Trigger Workflow from API

Guide to configure and trigger workflow from API

It is a unified API to trigger workflow and doesn't require user creation before hand to trigger notification. Recommended for platforms transitioning their existing notifications to SuprSend.
If you are using our frontend SDKs to configure notifications and passing events and user properties from third-party data platforms like Segment, then event-based trigger would be a better choice.

📘

Available in SDK version >= v0.7.0


Sample Payload

package test;

import java.io.IOException;
import java.io.UnsupportedEncodingException;
import java.util.Arrays;

import org.json.JSONArray;
import org.json.JSONObject;

import suprsend.Suprsend;
import suprsend.SuprsendException;
import suprsend.WorkflowTriggerRequest;

public class Workflow {

  public static void main(String[] args) throws Exception {
    WorkflowTrigger();
  }

  private static void WorkflowTrigger() throws SuprsendException, UnsupportedEncodingException {
    Suprsend suprClient = Helper.getClientInstance();
    // payload
    JSONObject body = getWorkflowBody();
    String idempotencyKey = "_unique_request_identifier";
    String tenantId = "tenant_id1";
    WorkflowTriggerRequest wf = new WorkflowTriggerRequest(body, idempotencyKey, tenantId);
    //
    JSONObject resp = suprClient.workflows.trigger(wf);
    System.out.println(resp);
  }

  private static JSONObject getWorkflowBody() {
    JSONObject body = new JSONObject()
      .put("workflow", "__workflow_slug__")
      .put("actor", new JSONObject()
           .put("distinct_id", "0fxxx8f74-xxxx-41c5-8752-xxxcb6911fb08")
           .put("name", "actor_1")
          )
      .put("recipients", new JSONArray()
           .put(new JSONObject()
                .put("distinct_id", "0gxxx9f14-xxxx-23c5-1902-xxxcb6912ab09")
                .put("$email", Arrays.asList("[email protected]"))
                .put("name", "recipient_1")
               ))
      .put("data", new JSONObject()
           .put("first_name", "User")
           .put("invoice_amount", "$5000")
           .put("invoice_id", "Invoice-1234")
          );

    return body;
  }
}
package test;

import suprsend.Suprsend;
import suprsend.SuprsendException;

public class TestHelper {
    public static Suprsend getClientInstance() throws SuprsendException {
        String apiKey = "_workspace_key_";
        String apiSecret = "_workspace_secret_";
        return new Suprsend(apiKey, apiSecret);
    }
}

PropertyTypeDescription
workflowstringSlug of designed workflow on SuprSend dashboard. You'll get the slug from workflow settings.
recipientsarray of string / array of objectsList of users who need to be notified. You can add upto 100 recipients in a workflow trigger. You can either pass recipients as an array of distinct_ID (if user is pre-synced in SuprSend database) or define recipient information inline.
actor (Optional)string / objectIncludes distinct_id and properties of the user who performed the action. You can use it for cross-user notifications where you need to include actor properties in notification template. Actor properties can be added as $actor.<prop>.
dataobjectvariable data required to render dynamic template content or workflow properties such as dynamic delay or channel override in send node.
tenant_id (Optional)stringtrigger workflow for specific tenant/brand.
idempotency_key (Optional)stringunique identifier of the request. We'll be returning idempotency_key in our outbound webhook response. You can use it to map notification statuses and replies in your system.

Response

Once your request is accepted, you can check the status of your request in the SuprSend Logs.

{
  "success": true,
  "status": "success",
  "status_code": 202,
  "message": "{\"status\":\"success\"}"
}

Sending notification to multiple users

Recipients in workflow call is an array of distinct_ids or recipient objects. You can pass upto 100 recipients in a single workflow trigger. SuprSend will internally convert it into multiple workflow triggers, one for each recipient in the array.

JSONObject body = new JSONObject()
  .put("recipients", Arrays.asList("id1","id2"))

// ---- OR ------

JSONObject body = new JSONObject()
  .put("recipients", new JSONArray()
       .put(new JSONObject()
            .put("distinct_id", "id1")
            .put("$email", Arrays.asList("[email protected]"))
            .put("name", "recipient_1"))
       .put(new JSONObject()
            .put("distinct_id", "id2")
            .put("$email", Arrays.asList("[email protected]"))
            .put("name", "recipient_2"))
      )

📘

Use lists to broadcast to a large list of users

We recommend you to use lists and broadcast to send notifications to a user list larger than 1000 users. This approach allows bulk processing, resulting in significantly faster delivery compared to individual workflow calls. Sending individual workflows to a large set of users may introduce delays in your notification queue.


