{"id":1153,"date":"2026-05-22T09:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-05-22T14:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/tolinku.com\/blog\/?p=1153"},"modified":"2026-03-07T03:34:58","modified_gmt":"2026-03-07T08:34:58","slug":"webhook-slack-notifications","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tolinku.com\/blog\/webhook-slack-notifications\/","title":{"rendered":"Slack Notifications for Deep Link Events via Webhooks"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

There's something motivating about watching deep link events roll into Slack in real time. The growth team sees an install notification and knows a campaign is working. The engineering team sees a webhook failure and investigates before it becomes a support ticket. A product manager sees a referral completion and knows the referral flow is functioning.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This guide covers three ways to send Tolinku webhook<\/a> events to Slack: a direct integration using Slack's Incoming Webhooks, a custom receiver with rich message formatting, and a no-code path through Zapier. Pick the one that matches your team's engineering bandwidth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Tolinku\nThe webhooks page with create form, webhook list, and delivery log.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Option 1: Direct Slack Incoming Webhook<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The simplest approach. Slack's Incoming Webhooks<\/a> let you POST a JSON message to a channel URL. No Slack app installation needed (just a webhook URL from Slack).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Set Up the Slack Webhook<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
    \n
  1. Go to api.slack.com\/apps<\/a> and create a new app (or use an existing one)<\/li>\n
  2. Under Features > Incoming Webhooks<\/strong>, toggle it on<\/li>\n
  3. Click Add New Webhook to Workspace<\/strong> and select the channel (e.g., #deep-link-events)<\/li>\n
  4. Copy the webhook URL (e.g., https:\/\/hooks.slack.com\/services\/T00000000\/B00000000\/XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX<\/code>)<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

    Build the Receiver<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
    import express from 'express';\nimport crypto from 'crypto';\n\nconst app = express();\napp.use('\/webhooks', express.raw({ type: 'application\/json' }));\n\nconst WEBHOOK_SECRET = process.env.WEBHOOK_SECRET!;\nconst SLACK_WEBHOOK_URL = process.env.SLACK_WEBHOOK_URL!;\n\napp.post('\/webhooks\/tolinku', async (req, res) => {\n  const signature = req.headers['x-webhook-signature'] as string;\n  const expected = crypto\n    .createHmac('sha256', WEBHOOK_SECRET)\n    .update(req.body)\n    .digest('hex');\n\n  if (signature !== expected) {\n    return res.status(401).send('Invalid signature');\n  }\n\n  res.status(200).send('OK');\n\n  const event = JSON.parse(req.body.toString());\n  await sendToSlack(event);\n});\n\nasync function sendToSlack(event: any) {\n  const message = formatSlackMessage(event);\n\n  await fetch(SLACK_WEBHOOK_URL, {\n    method: 'POST',\n    headers: { 'Content-Type': 'application\/json' },\n    body: JSON.stringify(message),\n  });\n}\n\napp.listen(3000);\n<\/code><\/pre>\n\n\n\n
    Format Messages<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
    Plain text notifications work, but Block Kit<\/a> messages are easier to scan in a busy channel.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
    function formatSlackMessage(event: any) {\n  const { event: eventType, timestamp, data } = event;\n  const time = new Date(timestamp).toLocaleString('en-US', {\n    timeZone: 'UTC',\n    hour12: false,\n  });\n\n  const emoji = getEmoji(eventType);\n  const title = getTitle(eventType);\n\n  const fields: Array<{ type: string; text: string }> = [];\n\n  if (data.campaign) {\n    fields.push({\n      type: 'mrkdwn',\n      text: `*Campaign:* ${data.campaign}`,\n    });\n  }\n  if (data.platform) {\n    fields.push({\n      type: 'mrkdwn',\n      text: `*Platform:* ${data.platform}`,\n    });\n  }\n  if (data.token) {\n    fields.push({\n      type: 'mrkdwn',\n      text: `*Link:* ${data.prefix || ''}\/${data.token}`,\n    });\n  }\n  if (data.device_type) {\n    fields.push({\n      type: 'mrkdwn',\n      text: `*Device:* ${data.device_type}`,\n    });\n  }\n\n  return {\n    blocks: [\n      {\n        type: 'section',\n        text: {\n          type: 'mrkdwn',\n          text: `${emoji} *${title}*`,\n        },\n      },\n      ...