Global attributes are shared across all users and help in maintaining consistency in the information and settings applied within your chatbot. They are crucial for managing universal data effectively.
What are Global Attributes?
Global Attributes store data that is the same for everyone interacting with your chatbot. For example, if your bot frequently mentions your company’s name, business hours, or customer support email, you can create Global Attributes to ensure this information is consistent across all conversations.
Examples of Global Attributes
Imagine you have a chatbot for a store:
- {{store_promotion}}: You can set a Global Attribute for the current promotion like "Buy one, get one free!" and insert it wherever needed.
- {{store_address}}: No matter which part of the bot the user interacts with, they’ll get the correct store address each time it's mentioned.
- {{business_hours}}: Shows the opening hours of your store.
- {{support_email}}: The customer service email, accessible in any part of the conversation.
How Do Global Attributes Help?
Let’s look at some practical examples:
- Consistent Information: They ensure that certain information is consistent across all interactions. For example, using {{company_name}} in different flows will always show the company’s name.
- Easy Updates: By changing a Global Attribute in one place, you can update information across all parts of the chatbot. For example, updating {{support_email}} will automatically reflect the new email address everywhere it's used.
- Centralized Management: All Global Attributes are managed in one place, making it easy to control important information.
How They Work
Global attributes are set up by the bot creator and are not tied to any single user. They ensure that certain information or settings are uniform across all interactions.
How to Use Global Attributes
Follow these steps to create and manage Global Attributes in your chatbot:
Step 1: Setting Up Global Attributes
- Create Global Attributes:
- Go to your chatbot’s settings.
- Navigate to the Attributes section, then select Bot Attributes.
- Click + Add New Attribute.
- Enter the Name of the attribute.
- Choose the Type from the following options: Text, Phone, Email, Number, Location, Date & Time, URL, Regex, Date, Time.
- Set the Value that will appear to the user.
- Add a Description (visible only to you).
Note: The description helps you remember the attribute's purpose but is not visible to users.
Step 2: Insert in Flows
Once your Global Attributes are set up, you can insert them into your chatbot’s messages and flows:
- When creating or editing a message, you can insert the Global Attribute by selecting its name (e.g., {{company_name}})
- The bot will automatically replace the attribute with the correct value during conversations.
Step 3: Update as Needed
If the value of a Global Attribute needs to be updated (e.g., your support email changes), you can update it in the same settings area. This update will apply across all the chatbot flows where the attribute is used.
Important Note: You can update the value that will appear to the user, but you cannot change the type of the global attribute once it’s created. If you need to change the type (e.g., from "Text" to "Phone"), you’ll need to create a new attribute.
Common Questions
Q: Can I use Global Attributes for personalizing conversations?
A: Yes! You can use Global Attributes for anything that remains consistent across all users, like the bot’s name or the company’s contact information.
Q: What happens if I need to change the type of an attribute?
A: You will need to create a new attribute with the correct type since the type cannot be changed after it is set.