Chatbot Builder

Building Your First Chatbot Flow

2 min readMar 19, 2026

Building Your First Chatbot Flow

HelpKit's visual flow builder lets you create powerful, multi-step chatbot conversations without writing code. This guide walks you through building your first flow from scratch.

Opening the Flow Builder

Go to Automation → Flow Builder and click + New Flow. You can start from a blank canvas or pick a template.

Core Building Blocks

| Block Type | What It Does | |------------|--------------| | Trigger | Starts the flow (keyword, button, new contact) | | Message | Sends text, image, video, or document | | Question | Asks user and waits for reply | | Condition | Branches flow based on response | | Action | Tags contact, assigns agent, or calls webhook | | Delay | Waits N seconds before next step | | End | Closes the flow or hands off to agent |

Building a Simple FAQ Bot

Step 1: Add a Trigger Drag a Trigger block. Select Keyword Match and type: hi, hello, hey, start.

Step 2: Send a Welcome Message Drag a Message block. Write:

Hello {{customer_name}}! 👋 Welcome to {{business_name}}.

How can I help you today?
1️⃣ Product info
2️⃣ Track my order
3️⃣ Talk to support

Step 3: Add a Question Block Drag a Question block. Set it to capture the reply and save it to a variable called menu_choice.

Step 4: Add Conditions Drag a Condition block. Create branches:

•If menu_choice = "1" → Send product info message

•If menu_choice = "2" → Ask for order number

•If menu_choice = "3" → Assign to agent

•Default → "Sorry, I didn't understand. Reply 1, 2, or 3."

Step 5: Test Your Flow Click Test Flow in the top bar. A simulation panel opens where you can walk through the flow.

Step 6: Activate Toggle the flow to Active. It will now respond to your trigger keywords automatically.

Best Practices

•Keep flows under 7 steps — completion rates drop after that

•Always include an escape option: "Type AGENT to talk to a human"

•Use the Preview mode before activating

•Review flow analytics weekly and optimize drop-off points

Building Your First Chatbot Flow