iOS integration:: Mobile Engage - iOS SDK – Emarsys

Contents

What is the Emarsys SDK?
Capture explicit consent for data tracking and collection
Integrating with iOS
Verifying the SDK
Frequently Asked Questions

Resources

The latest iOS SDK version is 3.3.1.

What is the Emarsys SDK?

The Emarsys SDK enables you to uses Mobile Engage in a very straightforward way. By incorporating the SDK in your app, we support you, among other things, in handling credentials, API calls, tracking of opens and events as well as logins and logouts in the app.

The Emarsys SDK is open sourced to enhance transparency and to remove privacy concerns. This also means that you can always be up-to-date with what we are working on.

Using the SDK is also beneficial from the product aspect: it simply makes it much easier to send push messages through your app. You do not have to follow and implement changes in our API calls, endpoints and parameters: we do it for you in the SDK. Your only task is to use the latest version of the SDK in your app and we take care of everything else.

Integrating with iOS

Video Tutorial

In the video below, an Emarsys Mobile Engineer walks through the standard installation of the Emarsys iOS SDK on a mobile app.

1. Requirements

The iOS target should be iOS 11 or higher.
Emarsys App code, which is generated when the app is added to the account.
Emarsys Predict Merchant ID (If the Predict feature is enabled on the Emarsys account).

Wherever you see <TargetName> or anything similar in <> brackets, you should change those according to your own naming convention.

The Emarsys iOS SDK uses keychain to store data in a secure way. By default, Emarsys iOS SDK uses the keychain of the host application.

If you want to share any data (e.g. hardwareID) between your applications then it is crucial to set the priority of the accessGroups properly in the Keychain Sharing capabilities of your application. For more information, see Add Keychain Sharing capability to the desired target in XCode.

2. Installation

3. Initialization

To configure the SDK, the following has to be done in the AppDelegate of the application:

ApplicationCode: is needed if you want to use Mobile Engage features

MerchantId: is needed if you want to use Predict features

If you want to share hardware id between applications you use Emarsys SDK in, further steps are required. This feature is only available from 2.7.0. For more information please read here.

The console logging is only working on DEBUG mode.

Our default console logging is only showing logs when you call an unallowed method. You are able to modify the allowed loglevels for console logging, by setting it during the setup.

Objective-C

- (BOOL)application:(UIApplication *)application didFinishLaunchingWithOptions:(NSDictionary *)launchOptions {
    EMSConfig *config = [EMSConfig makeWithBuilder:^(EMSConfigBuilder *builder) {
        [builder setMobileEngageApplicationCode:<applicationCode: NSString>];
        [builder setMerchantId:<merchantId: NSString>];
        [builder enableConsoleLogLevels:@[<EMSLogLevel.trace, EMSLogLevel.debug, EMSLogLevel.info, EMSLogLevel.warn, EMSLogLevel.error, EMSLogLevel.basic>]];
    }];
    [Emarsys setupWithConfig:config];

	 // Handle push 
	 UNUserNotificationCenter.currentNotificationCenter.delegate = [Emarsys push];
 
    return YES;
}

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Swift

func application(_ application: UIApplication, didFinishLaunchingWithOptions launchOptions: [UIApplicationLaunchOptionsKey: Any]?) -> Bool {
    let config = EMSConfig.make { builder in
        builder.setMobileEngageApplicationCode(<applicationCode: String>)
        builder.setMerchantId(<merchantId: String>)
        builder.enableConsoleLogLevels([<EMSLogLevel.trace, EMSLogLevel.debug, EMSLogLevel.info, EMSLogLevel.warn, EMSLogLevel.error, EMSLogLevel.basic>])
    }
    Emarsys.setup(config: config)

    // Handle push 
	 UNUserNotificationCenter.current().delegate = Emarsys.push 

    return true
}

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The pushToken has to be set when it arrives:

Objective-C

- (void)application:(UIApplication *)application didRegisterForRemoteNotificationsWithDeviceToken:(NSData *)deviceToken {
    [Emarsys.push setPushToken:deviceToken
               completionBlock:^(NSError *error) {
               }];
}

