Overview
Knot Zero lets you bring users into the Knot CardSwitcher experience to discover & login to merchants and update their card with nothing more than a link, shared as a URL or a QR code. You don’t need to integrate the Knot SDK into your mobile app. A user can open the link on their phone (iOS or Android) or computer from an email, text message, push notification, or physical mailer.Use cases
- Card activation and issuance. Print a QR code on the card carrier or mailer, or display it in-branch when a card is issued, so users can set the new card as their payment method right away.
- Marketing campaigns. Drop a link into email, SMS, or push campaigns to drive top-of-wallet engagement without a native integration.
- Support and contact center. Send a link to a user during a call or chat to help them update their card on file at merchants.
- Two-step integration. Launch CardSwitcher to your users before you commit engineering resources to a full SDK integration.
How it works
1
Choose a card data method
Decide how Knot will get each user’s card details. See Choosing a card data method.
2
Generate links
Upload a spreadsheet of users in the Knot Dashboard, or send each user’s parameters to Knot’s API, and Knot returns a link that’s unique to each user. See Generating links.
3
Share the link
Distribute the link through any channel (email, SMS, push, or mailer), as a URL or QR code.
4
Users open the link
Users click the link or scan the QR code and the Knot experience opens instantly on their device. No app download or login to your app is required.
5
Users are verified
Knot sends a one-time code (OTP) to the user’s phone number and users must first verify the one-time code before proceeding into the Knot experience.
6
Users select a merchant and switch their card
Users select a merchant, login to the merchant, and their default card-on-file is updated automatically. Optionally, you can receive the same webhook events as an SDK integration for analytics purposes.
Choosing a card data method
Knot needs the user’s card details to switch their card. Traditionally, you would send the card details to Knot’s Switch Card JWE or Switch Card endpoints, requiring you to complete this backend integration step. With Knot Zero, you have a few additional options (below) to remove this integration effort.Card details retrieved from your processor automatically
Card details retrieved from your processor automatically
Knot retrieves the card details directly from your card processor through one of Knot’s processor integrations, using the
card_id as reference. There may be lightweight, no-code setup steps with your processor to enable this method of retrieving card details, but you don’t need a backend integration with Knot to send any card details.You send card details (traditional method)
You send card details (traditional method)
See Sending Card Data for details.
Users enter card details
Users enter card details
With this option, users type their card details directly into a secure, PCI-compliant card form in the Knot experience. Card data never passes through Knot’s or your system, and you don’t need a backend integration with Knot to send any card details.
Generating links
Knot stores each user’s parameters and returns a short link with a unique token that references them. The parameters never appear in the link itself, and you don’t need to build the link yourself. Generate links in one of two ways:- Knot Dashboard. Upload a spreadsheet of up to 50,000 users, with no code.
- API. Generate links from your backend, up to 10,000 users per request.
Generate links in the Dashboard
Upload a spreadsheet of users on the Knot Zero page in the Knot Dashboard and download the same file with a link added for each user. No code is required.1
Upload your file
Upload a spreadsheet of up to 50,000 users with each user’s ID, card ID, and phone number.
2
Match your columns
Confirm which columns hold the user ID, card ID, and phone number.
3
Generate links
Generate the links and download your file with a link added for each user.
Generate links with the API
Call the API with your API key. Use Create Knot Zero Links (Batch) for up to 10,000 users per request, or Create Knot Zero Link for a single user, such as when a card is issued or during a support call. In a batch, a user that fails validation gets an error instead of a link without failing the rest of the request, and a user can appear once per card.Parameters
All parameters are required for every link.| Parameter | Description |
|---|---|
type | The product to associate the link with. Must be card_switcher. |
phone_number | The user’s phone number in E.164 format. Must be a valid US or Canadian phone number. Knot sends a one-time code to this number to verify the user before they enter the Knot experience. |
external_user_id | Your unique identifier for the user, up to 256 characters. Knot uses it to identify the user and includes it in webhook events. |
card_id | Your unique identifier for the user’s card, up to 256 characters. Knot uses it to identify the card to switch, such as when retrieving card details from your processor. |
Example
Request
Response