Conditions & Branching

Workflows often need to make decisions based on data. VelaFlows provides three branching mechanisms: Condition (if/else), Switch (multi-case), and Fork/Merge (parallel execution).

Condition Node (If/Else)

The Condition node evaluates an expression and routes execution down one of two branches: true or false.

Configuration

Expression Syntax

Expressions support standard comparison and logical operators:

// Simple comparison
{{lead.score}} > 80

// String comparison
{{conversation.channel}} === "whatsapp"

// Logical operators
{{lead.score}} > 50 && {{lead.status}} === "active"

// Null checks
{{customer.email}} !== null

// Includes check
{{message.text}}.includes("urgent")

Example

A workflow that sends a personalized response based on lead score:

Trigger: Lead Created
  --> Condition: {{lead.score}} > 80
        --> True: Send VIP welcome message
        --> False: Send standard welcome message

Switch Node (Multi-Case)

The Switch node evaluates a value against up to 10 cases and routes to the matching branch. If no case matches, execution follows the default branch.

Configuration

Example

Route a conversation to the right team based on language:

Trigger: Conversation Created
  --> Switch: {{conversation.language}}
        Case "en" --> Assign to English team
        Case "es" --> Assign to Spanish team
        Case "fr" --> Assign to French team
        Default   --> Assign to General team

Fork / Merge (Parallel Execution)

The Fork node splits execution into multiple parallel paths. The Merge node waits for all parallel paths to complete before continuing.

Fork Configuration

Merge Configuration

Example

Enrich a lead from multiple sources simultaneously:

Trigger: Lead Created
  --> Fork
        Branch 1: Enrich Person (Apollo)
        Branch 2: Validate Email (ZeroBounce)
        Branch 3: Enrich Company (Lusha)
  --> Merge (wait for all)
  --> Update Lead with enriched data

Fork/Merge is useful when you need to perform multiple independent operations and combine the results. Each branch runs concurrently, reducing total execution time.

Nesting Branches

You can nest conditions inside other conditions, or use conditions inside fork branches:

Trigger: Message Received
  --> Condition: {{message.channel}} === "whatsapp"
        True --> Condition: {{customer.isVip}}
                   True  --> Route to VIP queue
                   False --> Route to standard queue
        False --> Route to email team

There is no hard limit on nesting depth, but keep workflows readable. If you find yourself nesting more than 3 levels deep, consider splitting into sub-workflows.

Tips

• Keep expressions simple. Complex logic is better handled by a sequence of Condition nodes than a single complicated expression.
• Use Switch for 3+ cases. If you have more than two branches based on the same value, Switch is cleaner than nested Conditions.
• Fork for independence. Only use Fork when the branches are truly independent. If Branch B depends on Branch A’s output, use sequential nodes instead.
• Always have a default. In Switch nodes, always configure a default branch to handle unexpected values.