hello all!
super noob here. i am trying to build my first agent from the ground up (instead of copying and tweaking Nate’s 
) and i am running into a simple issue right off the bat. i am starting with a manual trigger and i cannot for the life of me find the “Add Parameter” button/function. i have been at this for an hour logging in, logging out, updating version, over and over and still no Add Parameter. i can even paste from Grok into the canvas like normal.
what am i missing? tia!!
I dont think the manual trigger has such a button. What are you trying to do? What is your use case for setting a parameter on the manual trigger.
You can pin json data when the triggers executes if you want or use a set node to set some starting data
Double click the manual trigger and click the pencil edit button in the top right to set data
The node will turn purple indicating it has pinned data
hi! thanks for the response.
my project is to create a demo for a customer that allows them to pick a city or zip code and a business type (84111, mechanic) and then have the agent scrape google maps and provide them a csv list of matches. then i want it to enrich the data with emails for owners or decision makers and send off drip email campaigns.
i am using grok to “teach me” the steps by having it set this up as a learning exercise that will yield a product when i am done. the initial instructions state:
Goal: Configure the Manual Trigger node to accept region (e.g., “Anchorage, AK”) and type (e.g., “auto repair”) as inputs, preparing for Task 1 of your learning plan.
Time: 15-20 minutes.
Steps:
Access n8n Cloud:
Create New Workflow:
Click “New Workflow” in the dashboard.
Name it: “Payroc Lead Gen Agent”.
Add Manual Trigger Node:
Drag the Manual Trigger node from the left sidebar (under “Trigger” category) to the canvas.
This node runs when you click “Execute Workflow” in testing mode.
Set Input Parameters:
Click the Manual Trigger node to open settings.
In the “Parameters” section, click “Add Parameter.”
Add two fields:
Name: region, Type: String, Default: “Anchorage, AK”.
Name: type, Type: String, Default: “auto repair”.
These fields simulate user input (e.g., from a form later).
Connect to Set Node for Testing:
Add a Set node (under “Core Nodes”) and connect it to Manual Trigger.
In Set node:
Click “Add Value” → String.
Name: region, Value: {{ $node[“Manual Trigger”].json[“region”] }}.
Add another: Name: type, Value: {{ $node[“Manual Trigger”].json[“type”] }}.
This passes inputs to the next node.
Test the Workflow:
Click “Execute Workflow” (bottom-right).
In the Manual Trigger input panel, enter:
region: “Soldotna, AK”
type: “mechanics”
Run. Check Set node output: Should show JSON { “region”: “Soldotna, AK”, “type”: “mechanics” }.
Save & Share:
Click “Save” in n8n Cloud.
Export workflow JSON (top-right menu) for backup or Git.
i am sure grok is making mistakes but i get the general idea. the next step is to convert the manual trigger to a webhook.
again, thank you for helping. i come from the marketing and graphics side and this is deep end of the pool to me.
Dont trust instructions from any LLM. They just dont have enough information on n8n workflows and will often lead you down the wrong path. So based on my previous response, you can set your “starting dummy data” by setting the json in the manual step. PS, you’ll probably one day want to trigger this workflow from either a webhook or schedulur so I would suggest using a set node for now.
i am learning that quickly. i have setup a web hook and set node and it is working so far. now on to the rest of the project.
do you have a resource you suggest for learning n8n better? i am using the forum and Nate Herk’s AI but i could use some more noob-centric learning.
thank you again for your responses and willingness to help, it is great appreciated!!
Hey! Since you are familiar with the platform, now you can start take some official courses.
Here video 
and here text
wow! thank you so much Parintele!
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