Conversation Flow Builder - Complete Guide

Design AI voice agent conversation flows visually. Create dialog trees and handle edge cases effectively.

Conversation Flow Builder Guide

Design effective conversation flows for AI voice agents with visual dialog trees.

How to Use

Step 1: Define Entry Points

  • Main greeting/welcome
  • Different call types
  • Transfer destinations
  • Error handlers

Step 2: Build Dialog Tree

  • Add conversation nodes
  • Connect with transitions
  • Define conditions
  • Set responses

Step 3: Add Logic

  • Intent detection rules
  • Entity extraction
  • Conditional branching
  • Fallback handling

Flow Components

Node Types

Node Purpose Example
Welcome Entry point "Hi, how can I help?"
Question Gather info "What's your order number?"
Response Provide info "Your order will arrive Thursday"
Action Execute task Check order status
Transfer Hand to human Connect to agent
End Close call "Thank you, goodbye"

Transition Types

  • Intent-based: User says specific thing
  • Entity-based: Based on extracted value
  • Condition-based: Business logic
  • Default: Fallback path

Sample Flow: Order Status

Welcome
  └── "What can I help with today?"
        ├── [Order Status Intent]
        │     └── Ask Order Number
        │           └── Validate Order
        │                 ├── [Valid] → Get Status → Respond
        │                 └── [Invalid] → Error → Retry/Transfer
        ├── [Returns Intent]
        │     └── Returns Flow...
        └── [Other/Unknown]
              └── Clarify → Retry/Transfer

Best Practices

Conversation Design

  1. Keep it natural

    • Use conversational language
    • Allow interruptions
    • Handle "um" and "uh"

  2. Be efficient

    • Don't ask unnecessary questions
    • Remember context
    • Confirm important details

  3. Handle errors gracefully

    • Don't repeat the same error message
    • Offer alternatives
    • Know when to transfer

Intent Design

Good Intents:

  • Specific and distinct
  • Have clear training examples
  • Cover common variations

Bad Intents:

  • Overlapping with others
  • Too broad or generic
  • Missing common phrases

Error Handling

No Input Timeout

1st timeout: "I didn't catch that. Could you repeat?"
2nd timeout: "I'm still here. What would you like to do?"
3rd timeout: "Let me connect you with someone who can help."

No Match

1st no-match: "I didn't quite understand. Could you rephrase?"
2nd no-match: "Let me give you some options: [list options]"
3rd no-match: "I'll connect you with an agent for help."

Technical Errors

"I'm having trouble looking that up. Let me connect you with someone who can help directly."

Advanced Features

Context Management

  • Store conversation state
  • Reference previous answers
  • Remember user preferences

Slot Filling

Required slots:
- Order number: "What's your order number?"
- Verification: "And can you confirm the email on the account?"

Collected: Proceed to lookup
Missing: Re-prompt for slot

Confirmation Patterns

Implicit: "Checking order 12345..." Explicit: "Just to confirm, that's order 12345, correct?"

Testing Checklist

  • Happy path works smoothly
  • Error paths handle gracefully
  • Timeouts behave correctly
  • Edge cases covered
  • Transfers work properly
  • Context is maintained
  • Natural conversation flow