Enhancing Copilot Conversations with the Question Node

In Copilot Studio, engaging users and collecting information is seamless with the Question node. This powerful feature prompts users for specific inputs, stores their responses, and leverages the data for further conversational interactions. Whether you’re building a dynamic customer support bot or an interactive assistant, the Question node provides the versatility you need to gather and process user information efficiently.

Key Features of the Question Node:

1. Flexible Input Types
   The Question node allows you to collect various types of information such as multiple-choice answers, prebuilt entities, or custom entities. Whether you need a simple Yes/No answer or more complex inputs like names or dates, the Question node has it covered.
2. Rich Content Support
   Just like the Message node, the Question node supports rich content. You can enhance the user experience by including images, videos, quick replies, and even message variations, making conversations more interactive and visually appealing.
3. Behavior Customization
   The Question node comes with several behavior properties to manage how the copilot handles invalid responses or user input:
   • Skip behavior: Skip questions if a variable has been previously filled.
   • Reprompt: Define how many times the copilot should retry if it doesn’t get a valid answer.
   • Interruptions: Allow users to switch topics during the conversation, ensuring flexibility without losing context.
4. Advanced Validation
   With additional entity validation, you can create more advanced rules to ensure data accuracy. For example, when expecting a number, you can set limits, like accepting values below 10. This ensures that the copilot collects relevant and valid information.
5. No Valid Entity Handling
   In cases where the copilot doesn’t receive a valid response, you can configure fallback actions, such as escalating to a human agent or setting a default value. This ensures smooth transitions even when errors occur.
6. Dynamic Conversations with Power Fx
   You can further customize responses using Power Fx formulas, adding dynamic elements to your questions and ensuring the conversation adapts to the user’s input in real-time.

How to Use the Question Node:

1. Add a Question Node
   • In Copilot Studio, open a topic and click the “Add node” icon.
   • Select Ask a question to create a new Question node.
2. Set Up the Question
   • Enter the question you want to ask users.
   • Choose the type of information you want to collect, like a prebuilt entity or a custom one.
   • Define the variable where the user’s response will be stored.
3. Configure Question Behavior
   • Set skip behavior, reprompts, and interruption rules to ensure the conversation flows smoothly.
   • Add additional validation criteria using Power Fx if necessary.

By using the Question node effectively, you can make your copilot more responsive, user-friendly, and adaptable to a wide range of user inputs.

The Question node is a vital tool in crafting interactive and dynamic conversations in Copilot Studio. It offers flexibility in gathering data, controls for handling user inputs, and options to enhance conversations with rich media content. By customizing the behavior of your questions, you ensure that your copilot is capable of providing a seamless user experience, even in complex scenarios.