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Deep Links User Guide

Deep Links: Connect Your Website to Your Mobile App

Imagine your church has a group finder on your website and a group finder in your mobile app. A visitor clicks a link you shared on social media. If they have your app installed, the group finder opens right inside the app. If they don’t, it opens on your website in their browser. One link, two paths—seamless for everyone. That’s the power of Deep Links.

Why Deep Links Matter for Churches

Deep Links (also called Universal Links on Apple and App Links on Android) are website URLs that open your mobile app and load specific content when tapped on a phone or tablet. Instead of sending people to a generic app home screen, you can send them straight to the donate page, an event detail, a sermon series, or a custom form. This creates a smoother experience for your congregation and makes your marketing and communication efforts more effective.

Churches use deep links in newsletters, social media posts, push notifications, QR codes, and website buttons. A “Give Now” button on your homepage can open the giving screen in the app. An event announcement can link directly to that event’s detail page. A small group sign-up form can deep link to the group finder. The possibilities are extensive, and the setup is straightforward once your app is configured.

Apple Universal Links and Android App Links

On Apple devices, this feature is called Universal Linking. On Android, it’s called Deep Linking or App Links. The concept is the same: a link from your website is associated with your app so that when a user taps it, the app opens instead of the browser. Both platforms require configuration files on your website: the apple-app-site-association file for iOS and the assetlinks.json file for Android. OnlineGiving.org generates these files for you and, when you use your giving domain as the base URL, hosts them automatically.

Fallback for Users Without the App

What happens when someone taps a deep link but doesn’t have your app installed? The link falls back to opening in the web browser. You can optionally specify a fallback URL so users land on the matching content on your church website instead of a generic page. This ensures everyone gets a good experience, whether they use the app or the web.

In this article, we’ll overview the OnlineGiving.org Deep Links feature.

Deep Links User Guide

The Deep Links feature lets you generate custom links that open specific content in your church mobile app. It also provides the Apple and Google configuration files needed to associate your website with your app. The feature is available to all mobile app customers at no extra charge. A one-time configuration (and optional app update) is required; contact support to get started.

Key Takeaways

  • One Link, Two Paths: Deep links open the app when installed; otherwise they fall back to your website in the browser.
  • Apple and Google Files: The control panel displays the apple-app-site-association and assetlinks.json contents. Add these to your church website (or use your giving domain where they’re hosted automatically).
  • Deep Link Generator: Use the generator to create links to specific app screens: giving, events, groups, sermons, custom forms, and more.
  • Fallback Redirect: Optionally set a fallback URL so users without the app land on the right page on your church website.
  • Free Installation Help: OnlineGiving.org offers free installation of the configuration files to your church website when you use a custom domain.

Table of Contents

  1. What Are Deep Links?
  2. Accessing the Deep Links Page
  3. Apple Universal Links
  4. Android App Links
  5. Configuration
  6. Deep Link Generator
  7. Testing Deep Links
  8. Frequently Asked Questions

Deep links are website URLs that are associated with your mobile app. When a user taps one of these links on their phone or tablet, the operating system checks whether your app is installed. If it is, the app opens and loads the content specified by the link. If not, the link opens in the default web browser.

How It Works

The association between your website and your app is established through configuration files hosted on your website. Apple and Google use these files to verify that your app is authorized to handle links from your domain. Once verified, taps on matching URLs open the app instead of the browser. The path portion of the URL (e.g., /ul/app/give) tells the app which screen or content to display.

Common Use Cases

Churches use deep links in many ways:

  • Giving: A “Give Now” button on your website or in an email that opens the donate screen in the app.
  • Events: An event announcement linking directly to the event detail or events list in the app.
  • Groups: A group finder link on your website or social media that opens the group finder in the app.
  • Sermons: A link to the latest sermon or sermon series from a newsletter or push notification.
  • Custom Forms: A sign-up or registration form link that opens a specific custom form in the app.
  • Push Notifications: Rich push notifications with a link that opens a specific screen when tapped.
  • QR Codes: A QR code at an event or in a bulletin that links to giving, a form, or an event.

