Why Conversations Don’t Fit Into Trees

Many chatbot builders still treat conversations like decision trees. This may seem logical at first but it quickly leads to inflexible designs, messy edge cases, and unnecessary programming.

Real conversations are not trees. They’re networks. And that changes everything.

Why Trees Fall Short

You’ve probably seen it before: a chatbot builder that uses a tree-like layout to map out conversations. It looks clean... until it doesn’t. Real conversations don’t follow such strict branching logic.

In reality, they:

• Loop back.
• Converge at conclusions.
• Depend on multiple conditions.
• Reuse earlier answers.

This isn't just a technical issue - it's a modeling problem.

Five Patterns That May (or May Not) Fit Into a Tree

Let’s look at common conversational patterns and where tree structures begin to fail.

1. Sequential Question Chains

Simple back-to-back questions. Great for onboarding or form-filling.

Trees can handle this. No logic needed.

2. Classic Tree Branches

This is where many builders stop. A question leads to answers, each branching out into new paths.

But what if questions should come back together? Or what if later questions depend on multiple earlier answers?

Trees can’t do that well.

3. Diamond Shapes (Merging Paths)

Multiple branches converging into a shared conclusion - like forming a diagnosis or summarizing intent.

This requires a network, not a tree. In trees, merged logic often means messy hacks or hidden condition checks.

4. Complex Conversation Networks

By combining chains, trees, diamonds, and loops, you get flexible conversation flows that mirror real-life interactions.

This is what Wanderer is built for.

5. Deep Contextual Conclusions

Sometimes outcomes depend on several conditions across different branches. This can’t be represented cleanly in a tree.

Instead, it needs graph-based logic, where multiple edges feed into a single conclusion node with clear, testable conditions.

The Tree Is Only the Path, Not the Map

Here’s the trick: when a conversation happens in real time, the path a user takes can look like a tree.

But the system underneath should still be a network with all paths, logic gates, and alternatives in place.

A user’s journey is a tree. But your logic should live in a network.

Why Wanderer Is Built as a Graph

Wanderer embraces the full complexity of conversations:

• Logic lives in edges, not hidden in code.
• You can combine patterns freely: trees, diamonds, loops.
• The flow remains visual, transparent, and editable at all times.
• Conversations evolve dynamically with real-time state logic.

Whether you're building a chatbot, survey, or interactive guide your users deserve more than a decision tree.

Let’s give them a real conversation.

Start the Builder

Title image: https://pixabay.com/de/photos/baum-natur-holz-kahler-baum-stamm-3097419/