How to Create a Welcome Message for Your AI Agent or AI Assistant Chatbot

Creating a friendly welcome message is a great way to make a good first impression when users interact with your chatbot. Follow the simple steps below to set up a custom welcome message using your chatbot builder’s Flow editor. We’ll go through both a basic static welcome message and an AI-generated one.

Step 1: Open Your Dashboard and Access the Flows

1. Log In: Start by logging into your chatbot builder’s dashboard.
2. Go to Flows: In the main menu, find and click on the Flows section.

Step 2: Create a New Flow (If Needed)

1. Add a New Flow: If you don’t already have a welcome flow, click the Add button to create one.
2. Name Your Flow: Give it a simple title like Welcome Message, then click Continue.

Step 3: Set Up a Basic Static Welcome Message (Optional)

If you’d like a simple, non-AI greeting:

1. Add a Send Message Step: Click the + button or double-click in the Flow area to add a new step. Select Send Message.
2. Write Your Greeting: Type something like:
   "Hey! How are you today? Thanks for checking out my chatbot. How can I help you?"
3. Publish Your Flow: Click Publish, then Preview your bot. You’ll see your new welcome message displayed to the user the first time they interact with the bot.

This static message works well, but now let’s explore how to leverage AI to generate your welcome message.

Step 4: Add an AI-Generated Welcome Message

1. Create an AI Step: Add another Send Message step. This new step will become the starting step of your flow.

2. Rename the Step: Click on the step’s title and rename it to something like Generate Text for Welcome Message.

3. Add an OpenAI Action: Inside this step, click Add Content / Actions, choose OpenAI, and select the Generate Text element.

   • Here, you’ll provide instructions to the AI about what kind of welcome message you want.

Step 5: Provide Instructions for the AI

1. Set Your Prompt: In the instructions, tell the AI what you want it to do. For example:
   "Your goal is to greet the user and say how you can help with Ryan’s restaurant today."

   This instructs the AI to create a welcome greeting related to "Ryan’s restaurant."

2. Create a Custom Field:

   • Click Add New Custom Field and name it something like welcome_message_text.
   • This will store the AI’s response so you can display it later.

3. Remove User Input Requirement: Since this is a welcome message and there’s no user input yet, make sure you don’t rely on the user’s last input. Just use the instructions you provided.

4. Disable Unnecessary Connections: If there’s an option like "Connect user to human," disable it for this step, since we only need the AI to generate text.

Step 6: Connect and Display the AI’s Response

1. Connect the Steps:
   • Drag the Continue arrow from the OpenAI step to a new Send Message step.
2. Use the Dynamic Variable:
   • In this new Send Message step, remove any static text and insert the variable you created ({{welcome_message_text}}).
   • This ensures the message displayed to the user is the one generated by the AI.

Step 7: Publish and Test Your Welcome Message

1. Click Publish: After making your changes, hit Publish.
2. Preview Your Chatbot: Refresh your preview to see the updated welcome message.
   • You’ll now see an AI-generated greeting like:
     "Hey! Welcome to Ryan’s restaurant. How can I assist you today?"

Step 8: Fine-Tune Your AI Prompt (Optional)

If the message feels too long or too short:

1. Adjust the Instructions: For example, you could say:
   "You’re a helpful assistant. Please respond in one simple sentence."

2. Publish and Preview Again: Check the new, shorter greeting.

Congratulations! You’ve successfully created a custom welcome message for your AI chatbot. Whether you choose a static greeting or leverage AI for a dynamic introduction, you now know how to set the perfect first impression for your customers.