Use this article to set up the Pendo Data connector templates, so Fin can see what a customer was doing in your product before they asked for help. It also covers what customers see, the limitations, and how to fix common setup issues. This article is for teammates who set up Data connectors for Fin. You'll also need access to Pendo's Agent Toolkit.
What are the Pendo Data connector templates?
The Pendo Data connector templates are 5 ready-made Data connectors that connect Fin to Pendo's Agent Toolkit. Pendo records how customers use your product, including the pages they visit, the features they use, and where they hit errors or friction. With the Pendo Data connector templates, Fin can use that context to personalize its answers and skip steps the customer already tried.
Why use the Pendo Data connector templates?
The Pendo Data connector templates help Fin answer product questions without asking the customer to explain what they did:
Start with context: Fin sees the customer's recent session activity, so the customer doesn't need to describe what they were doing.
Point to the right guide: Fin finds the Pendo in-app guide that matches a how-to question and shares a link that launches it.
Capture product feedback: Fin can submit feedback to Pendo on the customer's behalf.
Skip the build: The request, inputs, and response fields are already set up, so you don't build them by hand.
Which Pendo Data connector templates are available?
This table lists the 5 Pendo Data connector templates in the "Pendo Agent Toolkit API" template group, and what Fin gets from each one.
Template | What Fin gets |
Get Pendo session activity for a visitor | A summary and timeline of what the visitor was recently doing, including pages, items, settings, errors, and friction such as dead clicks. Fin passes a short description of the customer's question, so the summary focuses on what matters. |
Find a Pendo in-app guide | The Pendo guide that best matches a how-to question, with a link that launches the guide in your app. Fin shares the link with the customer. |
Get Pendo AI agent activity for a visitor | The visitor's 3 most recent conversations with your in-product AI agents from the last 30 days, and the 3 most recent issues detected, such as errors and hallucinations. Requires Pendo Agent Analytics. |
List Pendo product areas | Every product area in your Pendo subscription, with its ID and description. Fin uses this before submitting feedback. |
Submit Pendo feedback for a visitor | Creates a feedback item in Pendo Feedback for the visitor, with a title, description, optional product area, and a link to the Intercom conversation. Requires Pendo Feedback. |
Example customer queries the Pendo Data connector templates help Fin answer include:
I keep getting an error when I try to save my settings.
How do I create a new dashboard?
Your in-app assistant gave me the wrong answer.
Can you pass on a feature request to your product team?
Tip: Pair the Pendo Data connector templates with Proactive Procedures to start a Fin conversation when Pendo detects signs of frustration. Learn how to trigger a proactive procedure from an external API.
What do you need before setting up the Pendo Data connector templates?
Before you set up the Pendo Data connector templates, make sure you have:
Pendo Agent Toolkit access: Permission in Pendo to create an agent and a service account.
Customer authentication: Email one-time passcode (OTP) or Messenger security with JSON Web Tokens (JWT) set up in Intercom. Data connectors can't go live without it. Learn more about setting up Data connectors authentication.
Matching visitor IDs: Each customer's Pendo visitor ID available in Intercom, either as their Intercom User ID or in the pendoVisitorId attribute.
Pendo add-ons for 2 templates: Pendo Agent Analytics for AI agent activity, and Pendo Feedback for submitting feedback.
Note: The Pendo Data connector templates support web apps only, and only cover logged-in customers with a Pendo visitor ID. Mobile apps and browser extensions aren't supported yet.
How to set up the Pendo Data connector templates
Each Pendo Data connector template creates its own Data connector. Create the Pendo service account once, then repeat the Intercom steps for each template you want Fin to use.
How to create a Pendo service account for Fin
To create the Pendo service account that the Pendo Data connector templates use:
In Pendo, create an Intercom Fin agent in the Agent Toolkit.
Create a service account for the agent.
Copy the token URL, client ID, client secret, and scope. You'll paste these into Intercom when you add your Pendo authentication token.
How to create a Pendo Data connector from a template
To create a Pendo Data connector from a template in Intercom:
Go to Settings > Integrations > Data connectors and click New.
Under Or start from a template, choose Pendo Agent Toolkit API.
Pick a template, read what it does, then click Create.
A draft Pendo Data connector opens with the request, inputs, and response fields already filled in.
How to add your Pendo authentication token
To add your Pendo authentication token to a Pendo Data connector:
Under Authentication tokens, click New token and choose the OAuth (Open Authorization) type.
Paste in the token URL, client ID, client secret, and scope you copied from Pendo.
Select the token in the Data connector.
Tip: When you set up your next Pendo Data connector template, select the same Pendo authentication token instead of creating a new one.
How to set the Pendo data inputs
To set the data inputs for a Pendo Data connector:
Under Data inputs, check pendo_host. The default is
app.pendo.io. If your Pendo subscription is hosted in the EU, AU, Japan, or us1 region, change its Custom value to the Pendo host for your region.Map the Visitor ID input to the Intercom attribute that holds the customer's Pendo visitor ID. If your Intercom User ID and Pendo visitor ID match, use User ID. If they don't match, sync IDs and use the pendoVisitorId attribute.