Identifying recipients inline

One of the benefits of using direct workflow trigger is that you can identify recipients inline. You can include recipient channel information, their channel preferences, and their user properties along with the workflow trigger. Upon triggering the workflow, the recipient will be automatically created in the SuprSend database in the background. This facilitates dynamic synchronization of your user data within SuprSend and eliminates the need for any migration efforts on your end to start sending notifications from SuprSend. You can also use recipient properties in your template as $recipient.<property>.

This is how the complete recipient object with look like

JSONObject body = new JSONObject()
  .put("recipients", new JSONArray()
       .put(new JSONObject()
            .put("distinct_id", "0gxxx9f14-xxxx-23c5-1902-xxxcb6912ab09")
            .put("$email", Arrays.asList("[email protected]")) // email communication channel
            .put("$sms", Arrays.asList("+15555555555")) // sms communication channel
            .put("$channels", Arrays.asList("email","inbox"))
            .put("$preferred_language", "en")
            .put("custom_prop1", "value_1")  // custom property  
            .put("custom_prop2", "value_2")  // custom property
           ))
PropertyTypeDescription
distinct_idstringUnique identifier of the user to be notified.
communication channels ($email, $sms etc).array of string / objectsThe communication channels info provided will be updated to user profile in the background. For this workflow, only channel values specified for this recipient will be used for sending notification instead of all channel values present in User profile.
$channelsarray of stringBy default, notifications will be sent to all channels defined in the workflow delivery nodes. However, if you have a scenario where user has specific channel preference for a notification (e.g., they only want to receive payment reminders via email), you can include that preference in the workflow payload. This will ensure that notifications are sent only to the channels specified in the this. Supported channel: email, sms, whatsapp, androidpush, iospush, slack, webpush, ms_teams.

You can always use our in-build preference APIs to maintain user notification preferences. Preferences defined within SuprSend will automatically apply with workflow trigger.
$preferred_languagestringIf you want to send notification in user's preferred language, you can set it by passing language code in this method.
*objectYou can pass other user properties to render dynamic template content. These properties will also be set in user profile and can be used in the template as $recipient.<property>.

Communication Channels of recipient

JSONObject body = new JSONObject()
  .put("recipients", new JSONArray()
       .put(new JSONObject()
            .put("$email", Arrays.asList("[email protected]")) // email communication channel
            .put("$sms", Arrays.asList("+15555555555"))      // sms communication channel
            .put("$whatsapp", Arrays.asList("+15555555555")) // whatsapp communication channel
            .put("$androidpush", new JSONObject()						 // androidpush communication channel
                 .put("token", "__android_push_token__")
                 .put("provider", "fcm")
                 .put("device_id", ""))
            .put("$iospush", new JSONObject()							 // iospush communication channel
                 .put("token", "__ios_push_token__")
                 .put("provider", "apns")
                 .put("device_id", ""))
            .put("$slack", new JSONObject()								 // slack using user email id
                 .put("email", "[email protected]")
                 .put("access_token", "xoxb-XXXXXXXX"))
            .put("$slack", new JSONObject()								 // slack using member_id
                 .put("user_id", "U/WXXXXXXXX")
                 .put("access_token", "xoxb-XXXXXXXX"))
            .put("$slack", new JSONObject()								 // slack channel
                 .put("channel", "CXXXXXXXX")
                 .put("access_token", "xoxb-XXXXXXXX"))
            .put("$slack", new JSONObject()							 	 // slack using incoming webhook
                 .put("incoming_webhook", new JSONObject()
                      .put("url", "https://hooks.slack.com/services/T0XXXXX/B0XXXXXX/XXXXXXX")))
            .put("$ms_teams", new JSONObject()					 	 // MS teams user or channel using conversation_id
                 .put("tenant_id", "c1981ab2-9aaf-xxxx-xxxx")
                 .put("service_url", "https://smba.trafficmanager.net/amer")
                 .put("conversation_id", "19:c1524d7c-a06f-456f-8abe-xxxx"))
            .put("$ms_teams", new JSONObject()					 	 // MS teams using user id
                 .put("tenant_id", "c1981ab2-9aaf-xxxx-xxxx")
                 .put("service_url", "https://smba.trafficmanager.net/amer")
                 .put("user_id", "29:1nsLcmJ2RKtYH6Cxxxx-xxxx"))
            .put("$ms_teams", new JSONObject()						 // MS teams using incoming webhook
                 .put("incoming_webhook", new JSONObject()
                      .put("url", "https://wnk1z.webhook.office.com/webhookb2/XXXXXXXXX")))
           ))

