What are Blocks?

User Guide: What are Blocks?

Think of Blocks as the individual building blocks of your AI agent’s conversation. Each block has a specific job, like sending a message, asking a question, or making a decision. By connecting these blocks, you design the entire conversational flow for your users, step by step.

It’s like building with LEGOs: you have different shaped bricks for different purposes, and you connect them to create something amazing.

A visual of several blocks connected to form a conversational flow

The Main Types of Blocks

We can group the blocks into three main categories based on what they do:

Message Blocks: For communicating with your users.
Conditional Blocks: For making decisions and directing the conversation.
Action Blocks: For performing tasks or collecting information.

1. Message Blocks: Communicating with Users

These blocks are all about sending information to the user.

Message Block

What it does: Sends a simple text message to the user. This is the most common block you’ll use.
Key Settings:
- Content: The text message you want to display.
- Hyperlinks: Add clickable links within your message.
- Quick Replies: Add small, clickable suggestion buttons below the message to guide the user’s response.
When to use it: Greeting a user, providing information, answering a question, or confirming an action.

Button Block

What it does: Displays a message with up to three clickable buttons. Each button can lead the user down a different path in the conversation.
Key Settings:
- Buttons: Create up to 3 buttons, each with its own display text (e.g., “View Pricing”) and a value that the bot will recognize.
When to use it: Creating a main menu, offering a clear set of choices (like “Sales” or “Support”), or asking a multiple-choice question.

2. Conditional Block: Making Decisions

This is your agent’s “brain.” It directs the flow of the conversation based on rules you set.

Conditional Block

What it does: Checks information (like a user’s previous answer) and sends them down a specific path if it matches a rule. Think of it as an “if-then” statement: If the condition is true, then go here.
Key Settings:
- Conditions: The rules your bot will check. For example, check if a variable named user_choice is equal to “pricing”.
- Default Path: A fallback path for where to send the user if none of your rules match.
When to use it: Routing a user to the right department based on their choice, checking if a password is correct, or creating a quiz.

3. Action Blocks: Getting Things Done

These blocks perform a task, like collecting information from the user or talking to another application.

User Input Block

What it does: Pauses the conversation and waits for the user to type a response. It can collect and save their answer to be used later.
Key Settings:
- Input Type: Specify what kind of information you are asking for (Text, Email, Phone Number, Date, etc.) to ensure the user provides a valid answer.
- Validation: Set rules, like requiring an answer or setting a minimum length.
- Save Input As: Give the user’s answer a variable name (e.g., user_email). You can then use this variable in other blocks, like a Conditional Block or an API Call.
When to use it: Asking for a user’s name, email address, order number, or any other piece of information you need to collect.

API Call Block (Beta)

What it does: This powerful block allows your bot to connect to other applications and services over the internet. It can send or retrieve data, letting your bot perform advanced tasks.
Key Settings:
- URL: The web address of the external service you want to connect to.
- Method: The type of request you want to make (e.g., GET to fetch data, POST to send data).
- Response Variable: A name to store the data that comes back from the API so you can use it in your conversation.
When to use it: Looking up a customer’s order status from your database, checking product availability, or saving a new sales lead into your CRM software.