How to Create a Chatbot in 2026: Step-by-Step Guide 

A chatbot in 2026 is a tool for automating sales, support, and marketing that works in messengers and on a company’s website. The Mavibot.ai chatbot builder lets you create a chatbot with no code, launch it across multiple channels, and connect it to CRM and campaigns.

Below is a simple step-by-step scenario showing how to build a chatbot in Mavibot: from the first block to testing, buttons, branches, loops, and timers.

What is the Mavibot chatbot builder

In Mavibot, a business chatbot is assembled from blocks and connections in a visual chatbot builder interface.

  • A block is a set of commands and settings that defines which message to send, what action to perform, and where to route the client next.
  • Connections are arrows that move the user from one block to another and can contain conditions such as button clicks, text input, successful payment, and other triggers.
  • There are system blocks (Start, Trigger, Fallback) as well as regular Chat blocks with messages that are used to build chatbot flows.

Step 1. Create the start block and trigger

Every Mavibot chatbot begins with a start block, which is the entry point that launches the chatbot flow in messengers.

  1. On the empty canvas of the chatbot builder, double-click to create the first block; by default, a white Chat block is created.
  2. Assign this block the Start type; this block has the highest priority and fires first when the launch condition is met.
  3. Specify a trigger word, for example “Hello” or “Start”, and set a greeting text such as “Hi. How can I help you?”.
  4. If you need the Start block to react to any message, leave the #{none} construction as is; this is useful when you want to send an action without a text reply.

This is how you configure the initial step that launches a business chatbot at the user’s first contact.

Step 2. Build a chain of blocks and connections

To make the Mavibot chatbot builder work like a funnel, you need to create a sequence of blocks and connections between them.

  • Open the advanced settings of the start block and click “Create a block below”; a new block will be created and a connection between them will appear automatically.
  • In the connection settings you can set conditions, the transition format, and adjust the path of the arrow so the chatbot scheme remains clear.
  • Keep in mind that a user cannot be in two blocks at the same time: at any given moment the chatbot processes only one active flow, and parallel events are launched via Trigger and Fallback blocks.

This is how you create a logical chain that the client follows when interacting with the chatbot in messengers.

Step 3. Configure buttons and transitions

Buttons in a chatbot help control the flow without manual text input, which is crucial for user convenience and conversion.

  1. Open the Start block or any Chat block and go to the Buttons tab.
  2. Click “+ Add Button” and specify the button text, such as “GO”, “Choose a plan”, or “Book now”.
  3. In the display mode field, select Auto so Mavibot automatically adapts button display for Telegram, WhatsApp, and other messengers.
  4. Save the block settings.
  5. Select the connection leading to the next block and, in its settings, choose the button that should trigger this transition.
  6. Set the match type to Exact match so the transition only occurs when the selected button is pressed.