Build and publish a Guided Flow

Create the flow

Open Guided Flows, choose a template or start blank, and give the flow a name visitors and teammates can recognize. The optional description is shown to visitors as a hover tooltip in the chat widget's Guided help list, so keep it short and clear.

Write the starting question

Set the visitor prompt and at least one option. Mark the intended first question as the start node.

Each question has one optional Key directly below it. When a visitor selects any option, Fetchply stores that option's button text under the question's key. The key fills in from the question by default. Shorten it if needed, then use the same key when mapping an answer to a Google Sheet column. Clear the key if you do not want to save an answer from that question.

If an older question shows an empty Key after its options were saved under different names, enter one replacement key before republishing. The new key applies to every option in that question.

Connect every option

Route each option to another question or an outcome. Add an optional answer or media that appears after a visitor selects it.

Ask for a typed answer when you need details

Some questions have no fixed options: you need the visitor's own name, email, phone number, or address. Add an Ask for input node from the node library. Pick the answer type (short text, email, phone number, number, or link), give it a Key so the answer is saved, and connect it to the next step.

The visitor sees a text box and types their answer. Fetchply checks it before moving on: an email must look like an email, a phone number must be a real number, and a link must be a valid web address. If the answer does not fit, the visitor is asked again with a short hint (you can write your own hint under "If the answer is invalid"), and the flow only continues once the answer is valid. This works on your website, WhatsApp, and Instagram; on WhatsApp and Instagram the visitor simply types their reply.

Use the Required answer toggle to decide whether the visitor must answer. When it is on (the default), the flow waits for a valid answer. When you turn it off, the question becomes optional: on your website the visitor sees a Skip this question button and can move on without answering, and nothing is saved for that question. On WhatsApp and Instagram, where the visitor just types a reply, they can reply with a dash (-) or "skip" to move past an optional question. Turn it off for optional details like a phone number or a note, and keep it on for anything the next steps depend on.

Use these keys later in an Ask for input chain to collect everything an order needs (name, delivery address, and any optional email, phone, or note), then map them in the order node.

Add Product and Order nodes when needed

If Commerce is on, let visitors buy in two steps. Add one or more Product nodes where the visitor should pick an item: search your catalog by product name or SKU, select Add on each product to offer, and set quantities with the plus and minus buttons. Every product picked along the visitor's path is added to the same order. Then add one Order node at the point where the order should be placed, and connect a clear visitor choice such as Place my order into it.

Every item uses your single store currency from Commerce → Settings. The picker flags a product that is hidden or out of stock so you can swap it before publishing.

When the visitor reaches the Order node they always first see a review of the order — the products, quantities, shipping, the total including shipping, and the details you collected — and place it with a Confirm order button (or Cancel to stop). The review cannot be turned off, so a visitor never places an order without seeing it first. Shipping and tax come from Commerce → Settings. The order is only created after they confirm; cancelling ends the flow without creating an order.

Before the Order node, collect the customer's name and full delivery address with Ask for input nodes (see the step above), giving each a Key. Then map those two required Keys in the Order node. Email, phone, and notes are optional: collect them only if you need them, and use each input node's Required answer toggle to decide whether the customer must fill them in. Fetchply checks the customer details, current product, currency, and stock again before saving the confirmed order.

Email and phone are never forced by the Order node, but any email or phone the flow does collect must be valid before the order is saved. A number such as +1 555 123 4567 or (021) 111-222-333 is accepted; free text like "call me later" is rejected. If you want email or phone to be mandatory, keep the Required answer toggle on for that input node.

Show a review and confirmation

When the order is placed, the visitor sees a confirmation that reviews everything they ordered: the order number, each product with its quantity and price, the total, and the details you collected (name, delivery address, and any email, phone, or note). Show this on your website, WhatsApp, and Instagram alike.

Leave the Confirmation message blank to show this full review automatically. To write your own message, type it in and drop in any of these placeholders, which Fetchply fills in when the order is confirmed:

• {orderId} — the order number, such as FP-1A2B3C4D.
• {orderTotal} — the order total, such as $55.00.
• {orderSummary} — the full itemized review described above.
• Any answer Key you saved, such as {email} or {name}.

For a clear "review before you buy" step, add a Yes / No question just before the order node ("Ready to place your order?"), and route Yes into the order node. Reaching the order node is the visitor's explicit confirmation.

Configure flow settings

Choose enabled channels, input policy, and any channel-specific labels. The Instagram and WhatsApp switches stay turned off and cannot be toggled until you connect that channel in Integrations. Once connected, the switch becomes available. If a channel is disconnected later while a flow still uses it, its switch stays available so you can turn it off, but the flow no longer reaches that channel until you reconnect.

Preview and validate

Use the visitor preview, follow every route, and fix all highlighted issues. The editor auto-saves and warns about cross-tab conflicts.

Publish

Select Publish. New conversations use the published version. Existing runs keep their consistent flow state.