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Swift

func application(_ application: UIApplication, didRegisterForRemoteNotificationsWithDeviceToken deviceToken: Data) {
    Emarsys.push.setPushToken(deviceToken)
}

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To track whether the push messages have been opened, the trackMessageOpen function should be used. In the simplest case this call will be in the AppDelegate's didReceiveRemoteNotification:fetchCompletionHandler: method:

Objective-C

-(void)application:(UIApplication *)application didReceiveRemoteNotification:(NSDictionary *)userInfo fetchCompletionHandler:(void (^)(UIBackgroundFetchResult))completionHandler {
    [Emarsys.push trackMessageOpenWithUserInfo:userInfo
                               completionBlock:^(NSError *error) {
                               }];
}

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Swift

func application(_ application: UIApplication, didReceiveRemoteNotification userInfo: [AnyHashable: Any], fetchCompletionHandler completionHandler: @escaping (UIBackgroundFetchResult) -> Void) {
    Emarsys.push.trackMessageOpen(userInfo)
}

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The setContactFieldId should not be set to 3 (email). In order to prevent your customers' personal data (PII) being stored in our cloud infrastructure, we require use of unique, non-guessable and immutable contact identifiers. Customer ID's are considered secure. Salted email hash is no longer supported for new Mobile Engage implementations. To make sure the behavioural tracking is cross devices (i.e. mobile and web), the Web Extend contact ID should also use Customer ID and match that used on mobile.

4.1. Identifying Contacts

When the application setup is finished, you can use the setContact method to identify the user with contactFieldValue.

Without contact identification all tracked events will be linked to an anonymous contact in Mobile Engage and will rely on visitor cookies in case of Predict.

The setContact call only has to be placed once to connect the device to the contact record in Emarsys. It does not need to be placed for every time the app starts. However, if the contact has been logged out using the clearContact method, the setContact call should be placed the next time the contact logs into the account to reconnect the device with the contact record.

Objective-C

[[Emarsys setContactWithContactFieldId:<contactFieldId: NSNumber>
                    contactFieldValue:<contactFieldValue: NSString>
                         completionBlock:^(NSError *error) {
                         }];

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Swift

Emarsys.setContact(<contactFieldId:NSNumber>, <contactFieldValue: String>) { error in
}

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4.2. Clear Contacts

Use the clearContact method to remove the device details from the contact record, for example, if the user signs out of the app, and they should not receive personalised messages.

Objective-C

[Emarsys clearContactWithCompletionBlock:^(NSError *error) {
}];

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Swift

Emarsys.clearContact { error in}

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4.3. Clear Push Token

Use the clearPushToken method to remove the push token of the contact.

Objective-C

[Emarsys.push clearPushTokenWithCompletionBlock:^(NSError *error) {
}];

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Swift

Emarsys.push.clearPushToken { error in}

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When the application setup is finished, you can use the setContactWithContactFieldValue to identify the user.

5. Tracking Predict Events

Events are a powerful tool to allow marketers to automate user journeys. Therefore, implementing events on any key user milestone within the app mitigates the need for future ad-hoc development requests to satisfy new marketing contact journeys.

Predict tracking needs to be enabled on the Emarsys account to utilise Predict mobile tracking.

5.1. Track Predict Cart Events

When a contact adds items to the cart, the contents of the cart can be tracked by using the trackCart method.

cartItems parameter name has been simplified to items.

Objective-C

- (void)trackCartWithCartItems:(NSArray<id <EMSCartItemProtocol>> *)cartItems;
 
--->
 
- (void)trackCartWithCartItems:(NSArray<id <EMSCartItemProtocol>> *)items;

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Swift

We renamed most of our methods on our Swift API to improve the usage of the SDK. XCode can fix most of the changes, but these 2 cases need extra work.

Emarsys.trackCustomEvent(<withName: String>, <eventAttributes: [String:String]?>) { error in
}
--->
Emarsys.trackCustomEvent(<eventName: String>, <eventAttributes: [String:String]?>) { error in
}
 
 
Emarsys.predict.trackCategoryView(<withCategoryPath: String>)
--->
Emarsys.predict.trackCategory(<categoryPath: String>)

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5.2. Track Predict Purchase Events

When a contact makes a purchase, the purchase can be tracked by using the trackPurchase method. It is required to include the orderId parameter when calling this method.

