Campaign surveys in Usabilla for Apps are event-based. This means that a campaign is triggered when an event is fired. In order to provide you with a basic understanding of events, we will answer the following questions in this article:
- What is an event?
- Why use event-based targeting?
- How are events created?
- How can I connect my campaign to an event?
- Can you give any examples?
Note: While this article intends to provide a non-technical overview, the actual implementation of events will require technical knowledge. Most likely, you will need a programmer to help you out.
What is an event?
An event signifies that an action occurred in your app. This action can be anything, from making a purchase to opening or closing the app menu. The event can be initiated by the user (e.g. clicking a button) or by the app (e.g. the user's flight has just arrived).
The events that are available for targeting are defined by the app in question. Once you identified the moment(s) in which you'd like to survey your users, it's best to speak to your technical team to see which events allow you to target on this specific moment.
Why use event-based targeting?
Since events are defined by the app itself, event-based targeting allows for ultimate flexibility. It allows you to target on any action occurring in the app. This means that Usabilla for Apps surveys are very customizable and can be shown to the user at exactly the right time. This benefits the user experience and has a positive effect on your campaign's conversion rate.
How are events created?
To help you in the process of defining what events could be interesting for your Campaigns, we've split this process up into four steps. The goal of these four steps is to help you create events and Campaigns that are relevant to you, help you get a clear overview of where you could trigger a Campaign and alignment between you and the developers who will be creating the events.
Example: To clarify each of these steps, let's set up a test scenario we can apply each of these steps to: "A new version of my app has been released with a new feature and I would like to retrieve Feedback from the users who have been using it to see if and how we can improve this functionality. The new functionality lets users display locations of candy stores in their vicinity."
What are you trying to achieve with your Campaign?
Before thinking of any event, let's start with the goal you have in mind for your Campaign. Do you want to set up a Campaign to measure the KPIs that are set or do you want to notify users about a new feature in your app? By having a clear goal, you'll also be able to think about what type of Campaign to use and what type of question elements to use. For example, is a notification Campaign the best option or do you need to set up a Campaign of 4/5 pages?
Example: Let's go back to the example scenario and apply this step to see what the outcome would be. The goal of my Campaign is: "Ask the users that have used the new feature how they would rate the feature on a scale from 1 to 5. When they respond to this question with a rating from 1 to 3, it will be followed up with a comment element where users can provide additional comments on how the feature can be improved. Since I would like to know how we can improve this feature, I would like to target users who have used the feature more than 5 times."
Where should the Campaign be displayed?
Once you have your goal clear and you have an idea what you want to ask in your Campaign, it's time to think about where the Campaign should be triggered. A great point to start is mapping out the Customer journeys in your app. By having a clear overview of the different routes users can take to achieve their goal, you'll know exactly what the sweet spot is for your Campaign.
Example: So, what would be the best moment to display our test scenario Campaign? "The Campaign should be displayed after the user has used the feature successfully. This means, trigger the new functionality and either let the App use their location or manually enter their location. Once the App has their location, it will display all of the stores sorted from near to far. Once this list is shown, the Campaign should trigger."
What are the events for me?
Once you have a clear picture of what you would like to achieve with your Campaigns and what the best place is to display your Campaign, the next step is combining these two things with the Events you would like to use. To help you define the Events, these questions can help:
- What action should trigger the Event?
- Is it something the user does or is it something that the app does?
- What name describes the Event best?
Example: Finally, let's apply this step for our test scenario as well:
What action should trigger the Event?
The Event should be triggered when the list of stores near the user is shown.
Is it something the user does or is it something that the app does?
This event should be fired by the app as a result of the user giving their location.
What name describes the Event best?
The name of the Event is "LocationShown".
To keep everything in a clear overview, we advise creating an Event Library with the result of each of the previous steps. This document can be the reference point for everyone in your team that will be creating Campaigns in Usabilla for Apps. A completed Event Library contains at least 3 columns with the following information:
- What is the Goal of the Campaign?
- Where in the App should the Campaign be displayed?
- What Event should trigger the Campaign and when is it triggered?
Example: I've also created an Event Library for the steps and answers we just gave in our test scenario Campaign. To give you an idea what this can look like, I've added a screenshot: 
Connect with development
Last but certainly not least, creating the events. In most cases, this will be done by the developers. Before handing the baton over to the devs, we recommend sitting down together and share the outcome of the previous three steps by sharing the Event Library. You can see this as a moment of calibration where you can share your thoughts and vision you have and where the devs can react on them. Since there is a chance your app is already using events from a different SDK than Usabilla, there is a chance that certain events are already defined. This calibration session is the perfect opportunity to find things like these and make sure everyone is on the same page.
Apart from finding Events that have been created already, it can also help in estimating how long it will take to implement the Events and when you can start using these Events in your Campaigns. Whenever there's doubt about when or what should trigger an Event, refer to the Event Library for context.
How can I connect my campaign to an event?
After your developers have implemented the event, you can simply enter your Usabilla account and create a new in-app survey. Create the survey as you normally would and then specify the event in campaign targeting. You can show a campaign to your users as soon as an event is fired, or only after an event has been fired a number of times.
Make sure that the targeted event is identical to the event that your developer specified in your app. Events are case sensitive.
After specifying the event in your campaign targeting, it's time to activate and test your campaign. As soon as the Usabilla SDK has been implemented in your app and your events have been added, you can activate and deactivate new campaigns without making any code changes. It's important to note that your campaign will be live as soon as it's activated.
Since the event is the immediate trigger for your campaign, a campaign cannot be shown without specifying the trigger event.
Event examples
When using event-based targeting, the possibilities are endless. Events are highly customizable and closely follow the behavior of your users in your app. Some examples of possible events are:
Learning more about your users
- When the user opens the app
- When the user performs a number of searches in your app
- When your user leave a certain flow (for instance, when they move from the booking page back to another section of the app)
- When clicking a button
Measuring specific metrics
- After opening the app a number of times
- After taking an offline event such as taking a flight or receiving an order has occurred.
- After completing an action in the app
- After using the search functionality in your app
Now that you are familiar with the concept of an event it's time to get started. Follow these guidelines to create your first campaigns.