Question:
Can you please give me a brief explanation of custom variables.
Answer:
Custom Variable is an extension of the User Input feature. Its main purpose is to retrieve the data that your subscriber has shared via your user input so that later you can use/show it on your flow.
You may watch the demo here
https://www.facebook.com/marketingmasterio/videos/696311954370343
Additionally, please check the video below to know more about User Input and Custom Variables:
https://youtu.be/qrWNjZjXYBE?t=246
Note On Using Google sheet for Custom variable and UserInput:
Your subscriber must first input the data via your user input feature, only then can you retrieve it using the custom variable.
Meaning, only the data that your subscriber has inputted on your Google sheet can be retrieved on the Custom variable. If you manually input the data on your google sheet, you won't be able to receive it and will turn out as blank. When you need a variable that is constant, please use the “native" option of the Custom variable.
Also, please refer to the example below:
If the user goes back to the main menu, and wants to re-input a new service, you can "Reset' the value saved on a specific Custom Variable.
You may want to reset (removing the previous value) to avoid confusion about what services the user wants to avail, specially if they didn't push through with their previous choice.