Sending cross-user notifications

In scenarios where you need to notify a group of users based on another user's action, such as sending a notification to the document owner when someone comments on it, you can specify the actor in your workflow call. This allows you to use actor's name or other properties in your notification template. Actor properties can be included in the template as $actor.<property>.

//handlebar template
Hi {{$recipient.name}}, {{$actor.name}} added {{length comments}} new comments on the {{doc_name}}.

// rendered content with Sample Data
Hi recipient_1, actor_1 added 2 new comments on the annual IT report.
private static JSONObject getWorkflowBody() {
  JSONObject body = new JSONObject()
    .put("workflow", "new_comment")
    .put("actor", new JSONObject()
         .put("distinct_id", "0fxxx8f74-xxxx-41c5-8752-xxxcb6911fb08")
         .put("name", "actor_1")
        )
    .put("recipients", new JSONArray()
         .put(new JSONObject()
              .put("distinct_id", "0gxxx9f14-xxxx-23c5-1902-xxxcb6912ab09")
              .put("$email", Arrays.asList("[email protected]"))
              .put("name", "recipient_1")
             ))
    .put("data", new JSONObject()
         .put("doc_name", "annual IT report")
         .put("date", "2024-01-01")
         .put("comments", Arrays.asList("change the date","rest looks good"))
             );

         return body;
         }

Sending notification to anonymous user

You can send notifications to anonymous users by passing "is_transient": true in your recipient object. This approach is recommended for scenarios where you need to send notifications to unregistered users without creating them in the SuprSend platform. The same way, you can pass "is_transient": true in your actor object to use actor properties in template without creating user profile.

private static JSONObject getWorkflowBody() {
  JSONObject body = new JSONObject()
    .put("workflow", "_workflow_slug_")
    .put("actor", new JSONObject()
         .put("is_transient", true)		// for anonymous actor
         .put("name", "actor_1")
        )
    .put("recipients", new JSONArray()
         .put(new JSONObject()
              .put("is_transient", true)	// for anonymous recipient
              .put("$email", Arrays.asList("[email protected]"))
              .put("name", "recipient_1")
             ))
    .put("data", new JSONObject()
         .put("doc_name", "annual IT report")
         .put("date", "2024-01-01")
         .put("comments", Arrays.asList("change the date","rest looks good"))
             );

         return body;
         }

Multi-tenant notifications

For cases where you want to send notifications to your enterprise customers end users, pass the tenant_id in your workflow instance. You can use this to dynamically manage tenant level notification customizations. This includes the ability to customize template design or content and route notifications via tenant vendors.

private static void WorkflowTrigger() throws SuprsendException, UnsupportedEncodingException {
  Suprsend suprClient = Helper.getClientInstance();
  
  // payload
  JSONObject body = getWorkflowBody();
  String tenantId = "tenant_id1";
  WorkflowTriggerRequest wf = new WorkflowTriggerRequest(body, tenantId);
  
  //
  JSONObject resp = suprClient.workflows.trigger(wf);
  System.out.println(resp);
}

Idempotent requests

SuprSend supports idempotency to ensure that requests can be retried safely without duplicate processing. If Suprsend receives and processes a request with an idempotency_key, it will skip processing requests with same idempotency_key for next 24 hours. Idempotency key should be uniquely generated for each request (max 255 characters allowed). Spaces in start and end of the key will be trimmed. Here are some common approaches for generating idempotency keys:

  • Generate a random UUID for each request.
  • Construct the idempotency key by combining relevant information about the request. This can include parameters, identifiers, or specific contextual details that are meaningful within your application. For example, you could concatenate the user ID, action, and timestamp to form an idempotency key like user147-new-comment-1687437670
  • Request-specific Identifier: If your request already contains a unique identifier, such as an order ID or a job ID, you can use that identifier directly as the idempotency key.
private static void WorkflowTrigger() throws SuprsendException, UnsupportedEncodingException {
  Suprsend suprClient = Helper.getClientInstance();
  
