Build a flow in the editor

The flow editor is where you add, remove and change the steps of a flow. You work on a canvas: the trigger sits at the top, and each step hangs below it on a line.

Open it from Email & SMS, then Flows. Open the ⋮ menu on a flow and press Edit, or press Edit flow on the flow's report page.

#What you see

• Top bar. ← Flows takes you back. Click the flow's name to rename it. A badge shows Draft, Live or Off. Then come undo and redo, Preview (the flow's report page), Save and Update status.
• Left panel. It changes with what you select. With nothing selected it is Actions: Drag one onto any line in the flow.
• Canvas. Scroll to move around. The +, − and fit buttons in the corner zoom in, zoom out and fit the whole flow on screen.

The editor lays the cards out for you. You cannot move a card; if you add or remove a step, the canvas tidies itself.

#Add a step

1. In the Actions panel, find the step. They are grouped under Messages, Data and Logic.

   On screenMessages › Data

2. Drag it onto a line in the flow. Or click the + on a line and choose from the list.

3. The new step is selected and its settings open in the panel.

Some actions are greyed out with a reason: You need a design first, You need a list first or You need a texting number first.

A Stop step ends the flow, so it can only go where a path already ends. If you drop it on a line, the editor tells you to drop it on an End pill instead.

#The steps

Messages

• Email. Which design picks the email. Subject line (optional) overrides the design's subject. What kind of email is this is Marketing, Order or account or Cart or checkout recovery. Marketing needs proof of consent. Order or account emails go to the person whatever their marketing consent, so they must never carry an offer.
• Text. See "Add a text to a flow".

Data

• Property update. Writes a value onto the contact (Field name, Set it to).
• List update. Add or remove them from a list (Which list).
• Internal alert. Emails your own team, not the contact. Choose Who to tell, a Subject line and an optional Note.
• Webhook. Sends the details to another system. You give an Address to POST to, which must start with https, and an optional Shared secret.

Logic

• Time delay. How long, in minutes, hours or days. There is no zero wait; leave the step out instead.
• Wait until. Holds people until a time of day, so nothing lands at 3 AM. Pick Which day (The next time it comes round or a weekday) and At what time. It uses your brand's time zone, not the reader's.
• Split and A/B split. See "Split people into paths and test versions".
• Stop. Nothing happens after this.
• Stop emailing them. Stops marketing email to that person for good. Order confirmations still go out. It cannot be undone from inside a flow.

#Change or remove a step

Click a card to open its settings. At the bottom of the panel, Delete this step removes it and joins the step above to the step below. You can also use the ⋮ on a card, or press Delete. Removing a split asks Which way should everybody go instead?

Undo and redo remember your last 50 changes. Press Esc to close a panel.

#Save and check

1. Press Save. It is greyed out when the flow is not valid. A bar at the top, Not ready to save, says why.

2. Press Audit flow at the bottom of the actions list. What is stopping this flow lists anything blocking a switch-on, or says Nothing. Every step leads somewhere, nothing loops, and it is ready to go live.

3. When you are ready, follow "Turn on your first flow".

#If it didn't work

• You cannot change anything. A live flow is read-only. A bar at the top says Turn the flow off to edit it. Press Turn it off, edit, save, and turn it on again.
• "Your role can read this flow but not change it." Ask an owner or admin.
• Saved, but some people left the flow. If you delete a step where people are waiting, they are taken out. The message after saving says how many.
• "We cannot draw this flow." The stored steps do not make a valid flow. Email support@aminoengine.com with the flow's name.