Click Event properties

This article reviews how to enable and configure Click Event properties in Pendo Engage.

A Click Event property is a type of custom event property that allows you to collect data from UI elements and events during a Feature click. This helps you tag your app and gain additional context without requiring coding or Track Events to collect additional parameters. The Click Event property captures the targeted object and its value. Admin users can add up to five properties per Feature using CSS to capture UI elements or Javascript to capture objects and their properties.

Click Event property data is typically used to understand the context for a user click when variables on the page or user selections change during their workflow. Common examples include collecting the value of a text field or dropdown menu when a form is submitted, collecting query terms in a search bar to identify the most common search terms, or collecting the name or SKU of an item when it's added to a cart.

When viewing Feature details, you can access the event property values that have been recorded for that event. You can also use Click Event properties in segments and in Data Explorer to filter or group your analysis by common values using event property filters and groupings.

Notice: Click Event properties should be used carefully since they can collect text from the UI (including user-entered text), even if text collection is disabled in the Agent. This information can be valuable for understanding user behavior in detail, but it could raise a security concern if Personally Identifiable Information (PII) is present in the UI. Pendo only collects Click Event Property data once an Admin user tags them, and data collection doesn't begin until then.

Requirements

Note the following requirements before proceeding with the instructions below:

• Pendo Admin user to activate and tag Click Event properties
• Agent version 2.45.0 or higher (Learn how to upgrade your version)

Once Click Event properties are tagged, any Pendo user can use Click Event properties to create segments or run Data Explorer reports. Your subscription can have up to 10,000 unique custom event property keys, including Track Event properties.

Enable Click Event properties

You can enable or disable Click Event properties through Settings > Subscription Settings > General. The Click Event Properties setting controls Click Event properties for all apps in the subscription.

To enable for your subscription, select Enable, then read the disclosure and confirm that you want to activate Click Event properties. Enter "I understand" to confirm, and then select Enable Event Properties.

Once enabled, any admin user can tag Click Event properties when tagging Features in the Visual Design Studio.

Disable Click Event properties

If you need to disable Click Event properties, you follow similar instructions for enabling on the Subscription Settings page. Select Disable next to the Click Event Properties setting, and then select Disable in the confirmation dialog. This change impacts all Apps in the subscription.

Once disabled, this stops all Click Event property data collection and removes Click Event properties from the Pendo UI. Previously collected data is still visible. Re-enabling Click Event properties resumes data collection and access to previously tagged Click Event properties, but there are no retroactive analytics for disabled Click Event properties.

Note: To permanently delete Click Event property data, contact Technical Support.

Add a Click Event property

Add Click Event properties while tagging or editing Features in the Visual Design Studio. You can tag up to five event properties for each Feature.

1. Navigate to Product > Features, then select Tag Features.
2. Enter your app URL.
3. Choose a tagging mode: Tag side-by-side or Tag in an overlay.
4. Select Launch Designer to open the Visual Design Studio.
5. If the Feature you'd like to define an event property for isn't already tagged, select Tag Feature and select the appropriate element in your app. Once selected, skip to Step 4. For more detailed tagging guidelines, see Tagging and viewing Features.
6. If the Feature you'd like to define an event property for is already tagged, scroll through the list of tagged Features or use the search field to find the relevant Feature, then hover over the Feature name and select the Edit icon.
   
7. At the bottom of the dialog, select Event Properties.
   
8. Select + Event Property.
   
9. Enter a Name for the property you want to collect. This is a required field and should be unique across all apps. Below are a few tips on naming:
   
   
   • Names must use lowercase letters, numbers, or underscores only and can't start or end with two underscores, such as __eventproperty__. This format results in an error message.
     
