Keyword flow trigger

A keyword trigger is used to launch a chatbot flow in response to specific words or phrases in a subscriber’s message.

For example, you can use it to reply to questions about pricing, delivery terms, or other common information that users send in free form.

Let’s talk about how to add a trigger and configure its settings.

Add a trigger

Go to your bot, open the Bot structure tab, and click Create a new trigger.

Select the Keyword trigger type.

Configure the keyword

Enter the keywords. The maximum keyword length is 32 characters.

The service recognizes individual words and phrases as commands, for example: Hello, price, what is the price, how much does it cost. Keyword recognition is case-insensitive, so the system treats price, Price, and PRICE the same.

Choose one of the following conditions the chatbot uses to recognize the keyword in a subscriber’s message:

Condition

Description

Matches with

The chatbot starts the flow right away only if the message matches the keyword exactly.

If the keyword is part of a longer word or message, or the message contains multiple keywords, the chatbot sends a clarification request.

Contains

The chatbot starts the flow right away if the message contains the exact keyword, on its own or within a longer message.

If the message contains keywords from multiple triggers, the chatbot starts the flow of the trigger whose keyword comes first in the trigger list.

A clarification request shows the recognized keywords as quick replies. When the subscriber selects one, the chatbot starts the flow linked to that keyword.

For example, if you have a trigger with the price keyword, here’s how the chatbot responds to different messages with each condition:

Subscriber’s message	Matches with	Contains
price	Starts the flow	Starts the flow
What is the price?	Sends a clarification request with price as a quick reply	Starts the flow
prices	Sends a clarification request with price as a quick reply	Doesn’t start the flow because prices isn’t the exact keyword

Customize clarification requests

Clarification requests help subscribers start the right flow when their message doesn’t match a keyword exactly. To customize them, go to Bot settings > General.

By default, the Show bot suggestions when a message doesn't match any keyword checkbox is selected. To turn clarification requests off, clear it.

To change the text or emoji the chatbot sends with a clarification request, enter the new text or emoji in the Bot suggestions indicator field.

Set throttle interval

Your throttle interval defines how often a flow can be launched if its trigger is fired multiple times. You can specify the interval in minutes, hours, or days.

For example, let’s say that you have the price keyword and a 5-minute throttle interval. If a user sends a message with this keyword to your chatbot and then sends another message with the same keyword two minutes later, the flow linked to this trigger will be launched once.