In Manychat, automating data collection is essential for creating personalized, dynamic customer interactions. The Data Collection block plays a pivotal role in this process by seamlessly gathering user information during conversations. Whether you need to collect names, email addresses, phone numbers, or other specific details, this block simplifies the process, ensuring efficient and consistent data input.
At the heart of this functionality are Custom User Fields (CUFs), which allow you to store and manage user data with precision. These fields enable businesses to tailor their interactions based on collected information, enhancing customer experiences and improving overall engagement.
In this section, we'll explore how the Data Collection block works, how to set up and use Custom User Fields effectively, and the best practices for integrating both into your automations. Whether you're running promotions, gathering leads, or segmenting your audience, mastering these tools will elevate your Manychat strategies to a new level of efficiency and personalization. This article will cover:
- What is the Data Collection block and how does it work?
- What reply types are available in the data collection?
- What are Custom User Fields and how do you use them?
- How can you view responses saved in Custom User Fields?
- How do you use Custom User Fields in your automations?
- Limitations and troubleshooting
What is the Data Collection block and how does it work?
The Data Collection block is a PRO feature in Manychat that allows you to gather valuable user information through automated conversations. Found within the Flow Builder when adding a message node to your automation, it is one of the content blocks available in message nodes.
This block enables you to ask your contacts for specific information, such as email addresses, phone numbers, names, birthdays, locations, preferences, feedback, or any custom inputs that fit your business needs.
It consists of two main elements: a text field where you can type your question for the user, and an input field where the user provides their response.
This feature includes several important settings that require configuration. You can access the settings bar by clicking on the contact's reply option beneath the text field.
Let's now review each setting in order:
Reply types for user input
You can specify the type of input you want to collect from users. Options include text, email, phone numbers, numbers, multiple choice, and more. This ensures that the user’s response matches the format you're expecting, making it easier to collect and validate the data.
Storing responses in Custom User Fields
Once a user provides a response, the data can be automatically saved to a CUF. These fields allow you to store and manage the information, such as email addresses, phone numbers, or custom inputs, for use in future automations or segmentation.
Actions to take upon successful input
This could include actions such as tagging the user, subscribing them to a sequence, setting a value for a Custom User Field, and much more, all based on the user's response. These actions allow you to dynamically adjust the user's journey and personalize their experience.
Handling no responses
If a user doesn’t provide a response, you can set up actions to handle this situation, such as sending a reminder or following up with a different prompt. This setting ensures you don’t lose valuable data due to non-responses and helps keep the conversation going.
You can also configure how long the data collection will remain active, allowing you to set a time limit for waiting for a contact's response. This ensures that the conversation doesn’t get stuck if a user is unresponsive for too long.
Custom retry message for incorrect answers
If a user provides an invalid response, you can repeat the question to guide them towards the correct input. This ensures the user is prompted with clear instructions to submit a valid response.
Customizing the Skip button text
You can customize the Skip button text to fit your flow. This button counts as a quick reply, so you can use up to 10 quick replies along with this button, or 11 quick replies without it.
Setting retry limits for invalid responses
You can configure a limit for how many times a user can retry entering a valid response. For example, after three invalid attempts, the data collection option will expire, and the response will no longer be saved in the corresponding Custom User Field. This ensures that the flow doesn’t drag on unnecessarily if the user can’t provide the correct information.
These are the main settings to configure. In the next sections of our article, we’ll explore some of these in more detail.
What reply types are available in the data collection?
The Data Collection block in Manychat offers several reply types to suit different needs. These options ensure that you can gather the specific information you need from users in a structured and validated way.
Let’s now take a look at each of the reply types available and how they can be used to collect specific information from your users.
Text
The Text reply type allows users to input any freeform text. This is ideal for collecting open-ended responses or when you need users to provide specific details that don’t fit into a predefined category.
The Email reply type is specifically designed to collect email addresses. Manychat automatically validates the input to ensure it’s in the correct email format.
