How to Create a Telegram Bot With No Coding?

Introduction

Have you ever wanted to create your own Telegram bot, but were intimidated by the thought of having to learn how to code? Fear not, my friends, for there is a solution! In this article, I'll guide you through the process of creating a Telegram bot with no coding required.

Telegram bots are an incredibly powerful tool that can be used to automate all sorts of tasks, from sending alerts and notifications to providing helpful information and even playing games. And the best part is, you don't need to be a coding genius to create your own bot!

What is a Telegram bot?

A Telegram bot is a computer program that interacts with users through the messaging app, Telegram. These bots can be designed to perform a wide range of tasks, from answering questions to booking appointments or playing games. Telegram bots are especially useful for businesses that want to provide quick customer service or automate certain tasks.

Let's take a trip down memory lane and explore the brief history of Telegram. Founded in 2013 by Pavel Durov, this app was a breath of fresh air in the messaging world. You can send messages, photos, videos, and other files with end-to-end encryption, making sure your secrets stay locked up.

Sure, there have been some legal challenges and bans in certain countries, but that hasn't stopped Telegram from growing in popularity, with over 500 million active users worldwide.

To summon a Telegram bot, all you need to do is type its name or command in the chat, and voila! It will respond with the information or action you requested. And guess what? These bots can work with no-code solutions like Directual, making bot creation a piece of cake for non-coders.

But wait, there's more! When you add ChatGPT's language model to the mix, Telegram bots become even more intelligent and conversational. It's like giving them a degree in witty banter and small talk.

Telegram’s official Twitter account is always ripe with quality memes, which we greatly respect.

Telegram bots are the ultimate multitaskers, and with their powers combined with Directual and ChatGPT, they become unstoppable. Now, let’s take a close at how to make one.

What is BotFather?

No, it's not a robot dad, but it's just as cool. BotFather is a bot created by Telegram to make bot creation a breeze. With BotFather, you can create your very own bot by following a few simple steps. You can customize your bot's name, profile picture, description, and even add custom commands to make it do exactly what you want it to do.

But that's not all. BotFather also provides developers with a helpful API, making it even easier to create custom bots. This means that even if you have limited coding experience, you can still create a powerful and useful bot with BotFather's help. 

Developers and businesses alike are raving about how easy it is to use and how powerful it is for creating custom bots. It's no wonder that Telegram has become one of the most popular messaging apps, with many businesses using it as a customer service tool.

How to create a Telegram bot

It’s super simple. Here’s how you can do it:

Step 1. Open the Telegram app on your computer

To create a Telegram bot, you'll need to have the Telegram app installed on your computer. If you don't have it already, you can download it from the Telegram website.

Step 2. Connect to BotFather

BotFather is a bot created by Telegram that allows you to create and manage your own bots. To connect to BotFather, search for "@BotFather" in the Telegram app and click on the result to start a conversation.

Step 3. Select the New Bot option

In the conversation with BotFather, select the "New Bot" option to start creating your new bot. BotFather will guide you through the rest of the process.

Step 4. Add a bot name

Next, BotFather will ask you to provide a name for your bot. Choose a name that accurately reflects the purpose of your bot and is easy to remember.

Step 5. Choose a username for your bot

Lastly, BotFather will ask you to choose a username for your bot. This username will be used to create a unique URL that people can use to access your bot. Choose a username that is easy to remember and related to your bot's purpose.

And that's it! With these five simple steps, you can create your very own Telegram bot. Once you've created your bot, you can start adding features and programming it to do all sorts of fun and useful things.

In case you’d like a more detailed walkthrough, we suggest you take a look at this amazing tutorial prepared by Telegram.

How to edit your bot

So, you've created your Telegram bot and you're ready to make some changes? No problem!

Step 1. Connect to BotFather

To edit your bot, you'll need to connect to BotFather. Just like when you created your bot, search for "@BotFather" in the Telegram app and click on the result to start a conversation.

