About tags

How tags work

Tags are metadata you attach to a channelA device or address registered with Airship to receive messages, such as a mobile app, web browser, email address, or SMS number. It stores opt-in status, device-specific information, and metadata used for targeting. Each channel has a unique channel ID. or named userA customer-provided identifier used for mapping multiple devices and channels to a specific individual. for audience segmentation. They typically describe a user preference or other categorization, such as wine_enthusiast or weather_alerts_los_angeles.

Airship evaluates tags by presence or absence, not by value. You can set up to 1,000 tags on a single channel or named user, but large tag counts slow audience evaluation.

Tags are organized into tag groups, which categorize related tags such as an interests group for preferences or a loyalty group for membership tiers. Every tag belongs to a tag group, and the same tag name in different groups is treated as distinct.

Set or remove tags directly using the SDK or API, or by uploading a CSV in the dashboard. You can also configure messages to set or remove tags based on user interaction. For example, tags can capture actions such as viewing a product page in your app, submitting a preference form on your website, tapping a promotional link in an email, or replying to a text message with a keyword.

For some use cases, another feature is a better fit:

• When you need values you can compare or filter, such as lifetime_purchase_total or last_login_date, use attributesMetadata used for audience segmentation and personalization. Attributes extend the concept of tags by adding comparison operators and values to determine whether or not to target a user, helping you better evaluate your audience..
• When you need to read a user’s opt-ins from the SDK, for example to display current subscriptions in your app, use subscription listsAn audience list users opt in to for a specific messaging topic. Users can manage their opt-in status using a Preference Center.. This is because tags can be set from the SDK but not read.

Using tags with messaging

Tags support the following messaging capabilities:

• Targeting — Target audiences for messages, feature flagsAn experimentation tool for controlling the availability of content or functionality in your app or website. A flag’s Configurations determine the audience, schedule, and property values to apply when the flag is enabled. Flag properties enable making immediate code updates, bypassing the need for traditional code changes and release processes., A/B tests, and Intelligent Rollouts based on tag presence or absence. You can also include tags in segmentsA reusable audience group you create by selecting unique or shared user data..
• Triggering — Set your Automations and Sequences to run when a tag is added or removed. You can also set a tag change as a Sequence exit condition.
• Delivery filtering — Set delivery conditions on Automations and Sequences by requiring or excluding specific tags.
• Localization — Use locale and country tags in HandlebarsHandlebars is Airship’s templating language for personalization. Handlebars expressions use double curly braces wrapped around a content template, ranging from a simple variable, e.g., {{first_name}}, to complex evaluations of personalization data..

Targeting and setting tags can work together in a single message. For example, in a push notification about a new film release, target users with the likes_movies tag in the interests tag group and set the tapped_movie_promo tag in the engagement tag group when they tap the message. Later, send a follow-up discount to users with the tapped_movie_promo tag.

{
   "audience": {
      "tag": "likes_movies",
      "group": "interests"
   },
   "notification": {
      "alert": "New movie release this Friday. Get tickets before they sell out.",
      "actions": {
         "tags": [
            {
               "type": "channel",
               "action": "add",
               "group": "engagement",
               "tags": ["tapped_movie_promo"]
            }
         ]
      }
   },
   "device_types": ["ios", "android"]
}

Tag types, data sources, and setup

Tags can come from Airship, the Airship SDKs, and you.

The following table shows the data source, description, and setup required for each tag type:

Feature tags

These Airship features have dedicated tags that enable their functionality:

Where tags are stored

A tag stored on a contactAny user in your project. Contacts are identified as either an anonymous contact or a named user. Airship can set targeting data on these identifiers, which are also used to map devices and channels to a specific user. applies across all channels associated with that user, and a tag stored on a channel applies only to that channel. The following table shows where each tag type is stored under each segmentation system:

Under channel-level segmentation, channel tags do not propagate up to the contact, and Airship removes a contact’s tags from a channel when you disassociate it.

For the broader audience-data storage model, see Data storage in Your audience. For details on the segmentation systems and how to check your project’s setting, see Channel-level segmentation in Segmenting your audience.