Connect Slack to Bommelbot

Bommel Bot can save links straight from Slack. You send your bot a direct message with a link, and it files the bookmark into your library — without leaving Slack. This guide goes from "I've never made a Slack app" to "I just DM'd a link and it saved."

Slack calls its bots "apps," and you'll create one for free. Most of the work is copying two values from Slack into Bommel Bot, then pasting one URL back. We'll walk through every click.

The big picture (read this first)

• You create your own Slack app (that's your Bommelbot) in Slack's free app console.
• Slack gives you two values: a Bot User OAuth Token (it starts with xoxb-) and a Signing Secret.
• You paste those into Bommel Bot once.
• Bommel Bot hands you a Request URL — you paste it into Slack's Events settings so Slack can deliver your messages.
• After that, you DM your bot a link and it saves.

Why this rocks: If your day happens in Slack, saving a link shouldn't mean tab-switching to a website. Drop it in a DM to your bot and keep working — Bommel Bot titles, tags, and files it for you.

The "Request URL" is a webhook: an automatic connection so Slack can pass your messages to Bommel Bot. The Signing Secret lets Bommel Bot verify each message really came from Slack.

What you'll need

• A Slack account, and a workspace where you can add an app (your own free workspace is perfect).
• About 10 minutes.
• A Bommel Bot account signed in and verified (free is fine — a bot needs a cloud library to save into).

Step 1 — Get a Slack account and workspace

Skip this if you already have one.

1. Go to slack.com and sign up with your email.
2. If you don't already belong to a workspace, click Create a Workspace and follow the prompts. A personal workspace just for yourself is totally fine — it's free.

You need a workspace because a Slack app is always installed into one.

Step 2 — Create your Slack app

1. Go to api.slack.com/apps and sign in.
2. Click Create New App.
3. Choose From scratch (the manifest option is for advanced users).
4. Give it a name like Bommelbot, pick the workspace from Step 1, and click Create App.

You'll land on your app's Basic Information page.

Step 3 — Copy your Signing Secret

Still on Basic Information:

1. Scroll to App Credentials.
2. Find Signing Secret and click Show.
3. Copy it and keep it handy.

The Signing Secret is how Bommel Bot confirms incoming events genuinely came from Slack. Keep it private, like a password.

Step 4 — Add a permission and install the app

Your bot needs permission to post messages (so it can reply "saved!").

1. In the left sidebar, click OAuth & Permissions.
2. Scroll to Scopes → Bot Token Scopes and click Add an OAuth Scope.
3. Add `chat:write`.
4. Scroll back to the top and click Install to Workspace, then Allow on the permission screen.
5. After installing, copy the Bot User OAuth Token shown at the top — it starts with `xoxb-`.

Example (yours will differ): xoxb-1234567890-ThisIsJustAnExample-Ab12Cd34

Treat the `xoxb-` token like a password. It represents your bot. Don't share it or post it in screenshots. If it ever leaks, you can reinstall the app to rotate it.

You now have both values: the Bot User OAuth Token and the Signing Secret.

Step 5 — Paste the two values into Bommel Bot

1. Open Bommel Bot and sign in and verify your email (free is fine).
2. Go to Settings → Channels and click the Slack tab.
3. Fill in:
4. Bot User OAuth Token — the xoxb-… value from Step 4.
5. Signing Secret — from Step 3.
6. Click Connect.

Bommel Bot verifies your bot, then shows you a Request URL. Copy it — you'll paste it into Slack next. Your credentials are stored securely on our servers only and never shown back to anyone.

Step 6 — Point Slack's Events API at Bommel Bot

1. Back in your Slack app, click Event Subscriptions in the left sidebar.
2. Toggle Enable Events to On.
3. In the Request URL field, paste the URL from Bommel Bot.

Slack immediately sends a quick verification check to that URL. When it succeeds, you'll see a green Verified ✓ next to the field. (Bommel Bot answers Slack's check automatically — you don't do anything.)

1. Scroll to Subscribe to bot events and click Add Bot User Event.
2. Add the event `message.im` (this is "a direct message was sent to your bot").
3. Click Save Changes.

Slack may ask you to reinstall. Whenever you change scopes or events, Slack shows a yellow banner asking you to reinstall the app. Click it and Allow — this activates your new settings.

Step 7 — Save your first bookmark

1. In Slack, find your bot in the Apps section of the sidebar (or search its name) and open a direct message with it.
2. Send a message with a link, like https://example.com/interesting-post.

Your Bommelbot files it and it appears in your library within seconds. The first DM also links your Slack identity to your library, so the bot knows those bookmarks are yours.

Step 8 — Troubleshooting

The Request URL won't verify (no green ✓). Re-copy the Request URL from Bommel Bot → Settings → Channels → Slack (click Reconnect to generate a fresh one) and paste it again. Make sure you copied the whole URL.

"Slack rejected that bot token." Confirm you copied the Bot User OAuth Token (starts with xoxb-), not some other value. It appears on the OAuth & Permissions page after you install the app. Reinstall if needed, then reconnect.

"I DM the bot but nothing saves." Check that you subscribed to the `message.im` bot event (Step 6) and reinstalled the app afterward. Also make sure you're messaging the bot in a direct message, not a channel.

"The bot can't reply." Make sure you added the `chat:write` scope (Step 4) and reinstalled. Without it, the bot can still save but can't send its confirmation.

Bookmarks saved but not visible on another device. Bommel Bot pulls in bot-saved bookmarks automatically when you sign in and periodically afterward. Give it a moment or refresh.

You're done

Your Slack Bommelbot is ready. DM it any link and it's saved, titled, and tagged — all without leaving Slack. Set it once, enjoy it forever.