Facebook Messenger chatbot: how to build one that helps people
A Facebook Messenger chatbot answers people who message your business Page. Build it for routine questions, with a clear route to a person.
ManySetter teamUpdated 9 min read
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Chapter 01The basics
What does a Messenger chatbot do?
Think of it as a guided conversation in your Facebook Page inbox. Someone taps the Message button, picks an option or types a question, and the bot answers from the workflow you set. When the request is too specific, a person steps in.
- 01Page visitorTaps Message or comments
- 02Entry pointGet Started, comment or ad
- 03Default ReplyCatches free text
- 04One questionSets the next step
- 05HandoffA person, with the chat
Customer support
Route an existing order question to your team.
Lead generation
Ask what the prospect needs, save it, offer a call when it fits.
Rules or AI? Buttons suit routine questions; free text needs AI with boundaries and a route to a person. The Instagram chatbot guide compares rules, native AI and a setter; the Manychat AI guide covers Manychat’s own AI.
Chapter 02Setup
Before you build: use a Facebook business Page
Manychat connects Messenger through a Facebook business Page. Before you start, check that:
- It’s a business Page, not a personal profile or a group
- You have the right Page access and permissions
- It’s the Page your prospects actually message
Managing several clients?
Manychat currently connects one Facebook business Page per Manychat account, so each client Page needs its own account. Plan the structure first.
Official source: how to connect Facebook to Manychat (opens in a new tab).
Chapter 03Build
How to create your first Messenger chatbot in five steps
Connect the Page
Where to click: SettingsMessengerConnect
Select your Facebook Page and approve the requested permissions. Starting from your Manychat profile? Go to My profile › Manage accounts › Add new account › Facebook Messenger. Check it’s the business Page, not a personal profile.
Set the Welcome Message
Where to click: SettingsMessengerWelcome Message
Create a reply, enable the trigger and write a short first message: “Hi! What can we help you with today?” Add two quick replies: “I’m a customer” and “I’m exploring your service.” It runs when someone taps Get Started, not on every message.
Build one useful branch
For “I’m a customer,” offer support options and a route to a person. For “I’m exploring your service,” ask one question that changes the next action: “What are you hoping to improve right now?” Save the answer only if your workflow uses it.
Then give every answer a next step, never a dead-end button:
Needs a quick answer
Give the answer, then offer more help.
Fits your offer
Ask a relevant follow-up or offer a booking.
Asks for a person
Reach your team without repeating the whole story.
Catch unexpected messages
Where to click: SettingsMessengerDefault Reply
Set a Default Reply for messages outside your path, on every message or once per 24 hours per person: “I want to make sure you get the right answer. Tell me what you need, or choose ‘Talk to the team.’” Route it to an inbox someone checks.
Preview the flow, then go live
Where to click: PreviewSet Live
Preview the flow in Manychat, then message the Page from a separate personal account. Test both quick replies, free text, a request for a person, a returning prospect and an unavailable booking link. Check the Page inbox and notifications before going live.
Official sources: the Welcome Message (opens in a new tab) and the Default Reply (opens in a new tab).
ManySetter
Qualify Messenger leads in your voice.
An AI setter on top of your Manychat flows. It writes like your Page and hands off when a person should reply.
- Keeps your Manychat flows
- Writes in your Page’s voice
- Pauses when your team takes over
Build and test free · Manychat billed separately
Chapter 05Template
A short Messenger lead flow you can adapt
- Start
The visitor taps Get Started
- Bot
Hi! Are you here for support or to learn how [Business] can help?
- Visitor
I want to learn more.
- Bot
What are you trying to achieve right now?
- Visitor
I get messages about my coaching, but they rarely turn into calls.
- Bot
Got it. Roughly how many new inquiries do you receive in a typical week?
- Next action
Answer the need, check fit, and propose a call only when it makes sense
Adapt it to your Page
Swap the offer and the questions for your business. If the visitor asks for a person, hand over the chat.
Chapter 06Rules
The 24-hour window and follow-ups
A person’s interaction opens a 24-hour window for standard automated Messenger replies. Once it closes, the contact isn’t a subscriber you can broadcast to.
Inside the 24 hours
Standard automated replies, tied to what the person asked.
After it closes
Only narrower Meta options, for eligible messages. Check before you schedule.
One chat isn’t permission to promote
Meta has separate, narrower options for some messages outside the window. Check the current rules and eligibility for your use case before any follow-up.
A concise answer when someone asks beats a stream of generic reminders. Stay tied to their request, keep a route to a person and don’t ask for data you won’t use.
Rules change. Official source: understanding messaging windows (opens in a new tab).
Chapter 07Control
Keep your Page’s voice and a person in charge
Your Page already has a way of talking. Write it down once, so the flow’s copy and any setter on top follow it: tone, reply length, emojis, words to avoid.
- Length
- 1–2 lines
- Formality
- First name, casual
- Emoji
- Rarely
Words to use
- “Totally fair question”
- “20-min fit call”
Words to avoid
- “Guaranteed results”
- “Limited spots left”
- Name the topics that go to a person: health, refunds, complaints.
- When a teammate replies, the AI pauses on that chat.
- Your teammate gets the context, so the visitor doesn’t repeat the story.
Two checks, two tools. Run both before going live:
Preview the flow in Manychat
Then message your Page from a separate personal account.
Test the setter in ManySetter
Free test conversations, never sent to a visitor.
Chapter 08Choose
How to choose Messenger chatbot software
Test any tool on your real Page, in the Messenger app, not in a builder screenshot. Can it:
0 of 7 completed
Two bots answering?
In Manychat, Conversation Routing for Messenger (opens in a new tab) sets the default app and entry points. Fix routing before you add another bot.
Measure outcomes: chats started, useful answers, qualified prospects, calls booked and handoffs. Messages sent is activity, not proof of better conversions.
Something off during setup? Check these first:
Check your access to the Page and the permissions granted to Manychat.
Confirm the person tapped Get Started, the trigger is enabled and the automation is live.
Check the Page’s Conversation Routing, other connected apps and Meta’s own automated responses.
Check whether it runs once per 24 hours, whether your changes are published and whether Manychat owns the conversation.
Confirm the first message is a Comment Reply and the person replied or tapped a regular button or Quick Reply. A website-link click doesn’t open the chat window.
Chapter 04Comments
Want to DM people who comment? Read this first
A comment on a Facebook post can trigger a private reply in Messenger. That first message doesn’t opt the person in, and it doesn’t open the 24-hour window.
A website button doesn’t count
The person must reply or tap a regular button or Quick Reply. A button that only opens a website won’t open the conversation.
In Manychat, mark the first Messenger message of a comment-triggered flow as a Comment Reply. The trigger only fires on a person’s first comment on that post, so test with a fresh account.
Official source: the Facebook Comments Trigger (opens in a new tab).