.

Note: Certain step types can be repeated within a bot, but never as the first step.

Step Order

A bot's steps execute in the exact order that you specify. Although two separate bots might contain identical step types, you can arrange them to run in a different order.

End-User Response Formats

Different bot step types support various end-user response formats. We cite and describe these formats in the same articles where we describe the step types.   

Guidelines:

  • To build and configure a custom bot or a feedback bot, use our no-code Visual Bot Builder.
  • There can be no more than 25 steps per bot.
  • Limiting a bot's scope makes each bot easier to conceptualize, fine-tune, and troubleshoot.
    What might seem too narrowly focused at first glance often provides greater versatility than you imagine.
  • Steps can support multiple branching scenarios that you define. The nature of these scenarios differs by design depending on the step type and end-user response format.
  • We recommend considering all possible effects before, during, and after adding or deleting any bot step.