Custom Fields

Within Watermelon, you can decide which information you want to collect from a visitor or customer using custom fields. In this article, we will explain what a custom field is and how to create and modify one.

What is a custom field?

A custom field is a piece of information linked to a customer profile, also known as a contact. There are different types of custom fields that you can collect under a contact, such as:

• First Name
• Last Name
• Email Address
• Phone Number
• Company Name
• Order Number

You can define these data points yourself. The chatbot can display these custom fields as invisible input fields in a conversation. You can learn how to use these custom fields in the chatbot builder (Legacy chatbot) in this article.

Standard custom fields

We have already done some groundwork by creating some important standard custom fields. These fields are:

• First Name
• Last Name
• Email
• Phone Number

You can modify these standard fields if you wish. How to do this will be described further in this article. Please note that you cannot delete standard fields.

Creating new custom fields

Follow the steps below to create a new custom field:

• Navigate to the available field with the text "Create a new input field." Select the "Icon" that best represents the data you want to collect in this specific field. By using an icon, you indicate what data will be gathered in the custom field. The selected icons will also be visible in the Contacts' profile. Providing an icon for the field allows you to quickly identify the data it contains, ensuring clarity and ease of finding user data.

• Next, provide a clear description of the data you want to collect under the "Name" heading. For example, if you want to collect an order number, enter "Order Number" in this field.

• Fill in the "Type" to indicate the type of data you want to collect. The chatbot does not know on its own which data belongs in each custom field, so you'll need to specify the type. You can choose from the following data types:

  • Long text: Use this for collecting, for instance, a complaint description. The chatbot can then check whether the correct data has been entered and whether enough information has been gathered.
  • Short text: Use this for collecting a first name, last name, company name, or address. The chatbot will verify that no incorrect data, such as overly long text, is entered.
  • Numbers: Select this option if you want to allow only numerical input in the field.
  • Email: When choosing the "Email" option, the chatbot will verify whether a valid email address has been entered (i.e., containing "@").
  • Phone: With the "Phone" option, only phone numbers can be entered.
  • Currency: With currency, you can choose which currency can be entered. Only amounts with two decimal places are accepted.
  • Date: With "Date," only a date can be entered in the format of day/month/year or day-month-year.

• Under the "Unique" heading, indicate whether the field should contain a unique value. Unique fields distinguish between different contacts. By marking a field as unique, you prevent duplicate contacts from being created. A unique field could be a case number, customer number, email address, or phone number of a contact. You can determine which fields are unique within the custom fields, allowing you to identify a customer. If you do not use unique fields, you may get duplicate contacts in your contact overview, which is something you want to avoid.

• Check that all the information is correct and click "Save."

Modifying a custom field

Do you want to make changes to the icon, name, type, or uniqueness of a custom field? This can easily be done by following these steps:

1. Icon: Click on the arrow next to the current icon. A dropdown with all possible icons will appear. Select the icon you want and click "Save."

2. Name: To change the name, select it, make the necessary changes, and click "Save."

3. Type: Click on the arrow next to the Type field. The options "Long Text," "Short Text," and "Numbers" will appear. Select the appropriate type that matches the data you want to collect. Then click "Save."

4. Uniqueness: Click on the arrow next to the field. The options "Yes" and "No" will appear. Select the desired option and click "Save".

Deleting a custom field

Once you have created a custom field, you cannot delete it. This is because this data may be exchanged with other systems, such as your CRM system or a post-order company's system. By preventing the deletion of a custom field, we ensure that the data exchange with other systems continues to work correctly.