> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://cntillion.com/docs/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# AI chatbot lead capture forms and data

> Have your Centillion agent ask for leads, addresses or order details in chat, then send each submission to a webhook or email. Set up an action.

Your agent can ask for structured details during a conversation, such as a
delivery address, order details or feedback, and save each answer set as a
submission. **Collect leads** is the AI chatbot lead capture form for name,
email and phone; **Collect data** is for any fields you define, with webhook and
email destinations.

![Integration catalog with the Collect leads card and the Collect data card in the row below](https://mintcdn.com/centillion/WLpDA0mJ1ryQ1IZ5/images/agents/custom-actions-02-catalog.webp?fit=max\&auto=format\&n=WLpDA0mJ1ryQ1IZ5\&q=85\&s=569de53cd2c0d87b9df9b3964df59e35)

The integration catalog, where Collect leads and Collect data start.

## What it does

* Asks for up to 20 fields per Collect data action, typed as text, number,
  email, date or true or false. An agent can have more than one action, each
  with its own fields and destinations.
* Asks for missing required fields before submitting and saves only details the
  customer supplied.
* Sends each submission as a `POST` to your webhook endpoints and by email to
  your team, when you add those destinations.
* Lists submissions under **Conversations → Collected data**, with CSV and PDF
  export.
* Runs on the website, the mobile SDKs, the API and connected messaging
  channels. Phone, Salesforce and Zendesk collection is not available.

## What you need

Enabled Collect data actions count toward your plan's action allowance. Hobby
includes five enabled actions per agent, Standard eight and Pro twelve. Free has
no enabled actions. See [plan limits](https://cntillion.com/docs/workspaces/billing.md). Owners and Members
create and change actions; see [workspace roles](https://cntillion.com/docs/workspaces/members.md). If you are
new to the product, start with [what Centillion is](https://cntillion.com/docs/introduction.md).

## Set it up

**1. Open the builder**

Open **Conversations → Collected data** and choose **Set up Collect data**.
You can also start from **Tools → Add tool → New tool → Integration**, then
choose **Collect data**.

**2. General**

Give the action a distinct name and describe when the agent should use it.
Include an example customer request. Turn on **Only use in procedures** when
a procedure should decide when the action runs.

**3. Fields**

Select **Add data input**. Give each field a unique name, a type, and a
description of what the agent should ask for. Mark fields as required only
when the submission needs them. You can add up to 20 fields. **Undo
removal** restores the last field you removed while keeping later edits.

**4. Destinations**

Optionally add webhook endpoints or email recipients. If you don't need
destinations, choose **Skip**.

**5. Channels**

Turn on the configured channels where the action should run. Unconfigured
channels have setup links.

**6. Save**

Choose **Save** to keep a new action as a draft, or **Save & enable** to make
it available. Saving an action that is already enabled keeps it enabled.

## Use it every day

### How the agent collects

The agent asks for missing required fields before submitting. Optional fields
can stay empty. The agent is instructed to save only details supplied by the
customer, without guessing. Separate completed collections are stored as
separate submissions, including multiple collections in the same conversation
turn. When a message is retried with the same request ID, its collections match
the submissions already saved for that message, so no duplicate is stored and no
notification is sent again.

| Type | Value |
| - | - |
| Text | Text supplied by the customer. |
| Number | A number, including zero or a decimal. |
| Email | A valid email address. |
| Date | A calendar date stored as `YYYY-MM-DD`. |
| Boolean | `true` or `false`. |

### Preview and test

The editor's preview uses the same chat appearance as the Playground, including
the agent's saved colors, theme, display name, greeting and suggested messages.
To change its appearance, customize the agent in the Playground and save your
settings.

Use **Try collecting data** in the preview to walk through the fields. Enter
answers, skip optional fields, and review the collected values. Once all
required answers are present, **Finish collection** lets you leave the remaining
optional fields empty. **Collect again** starts another collection, and the reset
button clears the preview.

The preview checks field values locally. It does not save submissions, send
email, call webhooks or evaluate the action's trigger instructions. Editing the
fields resets the preview so it always uses the current definitions.

To test conversational behavior, save and enable the action, then open the
**Playground** and select a configured channel where the action is enabled. The
agent follows the action's instructions and validates your answers. It confirms
that the collection is a preview, without creating a submission or sending email
or webhooks. The test conversation follows the Playground's normal conversation
logging behavior.

To verify storage and delivery, use the action on a deployed channel, then check
**Conversations → Collected data** and the configured destinations.