  // payload
  JSONObject body = getWorkflowBody();
  String idempotencyKey = "_unique_request_identifier";
  WorkflowTriggerRequest wf = new WorkflowTriggerRequest(body, idempotencyKey);
  
  //
  JSONObject resp = suprClient.workflows.trigger(wf);
  System.out.println(resp);
}

Bulk API for triggering multiple workflows

Bulk API allows you to send multiple workflow requests in a single call. Use .append() and workflows.bulkTriggerInstance() to add however-many-records to call in bulk.

package test;

import java.io.IOException;
import java.io.UnsupportedEncodingException;
import java.util.Arrays;

import org.json.JSONArray;
import org.json.JSONObject;

import suprsend.BulkResponse;
import suprsend.BulkWorkflowTrigger;
import suprsend.Suprsend;
import suprsend.SuprsendException;
import suprsend.WorkflowTriggerRequest;

public class Workflow {

  public static void main(String[] args) throws Exception {
    WorkflowBulkTrigger();
  }

  private static void WorkflowBulkTrigger() throws SuprsendException, UnsupportedEncodingException {
    Suprsend suprClient = Helper.getClientInstance();
    
    // payload of first workflow
    JSONObject body1 = getWorkflowBody1();
    String idempotencyKey1 = "_unique_request_identifier";
    String tenantId1 = "tenant_id1";
    WorkflowTriggerRequest wf1 = new WorkflowTriggerRequest(body1, idempotencyKey1, tenantId1);

    // payload for second workflow
    JSONObject body2 = getWorkflowBody2();
    String idempotencyKey2 = "_unique_request_identifier";
    String tenantId2 = "tenant_id1";
    WorkflowTriggerRequest wf2 = new WorkflowTriggerRequest(body2, idempotencyKey2, tenantId2);
    
    //
    BulkWorkflowTrigger bulkIns = suprClient.workflows.bulkTriggerInstance();
    bulkIns.append(wf1,wf2);
    //
    BulkResponse resp = bulkIns.trigger();
    System.out.println(resp);
}

private static JSONObject getWorkflowBody1() {...}
private static JSONObject getWorkflowBody2() {...}
package test;

import suprsend.Suprsend;
import suprsend.SuprsendException;

public class TestHelper {
    public static Suprsend getClientInstance() throws SuprsendException {
        String apiKey = "_workspace_key_";
        String apiSecret = "_workspace_secret_";
        return new Suprsend(apiKey, apiSecret);
    }
}


Response

{
  status: "success/fail/partial",
  total: 10,
  success: 10,
  failure: 0,
  failed_records: [{"record": {...}, "error": "error_str", "code": "<status_code>"}],
  warnings: []
}

Add attachment (in email)

To add one or more attachments to a notification (viz. Email), call wf.addAttachment() for each file with local path or remote attachment url. Ensure that file path is valid, and public(for remote url) otherwise it will raise error.

private static void WorkflowTrigger() throws SuprsendException, UnsupportedEncodingException {
  Suprsend suprClient = Helper.getClientInstance();
  
  // payload
  JSONObject body = getWorkflowBody();
  WorkflowTriggerRequest wf = new WorkflowTriggerRequest(body);
  String filePath = "https://lightning.network/lightning-network-paper.pdf";
  wf.addAttachment(filePath, "MyFile.pdf", true);
  
  //
  JSONObject resp = suprClient.workflows.trigger(wf);
  System.out.println(resp);
}

🚧

A single workflow instance size (including attachment) must not exceed 100KB (100 x 1024 bytes).





