What is an email block?
The email block lets you prompt users for their email addresses when asking questions. For example, if you need users to provide their email address to receive a purchased product receipt, the email block enables them to submit their email as a response.
Why use the email block?
The email block is designed to collect and validate users' email addresses, ensuring they are correctly formatted. By requesting an email address, businesses can send order confirmations, support updates, newsletters, and account registration confirmations. This feature enhances accuracy in data collection and ensures efficient communication with users.
This block is not supported in the Facebook Messenger flow channel. Steps to create an email block
Learn how to create a flow here.
1. To add the Email block to the flow, click on the add block icon (+)
2. Choose Email under the Question Cards section.
If you try to close the block listing without saving the video block, all the unsaved changes will be lost permanently.
3. Add the Question in the question field.
4. Add a unique name for your block in the Block name field.
5. Input variable will auto-populate according to the added block name; you can change it if needed.
If you enter the name of an existing block for another block, the below error will be displayed.
6. Adjust the existing Validation Error Message to fit the context of your text block.
7. Click on the Preview block option to see how the block would be displayed to the user.
8. If you are satisfied with the output, click Save.
9. Click Save.
10. Publish the flow.
- If this block is not mandatory for your user to answer, toggle 'on' the option to Skip Block. This option is not available for flows of WhatsApp, Telegram, and Facebook Messenger channels.
- If you want to keep this block as the end of your conversational flow, toggle 'on' the End block option.
Editing the email block
You can edit the email block whenever required, even after the flow is published or in the drafts section, by following these steps:
1. Open the flow and click on Edit.
2. Click the Email Block, which you may have named differently.
3. Choose Edit Block from the displayed options.
4. Make the required changes to the block and click Save.
5. Click Save.
6. Publish the flow.
- If you edit a block while an end user is engaged in a live session with the bot, the previous version of the flow will be rendered until they restart the conversation.
- After making changes, you will need to publish the flow for those changes to be reflected in an end user's session.
- If a change is made to an input variable, it will be updated automatically across all flows where the variable is used.
Copy an email block
The Copy Block option can be used when you need to reuse a block that you previously created; you can copy that block and add it to your flow as it is or edit it according to the requirement.
1. Click on the Email Block you wish to copy.
2. Choose the Copy Block option; the block will be pasted on the clipboard.
3. When you require to paste that block, click the Add block icon (+).
The pasted block would appear on the block listing section and be stated as From Clipboard. 4. Edit the block if required or simply click Paste.
- The copied email block can be pasted multiple times. If you no longer need to paste it, you can clear the clipboard by clicking the close icon corresponding to the clipboard option.
- When copying an existing email block, all of its content, including any variables, will be copied as is. You can edit it as needed before adding it to the flow. Since the names of each block must be unique, the word '_copy' will be added to the copied blocks automatically; this can be changed if required.
- If you have copied a block and it is in the clipboard, deleting the copied block later will also remove it from the clipboard.
Deleting the email block
1. Open the flow and click on Edit.
2. Click the Email Block, which you may have named differently.
3. Select Delete Block from the displayed options.
4. Confirm deleting the selected block by clicking Yes, Delete it.
You can use the undo option to restore a deleted block as your following action, but not otherwise.
5. Click Save.
6. Publish the flow.
- If you delete a email block while an end user is engaged in a live session with the bot, the previous version of the flow will be rendered until they restart the conversation.
- After making changes, you will need to publish the flow for those changes to be reflected in an end user's session.
If the deleted block has dependencies, such as those given below, errors will be displayed.
Path below the block:
If the block was used to jump to a different flow:
Use case
The user had bought a phone from the Zylker electronic store and required an invoice to be sent to their email ID. The team requests for their email ID and sends them the invoice.
Examples of the email blocks in a flow
Receiving invoice:
The team at Zylker requests the user's email address to send the invoice for the phone cover purchased from them.
Bot prompt: Please enter your Email ID to receive the invoice
Input given in the builder:
GC widget's output:
After the user adds and submits the Email ID:
Best practices
- Clearly ask for the user's email address and explain why it is needed.
For example, "Please enter your email address so we can send you updates on your support ticket."
- Inform users that their email addresses will be kept secure and explain how their data will be used.
For example, "We value your privacy and will only use your email to send you relevant updates."
- Confirm receipt of the email address and explain the next steps.
For example, "Thank you! We have received your email address and will send you updates shortly."
- If the email is not mandatory, provide an option to skip it. For example, "If you prefer not to provide your email, you can skip this step."
- Clearly outline what the user should expect after providing their email address. For example, "We will send you a confirmation email with further instructions."
Supported channels
The email block is supported in the following channels:
- WhatsApp
- Telegram
- Facebook Messenger
- LINE
- Instagram
- Business Messaging
A total of 500 blocks can be added in a flow. If you reach that count, you can use the jump block to create a new flow or delete unnecessary flows.