(fields.length > 0\n        ? [\n            {\n              type: 'section',\n              fields,\n            },\n          ]\n        : []),\n      {\n        type: 'context',\n        elements: [\n          {\n            type: 'mrkdwn',\n            text: `${time} UTC`,\n          },\n        ],\n      },\n    ],\n  };\n}\n\nfunction getEmoji(eventType: string): string {\n  const emojis: Record<string, string> = {\n    'link.clicked': ':link:',\n    'deferred_link.claimed': ':calling:',\n    'install.tracked': ':iphone:',\n    'referral.created': ':handshake:',\n    'referral.completed': ':tada:',\n    'test': ':test_tube:',\n  };\n  return emojis[eventType] || ':bell:';\n}\n\nfunction getTitle(eventType: string): string {\n  const titles: Record<string, string> = {\n    'link.clicked': 'Link Clicked',\n    'deferred_link.claimed': 'Deferred Link Claimed',\n    'install.tracked': 'Install Tracked',\n    'referral.created': 'Referral Created',\n    'referral.completed': 'Referral Completed',\n    'test': 'Test Webhook',\n  };\n  return titles[eventType] || eventType;\n}\n<\/code><\/pre>\n\n\n\n
    This produces a clean, structured Slack message with the event type, relevant fields, and timestamp.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
    Option 2: Filtered Notifications<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
    You probably don't want every link.clicked<\/code> event flooding your Slack channel. High-traffic links can generate thousands of clicks per day. Here are strategies for keeping the signal-to-noise ratio high.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
    Filter at the Source<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
    When configuring your webhook in Tolinku<\/a>, select only the events you want notifications for. For most teams, install.tracked<\/code>, referral.created<\/code>, and referral.completed<\/code> are the high-value events worth notifying on. Leave link.clicked<\/code> for your analytics pipeline instead.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
    Filter in the Receiver<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
    If you subscribe to multiple events on one webhook, filter in your handler:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
    const NOTIFY_EVENTS = new Set([\n  'install.tracked',\n  'referral.created',\n  'referral.completed',\n]);\n\nasync function sendToSlack(event: any) {\n  if (!NOTIFY_EVENTS.has(event.event)) return;\n\n  const message = formatSlackMessage(event);\n  await fetch(SLACK_WEBHOOK_URL, {\n    method: 'POST',\n    headers: { 'Content-Type': 'application\/json' },\n    body: JSON.stringify(message),\n  });\n}\n<\/code><\/pre>\n\n\n\n
    Aggregate Instead of Notify Per Event<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
    For click events, a periodic summary is more useful than individual notifications. Buffer events and send a digest:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
    let clickBuffer: any[] = [];\n\nsetInterval(async () => {\n  if (clickBuffer.length === 0) return;\n\n  const count = clickBuffer.length;\n  const campaigns = new Map<string, number>();\n  for (const event of clickBuffer) {\n    const campaign = event.data.campaign || 'unknown';\n    campaigns.set(campaign, (campaigns.get(campaign) || 0) + 1);\n  }\n\n  const campaignList = [...campaigns.entries()]\n    .sort((a, b) => b[1] - a[1])\n    .map(([name, n]) => `  ${name}: ${n}`)\n    .join('\\n');\n\n  await fetch(SLACK_WEBHOOK_URL, {\n    method: 'POST',\n    headers: { 'Content-Type': 'application\/json' },\n    body: JSON.stringify({\n      text: `:chart_with_upwards_trend: *${count} link clicks* in the last 15 minutes\\n${campaignList}`,\n    }),\n  });\n\n  clickBuffer = [];\n}, 15 * 60 * 1000); \/\/ Every 15 minutes\n<\/code><\/pre>\n\n\n\n
    Option 3: Multiple Channels<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
    Route different events to different Slack channels for the right audience:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
    const CHANNEL_MAP: Record<string, string> = {\n  'install.tracked': process.env.SLACK_GROWTH_CHANNEL!,\n  'referral.created': process.env.SLACK_GROWTH_CHANNEL!,\n  'referral.completed': process.env.SLACK_SALES_CHANNEL!,\n  'link.clicked': process.env.SLACK_ANALYTICS_CHANNEL!,\n};\n\nasync function sendToSlack(event: any) {\n  const channelUrl = CHANNEL_MAP[event.event];\n  if (!channelUrl) return;\n\n  const message = formatSlackMessage(event);\n  await fetch(channelUrl, {\n    method: 'POST',\n    headers: { 'Content-Type': 'application\/json' },\n    body: JSON.stringify(message),\n  });\n}\n<\/code><\/pre>\n\n\n\n
    Each Slack Incoming Webhook is bound to a specific channel, so you need a separate webhook URL for each destination channel.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
    Option 4: No-Code with Zapier<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
    If you don't want to host a receiver, use Zapier<\/a> to connect Tolinku webhooks to Slack:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
      \n
    1. Create a Zap with "Webhooks by Zapier" as the trigger (Catch Hook)<\/li>\n
