There are several main issues with sequences you might encounter:

• Sequence got stuck;

• Sequence doesn't get sent;

• People aren’t being subscribed to the sequence;

• Sequence is sent at the wrong time;

• Sequence is sending double messages.

All of these issues are connected either to the wrong setup of the sequence or to the global issues on Facebook's side.

We'll cover each part of creating and sending the sequence so you would be able to check point-by-point what might have gone wrong in the process and quickly fix it.

Sequences allow you to subscribe contacts from your Contact list to the chain of Flows (which is a chain of messages and actions) that can be separated by delays of different lengths. You can find your current Sequences or create a new one in the Automation => Sequences tab. Here are the basics of the Sequence tab:

If there is a yellow dot on the message, it means there are some unsaved (unpublished) changes in the Flow. Do not forget to Publish all your changes!

How do time settings for the Sequence work?

I. First of all, note that the delay here comes between the messages - not from the start of the sequence. Sequences are sent in the time zone of the contact.

Let's look at the screenshot above: after the contact gets subscribed to this example sequence, he/she will immediately receive the first message. The second message will be sent 10 minutes later. The next message will be triggered the day after, and so on.

II. If you've set up elaborate time settings like for the 4th, 5th, and 6th message, it will work like this:
1. The timer will be counted down. The sequence will wait for 18 hours and then for the specified time.
2. If after 18 hours the timer will end at 00:00, it means that the message will be sent only at 8:00 because the sequence will be waiting for the specified time.
3. The same goes for days: if the contact missed the Friday of one week, the message will come only on the next week's Friday.

III. Let's say that your Sequence is finished and all of the contacts who were subscribed to it received all of the messages, but you want to add new information or you have a disabled message in the middle of the Sequence - what is going to happen if you enable it or add a new message? 

The answer is, as soon as you enable/create the new message, it will be sent out. If the time on which it is scheduled has already passed for the subscribed contacts, the message will be delivered immediately. 

How can I subscribe/unsubscribe contacts to/from a Sequence?

First of all, note that as soon as you will subscribe the contact to the Sequence, it will start sending the messages/count the timer to the sending. Be aware!

You can subscribe the contact to the sequence:
1. Automatically by assigning “Subscribe to Sequence” / “Unsubscribe from Sequence” Action to a button in the Flow:

2. Manually in the “Contacts” tab by using “Bulk Action” > “Subscribe to Sequence” / “Unsubscribe from Sequence” option:

Or directly in the contact’s profile (click on the contact in the “Contacts” tab in order to open their profile):

There is no way to achieve that using a Keyword since that feature has been moved to Flow Builder:

Growth tools no longer support Subscribe To Sequence as a starting action. Use Action Nodes within Flows themselves in order to send Sequences via Growth Tools' Opt-in Messages instead.

If you've checked everything and still didn't found the cause of the issues like "My Sequence got stuck", "Sequence isn’t sending", "People aren’t being subscribed to the Sequence" or "Sequence is sent at the wrong time", check that the needed messages in the Sequence are enabled and then check Flows of the sequence for:

1. Condition blocks. If there are any without a follow-up after certain Condition, this particular message of the Sequence will not be sent fully;

2. Smart Delays blocks. They will work simultaneously with the Sequence delays and will wait for the specified time too. If the user gets mashed up messages, this might be because delay from the Flow and delay from the Sequence triggered several messages together.

3. User Input blocks. The flow stays in the User Input context and waits for the response from the contact for 24 hours - until the contact fills the input or 24 hours pass, the Flow will not continue;

4. Any links. If the link isn't authorized in the Settings => Growth Tools, Facebook might block it and the following messages and the Flow will stop. Additionally, links are considered promotional content so you need to avoid including these in a Sequence message's starting step.

If your Sequence is sending its first message twice to contacts, check the Growth Tool's opt-in message that could contain the action subscribing them to that Sequence: make sure that the flow you're using in the Opt-In Message of the Growth Tool is NOT the same flow used in the first message of the Sequence - if that's the case, the same message will be sent twice: by the Sequence and by the action contained in the Growth Tool's opt-in message.

If you haven't found any issues and you're absolutely sure that everything is set up correctly on your side, please check our Status Page for any current incidents here: https://status.manychat.com/.