Objective-C

[Emarsys.predict trackPurchaseWithOrderId:<orderId: NSString>
                                    items:<cartItems: NSArray<EMSCartItem *> *>];

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Swift

Emarsys.predict.trackPurchase(withOrderId: <orderId: String>, items: <cartItems: Array<EMSCartItem>>)

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5.3. Track Predict Item Views

When a contact views an item, the view can be tracked by using the trackItemView method. It is required to include the itemId parameter when calling this method.

Objective-C

[Emarsys.predict trackItemViewWithItemId:<itemId: NSString>];

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Swift

Emarsys.predict.trackItemView(withItemId: <itemId: String>)

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5.4. Track Predict Category Views

When a contact views a category, the category view can be tracked by using the trackCategoryView method.

Objective-C

[Emarsys.predict trackCategoryViewWithCategoryPath:<categoryPath: NSString>];

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Swift

Emarsys.predict.trackCategoryView(withCategoryPath:<categoryPath: String>)

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The categoryPath is required to exactly match that of the product catalogue

5.5. Track Predict Search Term

When a contact enters a search term, the search term can be tracked by using the trackSearchTerm method.

Objective-C

[Emarsys.predict trackSearchWithSearchTerm:<searchTerm: NSString>];

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Swift

Emarsys.predict.trackSearchTerm(withSearchTerm: <searchTerm: String>)

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5.6. Track Predict Custom Tag

Use the trackTag method to track custom tags. The eventName parameter is required, though the attributes are optional.

Objective-C

[Emarsys.predict trackTag:<tag: NSString>
           withAttributes:<attributes: NSDictionary<NSString, NSString>];

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Swift

Emarsys.predict.trackTag(<tag: String>, withAttributes: <attributes: [String: String]?>)

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6. Tracking Custom Events

Custom events cannot be deleted and therefore should not contain any PII data

Use the trackCustomEvent method to track custom events. When implementing, the eventName parameter is required, though the attributes are optional.

Objective-C

[Emarsys trackCustomEventWithName:<eventName: String>
                  eventAttributes:<eventAttributes: NSDictionary<String, String>
                  completionBlock:^(NSError *error) {
                  }];

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Swift

Emarsys.trackCustomEvent(<eventName: String>, <eventAttributes: [String:String]?>) { error in
}

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7. In-app

7.1. Pause In-app campaigns

When a critical contact activity starts, use pause to stop any disruptions in the user journey by pausing In-app messages. The most common utilisation of the pause method is on the payment wall.

Objective-C

[Emarsys.inApp pause];

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Swift

Emarsys.inApp.pause()

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When you issue the pause command, triggers for In-app messages get ignored. If you want them to be delivered, they must be resent after the resume command is given.

7.2. Resume In-app campaigns

When the contact is no longer engaging with a critical activity, and In-app messages should resume after a pause, use the resume method.

Objective-C

[Emarsys.inApp resume];

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Swift

Emarsys.inApp.resume()

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7.3. React to In-app message triggered event

To react to an event triggered by the In-app message, you can register for it using the setEventHandler method. The eventHandler is a callback for an In-app message event.

We had mixed usage of eventHandlersProtocols and blocks previously in Emarsys SDK, but from version 3.0.0 we changed all handlers to blocks, which will improve the usage from Swift.

This means that we removed EMSEventHandler from the SDK completely.

Objective-C

Emarsys.inApp.eventHandler = ^(NSString *eventName, NSDictionary<NSString *, id> *payload) {
        
};

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[Emarsys.inApp setEventHandler:^(NSString *eventName, NSDictionary<NSString *, id> *payload) {
        
}];

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Swift

Emarsys.inApp.eventHandler = { name, payload in
            
}

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7.4. Inline In-app

In-app message, that takes place in the application's view hierarchy. Multiple inline In-app components are allowed in one screen.