### Webhooks and email

Add an HTTPS endpoint under **Webhooks** and choose **Create webhook**. Save the
action to apply the destination. Each submission produces a `POST` with the event
name `{action name}_collect_data.submit`, the collected values, and the agent,
action, conversation and submission identifiers. The conversation ID is the one
the developer API returns for that conversation.

Turn on **Email notification** and enter at least one recipient to send the
collected values to your team. Press Enter or comma after each address. You can
also paste several addresses separated by commas or semicolons. Duplicate
addresses are removed. An invalid address or an unfinished webhook must be
corrected or cleared before saving.

To start a Zapier workflow from each submission, see
[Zapier](https://cntillion.com/docs/channels/zapier.md).

### Review and export submissions

Open **Conversations → Collected data**. Choose a date preset or select a custom
range in the calendar. When you have multiple collection actions, use the action
filter to narrow the table. Each field has its own column. **View** opens the
associated conversation.

Select rows to show the bulk toolbar, then choose **Export data → CSV** or
**PDF**. Exports include empty optional field columns. Wide PDF tables continue
across pages. **Select all** selects the rows currently loaded; use **Load more**
first to include older submissions.

The delete button removes the selected submissions after confirmation. Deletion
cannot be undone. A failed filter request shows a retry state so results from a
previous filter are not mistaken for current results.

### Collect leads

**Collect leads** is a separate catalog entry for name, email and phone, plus up
to 30 custom fields. Under **How should details be collected?**, choose **Collect
from a form**, where visitors fill out fields in a widget, or **Collect
conversationally**, where the AI gathers details in conversation. You also set
the messages shown after a submission and after a visitor dismisses the form.
Leads appear under **Conversations → Leads**, with the same date filter and
export as collected data. In the Playground, **Collect leads** can't be switched
on until it is fully configured.

## Limits and good to know

* A Collect data action holds up to 20 fields.
* Collection runs on API, Chat bubble, Help page, Center stage, Android SDK, iOS
  SDK, and connected Email, Instagram, Messenger, Slack, SMS and WhatsApp
  channels. Phone, Salesforce and Zendesk collection are not available.
* Collected values are stored as supplied, without automatic redaction.
* The Playground and the editor preview never create submissions, send email or
  call webhooks.
* Deleting submissions cannot be undone.

## Questions

### Can one agent have several Collect data actions?

Yes. Each action has its own fields and destinations, and each enabled action
counts toward your plan's action allowance. Use the action filter on **Collected
data** to see one action's submissions.

### What happens if the customer skips a required field?

The agent asks for missing required fields before it submits. Optional fields can
stay empty, and the agent saves only what the customer supplied.

### Why didn't my test in the Playground create a submission?

The Playground confirms the collection as a preview. It does not store a
submission or send email or webhooks. Use the action on a deployed channel to
check storage and delivery.

### What does the webhook receive?

A `POST` for each submission, with the event name `{action name}_collect_data.submit`,
the collected values, and the agent, action, conversation and submission
identifiers.

### Can a retried message create a duplicate submission?

No. A retried message with the same request ID matches the submissions already
saved for it, so nothing is stored or sent twice.

### Can I collect data on phone calls?

No. Phone, Salesforce and Zendesk collection are not available. Collection runs
on the website, the mobile SDKs, the API and connected messaging channels.

## Try it

Create one Collect data action with two or three fields, enable it on your chat
bubble, and check the submission under **Collected data**. If a customer asks for
a person while you collect, a person takes over from the [helpdesk
inbox](https://cntillion.com/docs/helpdesk.md).

> [card] [Start free](https://app.cntillion.com/sign-up?utm_source=docs\&utm_medium=article\&utm_campaign=agents-collect-data)
>
> Start on the Free plan, or take a seven-day trial of a paid plan. Your agent is live on your site in an afternoon.

> [card] [Book a demo](https://cal.com/patrick-turricelli-smgfks/15min?utm_source=docs\&utm_medium=article\&utm_campaign=agents-collect-data)
>
> Fifteen minutes with the team, on your own use case.

Or ask the assistant on this page.

## Related

> [card] [What Centillion is](https://cntillion.com/docs/introduction.md)
>
> How the agent, its knowledge and its channels fit together.

> [card] [Zapier](https://cntillion.com/docs/channels/zapier.md)
>
> Start a Zap from each lead or form submission.

> [card] [Contacts](https://cntillion.com/docs/customer-data/contacts.md)
>
> Import, edit and segment the customers your agent knows.


This documentation is built and hosted on [Mintlify](https://mintlify.com), a developer documentation platform.