Mobile Flows can trigger automatically on an app session, screen view, or event — or you can trigger them manually. Any Flow set to trigger automatically can also be triggered manually.

There are a few ways to trigger a Flow manually: a Trigger Flow button action in another Flow, the SDK Appcues.show("flow_id") function, an Appcues SDK deep link, or a custom app deep link. This article covers the three client-side methods.

Prerequisites

• The Flow is published.
• The Appcues SDK is installed and initialized in the app. See Installing the Mobile SDK.
• For deep links, the SDK's custom URL scheme is configured in the app.
• The Flow ID. Open the Flow's settings — the Flow ID is the value in the settings page URL, in the form .../mobile/flows/{flow_id}/settings.

Trigger with the SDK show function

Developers can trigger a Flow directly in the app with the Appcues.show("flow_id") call. It takes a Flow ID (also called an experience ID in the SDK code). Add the call to the app to trigger the Flow on any user interaction you choose.

This function ignores any targeting set on the Flow.

Appcues.show("flow_id")

Trigger with an Appcues SDK deep link

An Appcues SDK deep link opens the app and triggers a Flow — useful for launching the app and starting a Flow from an email or message. It triggers the Flow on the first screen shown when the app loads.

This deep link uses the App ID and Flow ID. The App ID is listed under Apps & Installation in your Appcues account settings. These deep links require a completed installation with the SDK's custom URL scheme added to the app — refer mobile developers to the installation documentation.

appcues-{app_id}://sdk/experience_content/{flow_id}

Trigger with a custom app deep link

Custom app deep links open the app and trigger a Flow on a particular page. A developer adds custom logic in the app that uses the appcues.show("flow_id") call — this method is an extension of the SDK show function above. When the deep link is triggered, it opens the app, loads a specific screen, and triggers the Flow. The logic is up to the host app, but here's one way to structure it:

myapp://settings/profile?flow_id={flow_id}

The myapp://settings/profile portion is an example custom scheme (myapp://) with a path that routes to a page in the app. The app reads the optional flow_id query parameter from the link and calls appcues.show("flow_id") after navigating to that page.

Pro tip: It's best practice to have some basic deep links already created. For example, if you're building a new feature that you plan to promote, it's a good idea for your engineering team to scope adding a deep link to that feature.

Example use case: push notifications

A great use case for custom app deep links is driving engagement through push notifications. If your app sends push notifications, include a deep link with the ?flow_id={flow_id} approach above. When the user taps the notification, they're sent to a specific destination in your app, and calling Appcues.show("flow_id") for the provided Flow launches the mobile Flow from the notification.

Confirm it worked

• Invoke the trigger (call appcues.show(...) or open the deep link) and the Flow appears on the device.
• With appcues.show(...), the Flow appears regardless of the targeting set on it.

If the Flow doesn't trigger

• Confirm the Flow is published.
• Confirm the Appcues SDK is installed and initialized — check with the Mobile Debugger.
• Confirm the Flow ID matches the one in the Flow settings URL.
• If a deep link doesn't open the app, confirm the SDK's custom URL scheme is configured (see the installation documentation).

Still stuck?

Collect the following and contact support:

• The trigger method you're using (SDK show, SDK deep link, or custom deep link).
• The Flow ID and, for deep links, the exact link you're opening.
• The platform and OS version of the test device.
• A screen recording of what happens when you invoke the trigger.