7.4.1. Implementing Inline In-app

There are three ways to implement the inline In-app.

First option is from XML, this way onAppEventListener, onCompletionListener and onCloseListener cannot be set.
Secondly is completely from code, this way it could be set up by its constructor.
The last one is the mixed setup, for this the view could be created in XML, then the listeners should be set by code.

7.4.2. Loading Inline In-app

In order to load the inline In-app, the loadInAppWithViewId must be called with the corresponding viewId. When the view is created from UI builder and this value has been set, this call is unnecessary.

Objective-C

EMSInlineInAppView *inappView = [[EMSInlineInAppView alloc] initWithFrame:<frame: CGRect>];
[self.inappView loadInAppWithViewId:@"view-id"];

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Swift

let inlineInApp = EMSInlineInAppView(<frame: CGRect>)
inlineInApp.loadInApp(withViewId: "view-id")

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7.4.3. React to Inline In-app event

In order to react to an event triggered from the In-app message, register for it using the setEventHandler method. The eventHandler is a callback for an In-app message event.

Objective-C

inlineInApp.eventHandler = ^(NSString *eventName, NSDictionary<NSString *, NSObject *> *payload) {
    ...
};

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Swift

inlineInApp.eventHandler = { name, payload in
    ...
}

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7.4.4. Inline on completion block

The completionBlock is triggered when the inline In-app message is loaded.

Objective-C

inlineInApp.completionBlock = ^(NSError *error) {
    ...
};

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Swift

inlineInApp.completionBlock = { error in
    ...
}

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7.4.5. Inline on close block

The closeBlock is triggered when the close button has been clicked in the inline In-app message.

Objective-C

inlineInApp.closeBlock = ^{
    ...
};

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Swift

inlineInApp.closeBlock = {
    ...
}

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8. Rich Push Notifications

Push notification could show media content and action buttons besides the title and body. Push notifications with these types of contents are called Rich Notifications.

Requirements

Mobile Engage backend is setup for sending push notifications already
application is setup for receiving push notifications already
use Emarsys SDK notification extension as mentioned in documentation

Only HTTPS image URLs are supported.

Add a new Notification Service Extension target to your project.

Add the EmarsysNotificationService to this target in the Podfile.

target "Emarsys Sample" do
  pod 'EmarsysSDK'
end

target "NotificationService" do
  pod 'EmarsysNotificationService'
end

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Install pods with the pod install command in the workspace directory via terminal.

If your selected language is Swift, then create a Bridging-Header for your new target.

<NameOfYourExtension-Bridging-Header.h>

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#import <EmarsysNotificationService/EMSNotificationService.h>

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Open the NotificationService class in the target, then:
- Import the EmarsysNotificationService.
- Extend the class EMSNotificationService instead of UNNotificationServiceExtension.

import EmarsysNotificationService

class NotificationService: EMSNotificationService {
}

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Set Emarsys event handler in the AppDelegate


class AppDelegate: UIResponder, UIApplicationDelegate {
    var window: UIWindow?
    func application(_ application: UIApplication, didFinishLaunchingWithOptions launchOptions: [UIApplication.LaunchOptionsKey: Any]?) -> Bool {
        ...
        Emarsys.setup(with: config)
        // Set the delegates for in-app and push messages after Emarsys configuration in didFinishLaunchingWithOptions.
        UNUserNotificationCenter.current().delegate = Emarsys.push
        let eventHandler = { name, payload in
        // Rich push with actions sent through Emarsys platform will be handled by this method. Ex: Deep link
        }
        Emarsys.push.notificationEventHandler = eventHandler
        Emarsys.push.silentMessageEventHandler = eventHandler
        ...
        return true
    }

    ...
}

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9. Switch applicationCode, merchantId and contactFieldId

To allow for the switching of accounts, the Emarsys SDK now includes functions to either set, switch or remove the application code, merchant ID (use for Predict tracking and recommendations) and the contact field ID. The functions do not require a session restart, and common use case would include switching between Emarsys accounts.

9.1. Change Application Code

changeApplicationCode:contactFieldId and changeApplicationCode:contactFieldId:completionBlock method has been removed.