Dynamic workflow trigger

You can configure workflow from backend API by following below steps:


Step 1. Create a json file with workflow configurations in a file named input.json

// Prepare Workflow body
workflow_body = {
  "name": "workflow_name",
  "template": "template_slug",
  "notification_category": "notification_category", // notification category transactional/promotional/system
  "delay": "time_delay",  // time delay after which the first notification will be sent
  "trigger_at": "date string in ISO 8601", //to trigger scheduled notifications

  "users": [
    {
      "distinct_id": "distinct_id", // unique identifier of the user
      // if $channels is present, communication will be triggered on mentioned channels only.
      // "$channels": ["email"],

      // User communication channel can be added as [optional]:
      // "$email":["[email protected]"],
      // "$whatsapp":["+15555555555"],
      // "$sms":["+15555555555"],
      // "$androidpush": [{"token": "__android_push_token__", "provider": "fcm", "device_id": ""}],  
      // "$iospush":[{"token": "__ios_push_token__", "provider": "apns", "device_id": ""}],
      // "$slack": {
      //  "email": "[email protected]",
      //  "access_token": "xoxb-XXXXXXXX"
      //}   --- slack using email

      // "$slack": {
      //  "user_id": "U/WXXXXXXXX",
      //  "access_token": "xoxb-XXXXXX"
      //} --- slack using member_id

      // "$slack": {
      //  "channel": "CXXXXXXXX",
      //  "access_token": "xoxb-XXXXXX"
      //} --- slack channel

      // "$slack": {
      //  "incoming_webhook": {
      //  "url": "https://hooks.slack.com/services/TXXXXXXXXX/BXXXXXXXX/XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX"
      // }
      //} --- slack incoming webhook
    }
  ],

  // delivery instruction [optional]. how should notifications be sent, and whats the success metric
  "delivery": {
    "smart": <boolean_value>,
    "success": "success_metric",
    "time_to_live": "TTL duration", // will be applicable for smart = TRUE
    "mandatory_channels": [] // list of mandatory channels e.g ["email"], will be applicable for smart = TRUE
  },
  // data can be any json / serializable python-dictionary
  "data": {
    "key":"value",
    "nested_key": {
      "nested_key1": "some_value_1",
      "nested_key2": {
        "nested_key3": "some_value_3",
      },
    }
  }
}   


For configuring a workflow from backend, you can pass following properties in your method

ParameterDescriptionFormatObligation
nameIt is the unique name of the workflow. You can see workflow-related analytics on the workflow page (how many notifications were sent, delivered, clicked or interacted). The workflow name should be easily identifiable for your reference at a later stagetextMandatory
templateIt is the unique slug of the template created on SuprSend platform. You can get this slug by clicking on the clipboard icon next to the Template name on SuprSend templates page.
It is the same for all channels
slug nameMandatory
notification_categoryYou can understand more about them in the Notification Category documentationsystem / transactional / promotionalMandatory
delayWorkflow will be halted for the time mentioned in delay, and become active once the delay period is over.XXdXXhXXmXXs or if its number (n) then delay is in seconds (n)Optional
trigger_atTrigger workflow on a specific date-timedate string in ISO 8601
eg. "2021-08-27T20:14:51.643Z"
Optional
usersArray object of target users.

Atleast 1 user mandatory.

distinct_id for each user mandatory

Channel information is non-mandatory. If you pass channel information here, then these channels will be used for sending notification otherwise channels will be picked from user profile.
"users":
[
{
"distinct_id": "value",
"$channels":[],
channel_information_dict #(optional)
],
Mandatory
deliveryDelivery instructions for the workflow. You can enable smart delivery by setting "smart":True

By default, delivery instruction will be "delivery": {
"smart": False,
"success": "seen"
}

Further details are given in the below section
delivery = {
"smart": True/False,
"success": "seen/interaction/",
"time_to_live": "",
"mandatory_channels": [] # list of mandatory channels e.g gation",

}
Optional
dataJSON.
To replace the variables in the template, templates use handlebars language
"data":
{ "key": {
"key": "value",
"key": "value"
}
},
Optional
2878

To find the template slug name on SuprSend platform, click on the clipboard icon on Templates page.
Templates > Template Details Page



👍

+CountryCode Required for SMS and Whatsapp

For setting $sms and $whatsapp, +<countrycode> is mandatory to send along with phone number.
Eg. +91 for India


Step 2. Call suprsend.triggerWorkflow() method to trigger workflow

Once you have the object initialized you can make a call to suprsend backend using following line:

JSONObject response = suprsend.triggerWorkflow(body);

