Trigger links are trackable links you can drop into SMS messages and emails so you can track when a contact clicks and trigger events off that click. This guide shows you how to build a trigger link from a calendar booking link (including the code that pre-fills the contact's details) and how to insert it into an email.
Before you start
A calendar (or other destination URL) you want to link to
The pre-fill code snippets for standard and custom calendar forms, kept somewhere you can copy from - the codes are included within this article
1. Open the Trigger Links Area
Click Marketing in the left hand menu.
Click Trigger Links in the tab row along the top.
The Link tab lists every existing trigger link with its Name, Link URL, Link Key and Date Added.
Tip: The Analyze tab next to Link is where you review click activity later.
2. Example: Creating a Calendar Booking Trigger Link
Click Settings at the bottom of the left hand menu.
Under BUSINESS SERVICES, click Calendars.
3. Open the share options for your calendar
Find your calendar in the list, for example Tour Appointments.
Click the share icon in the Actions column to the right of that calendar.
4. Copy the permanent link
In the Share Calendar window, go to the Scheduling Link tab and click Copy to the right of Permanent Link.
Tip: Use the permanent link rather than the scheduling link. It stays constant, so changing your calendar slug later will not break it.
5. Start a new trigger link
Go back to Marketing, then Trigger Links.
Click + Add Link in the top right corner.
6. Name the link and paste the URL
In the Add Trigger Link window:
Type a name in the Name field, for example Tour Appointment.
Paste your copied calendar URL into the Link URL field.
7. Choose the right pre-fill code
To make the booking form pre-fill the contact's details, you add a short piece of code to the end of the URL. Pick the version that matches your calendar form:
For a standard calendar form (first name, last name, email, phone), use the Standard Calendar (no custom form) snippet:
?first_name={{contact.first_name}}&last_name={{contact.last_name}}&email={{contact.email}}&phone=%2B{{contact.phone}}
For a customised form that uses a full name field, use the Custom calendar (full name) snippet, which pulls full name instead of first and last name:
?full_name={{contact.name}}&email={{contact.email}}&phone=%2B{{contact.phone}}
Tip: Both snippets start with a question mark. Copy the snippet in full, including that question mark.
8. Paste the code at the end of the URL
Copy the snippet you need.
Click into the Link URL field and move the cursor all the way to the end of the pasted calendar URL.
Paste the code so it sits directly after the URL with no spaces.
Watch out: The code must go right at the very end of the link. If it lands anywhere else, the details will not pre-fill.
9. Save the trigger link
Click Save. Your new trigger link now appears in the list on the Trigger Links page with its own Link Key.
10. Insert the trigger link into an email
You can use trigger links anywhere you write an email or SMS, such as Conversations, email marketing and automations. In this example it is a bulk email from Contacts:
Select your contact(s), then open the Bulk Email action.
Fill in the Action Name, From name, From Email and Subject as normal.
Click into the Message box, then click the + icon (Trigger Links) in the toolbar below the message.
11. Pick your trigger link and send
Choose the Trigger Links option, then select your new Tour Appointment link.
The link key, for example {{trigger_link.…}}, is pasted into the message.
Click Send Email.
12. Check the result
Open the test email in your inbox and click the link. The calendar opens, and once you pick a time the booking form shows the contact's details already filled in, so they only need to schedule the meeting.
Notes
Trigger links work in both SMS and email, and can be used in Conversations, email marketing and automations.
Beyond pre-filling forms, trigger links let you track who clicked and fire automations based on that click.