The changeApplicationCode has been simplified by removing the methods with the contactFieldId. contactFieldId is now part of the setContact.

Objective-C

[Emarsys.config changeApplicationCode:<applicationCode: NSString>
                      completionBlock:^(NSError *error) {
                      }];

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Swift

Emarsys.config.changeApplicationCode(<applicationCode: String>) { error in            
}

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9.2. Change Predict Merchant ID

Objective-C

[Emarsys.config changeMerchantId:<merchantId: NSString>];

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Swift

Emarsys.config.changeMerchantId(<merchantId: String>)

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10. Retrieve Device Settings

The Emarsys config function allows the retrieval of current SDK configuration. This includes:

Application Code
Merchant ID
Contact ID
Hardware ID
Language
Notification Settings

10.1. Get Application Code

Objective-C

[Emarsys.config applicationCode];

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Swift

Emarsys.config.applicationCode()

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10.2. Get Merchant ID

Objective-C

[Emarsys.config merchantId];

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Swift

Emarsys.config.merchantId()

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10.3. Get Contact Field ID

Objective-C

[Emarsys.config contactFieldId];

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Swift

Emarsys.config.contactFieldId()

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10.4. Get Hardware ID

Objective-C

[Emarsys.config hardwareId];

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Swift

Emarsys.config.hardwareId

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10.5. Get Language

Objective-C

[Emarsys.config language];

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Swift

Emarsys.config.language

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10.6. Get Notification Settings

Objective-C

[Emarsys.config notificationSettings];

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Swift

Emarsys.config.notificationSettings

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11. Inbox Notifications

Emarsys only provides the payload with the messages. The customer’s development team is responsible for building the inbox UI. For more information on Inbox payloads, see Payload examples.

11.1. Fetch Messages

To retrieve the Inbox messages for a contact, use the fetchMessages method.

Objective-C

[Emarsys.messageInbox fetchMessagesWithResultBlock:^(EMSInboxResult *inboxResult, NSError *error) {
    if (error) {
        NSLog(error);
    } else {
        NSLog(inboxResult.messages);
    }
}];

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Swift

Emarsys.messageInbox.fetchMessages { inboxResult, error in
    if let error = error {
        print(error as Any)
    } else if let inboxResult = inboxResult {
        print("Messages: \(inboxResult.messages)")
    }
}

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11.2. Message Tag

Tags are to be used to set the status of the inbox message, e.g. opened, seen etc. There are 6 tags in total and the details are confirmed in the table below. App developers can add the tags seen, opened, pinned and deleted. It is important to note all the tags though as they will be included in the message payload in the SDK Tag field. Depending on the tag included in the message, the message could be handled differently by the app. An example would be that messages tagged with "high" (for High Priority) could be visible flagged/highlighted by the contact.

Only the tags specified below are supported. Any custom tags created will not work.

Tag Name	Tag	Description	Where it can be added
High Priority	high	Marketer setting of high priority message You can activate this tag from your inbox-campaign by ticking the relevant checkbox. Your developers have to graphically represent this setting in the app inbox.	Emarsys UI
Cancelled	cancelled	Marketer cancelled the message This tag is automatically added to your inbox campaign when you recall it.	Emarsys UI
Seen	Seen	Inbox messages visible in the app inbox but not opened	Mobile App via the SDK
Opened	opened	Messages opened on the app	Mobile App via the SDK
Pinned	pinned	Messages that are pinned as favourite by the contact	Mobile App via the SDK
Deleted	deleted	Messages that are deleted in the app UI	Both Emarsys UI and/or Mobile App via the SDK

Campaign recall

High Priority

11.2.1. Add Message Tag

To add a message tag, use the addTag method.

Objective-C

[Emarsys.messageInbox addTag:<tag: String>
                      forMessage:<messageId: String>
                 completionBlock:^(NSError *error) {
                        if (error) {
                            NSLog(error);
                        }
                 }];

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Swift

Emarsys.messageInbox.addTag(<tag: String>, forMessage:<messageId: String>) { error in
    if let error = error {
        print("Error: \(error.localizedDescription)")
    }
}

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11.2.2. Remove Message Tag

To remove a message tag, use the removeTag method.

