If you want to create your own channel in Telegram or already have one, then you need to know some subtleties and nuances, for example, how to add a chat or create an assistant bot for moderation, and a bot for feedback. In this guide, we share a few simple ways to do just that.
Chat moderation bot Telegram can automatically remove spam, banned content, or messages that violate your community rules. To do this, it is not necessary to develop your own bot; it is enough to use a ready-made bot and customize it according to the requirements of the channel.
Feedback bot allows your subscribers to contact you directly through the bot, ask questions or leave comments. To create it, you also do not need to use special libraries to work with the Telegram API, but use a ready-made bot and only configure the processing of messages from users.
How to create a channel in Telegram
Creating a personal channel on Telegram is very easy. To do this, on your smartphone or in the application on your PC, open the menu (three lines in the upper left corner) and then select “Create channel” from the drop-down list.
Enter the channel name and description (optional) and upload a photo. The last setting is to select the channel type. If you’re creating a channel for an organization or a small group of people, select “Private Channel”. And if you want your channel to appear in searches, select “Public Channel”. For convenience, you can also provide a direct link here.
How to add chat to a Telegram channel
The channel has been created and now you can send publications on the topic. However, your subscribers cannot comment on it. To do this, you need to add a chat to the channel, or rather, create a group and link it to the channel. Some time ago this had to be done through third-party bots, but now Telegram allows you to link a group as a chat in the settings of the channel itself. For this:
- Open your channel.
- Click on the three dots in the top right corner.
- Select an item “Channel management”.
- Find the setting “Discussion” and click “Add group”.
If you have an unused group, you can bind it immediately. Otherwise you will have to create a new one. This happens with a few clicks, right after you press the button “Add group”.
From now on, your channel members can comment on any publication. All messages will automatically appear in the added group. You also have the right to make the group public so that it can be found via search and join the discussion. If you only want to use the group for comments on the channel, leave it private.
How to create a bot in Telegram. Where can I obtain an API token?
To create bots in Telegram there is a special bot: BotFather. Just enter the search query @BotFather and execute it. Then follow the instructions:
- Press the button “Menu” and select “/new bot”.
- Name your bot anything (you can edit the name later with the command /setname).
- Re-enter the bot’s username, but add underscore and “bone”. It should look like this: botstgpo_bot.
Once you complete the installation, @BotFather will send you a message with API token bone. Do not transfer it to third parties if you do not want to lose access to the bot.
How to add a chat moderator bot
Now you have a channel, group and even your own bot in Telegram, but we recommend that you connect a chatbot to your resources that will help you develop the platform. The bot helps maintain order in groups, protects against spam and deletes unwanted messages. These are the main features:
- Graphical captcha made of emojis, which can be easily passed by humans, but spammer bots cannot;
- Mat filter;
- Anti-flood;
- Ability to send complaints about messages;
- Quick commands for administrators;
- Ability to connect a diary;
- Ban on links, stickers, reposts, game emoji (darts, cubes), posting on behalf of groups and channels;
- Multilingual support.
To add a chatbot:
- Follow the link and start the bot @sokolov_robot.
- Select from the menu “Chatbots”Than “Create a new bot”.
- Select the language in which the chatbot will respond to messages in the group.
- If you haven’t created a new bot yet, create it (instructions in the previous section), copy the API token and send it to the bot @sokolov_robot.
- Add your bot to a group (not to a channel, but to a group) with administrative rights (change group profile, delete messages, block members, add members).
Remark: don’t connect bots already used by other services!
Now you have your own bot moderator, which you only have to configure as you see fit.
How to set up a chatbot. How to enable captcha, filters and log
What commands are used to control the bot:
- /ban — block the user (permanently) while the message is deleted;
- /unban — unblock the user;
- /stupid — mute the user (the user can be in chat but cannot send messages);
- /spam — block the user and delete all recent messages.
To temporarily penalize a user, add the following characters to one of the commands:
- [количество] D – to dawn;
- [количество] H – watch;
- [количество] M – minutes.
For example, if you want to ban a user for five days, use the command /prohibition 5d. For example, if you know the user’s Telegram user ID, you can indicate it instead of the nickname: /ban 123456 (ban the user with Telegram user ID 123456 forever).
When the reporting system is enabled in the bot settings, users can use the command /report respond to the violator’s message to send a complaint to the administrators. The message is immediately deleted by the bot.
How to enable captcha
- Go to @sokolov_robot, click “Chatbots”.
- Click “Edit bots” and select the connected bot.
- Click “Bot settings”to open the settings menu.
- Go to the tab “CAPTCHA”In chap “Enable captcha?” Click “Yes”.
Here you can configure the time required to complete the captcha, the number of attempts allowed, and the blocking time after a failed attempt to complete the captcha. Please note that if the attempt fails, the user will be blocked and will need to be manually unblocked.
How to set filters
Use the chatbot’s built-in filters to prevent certain types of content from being sent to your group. To do this, enable media content anti-flooding in the bot settings and then set certain parameters. For example, you can restrict the following types of messages:
- Messages with stickers;
- Messages with images without text;
- Messages with animated images without text;
- Posts with links (you can add exceptions);
- Messages with gaming emojis;
- Posts with reposts from other channels;
- Messages with stickers from certain sticker packs;
- Messages containing obscenities (you can select prohibited words);
- Messages with Arabic characters.
How to create a feedback bot
To make your Telegram channel more interactive and user-friendly, you can add chat and create a bot for feedback. This not only facilitates chat moderation using bots, but also automates the communication process with subscribers. Since feedback is an integral part of any successful project, the bot will help you collect it easily by forwarding messages that other users have sent to it.
- Anonymous communication via bot;
- Blocking unwanted contacts;
- Multilingual support;
- Possibility to create a separate group for feedback;
- Obtaining complete Telegram information about the sender.
Use the instructions to create a feedback bot:
- Follow the link and start the bot @sokolov_robot.
- Select “Create a new bot”.
- If you have a free bot, send it an API token. Do not connect bots used in other services.
- Configure the bot by clicking the appropriate button.
Once you complete the installation, all received messages will be sent to you. You can also specify a group to which the bot should forward messages. Don’t forget to add your bot to this group first.
What commands are used to control the bot:
- /ban — block the sender;
- /unban — unblock the sender;
- /getuser – receive Telegram information about the sender.
Source: VG Times