Workflow Steps - Digital

Dialpad's digital workflow steps let you guide users through a personalized conversation flow, directing them to the right information and contact every time.

Let’s take a look at the digital workflow steps available in Dialpad.

Who can use this

You must be an Office or a Company Admin to create Workflows for Offices, Mainline numbers, Departments, and Contact Centers. 

Refer to our Pricing Page to see if you have access to this feature. If you have any questions about your plan, reach out to your Customer Success Manager or Dialpad Customer Care.

Step types

Customize your conversation experience with Dialpad’s digital workflow steps. They are organized into 3 categories:

Send Message

The Send Message step begins the interaction with the customer/user. This is typically a greeting to the user and prompting them to describe what they are looking for.

To add a Send Message step:

1. Open the desired digital workflow and select ‘+’ to add a new step to your workflow

   Note

   If this is a new workflow or an existing one with no steps added, select whether to create a workflow from scratch or from a template. Creating a workflow from scratch lets you choose which steps to include. Templates have pre-defined steps added

2. Under Prompt, select Send Message

3. Name the step

4. Select the desired output type

   Chat bubble

   The Chat bubble option allows you to customize the message users see during a digital session. Messages can be:

   • Plain text: simple text with no formatting
   • Formatted text: text with the ability to use basic formatting options for customization
     • Bold
     • Italics
     • Strikethrough
     • Links
     • Bulleted and numbered lists
     • Code blocks
   • Wait for response: enable this option to have the chat wait for the user's response before proceeding. You can choose how long to wait before prompting the user. If no timeout value is set, the chat waits for the user to respond.
     • Response buttons: enable This option to create preset responses that are displayed in the chat for the user to select.

     

     • Variables: Enter a variable name to collect information based on the response selected by the user. The variable can then be used in a Branch step to determine the routing (e.g. there are 3 responses of Sales, Billing, and Support. Create a variable called ‘userchoice’. Add this variable to a Branch step and create 3 options to route to based on the preset options.)

     

Hidden message

The Hidden message option enables you to create messages that are visible only to agents during a session. These are useful for metadata or internal signals that aren't visible to the end user and are mainly used for system integrations and routing logic.

Media

The Media option allows you to share images, files, or other media to support the conversation. Media options include:

• Audio
• Document
• Image
• Video

Provide a link for each media piece used in the Send Message step, along with a caption, if desired.

Select the Wait for response option to have the chat wait for the user's response before proceeding. You can choose how long to wait before prompting the user. If no timeout value is set, the chat waits for the user to respond.

5. Select Add

Go-To

The Go-to step moves the user to another part of your Workflow, reducing duplication by avoiding multiple path creation. For example, if you have a transfer option that transfers users to your Sales department, use a Go-to step to reach that configuration from multiple parts of the Workflow. This simplifies editing common functions and creates a common path for common steps. If the destination is an Workflow and there is no terminal step in the path, the execution will resume with the step following the Go-to step.

To add a Go-to step:

1. Open the desired workflow and select ‘+’ to add a new step to your workflow

   

2. Under Logic, select Go-to

   

3. Name the Go-to step

   Note

   The name must be unique across your workflow and is a required field.

4. Select your destination, options include:

   • Workflow - Select one of your existing Workflows.
   • Step - Select one of your existing steps in the current Workflow.

   

5. Select Add

Use the ‘+’ function from the workflow editor to add a step after the Go-to step. This step will execute if the Go-to step returns from processing.

Note

Be careful to avoid looping! If you call a step that will repeatedly reach a Go-to step, you’ll create a loop. If detected, loops will stop processing and terminate the session, creating a frustrating experience for your users.

Assign

The Assign step creates or updates variables to store information during the session, allowing for greater personalization.

Use the Assign step to:

• Set a value to use later in the workflow.

  • For example, use the ‘agent.skill variable’ when needing to specify a certain skill or expertise to be considered when routing to human agents.

• Save the value of an existing session variable

To add an Assign step :

1. Open the desired workflow and select ‘+’ to add a new step to your workflow

   

2. Under Logic, select Assign

   

3. Name the Assign step

4. Enter a variable name

   Note

   You can use a new name or select an existing variable from the dropdown.

5. Enter the value or expression

   

   Note

   You can use a variable name as the source of the Assign, or select one of the existing variables from the dropdown. New variables must be alphanumeric characters with no spaces or _ characters (if the variable already exists, the current value will be overwritten).

6. Select + Add new assignment if you want to add another assignment, or select Save

7. Select Add

Tip

Be sure to read this Help Center article for more details on variables.

Branch

The Branch Step evaluates system variables and performs specific actions based on the examined value.

Some examples of ways to use Branches include:

• Check a specific customer's email address using the customer email variable to perform actions based on it.

• Check an inbound email using the subject variable to route it to the appropriate workflow.

To add a Branch step:

1. Open the desired workflow and select ‘+’ to add a new step to your workflow

   

2. Under Logic, select Branch

   

3. Name the Branch step

4. Select a variable to be evaluated

   • You can choose from the system variables in the drop-down menu, or you can type your custom variable into the edit box.

   

5. Select Add

Once the Branch step has been created, you will have an empty conditional leg with an optional no-match path.