    2. Add a Filter step to select the event types you want<\/li>\n
    3. Add a Slack action: "Send Channel Message"<\/li>\n
    4. Map the webhook fields into the message<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n
      The tradeoff: Zapier doesn't verify webhook signatures, and delivery depends on your Zapier plan's polling interval. For non-critical notifications, this is fine. For production alerting, use a custom receiver.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
      Handling Failures<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
      If Slack's API is down or rate-limited, your notification will fail. This shouldn't affect your webhook processing. Always:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
        \n
      1. Respond 200 to Tolinku before attempting the Slack notification<\/li>\n
      2. Catch and log Slack API errors without rethrowing<\/li>\n
      3. Consider a simple retry with exponential backoff for Slack failures<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n
        async function sendToSlack(event: any) {\n  if (!NOTIFY_EVENTS.has(event.event)) return;\n\n  const message = formatSlackMessage(event);\n\n  for (let attempt = 0; attempt < 3; attempt++) {\n    try {\n      const resp = await fetch(SLACK_WEBHOOK_URL, {\n        method: 'POST',\n        headers: { 'Content-Type': 'application\/json' },\n        body: JSON.stringify(message),\n      });\n      if (resp.ok) return;\n      if (resp.status === 429) {\n        \/\/ Rate limited; wait and retry\n        const retryAfter = parseInt(resp.headers.get('retry-after') || '5');\n        await new Promise(r => setTimeout(r, retryAfter * 1000));\n        continue;\n      }\n      console.error(`Slack API error: ${resp.status}`);\n      return;\n    } catch (err) {\n      console.error('Slack send failed:', err);\n      if (attempt < 2) await new Promise(r => setTimeout(r, 1000 * (attempt + 1)));\n    }\n  }\n}\n<\/code><\/pre>\n\n\n\n
        Slack's webhook API has a rate limit of 1 message per second per webhook URL<\/a>. If you're sending more than that, batch or aggregate your notifications.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
        For setup instructions, see the webhook setup guide<\/a>. To verify your integration, use the tools in the webhook testing guide<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
        Get real-time Slack notifications when deep links are clicked, apps are installed, or referrals complete. Set up webhook-to-Slack integrations in minutes.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1152,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rank_math_title":"Slack Notifications for Deep Link Events via Webhooks","rank_math_description":"Get real-time Slack notifications when deep links are clicked, apps are installed, or referrals complete. Set up webhook-to-Slack integrations in minutes.","rank_math_focus_keyword":"webhook Slack notification","rank_math_canonical_url":"","rank_math_facebook_title":"","rank_math_facebook_description":"","rank_math_facebook_image":"https:\/\/tolinku.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/og-webhook-slack-notifications.png","rank_math_facebook_image_id":"","rank_math_twitter_title":"","rank_math_twitter_description":"","rank_math_twitter_image":"https:\/\/tolinku.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/og-webhook-slack-notifications.png","footnotes":""},"categories":[15],"tags":[165,20,264,263,289,288,61],"class_list":["post-1153","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-engineering","tag-automation","tag-deep-linking","tag-engineering","tag-integrations","tag-notifications","tag-slack","tag-webhooks"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/tolinku.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1153","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/tolinku.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/tolinku.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tolinku.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tolinku.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1153"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/tolinku.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1153\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2260,"href":"https:\/\/tolinku.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1153\/revisions\/2260"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tolinku.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1152"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/tolinku.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1153"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tolinku.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1153"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tolinku.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1153"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}