How to build a multi-step campaign flow
Go beyond a single DM: chain messages, buttons, branches, replies and delays into one conversation your fans can follow.
Before you start
- A campaign open in the builder with a trigger already set
- A rough plan of the conversation, written on paper
Sketch the conversation first
Write the flow as a short script before you touch the canvas. Example for an Instagram comment trigger with the keyword GUIDE:
- Fan comments
GUIDE. - DMpro sends a DM with two buttons: Beginner and Advanced.
- The fan taps one and gets the matching guide.
- DMpro asks for their email.
- Two hours later, DMpro asks if the guide helped.
Each line becomes a block. The builder has a palette on the left, the canvas in the middle and a live preview on the right.
Start with the trigger and a first message
Set your trigger (see the comment-to-DM guide) and add a Send DM step with a clear question and up to three buttons, for example Which guide do you want? with the buttons Beginner and Advanced. With a comment trigger, only one DM can sit straight after the trigger. Further messages come after the fan answers, which is what the next steps do.
Branch with Paths
Add a Paths block. It lets the fan choose between two to five options, either by tapping a button or by typing a word, and each option connects to its own next step. The message just before Paths must give the fan something to choose, such as the buttons above. Connect Beginner to a Send DM with one link and Advanced to a Send DM with another.
Wait for a reply to collect an email or phone number
Add a Wait for reply block when you want a single answer without branching. A message step has to come first so the fan knows what to answer, for example What is your email so I can send you updates? You can accept text, an email address or a phone number. What fans share is collected in Analytics under Shared emails and phone numbers.
Control timing with Delay and Frequency cap
A Delay waits before the next step. It accepts 1 to 60 seconds, minutes or hours, or 1 to 15 days. A Frequency cap limits how often one fan can set the flow off.
Be careful with long delays on Instagram. A DM can only go out within 24 hours of the fan’s last message, so a delay that pushes the message past that point will not be delivered unless the fan writes again.
Pick richer steps where they help
Use Send cards for a product carousel (an image, a title and a tappable button per card), Send attachment for an image, video, audio file or PDF (it carries no caption or button), and Send to your app to post the event to a URL you control. AI Response lets AI answer in your voice from instructions you write, and it spends AI credits. Live agent hands the chat to your team in Chatgram and only appears when Chatgram is connected.
Test every path, then save or publish
Use the live preview to walk each branch. Fix everything the validation banner lists, then save as a draft or publish.
Tips
- Keep each message short. Two short messages in a row read better than one wall of text.
- A Send DM step can hold more than one message variant, which is handy for testing two versions of your wording.
If something goes wrong
Publishing is blocked because of my Paths block.
A Paths block needs at least two options, each connected to a next step. Open the block, add the missing option and connect every branch.
A message in my flow arrived late.
Open the canvas and check for a Delay block. Shorten or remove it if you want an instant reply.
The same fan cannot enter the flow again.
A Frequency cap is limiting repeat entries. Raise the limit or the time window, or remove the cap.
The flow stopped because of an AI limit.
AI Response uses your monthly AI credits (the Free plan includes $3 a month). When they run out, campaigns with AI steps pause. Check the credits card on Overview, wait for the reset, upgrade, or remove the AI step for now.
Related how-to guides
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