If the template asks for team settings, such as your Pendo app ID, agent ID, or guide link hostname, enter them as Custom values.
Note: Fin never fills in team settings for the Pendo Data connector templates, such as your Pendo app ID, agent ID, or guide link hostname. Only teammates set these values.
How to test a Pendo Data connector and set it live
To test a Pendo Data connector and let Fin use it:
Test the Data connector with the visitor ID of a test customer who has recent activity in Pendo.
On the Fin tab, under How should Fin use this connector?, choose Enabled (direct trigger).
Click Set live.
Once the Pendo Data connector is live, Fin triggers it automatically when a customer's question matches what the template does.
Note: You can only fully test the Pendo Data connector templates in a production workspace, not in a test workspace.
Note: Each successful call to Submit Pendo feedback for a visitor creates a new feedback item in Pendo, so use a test customer when you test this template.
What do customers see when Fin uses the Pendo Data connector templates?
Customers don't see Pendo when Fin uses the Pendo Data connector templates, because Fin uses the Pendo context behind the scenes. The one visible difference is the guide link: when Fin finds a matching Pendo guide, it replies with a link that launches the walkthrough in your app.
Conversations where Fin uses Pendo data appear in the Inbox like any other Fin conversation.
How to report on the Pendo Data connector templates
The Pendo Data connector templates don't have a dedicated report. They're standard Data connectors, so their usage appears in your existing Data connector and Fin reports.
What are the limitations of the Pendo Data connector templates?
The Pendo Data connector templates have these limitations, with workarounds where they exist:
Web apps only: Mobile apps and browser extensions aren't supported yet, and there's no workaround.
Logged-in customers only: Fin can only look up customers who are logged in and have a Pendo visitor ID.
Visitor ID matching: If the visitor ID in Intercom doesn't match Pendo, Fin can't find the customer. Sync IDs and map the Visitor ID input to the pendoVisitorId attribute.
Tagged activity only: Session summaries only include pages and features tagged in Pendo. Tag more pages and features in Pendo to include them.
Customer authentication required: The templates can't go live until email OTP or Messenger security is set up.
Production testing only: You can only fully test the templates in a production workspace, not in a test workspace.
Pendo add-ons: AI agent activity needs Pendo Agent Analytics, and submitting feedback needs Pendo Feedback. Without them, those 2 templates don't return useful data.
New feedback item per call: Each successful call to Submit Pendo feedback for a visitor creates a new feedback item in Pendo.
No proactive outreach: The templates don't start conversations. To have Fin reach out when Pendo detects frustration, set up frustration signals in Pendo and pair them with Proactive Procedures, which need Proactive Support Plus or Full Suite.
Pendo Data connector templates FAQs
Why can't Fin find my customer in Pendo?
Fin can't find a customer in Pendo when the visitor ID in Intercom doesn't match Pendo, or when the customer has no tagged activity. Check that the Visitor ID input is mapped to the right attribute. If your Intercom User IDs and Pendo visitor IDs differ, sync IDs and use the pendoVisitorId attribute.
Why does Fin find some customers in Pendo but not others?
Fin finds only some customers in Pendo when your Intercom User IDs and Pendo visitor IDs differ for the rest. Sync IDs and check that the pendoVisitorId attribute is populated for those customers.
Why does my Pendo Data connector show an authentication error?
A Pendo Data connector shows an authentication error when the OAuth values are wrong or expired, or when the service account was created for a different Pendo region. Recreate the service account in Pendo, then create a new OAuth token in Intercom with the new values.
Why is my Pendo Data connector returning no data?
A Pendo Data connector returns no data when pendo_host doesn't match your Pendo region. If it's still set to app.pendo.io and your Pendo subscription is hosted in the EU, AU, or Japan, change it to the Pendo host for your region.
Why isn't Fin using my Pendo Data connector?
Fin doesn't use a Pendo Data connector unless it's live and set to Enabled (direct trigger) on the Fin tab. Open the Data connector, check both settings, and click Set live if needed.
Why does the Pendo AI agent activity template return nothing?
The Get Pendo AI agent activity for a visitor template returns nothing useful when your Pendo subscription doesn't include Pendo Agent Analytics. Add Agent Analytics in Pendo to use this template.
Why are there duplicate feedback items in Pendo?
Duplicate feedback items appear in Pendo because each successful call to Submit Pendo feedback for a visitor creates a new item. Check the conversation for repeated attempts.
Can Operator and Copilot use Pendo data?
Operator and Copilot can use Pendo data over Model Context Protocol (MCP), without the Pendo Data connector templates. Learn how to connect Pendo to Operator with Connections. Connections are included with Operator on the Pro add-on. Pendo access in Copilot is in closed beta.
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