Step 2. Choose your bot

Once you're connected to BotFather, select the bot you want to edit from the list of bots you've created. Could be a whole dozen of them, right?

Step 3. Select the Edit Bot option

After selecting your bot, choose the "Edit Bot" option to start making changes.

Step 4. Add or Remove Features

Now that you're in edit mode, you can add or remove features to your bot. For example, you can program your bot to respond to certain keywords, send alerts, or even play games.

Step 5. Save Changes

Once you're finished making changes, make sure to save your changes. BotFather will guide you through the process of saving your changes and updating your bot.

Remember, editing your Telegram bot can be a lot of fun, but it does require some technical know-how. If you're not sure how to make the changes you want, don't be afraid to ask for help or do some research—Telegram official documentation would be the place to go to.

How to create Telegram bot commands 

Bot commands are a great way to interact with your bot and provide your users with quick and easy access to the features they need.

To create your own bot commands, you'll need to decide what commands you want to use, create them, program your bot to respond to them, and test them to make sure they're working correctly.

Some interesting bot commands you might want to consider include "/weather" for a weather app, "/joke" for a bot that tells jokes, "/quote" for a bot that provides daily quotes, and "/news" for a bot that provides the latest news updates. 

Creating bot commands can be a great way to make your bot more interactive and engaging for your users. So, get creative and start thinking about what commands will best suit your bot and the needs of your users. With a little bit of effort and some coding knowledge, you can create amazing bots that will delight and entertain your audience.

How to create a Telegram bot in Directual

Granted that you’ve already successfully created a Telegram bot, let’s see how you can connect it to Directual.

To begin, we need to connect our bot to the app. We'll head over to the Plugins section of Directual app, select Telegram, insert the secret token we copied earlier and install the plugin!

Now it's time to find Telegram structures in Directual. We'll go to the Database section and look for the Integrations/Telegram folder (which appears automatically). 

Here we'll see 5 data structures: Incoming Telegram messages, Outgoing Telegram messages, Users Telegram, Chats Telegram, and Keyboards Telegram (Legacy).

We'll also notice that the webhook for receiving Telegram messages has been added and a new System scenario called "Parse incoming telegram messages" has appeared (which we shouldn't edit!).

Let's test the integration and investigate the TMessageIn structure. We'll type something to the bot, send a picture, file, or location details, and then check the TMessageIn structure.

We'll find new objects that appeared in TMessageIn, with the clue field for text messages being "text" (which contains the message). There is also information referring to images, files, and locations, which are stored as Telegram file IDs.

Finally, we'll create a simple scenario that triggers new objects in TMessageIn structure. We'll create a new scenario and put a Telegram step in it, configuring it as follows (don't forget to publish and run the scenario).

And there you have it, all done! In case you’d like to learn more about what you can do with Telegram bots, you can check out this little article of ours too. 

Finally, one more treat: you can use ChatGPT to create truly omnipotent Telegram bots that will blow your roof off. Since this is an introductory article, we suggest you try basics first, but if you’re ready to shoot for the stars, here’s how you do it:

Conclusion

Telegram bots are incredibly powerful tools that can be used to automate tasks such as sending alerts, providing information, and even playing games. Businesses can use these bots to automate customer service tasks or other administrative duties. 

With Directual and ChatGPT's language model, Telegram bots can become even more conversational and intelligent. 

The process of creating a Telegram bot is straightforward and can be done in five simple steps using BotFather, a bot created by Telegram that allows you to create and manage your own bots. Once created, you can edit and program your bot to do all sorts of fun and useful things.

Now, explore the wonderful world of no-code, automation, and AI all working perfectly well together. Creating marvelous projects has never been easier. Try and make your own—it’s literally 15 minutes of your time until things spring into motion all on their own. 

If in doubt, shoot us a message at hello@directual.com or head to one of our Discord, Facebook, or Telegram (yay!) communities. You can find the links in the footer below. Ta-ta!