   • A feature that uses multiple words like Language Selector, should be entered as language_selector.
   • If you have identical property names like “country” in different apps, it’s important to give the event property an app-specific name like app1_country so that you can properly report on data from multiple apps.
10. Next, tag the Source. You can use CSS targeting to narrow down the list of properties for the value, or you can select Advanced (JS) to use Javascript and target a property directly. Value populates with a list of available properties for the tagged Feature or targeted CSS element. Below are a few tips:
    
    • Unless you are comfortable with using your browser's developer's console, we recommend using Standard (CSS) to target an element. This option allows you to easily select the correct properties, like input fields. For more information on custom CSS tagging, see Advanced Feature Tagging.
    • Selecting the correct value is easier if something is entered into the actual field. The value options automatically show you previews of what will be collected if you select this option.
    • The most commonly used value options, like Value and innerText, display at the top of the list. Choose the option that gives you the preview that matches what you want to collect.
    • The Select a value for the element field supports modifiers to the selected property. For example, innerText returns the text contained in the element, and adding innerText.length returns the number of characters in the text.
      
    • Common element values for text collection are innerText or textContent.
11. View the Preview to see an example of the value collected by your selected property if it's currently visible in the Visual Design Studio.
    
12. Select Apply to save the event property. The name populates under Event Properties in the Edit Feature dialog.
    
13. To add another event property to the Feature, repeat Steps 5–9 above. Up to five event properties are supported.
14. Once you've added all desired Click Event properties, select Save or Save Changes to begin collecting data for the added event properties.
    

Note: Your subscription can have up to 10,000 unique custom event property keys, including Track Event properties.

Edit or delete an existing Click Event property

You can edit or delete Click Event properties from the same Event Properties section reviewed above when editing a tagged Feature. Select the Edit icon next to the relevant event property to open the details and make any necessary changes.

Select the Delete icon next to the relevant event property to permanently delete it. Once deleted, the event property is no longer available in analytics.

If you delete by mistake, you can select Restore to undo the deletion.

After you edit or delete an event property, select Save Changes to update the Feature.

Modify the event property type

Four different data formats are supported for Click Event properties: string, number, boolean, and time/date. By default, Click Event properties are collected as strings. It's important to categorize Click Event properties properly, as you can't create accurate segments or reports using improperly categorized data. 

It's best practice to categorize a newly tagged property immediately after tagging it through Settings > Event Properties.

You can find and categorize all custom event properties on the Event Properties page. Select an Event Property name to see the Features or Track Events associated with it.

To update the event property type, find the relevant event property in the table and select the corresponding dropdown menu in the Type column, then choose the correct categorization value from the dropdown list.

Warning: Make sure you choose the correct category the first time. Changing the category overwrites any previously collected property data. It’s best to categorize immediately after tagging a property for the first time.

Segment with Click Event properties

After tagging a Feature Click Event property,  you can use a Click Event property in a segment, open the segment rule builder anywhere in Pendo and update the Name and Visibility as needed.

1. Select Add Rules, and then choose Feature for Filter by.
2. Open the Select Feature dropdown menu, then select the Feature that is associated with the Click Event property you'd like to query.
3. Specify the Number of Clicks. If you want to segment all visitors who've interacted with the Feature within a time period, set this to greater or equal to 1.
4. Specify the date range during which the Feature was clicked, then select + Use Event Property.
5. Select the Event Property from the dropdown menu, then choose the appropriate value from the Select Option dropdown menu.
6. Click Create Segment to save the segment.

Note: To learn how to use event property data in Data Explorer, see our articles on Event properties and Data Explorer.

Frequently asked questions

What’s the difference between Click Event and Track Event properties?

Click Event and Track Event properties differ in the types of events they are associated with. Here are some of the key differences:

• Click Events. Related to Feature clicks, such as a Submit button or menu selection. Feature must be tagged in Visual Design Studio. Properties are captured at the time a Feature is clicked.
• Track Events. Related to custom point-in-time events, such as an API call or an error. Track Event must be set up by a developer. Properties are captured programmatically. To learn more about Track Events, see Track Events.

Can I use event properties in segments I’m using for Guide targeting?

Not at this time. To learn more about segments and guide eligibility, see Segments.

Are Click Event property analytics retroactive?

No. Like Track Event properties, Pendo captures Click Event properties once you tag them from the Visual Design Studio. This ensures you're collecting intended properties that exclude any sensitive or personal data.