When using this reply type, you have two options:
- Save email to System Field stores the email address in a predefined system field, making it available for future use in automations.
- Email opt-in ensures users explicitly consent to receive marketing emails from you, helping you comply with legal requirements like GDPR.
Both options allow you to manage email collection effectively, with one focusing on storage and the other on consent.
Phone
The Phone reply type is used to collect phone numbers, and it also validates that the input follows the correct format (e.g., with the country code).
For the Phone reply type, similar options to those available for the Email reply type are provided, including saving the phone number to a System Field and enabling SMS opt-in. Additionally, you can store the phone number as a WhatsApp ID to confirm the user's consent to receive WhatsApp messages from your business, as detailed below the setting.
⚠️ Note: Phone validation for System Fields (manual input only) works as follows:
- It checks if the phone number contains valid characters (numbers, dashes, brackets, spaces, etc.). Any invalid symbols will mark the phone as invalid.
- It verifies the country and operator codes. If these are missing or incorrect, the phone is invalid.
- The number is sent to Twilio for SMS delivery check.
Valid symbols like "+", "()", ".", and "-" are allowed in the number. Once validated, only the numeric digits are saved in the System Field. If the validation is successful, the number is operational. If not, the contact will receive a retry message. To view error details, manually update the phone number in the contact’s profile.
Multiple choice
The Multiple choice reply type presents a list of options for the user to select from. This is ideal for situations where you want users to choose a predefined answer.
There is the Also allow free text input option for the Multiple choice reply type that allows users to enter their own response if they prefer not to select from the provided options. This gives users more flexibility and ensures you capture a wider range of answers.
Number
The Number reply type allows users to input numeric values. It ensures the response is a valid number and is useful when you need data such as age, quantity, or price.
First name
The First Name reply type collects the user's first name. This is useful for personalizing interactions and making the conversation feel more engaging.
Last name
The Last Name reply type allows you to collect the user's last name, similar to the first name field. This helps complete personal information for a more customized experience.
URL
The URL reply type collects links or website addresses from users. It ensures the input is in a valid URL format, which is useful for gathering external links, profiles, or references.
File
The File reply type allows users to upload a file, such as documents or PDFs. This is helpful when you need to collect additional files from users.
Image
The Image reply type is used to collect images from users. It is useful for visual content like product photos or profile images.
Location
The Location reply type collects the user's current location through GPS, allowing you to gather geographic data such as city or coordinates.
Date
The Date reply type allows users to select a specific date. When users interact with this reply type, a calendar opens where they can pick a date. This is useful for scheduling, booking appointments, or gathering date-related information.
Date and time
The Date and time reply type lets users select both a date and a time. It opens a calendar, and along with it, a time picker is displayed, allowing contacts to choose both the date and the exact time. This is ideal for events, appointments, or any scenario where both the date and time are needed.
⚠️ Note: All the reply types listed above are available for Messenger, but some may not be supported on other channels due to API restrictions and other limitations. Be sure to check the availability of each reply type in the Data Collection block for the specific channel you're using. If a reply type is missing, it means it's not supported on that channel.
What are Custom User Fields and how do you use them?
Custom User Fields allow you to store unique data for each of your contacts, making it easier to personalize your communication and automate tasks. You can use these fields with integrations such as Zapier, as conditions for targeting specific users, or even as variables (like First Name, Full Name, etc.) to customize messages.
You can create CUFs in two ways:
- Via Settings: Navigate to Settings → Fields → User Fields, then click the + New User Field button.
- Directly from the Data Collection block: While setting up a Data Collection block, click the + User Field button within the block's settings to create a new field for storing responses.
Each CUF you create has a Name, Type, and an optional Description, as well as a Folder (if you have any folders set up for organization).
When you use the Data Collection block in your messages, you can specify which Custom User Field to save the responses to. Simply choose the desired one in the setting tab of the block as shown in the screenshots above.