Objective-C

[Emarsys.messageInbox removeTag:<tag: String>
                      fromMessage:<messageId: String>
                 completionBlock:^(NSError *error) {
                        if (error) {
                            NSLog(error);
                        }
                 }];

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Swift

Emarsys.messageInbox.remove(<tag: String>, fromMessage: <messageId: String>) { error in
    if let error = error {
        print("Error: \(error.localizedDescription)")
    }
}

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Verifying the SDK

You can check whether the SDK calls have been received by our servers by clicking the SDK events icon on the Apps tab of the Mobile Engage user interface.

The Name column shows the event that has been received, while the Status column shows the response code. If this value is 201 or 202, then the integration of your SDK has been successful.

Frequently Asked Questions

SDK updates

Why is it beneficial to update the SDK?

Each new release of the SDK brings either new features or fixes known issues, so it is always beneficial to update to the newest version.

We are working hard to ensure the SDK is of the highest quality, and this includes taking backwards compatibility very seriously.

How often should you update to the newest SDK?

In general, you should update your version as often as you can. Even if you are not planning to incorporate new features into your app, we still encourage you to at least update when a new patch version comes out, so you will not miss the bug fixes and other enhancements in the SDK.

What is the version numbering of the SDK?

The SDK versioning follows the x.y.z pattern, where x is the major version, y is the minor version and z is the patch version.

Major version - This brings a significant release online, such as a long-awaited new feature. Although it is against our intentions, it may happen that a new major version may affect backwards compatibility with the previous release. We strive to keep this to a minimum and do so only with a solid reason for it. This will always be duly communicated beforehand.
Minor version - This brings smaller new features. Minor versions never break backwards compatibility.
Patch version - This brings bugfixes, stability and performance enhancements. Patch versions never break backwards compatibility, either.

I have the push token in string format, but the Mobile Engage SDK requires it in NSData format. How can I pass the push token?

If you have a native application, you can normally get the push token in its original form (NSData) in your application's AppDelegate:

didRegisterForRemoteNotificationsWithDeviceToken: method

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If you have no way of obtaining it in its original format, you can use Apple's solution to create NSData from hexString:

Need assistance with your Emarsys product? We'll get you the help you need!

Mobile Engage

What is the Emarsys SDK?

Capture explicit consent for data tracking and collection

Integrating with iOS

Video Tutorial

1. Requirements

2. Installation

3. Initialization

4. Contact Management

4.1. Identifying Contacts

4.2. Clear Contacts

4.3. Clear Push Token

5. Tracking Predict Events

5.1. Track Predict Cart Events

5.2. Track Predict Purchase Events

5.3. Track Predict Item Views

5.4. Track Predict Category Views

5.5. Track Predict Search Term

5.6. Track Predict Custom Tag

6. Tracking Custom Events

7. In-app

7.1. Pause In-app campaigns

7.2. Resume In-app campaigns

7.3. React to In-app message triggered event

7.4. Inline In-app

7.4.1. Implementing Inline In-app

7.4.2. Loading Inline In-app

7.4.3. React to Inline In-app event

7.4.4. Inline on completion block

7.4.5. Inline on close block

8. Rich Push Notifications

9. Switch applicationCode, merchantId and contactFieldId

9.1. Change Application Code

9.2. Change Predict Merchant ID

10. Retrieve Device Settings

10.1. Get Application Code

10.2. Get Merchant ID

10.3. Get Contact Field ID

10.4. Get Hardware ID

10.5. Get Language

10.6. Get Notification Settings

11. Inbox Notifications

11.1. Fetch Messages

11.2. Message Tag

11.2.1. Add Message Tag

11.2.2. Remove Message Tag

Verifying the SDK

Frequently Asked Questions

SDK updates

Why is it beneficial to update the SDK?

How often should you update to the newest SDK?

What is the version numbering of the SDK?

I have the push token in string format, but the Mobile Engage SDK requires it in NSData format. How can I pass the push token?

Need assistance with your Emarsys product?
We'll get you the help you need!