Action cards
Updated by Manu da Silva
After understanding a little more about what Action Cards are in our Introduction to flow, we will now move on to what cards exists and what we can do with each one.
To facilitate navigation through this article, if you want to go directly to a specific action card, just click on its name below:
- Send the contact a message
- Send somebody else a message
- Label the incoming message
- Add a URN for the contact
- Add the contact to a group
- Remove the contact from a group
- Update the contact
- Send an email
- Save a result for this flow
- Enter another flow
- Start somebody else in a flow
Send the contact a message
The most popular and widely used action card on the platform. Its function is to send a message to the contact. This message will be received regardless of the channel the user is chatting in, just write it in the text box.
- Quick Replies
There is the possibility to send quick replies (text buttons) to users, thus facilitating the response and serving as a possibility for a guide to your conversation. Currently, you can add up to 10 text buttons per letter.
- Attachments
It is also possible to send attachments to a user. These attachments can be photos, videos, audios and documents. To send these attachments, simply place the media link, or choose the file using your computer's file selector. Currently, you can add up to 3 attachments per card.
- Advanced
The Advanced option allows us to activate the sending of messages to all destinations, that is, send messages to all channels that the contact has a link to, and not just to the preferred channel. After that, the channel chosen by the user to reply will become the preferred channel for that conversation.
That is, if your preferred channel is Whatsapp, when you check the option for all destinations, the contact will receive the message on all channels he has, and if he responds by SMS, SMS will become the new preferred channel for the contact. and the flow will continue there.
Send somebody else a message
We can send a message to a contact or group other than the one running the flow. This message will be displayed to the contact / group without affecting any flow or conversation that may be currently running for them.
Label the incoming message
You can mark the last message sent by the contact with a Label. All labeled messages go to a message group with the same name as the label. You can learn more about messages and labels in the message article.
Add a URN for the contact
It is possible to add new URNs for your contact. You can select the type of URN to be added (Phone Number, Whatsapp, SMS, Telegram, etc.) and enter the new value, using some fixed value or a flow variable. To understand a little more about URN, you can visit the article on the subject
Add the contact to a group
You can add the contact to a static group. If the group does not exist in the contacts tab, you can create it by typing the name you want for the group in the selection field. To understand a little more about groups, visit the contact article
Remove the contact from a group
You can remove the contact from some static group. In addition, you have the option to mark to remove the contact from all groups that he is part of, without distinction. To understand a little more about groups, visit the contact article
Update the contact
To fill in the contact fields, just use Update Contact. In it, you select the contact field you want to update, and after that you can enter a fixed value or a flow result. If the contact field does not yet exist, just write the name you want for it. To learn more about the contact fields, visit the contact article
Send an email
Here you can send an email to someone. This email can be as much from the contact that is executing the flow, as any other. Remembering that e-mail is not a push conversation channel, that is, if someone responds to the e-mail sent, it will fall into the inbox of the e-mail configured in the organization (to learn more, visit the article of organization settings).
To send the email, just put the recipient, the subject and the message body in the corresponding fields.
Save a result for this flow
We were able to simulate a flow result with this action card. Creating from scratch, without the need for input or going through a decision card. Therefore, just choose the name of the flow result, enter its value and, if you want, a category. In addition, we can update the value of some existing flow results. To understand a little more about flow results and their structures, visit the results section in the decision cards article
Enter another flow
Here, we can start a new flow for the user. When the user enters a new flow, the flow he was in before (which can now be called the parent flow), is on hold until completion. In the meantime, the user will execute the new flow (which can now be called a child flow) and at the end of the execution, it will return to the point where it left off in the parent flow. To work, just choose the name of the flow you want among existing options.
When the execution of the child flow is finished, the enter a flow letter gives us the opportunity for two routes, thus being the only action card that uses this concept (to understand the concept of route, visit the decision cards article). These two possible routes are based on how the child flow ended. If it was completed without any problems, the flow will take the Complete route and if the child flow has expired, the parent flow will use the Expired route.
Start somebody else in a flow
In the same way that we can send a message to a contact / group that is not the current one, we can also start a new flow.
To decide who will be initiated by the flow, we can choose between three options:
- Manually define the contacts / groups that will be started in the new flow;
- Create a logical rule (usually based on contact fields) to filter the contacts that should enter the flow;
- Create a new contact, and that contact will be initiated in the flow;
After deciding on these options, simply select a stream to start. Unlike Enter another flow, this card does not create route options, after all, it does not wait for the end of the child flows to continue executing the parent flow.