What does each step in a flow do?

Each box on the canvas is a step (the editor also calls it a node). This page lists every step you can add and its limits.

Before you start

• You need Trendsetter and above and a laptop or computer.
• Open a flow in the editor. New to flows? Start with what is Flow Automation.

Steps

1. In the flow editor, click a circle in the toolbar at the bottom: DM Reply, AI Reply, Ask a Question, Collect Email, Followers only, Tag Contact, Trigger another Flow or Notes.
2. For any other step, click + and type the step name in Search nodes…. Hover a step to read what it does.
3. Or drag from a dot on a card and let go on empty canvas. The step list opens there, and the new step is connected for you.
4. Click the new card. Its settings open on the right, with Duplicate node and Delete node.
5. Connect it: drag from a dot (for example Next Step) to the next card. Each dot can connect to one next step only.

Every step you can add

Step (toolbar or list name)	Card title	What it does	Limits
Trigger	Trigger	Decides what starts the flow: Comment Reply, DM Reply or Story Reply (Instagram only).	One per flow. It can’t be deleted.
DM Reply	Send Message	Sends messages: Text, Button (cards with buttons), Image, Audio, File (PDF). Add Delay waits between messages in the same step.	Text is sent up to 1,000 characters (no counter in the editor). Card text up to 640. Up to 10 Add Smart Reply chips per text. Up to 3 buttons per card, up to 10 cards. File = PDF only. In-step delay in seconds or minutes.
Ask a Question, Collect Email (or + → Question)	Question	Asks one question and waits. Types: Name, Email, Phone, Text, Address, Yes/No, Number, Date, Star Rating. Saves the answer on the contact.	Typed answers must arrive within 1 hour. 1 to 10 tries (default 3). See answer rules.
AI Reply	AI Reply	AI answers the person’s messages using your own AI key.	Steps after it never run. See AI replies.
Followers only	Followers Check	Splits people into Follows you and Doesn’t follow you. Can send non-followers a card with an Open Profile button and a confirmation button (new steps start with “I started following you.”).	On Facebook everyone counts as following.
Tag Contact	Add Tag	Adds tags, and can remove tags (Tags to remove).	Invisible to the person.
Condition	Condition	Sends people down True or False based on a saved field, a tag, whether they follow you, whether you follow them, or their follower count.	See different messages by answer.
Delay	Delay	Everyone waits, then continues. Seconds, Minutes or Hours.	Up to 24 hours. A reply doesn’t cancel it.
Randomizer	Randomizer	Splits people across branches by percentage, for A/B tests.	Up to 4 branches (A to D).
Trigger Flow (toolbar: Trigger another Flow)	Start another Flow	Starts another published flow for this person. This flow ends here.	Drafts can’t be picked.
Set Field	Set Field	Saves or clears a value on the contact without asking.	Values are saved as text.
HTTP Request	HTTP Request	Sends data to another app’s web address and can save parts of the reply. Goes to Success or Failure.	10-second timeout, runs once, no retry.
Notes	Notes	A sticky note for you and your team.	Never sent.

To send answers to Mailchimp, Kit or Klaviyo, use the Integrations button at the top of the editor instead of a step. See send flow data to another app.

On the phone app

You can’t add or edit steps in the InstantDM app. Use the web app at app.instantdm.com on a computer.

What your followers see

• Messages arrive in the order of the steps. Smart replies show as tappable chips, buttons show under each card.
• A URL button opens a link. A Regular button sends the tap back to InstantDM, so it can lead to its own next step.
• Tags, conditions, Set Field, HTTP Request and Notes are invisible to them.

Good to know

• Buttons and smart replies don’t pause the flow. After the last message, the flow continues to Next Step right away. Only Question steps wait.
• A card with only URL buttons can’t continue the flow when tapped. Add a Regular button for that.
• If a PDF can’t be attached, the person gets the file link as text instead.
• Set Live only checks the step directly after the Trigger. An empty text further down is sent as a single ”.” so check every step.
• The Delay step and in-step Add Delay wait for everyone. For a reminder only to people who didn’t reply, see follow up if no reply.

What you can’t do

• Send video, GIFs or stickers.
• Add more than 3 buttons to a card.
• Wait more than 24 hours, or wait until a date and time.
• Collect a photo or file as an answer.
• Go back to the first flow after Trigger another Flow.

If it doesn’t work

• “DM Reply node: At least one message is required.” → add a message to the step after the Trigger.
• “More than one connection” → a dot can only connect to one step. Delete the old line first: right-click it → Delete connection.
• Nothing happens after a button tap → the button is a URL button, or its dot isn’t connected. Use a Regular button and connect its dot.