When you start building your workflow, you first choose a trigger and then you configure the trigger settings to decide where, who, and when this workflow will run. We'll go through each of these settings below.
Workflows trigger rules
Open your workflow, click Edit and then select the first "trigger" block to manage trigger settings. For outbound workflows (e.g. "When a customer visits a page") you'll need to select when to Show workflow until:
Seen (default) — Send the workflow to customers once, then not again, whether or not they interact with or dismiss it.
Any interaction happens — Send the workflow to customers consistently, until they engage with it (choose a workflow path), open the Messenger, or dismiss the notification.
Engaged with — Send the workflow to customers consistently until they engage with it by selecting a workflow path.
If they dismiss the workflow or open the Messenger, it will be hidden for the remainder of their session. When they start a new session, the workflow will be shown again, until they engage with it.
Note: If you're using workflow scheduling alongside 'Show workflow until', the workflow will send again on the next frequency date, even if it's already been "Seen", "Interacted", or "Engaged" with.
Manage workflow channels
Open your workflow, click Edit and then select the first "trigger" block to manage channels. You can choose where to show the workflow from a range of channels:
Web
iOS
Android
If you're using triggers such as:
When customer sends their first message,
When customer sends any message,
When teammate changes the conversation state,
When customer has been unresponsive, or
When teammate has been unresponsive
You'll have additional options to configure which channels these workflows trigger on - such as WhatsApp, Facebook, Instagram, SMS, Email, or Slack.
Manage where a workflow is sent
Open your workflow, click Edit and then select the first "trigger" block to choose where to send the workflow by adding a page rule such as Time on page or URL. This will only trigger the workflow when the page rule is matched.
For example, you might want to trigger an outbound workflow whenever a customer spends 60 seconds on your pricing page.
Tip: When targeting a specific URL, it's a good idea to copy and paste it from your app or site directly, as this will catch any characters hidden in your browser's address bar, like trailing slashes.
Manage workflow audience
Open your workflow, click Edit and then select the first "trigger" block to define a set of criteria that people must meet to trigger the workflow. This means the workflow will only appear if they match the audience filters.
You can select a reusable Fin audience you've already configured, or set a custom audience using data attributes or predicates.
We recommend only using audience rules if you have an additional workflow to cover everyone who doesn't match.
For example, you might have two workflows, one in French and one in English, and which one is triggered depends on the user's browser language:
You can also target users based on any data you track about them. For example, you could target trial users who signed up 15 days ago.
Pro tip: Add multiple filters to target a very specific audience. For example, you could add:
‘Last seen’ is less than 14 days ago, so you only target active users, AND
‘Browser language’ is English, so you target users who speak the language of your message.
Or use the Conversation tag predicate in audience rules to trigger a workflow, e.g. "Conversation tag is Bug report".
Note: The conversation tag predicate won't be available as an audience rule in the following workflow triggers:
Customer visits a page
Customer opens a new conversation in the Messenger
Customer clicks on a website element
You can also use the Conversation starter predicate in audience rules to trigger a workflow based on how the conversation started in Intercom. For example, you can trigger a workflow if the conversation was started by a teammate creating a new conversation from the Inbox.
Here's a breakdown of what each Conversation starter option means:
Customer message: Conversation was started via an inbound message from the customer.
Teammate sending direct message: Conversation was started by the teammate creating a new conversation from the Inbox.
Teammate sending to many customers: Conversation was started by the teammate starting a new conversation from the inbox with multiple participants.
workflow: Conversation was started by a "customer visits a page" workflow.
Outbound message: Conversation was started by an outbound message sent from the Outbound tab. (This does not include direct messages sent from the inbox, e.g. Teammate sending direct message or Teammate sending to many customers.)
Tip: Combine 'And' with 'Or' filters if you need more flexible audience targeting.
Preview workflow audience
You'll be able to preview the number and name of existing customers who could match your workflow once it’s set live.
Workflows scheduling
Open your workflow, click Edit and then select the first "trigger" block to enable this workflow to only be used at specific times under the Scheduling section.
For example, you might want a workflow to trigger:
Any day, any time
During office hours
Outside office hours
Or you can also select At custom times to show your workflows. Click the start time, then hold 'Shift' key and click the end time. Your workflow will then show for customers during the selected period.
Note:
Custom times are only available on certain Intercom plans. You may need to upgrade your plan to use this feature.
Trigger times are based on your workspace’s timezone.
Tip: To find your busiest times, check out the Conversations report. Then set up a workflow to help your team, when they need it most.
Set a workflow goal
Note: Goals are only available for workflows using the trigger "When customer visits a page."
Before setting a “Customer visits a page” workflow live, you should set a goal so you can accurately measure its impact. Open your workflow, click Edit, and then select the first "trigger" block to define the action you’d like your customers to take, or the change that should occur as a result of receiving the workflow.
For example, if you’re using a workflow to encourage customers to upgrade from a free trial to a paid plan, you might set the goal “plan is paid.”
You can also define the time limit for this change or action to occur, e.g. users must match this within 30 days.
Tip: The shorter the time period, the more confidently you can attribute the change to your workflow.
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