To open the Deep Links page:

  1. Log in to the control panel.
  2. Expand the “Mobile App” section in the left navigation.
  3. Click “Deep Links”.

Prerequisites and First-Time Setup

The Deep Links page requires the Native App Admin role. If your church has not yet configured the mobile app (for example, if the header logo is not set), you may be redirected to an info page with an overview of the church mobile app offering. Complete the initial app setup, then return to Deep Links.

Before deep links work, your app must be configured with the correct Apple and Google identifiers. These are set in App Settings under the Universal Linking group. If you see an alert that the feature is not configured, contact support@onlinegiving.org or (615) 206-4000. OnlineGiving.org provides a courtesy upgrade to enable deep linking for your app.

Apple Universal Links allow iOS to open your app when a user taps a link from your associated website. The association is defined in a file called apple-app-site-association.

Apple App Site Association File

The Deep Links page displays the contents of the apple-app-site-association file. This file must be placed in the root or .well-known folder of your church website. It contains your app’s Team ID and Bundle ID (in the format TEAMID.bundleid) and the URL paths your app can handle (e.g., /ul/app/*).

Learn more about Apple Universal Links in Apple’s documentation. OnlineGiving.org offers free installation services to add this file to your church website. Installation is only required if you use a custom church website domain; when you use your giving domain (e.g., https://yourchurch.onlinegiving.org) as the base URL, the file is already hosted for you.

Android App Links (Digital Asset Links) allow Android to open your app when a user taps a link from your associated website. The association is defined in a file called assetlinks.json.

The Deep Links page displays the contents of the assetlinks.json file. This file must be placed in the root or .well-known folder of your church website. It contains your app’s package name and SHA-256 certificate fingerprints, which Android uses to verify that your app is authorized to handle links from your domain.

Learn more about Google Play Digital Asset Links in Google’s documentation. OnlineGiving.org offers free installation services to add this file to your church website. Installation is only required if you use a custom church website domain; when you use your giving domain as the base URL, the file is already hosted for you.

Configuration

Using Your Giving Domain

When your deep links use your giving domain (e.g., https://yourchurch.onlinegiving.org) as the base URL, the Apple and Google configuration files are automatically served from that domain. No manual installation on your church website is needed. This is the simplest setup and is recommended for most churches.

Using a Custom Church Website

If you want deep links to use your main church website domain (e.g., https://www.yourchurch.com), you must add the apple-app-site-association and assetlinks.json files to that website. Copy the JSON contents from the Deep Links page and place them at:

  • https://www.yourchurch.com/.well-known/apple-app-site-association (or /apple-app-site-association in the root)
  • https://www.yourchurch.com/.well-known/assetlinks.json (or /assetlinks.json in the root)

The files must be served with the correct content type (application/json). Contact your web developer or hosting provider if you need help. OnlineGiving.org provides free installation services for customers who request it.

The Deep Link Generator creates custom links that open specific content in your app. Use it to generate links for your website, social media, push notifications, or QR codes.

Church Website Base URL

Enter the fully qualified domain name configured with the mobile app deep linking feature. This is typically your giving domain (e.g., https://yourchurch.onlinegiving.org) or your custom church website if you’ve installed the configuration files there. The base URL must match the domain where the Apple and Google files are hosted.