Select the Edit icon to edit the condition — this will be the text or regular expression used to match against your variable value.

Select the check mark to confirm the condition and save it to the leg.

Add additional steps using the + button below the condition.

• Add below the “No Match” leg for items that do not match any condition.

• If you want to add more conditional legs, click the + below the Branch node.

To delete a conditional leg, hover over the condition and select the Trash can.

Tips

It is recommended to use ^ to mark the start of any string (words or numbers) and use a $ to mark the end of the string.

The evaluation of variables can be a static string value, or you can use more powerful regular expressions like the ones listed above.

Customer Data

The Customer Data step simplifies the process of collecting and sharing key customer details that agents and supervisors can view during a session. This enables faster responses, more personalized conversations, and eliminates the need to repeat questions. To set it up, admins define key-value pairs within the workflow step to capture and pass along important customer information.

To add a Customer Data step:

1. Open the desired workflow and select ‘+’ to add a new step to your workflow

   

2. Under Logic, select Customer Data

   

3. Name the customer data step

4. Define the Value (variable) for each key:

   System Variables	Select from a list of pre-defined Dialpad variables such as Customer Name, Customer Email, Company Name, etc. These variables dynamically insert information related to the current session.
   Variables from other nodes	If you have previously used other nodes, these variables will be available for selection in a list after the system variables.
   Manually entered variables	For other existing pre-defined variables not shown in the list, you can manually type the variable name enclosed in double curly braces (e.g., {{my_custom_variable}}).
   Static Values	Enter a fixed text value directly (e.g., "Sales Inquiry", "Support Queue 1").
   Combination of text and variables	Combine static text with variables to create a descriptive value (e.g., "Customer selected: {{MenuChoice}}").

   

   Note

   You can add up to 10 variables per Customer Data Step.

5. Select Add

   Tip

   When using multiple values, drag and drop them into the desired order.

Once you’ve created a Customer Data step, go to your Office Settings and enable customer context.

To enable customer context on calls, go to your Dialpad Admin Settings.

1. Select Office Settings

2. Navigate to Customer Context on Calls

3. Select the Enable customer context on calls checkbox

   

External API

The External API step allows you to fetch data from a separate platform (such as a CRM) via REST APIs. This is useful for retrieving information, such as a customer account or a shipping order.

Note

Make sure the API is accessible via the public internet.

To add an External API step:

1. Open the desired workflow and select ‘+’ to add a new step to your workflow

   

2. Under Logic, select External API

   

3. Name the External API step

4. Enter the URL to make the request to the external REST API

   • Example: https://example.com/api/users

   Note

   Ensure that https:// is included in the URL.

5. Add any URL parameters to the URL API call

   • Example: ?email={{customer.businessid.email}}

6. Choose the method the API will use for the operation:

   • GET
   • POST
   • PUT
   • PATCH

   

7. Add any additional headers to the API

   Example:

   • Authorization: Bearer {{accessToken}}
   • Accept: application/json

8. Enter any optional Body or POST JSON data to the API

   Example:

   {

    "name": "{{userName}}",

    "age": "{{userAge|type=jsonnumber}}",

    "isActive": "{{isUserActive|type=jsonboolean}}",

    "address": "{{userAddress|type=json}}",

    "phone": "{{userPhone|type=json}}"

   }

9. Select any variable assignments

   Examples:

   • Name
   • isActive
   • address.zip

   Note

   Variables can be URL encoded or transposed to JSON using the following formatting on the variable:

   JSON: {{exampleVariableName|type=json}}

10. URL Encoded: {{exampleURLString|type=urlqueryvalue}}
11. Number in JSON Body value: "{{num|type=jsonnumber}}"
12. Boolean in JSON Body value: "bool":"{{bool|type=jsonboolean}}"

These examples above are used in expert mode, but highlight how you can use variables in the standard External API step.



13. Select Add

Note

For more complex workflows that use APIs, use the Expert Step and configure the API within an Expert Workflow.

Note

Most APIs take only a few seconds to process and can be used with the standard External API step. For APIs that require longer processing times, it’s recommended to use an Expert Workflow.

Expert

Expert steps must be configured by our Professional Services team. Please contact your Customer Success Manager to get started.

To learn more about Expert Workflows, check out this Help Center article.

Transfer

Use the Transfer step to send a conversation to a specific destination. Users can be transferred to Agents, another Digital Contact Center, or to a team member within a Contact Center.

To add a Transfer step:

1. Open the desired workflow and select ‘+’ to add a new step to your workflow

   

2. Under Terminal, select Transfer

   

3. Name the transfer step

4. Select the transfer destination:

   • Agents - transfers to agents from the Contact Center where the Digital Workflow is attached.
   • Contact Center -  Transfers to the selected Contact Center
   • Team Member - Transfers to a specific team member.

   Note

   By default, Digital Channels automatically route to agents in the attached Contact Center. For custom routing to a specific contact center or team member, add a transfer step to the "Before agent connection" event under the Advanced tab.

5. Enter the Queue Message (optional)

6. Select Add

End Session

Use the End Session step to end the session with a user and complete the workflow.

To add an End Session step:

1. Open the desired workflow and select ‘+’ to add a new step to your workflow

   

2. Under Terminal, select End Session

   

3. Name the End Session step

4. Select Add