Identifying triggered workflows
You can see which workflow fired in a conversation in two main ways:
1. Conversation events in the Inbox
Within the Inbox, you can click Show conversation events to view the lineage of events that have occurred in a conversation. This view includes information about which Workflow has been fired within that conversation.
After identifying which Workflow was triggered in the conversation events, you can then go to the Workflow to make changes if necessary.
2. Sent tab in Workflows
Each Workflow has a Sent tab that displays a list of conversations where that Workflow has fired. This allows you to track all conversations triggered by a specific Workflow.
In Intercom, Workflows are categorized into two main types: Customer-Facing Workflows and Background Workflows. Understanding the difference is crucial for effective automation.
Customer-facing workflows
In the examples above, Workflow 1 is a Customer-Facing Workflow—meaning it includes elements that customers can see or interact with, such as reply buttons or messages. At any given time, only One Customer-Facing Workflow can be active for a customer. They will experience the first matching Workflow, and this remains active unless a condition change in the conversation allows a different Workflow to take over.
Background workflows
Whereas, Workflows 2 and 3 are Background Workflows, which operate internally and handle tasks invisible to customers. These Workflows perform actions such as adding tags, routing conversations, snoozing messages, or setting attributes. Multiple Background Workflows can run at the same time if their targeting criteria are met. They execute sequentially, from top to bottom in the Workflow List here, with all matching Background Workflows being triggered in order.
Note: Some assignments from Background Workflows—such as conversation routing—may be delayed until the Customer-Facing Workflow completes or the conversation moves out of the Bot Inbox if this is turned on. A small icon next to the Workflow name visually indicates a Background Workflow.
Troubleshooting workflow triggers
If a Customer-Facing Workflow fails to trigger in a conversation where you expected it to, the first thing to review is the Audience Rules.
Audience targeting criteria
Audience targeting criteria are essential; if the customer does not meet these requirements, the Workflow will not activate in the conversation.
Example: If a Workflow is set to target "Users" but the conversation involves a "Lead," the Workflow will not execute. Audience rules can be nuanced, and improper use of AND/OR logic may result in Workflows not triggering as intended. For example, applying OR logic within exclusion rules can inadvertently lead to the Workflow matching or missing audiences you did not anticipate.
Structuring audience rules and branches
To keep your Workflow Audience Rules and Branches logic working as expected, arrange your conditions in this order:
Example match: "I want to cancel my account"
✔️ First, check for required words or phrases (e.g., contains “cancel”).
➕ Next, add optional positive checks (e.g., contains “account”).
🚫 Finally, add any “does NOT contain” (negative) checks (e.g., does NOT contain “help”).
Placing the negative conditions last ensures that you filter only after all positive matches are checked, avoiding unintended exclusions.
Important: If a Workflow was updated after the conversation started, the Workflow rules at the time of the conversation start are what matter.
In summary, a Workflow might not appear in your conversation if:
Your conversation doesn’t match the rules set for who receives the Workflow.
Another Workflow, set as more important, was shown instead.
Timing issues—like when your conversation started before the Workflow was available, or if Workflow settings were changed after your chat began.
If you don’t see the expected Workflow, it likely means your conversation didn’t meet one of these requirements.
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