Genesys Cloud Web Messaging SDK: Custom guest attributes not persisting for authenticated users

The createConversation call returns a 201 OK, but the conversation details in the Genesys Cloud UI show empty custom attributes. I’m trying to pass specific user metadata from our React frontend before the widget even initializes.

We’re using the @genesyscloud/web-messaging-client SDK. The goal is to have the guest identified and attributed immediately upon connection, rather than relying on post-connection API calls which feels clunky for the user experience.

Here’s the snippet where I set the attributes before bootstrapping:

const guestAttributes = {
 userId: '12345',
 loyaltyTier: 'gold',
 email: 'user@example.com'
};

WebMessagingClient.bootstrap({
 organizationId: 'my-org-id',
 deploymentId: 'my-deployment-id',
 guestAttributes: guestAttributes // This seems to be ignored
});

I’ve tried moving the guestAttributes into the startConversation options object, but that endpoint doesn’t seem to accept them in the payload schema. The docs mention passing them during the bootstrap or initial connection, but nothing shows up in the guestAttributes field of the conversation entity.

• SDK version: 2.1.0
• Frontend: React 18
• Genesys Cloud Org: Production environment
• Custom Attributes: Defined in the Messaging Deployment settings

I expected these to flow through to the conversation record. Instead, I’m seeing null for all custom fields. Is there a specific step I’m missing to ensure these attributes are attached to the guest profile before the conversation starts? The standard userId works fine, but the custom key-value pairs are vanishing.

The SDK doesn’t directly persist guestAttributes to the participant profile during createConversation. Instead, it transmits them as part of the initial message payload. If your architecture doesn’t explicitly extract these attributes and apply them to the participant, they won’t be retained beyond the initial connection.

You’ll need to intercept this data within an Architect flow. Here’s a pattern that reliably saves the attributes:

// In your Architect Flow, after the Conversation Created trigger
// 1. Extract custom attributes from the initial message
SET customData = message.customAttributes

// 2. Use the Data Action to update the participant attributes
// Note: The Data Action requires appropriate permissions
DATA action = "Set Participant Attributes"
DATA input = {
 "conversationId": conversation.id,
 "participantId": participant.id,
 "attributes": customData
}

// 3. Execute the Data Action
EXECUTE action

Ensure the Data Action has the necessary permissions to modify participant attributes. While you can use the Data Action for simple attributes like CRM IDs, it’s generally more solid for complex JSON structures. The SDK delivers the data, but the flow must actively store it. Verify the Data Action’s configuration and permissions to ensure successful attribute updates. Consider using the conversation data action to log the attributes for debugging if you encounter issues.