Create your first chat flow

A chat flow gives you a visual way to guide a visitor through a specific journey. One trigger decides when it begins, and the actions beneath it decide what the visitor sees and what Zeltino creates for the team.

For your first flow, keep the path short. A clear trigger followed by one message is enough to learn how saving, diagnostics, testing, and activation work before you add forms or branches.

In this article, you'll learn:

• How to create and name a flow
• How to choose one trigger
• How to add only the actions you need
• How to understand setup warnings
• How to save your work safely

Create the flow#

Open the project where the journey should run. A useful internal name includes both the audience and the intended result, such as Pricing questions - offer next step.

1. Open Automations > Chat Flows.
2. Select the option to create a new flow.
3. Enter a unique internal name that describes the audience and outcome.
4. Add one trigger at the start of the canvas.
5. Add actions beneath it in the order the visitor should experience them.
6. Configure every required field shown for each block.
7. Select Save. If no trigger has been added yet, select Save draft.

After saving, the flow remains Paused. It is stored in the project but will not run for visitors while you continue building and testing.

Use one trigger#

A flow supports one trigger. Choose among AI intent, Suggested question click, and Proactive chat. The trigger answers “when should this start?” while the action blocks answer “what should happen next?”

Read Choose a chat flow trigger.

For a small first flow, use AI intent with a narrowly written pricing-question prompt, then add one Send message action that acknowledges the question and explains the next step. This example has no form, meeting, category, or ticket dependency, so you can focus on the trigger boundary before building a conversion journey.

Add the minimum actions#

Start with a straight path. Use Send message or Detail question when the journey does not need branching. Use Choice question only when different answers genuinely require different follow-up paths.

Add Capture lead, Book meeting, Assign category, or Create ticket only when the outcome requires them and the supporting asset is ready.

For the complete catalog, see Use chat flow actions.

Resolve setup warnings#

As you build, Zeltino checks the canvas for incomplete or unsafe paths. It identifies missing or inactive lead forms, unavailable meeting types, missing or disabled categories, invalid assignees, required fields without values, and ticket paths without an earlier email capture.

Select the affected block to see what needs attention. Resolve every warning before activation. If the canvas branches, remember that each route into the affected action must be valid.

Save safely#

Save meaningful checkpoints while working, especially before adding branches or changing referenced assets. If you navigate away with unsaved changes, the builder asks you to confirm so you do not lose the current draft unexpectedly.

Once the short flow is saved and the canvas is free of warnings, you are ready to test the trigger with real visitor wording.

Next, follow Test and activate a chat flow.