Frequently asked questions

This article provides answers to some frequently asked questions about in-app messages.

What is an in-browser message and how does it differ from an in-app message?

In-browser messages are in-app messages sent to web browsers. To create an in-browser message, make sure to select Web Browser under the Send To field when creating your in-app message campaign or Canvas.

Will an in-app message display if a device is offline?

It depends. Because in-app messages are delivered at session start, the device is able to download the payload prior to going offline, the in-app message can still be displayed while offline. If the payload is not downloaded, then the in-app message will not display.

If a user already has an in-app message payload on their device and the message expiration is changed, will the expiration be updated on their device?

When a user starts a session, Braze checks if changes have been made to any in-app messages that they are eligible for and updates them accordingly. So if the expiration has changed and they log a session, then the in-app message is sent to the device with the updated information.

How do I set up Quiet Hours for an in-app message campaign?

The Quiet Hours feature isn’t available for use with in-app message campaigns. This feature is used to prevent messages from being sent to your users during specific hours. For in-app message campaigns, your users will only receive in-app messages if they are active within the app.

As a workaround to send in-app messages during a specific time, use the following sample Liquid code. This allows the message to be aborted if the in-app message is displayed after 7:59 pm or before 8 am at the specified time zone.

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{% assign time = 'now' | time_zone: ${time_zone} %}{% assign hour = time | date: '%H' | plus: 0 %}
{% if hour > 19 or hour < 8 %}
{% abort_message("Outside allowed time window") %}
{% endif %}
MESSAGE HERE

When is eligibility for an in-app message calculated?

Eligibility for an in-app message is calculated at the time of delivery. If an in-app message is scheduled to send at 7 am, then eligibility is checked for this in-app message at 7 am.

Once the in-app message is displayed, the eligibility will depend on when the in-app message is downloaded and triggered.

What are templated in-app messages?

In-app messages will be delivered as templated in-app messages when Re-evaluate campaign eligibility before displaying is selected or if any of the following Liquid tags exist in the message:

• canvas_entry_properties
• connected_content
• SMS variables such as {sms.${*}}
• catalog_items
• catalog_selection_items
• event_properties

This means during session start, the device will receive the trigger of that in-app message instead of the entire message. When the user triggers the in-app message, the user’s device will make a network request to fetch the actual message.

Why is my archived in-app message campaign still delivering in-app message impressions?

This can occur for users who met the segment criteria when the in-app message campaign was active.

To prevent this, during your campaign setup, select Re-evaluate campaign eligibility before displaying.

How does Braze calculate an in-app message expiration set to “after 1 day(s)”?

Braze calculates an expiration time of one day as 24 hours after users are eligible to receive a message.