Sample Code to call Suprsend backend using SDK

package tests;

import java.io.File;
import java.io.FileInputStream;
import java.io.FileNotFoundException;
import java.io.InputStream;

import org.json.JSONObject;
import org.json.JSONTokener;

import suprsend.Suprsend;

public class TestSuprsendSDK {

    private JSONObject loadBody(String fileName) throws FileNotFoundException {
        JSONObject jsonObject;
        String relativePath = String.format("%s/src/%s/resources/%s.json", System.getProperty("user.dir"),
                this.getClass().getPackage().getName(), fileName);
        InputStream schemaStream = new FileInputStream(new File(relativePath));
        jsonObject = new JSONObject(new JSONTokener(schemaStream));
        return jsonObject;
    }

    public static void main(String[] args) throws Exception {
        TestSuprsendSDK sdk = new TestSuprsendSDK();
        // Load workflow body json
        JSONObject body = sdk.loadBody("input");
        // SDK instance
        Suprsend suprsend = new Suprsend("WORKSPACE KEY", "WORKSPACE KEY");
        Workflow wf = new Workflow(body, idempotencyKey, brandId)
          
        // Trigger workflow
        JSONObject resp = suprClient.triggerWorkflow(wf);
        System.out.println(resp);
    }

}}

Alternatively you can find sample java client code snippet, which demonstrates how to make a call to Suprsend backend using Java SDK below:

a. Maven Client
b. Non Maven Client

Response structure

When you call suprClient.triggerWorkflow, the SDK internally makes an HTTP call to SuprSend Platform to register this request, and you'll immediately receive a response indicating the acceptance status.

// Response structure
{
    "success": true, // if true, request was accepted.
    "status": "success",
    "status_code": 202, // http status code
    "message": "OK",
}

{
    "success": false, // error will be present in message
    "status": "fail",
    "status_code": 500, // http status code
    "message": "error message",
}

Possible values for status key in the response:

statusDescription
202Request was successfully accepted
400Some of the backend validations failed due to which request could not be accepted. More details will be present against the message key.
401Unauthorised access made to Suprsend backend. Please check the credentials that are being passed.
500Any other error which was not handled by the Suprsend system. You will find more details against the message key in response.
Note: The actual processing/execution of workflow happens asynchronously.

Once your request is accepted, you can check what is the status of your request in the ' SuprSend Logs' section.


Bulk API for triggering multiple workflows.

Bulk API allows you to send multiple workflow requests in a single call. There isn't any limit on number-of-records that can be added to bulk_workflows instance. Use .append() on bulk_workflows instance to add however-many-records to call in bulk.

package tests;

import java.io.File;
import java.io.FileInputStream;
import java.io.FileNotFoundException;
import java.io.InputStream;

import org.json.JSONObject;
import org.json.JSONTokener;

import suprsend.Suprsend;

public class TestSuprsendSDK {

    private JSONObject loadBody(String fileName) throws FileNotFoundException {
        JSONObject jsonObject;
        String relativePath = String.format("%s/src/%s/resources/%s.json", System.getProperty("user.dir"),
                this.getClass().getPackage().getName(), fileName);
        InputStream schemaStream = new FileInputStream(new File(relativePath));
        jsonObject = new JSONObject(new JSONTokener(schemaStream));
        return jsonObject;
    }

    public static void main(String[] args) throws Exception {
        TestSuprsendSDK sdk = new TestSuprsendSDK();
        // Load workflow body json
        JSONObject body = sdk.loadBody("input");
        // SDK instance
        Suprsend suprsend = new Suprsend("WORKSPACE KEY", "WORKSPACE KEY");
        // Create one or more workflow instances
        Workflow wf1 = new Workflow(body1)
      	Workflow wf2 = new Workflow(body2)
      
      	// --- use .append on bulk instance to add one or more records
      	BulkWorkflows bulkIns = suprClient.bulkWorkflows.newInstance();
      	bulkIns.append(wf1,wf2);
      
        // trigger workflow
        BulkResponse resp = bulkIns.trigger();
        System.out.println(resp);
    }
}}




Response

Response is an instance of suprsend.BulkResponse class

// Response structure
import suprsend.BulkResponse;

BulkResponse{status: 'success' | total: 2 | success: 2 | failure: 0 | warnings: 0}

BulkResponse{status: 'fail' | total: 2 | success: 0 | failure: 2 | warnings: 0}

BulkResponse{status: 'partial' | total: 2 | success: 1 | failure: 1 | warnings: 0}