ManyChat Flows

If we look at the Buddy System as if it were a friendship, we would see the Introduction phase as just that - an introduction:

"Hello, I’m Jesse, what’s your name? Rashida? Got it." 

Introduction phase OVER.

The Education phase is next, and remember it precedes the Permission phase.

If RIGHT after that exchange I said:

“So, can I get your phone number?”

It would be very jarring!

In this example, it’s obvious how the education phase might get us from Introduction to Permission. It might take a short conversation, and it might take running into this person a few times. The timing may vary, but what’s consistent is that it takes conversation. It takes rapport.

Now if we get out of that example and bring it back to developing our audience, it’s actually not too different. With social media marketing, a lot of times we are just having low-resolution versions of a conversation amongst comments, posts - and even conversations in DMs.

This is why Messenger can be one of the most activating components of the Education phase - it is LITERAL conversation and rapport building.

With this in mind, ManyChat becomes a key tool. It allows us to make our messenger conversations a lot more valuable.

Let’s do a quick breakdown of ManyChat. For a much larger view, refer to our Messenger Marketing for Musicians training.

1. Flows
   Flows are the main component of ManyChat. They are essentially pre-scripted conversations that you can program to take specific directions based on the responses of the fan.
   
   You might create a number of different flows that can act standalone, or lead into one another.
   
   Consider flows the “basis” of ManyChat!
   
   
2. Growth Tools
   It’s easiest to think of Growth Tools as the mechanisms by which Flows are started.
   
   There are many different Growth Tools, but they can take the form of conventional news feed ads, clickable hyperlinks, auto-responses to comments on a post, or pop ups on your website.
   
   When a Growth Tool is triggered, an Opt-In message is required so that the fan may give you consent to start a flow.

This is a very simple breakdown of the two baseline components of ManyChat. In this lesson, I am using a basic ‘education survey flow’ to see how we can use this to deepen our fan relationships and gather some qualitative data.

As you create your own flows and ask questions, it makes sense to store responses in Custom Fields. Here are step by step instructions on how to utilize these features in ManyChat.

1. To start creating your flow, click the “+” sign on the right side of the flow builder.
2. Choose “Send Message”
3. In the bottom of the text box that appears, choose “Text” and type the question you’d like to ask.
4. Click “add button” at the bottom of the text box you just added, and add a potential answer to the question (ie, “What’s your favorite ice cream flavor?” may have “Vanilla”, “Chocolate”, and “Strawberry” as answers).
5. Add as many buttons as you have available answers - but note you can only use 3 in this method, unless you use Quick Reply.
6. Click the circle next to the button you just added. It will populate an arrow that is attached to your cursor. Click the negative space outside of the text box and choose “Actions” from the resulting menu.
7. Click “+ Action” and scroll down to Set Custom Field.
8. Click “Please select custom field and value” and then select (or create) your custom field (such as “Ice Cream Flavor”) and then manually enter the value you’d like to set it as. If the button that triggers this action says “Vanilla”, you may manually enter the value as “Vanilla”.

Alright, now you have a clear sense of some flows you can build and how you can attach them to other Introductory or Educational assets and start really getting into it with your audience. Get out there and string up some interesting campaigns with this new traffic source in mind!