You can manage, organize, or archive Custom User Fields in Settings → Fields. Move to and Archive options are available for managing CUFs.
The Move option allows you to relocate a CUF from one folder to another, helping you keep your fields organized and easily accessible. On the other hand, the Archive option temporarily removes a CUF from active use without permanently deleting it. Archived fields can be unarchived later if needed, but while they are archived, a new field with the same name cannot be created.
To completely delete a Custom User Field, you must first archive it, as the delete option only becomes available after the field has been archived.
If a CUF you want to delete is currently used in an active automation, you will receive a warning when attempting to delete it.
While deleting the CUF won't impact published automations, it will disable any future data collection associated with that field. To maintain your automation’s functionality, you’ll need to either replace the CUF with a different one or adjust the automation’s logic if data collection is no longer required.
When deleting a folder containing Custom User Fields, you can choose to either archive the fields inside the folder or move them to the root directory.
The details in this section provide everything you need to understand how Custom User Fields work and how they can enhance personalization and efficiency in your Manychat automations.
How can you view responses saved in Custom User Fields?
If a message node in your automation contains a Data Collection block, a small purple button will appear in the upper right corner of the message node. Additionally, a Show Responses button will be visible beneath the message node’s statistics.
Clicking either button will display the responses in a spreadsheet-style view as demonstrated below.
There are also two other helpful options available:
- Feed view: You can switch to this mode to see real-time responses displayed one by one.
- Export as .csv: You can download the responses as a CSV file for use in your preferred spreadsheet software or for easy upload to a CRM.
⚠️ Note: These buttons are accessible only in view mode, so ensure you're not in editing mode if you want to review the responses.
How do you use Custom User Fields in your automations?
Lead generation
After collecting a user's email or phone number within an automation, you should save the responses to either System or Custom User Fields.
From there, you can seamlessly integrate their information into your email marketing service or CRM, or even register them for a webinar with a single tap using Zapier or other available integrations. For detailed guidance on using Zapier in Manychat, refer to this article.
Audience targeting
You can leverage data stored in Custom User Fields as conditions by incorporating them into a Condition block. For example, you can verify if a specific CUF contains a desired value or response, and based on that, trigger an automation or send a message to the user.
For more details, refer to this article on the Condition block.
Message variables
After saving a user's response in a CUF, you can utilize it as a variable. For instance, in the example below, the email provided by the user is repeated, and they are asked to confirm if it's correct.
To insert variables into your messages, click the {} icon and select the desired System or Custom User Field.
These are just a few examples of how Custom User Fields can enhance your automations, but exploring Manychat further will reveal even more tailored solutions to meet your specific business needs.
Limitations and troubleshooting
General limitations
- The Custom User Field type should correspond with the reply type of the Data Collection block. For example, if you use a Data Collection block with Number reply type, the corresponding CUF should also be of the Number type.
Most of the reply types in the Data Collection block (such as Text, Multiple choice, Email, Phone, URL, File, Image, and Location) should be saved into Text Custom User Fields. - Phone numbers should be stored in a Text Custom User Field because phone numbers may include special characters like the "+" sign, which the Number type does not support.
- If you want to opt users into your SMS or Email channels, their Phone number or Email address should be saved in the respective System Fields (Phone and Email System Fields).
- When users respond to a question in the Data Collection block using any keywords, these keywords will not trigger any automation, except for "stop" and "unsubscribe". These specific keywords will halt the current automation, stop the data collection process, and initiate the default opt-out automation configured in your account under Settings → Messenger.
SMS channel limitations
- If users provide incorrect answers to your question, Manychat will automatically resend the message based on the number of retries you've configured. For the SMS channel, please note that each retry message incurs a cost.
- Users can bypass the automation by replying with the keyword "skip", instead of clicking the Skip button.
If you're encountering any issues with the Data Collection block and Custom User Fields, please contact our Support Team.