Page or Feature to Link To

Select the app screen or feature you want the link to open. Options include:

  • Application Page: A custom page from your App Designer (e.g., a specific tab or content page). You can optionally add page parameters.
  • Online Giving: Make Donation, Guest Giving, Profile, Text Giving, History, Recurring Donations, or a custom giving page.
  • Sermons: Sermon Series, All Sermons, Podcast, Sermon Speakers, Sermon Topics, Sermon Scriptures, Sermon Notes.
  • Events and Groups: Ministry Platform (MP) Events, Groups, Opportunities; Rock RMS Events, Groups; Church Community Builder (CCB) Events, Groups; Planning Center Events, Groups.
  • MP Event Detail: A specific Ministry Platform event by ID.
  • Social Feed: The social feed/stream screen.
  • Custom Forms: Any custom form configured for your domain.
  • Calendar: Google Event Calendar or Custom Event Calendar.
  • Push Notifications: The push notification screen.

For some options (e.g., MP Events with filters, Application Page with parameters), you can enter additional parameters or a link. For Application Page, you can also specify optional page params in a query-string format.

Fallback Redirect

When using your giving domain as the base URL, you can optionally set a fallback redirect. If the user does not have the app installed or has disabled universal links, they will be redirected to this URL instead of the default behavior. Enter a full URL (e.g., https://www.yourchurch.com/give). This allows you to send users to the matching content on your church website when the app cannot open.

Click the “Generate” button. The generated deep link appears in the “Generated Deep Link” field. Copy this link and use it in your website, emails, social media, push notifications, or QR codes. The link format is {baseUrl}/ul/app/{path}, with an optional fallback parameter (fbl) when specified.

Testing Deep Links

After configuring the Apple and Google files and generating a link, test on real devices to ensure everything works.

Testing on iOS

On an iPhone or iPad with your app installed, open a note or message and paste the deep link. Tap the link. It should open your app and load the specified content. If it opens in Safari instead, verify that the apple-app-site-association file is correctly installed and that your app has the Associated Domains capability configured with your domain. Note that links tapped from within Safari’s address bar may open in the browser; test by tapping the link from another app (e.g., Notes, Mail, or Messages).

Testing on Android

On an Android device with your app installed, open a note or message and paste the deep link. Tap the link. It should open your app and load the specified content. If it opens in Chrome instead, verify that the assetlinks.json file is correctly installed. You can use Google’s Digital Asset Links API (replace YOUR_DOMAIN with your domain) to verify the statements are being served correctly.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between Deep Links, Universal Links, and App Links?

They refer to the same concept. Deep Links is the general term. Universal Links is Apple’s name for the feature on iOS. App Links (or Android App Links) is Google’s name for the feature on Android. The behavior is the same: a website link opens your app and loads specific content when the app is installed.

Do I need to install the configuration files on my church website?

Only if you use your custom church website domain as the base URL for deep links. If you use your giving domain (e.g., https://yourchurch.onlinegiving.org), the Apple and Google files are already hosted there. OnlineGiving.org offers free installation services to add the files to your church website if you use a custom domain.

What happens when someone taps a deep link but doesn’t have the app?

The link opens in the default web browser. If you set a fallback redirect (when using your giving domain), the user is redirected to that URL. Otherwise, they may see the giving site or a redirect to your church website. This ensures everyone gets a usable experience.

Can I deep link to a specific custom form or giving page?

Yes. The Deep Link Generator includes options for custom forms and custom giving pages. Select the form or giving page from the dropdown. You can also link to application pages from your App Designer, with optional page parameters for dynamic content.

Why isn’t my deep link opening the app?

First, ensure the Apple and Google configuration files are correctly installed on the domain used in your link. On iOS, links tapped from within Safari may open in the browser by design; test by tapping the link from Notes, Mail, or Messages. On Android, verify the assetlinks.json file is served with the correct content type. If the feature shows as not configured in the control panel, contact support to complete the setup.

Is the Deep Links feature included with my mobile app?

Yes. Deep Links is available to all mobile app customers at no extra charge. A one-time configuration (and possibly an app update) may be required to enable the feature. Contact support@onlinegiving.org or (615) 206-4000 to get started with your courtesy upgrade.

Need help setting up? Contact us at support@onlinegiving.org or (615) 206-4000. OnlineGiving.org provides courtesy setup assistance for our customers.

 

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