Short answer: You can’t stitch different users together in one funnel unless the same distinct_id is used across the steps. Funnels follow a single user (distinct_id) through the steps; if steps are done by different parties (applicant vs. job poster) with different distinct_ids, they will be counted as separate users and won’t convert in the same funnel (that’s by design) (Identity Management Overview, Funnels FAQ).
What you can do instead:
- Use Group Analytics to analyze conversion at a shared entity level (e.g., job/creator/account). If both applicant and poster events include the same group identifier (like creator_id or job_id) and you’ve set up that property as a Group Key, you can build a funnel “by group” to see conversion at the job/creator level rather than per user (Group Analytics).
- If you still need a user-level funnel that spans pre-/post-login for the same person, ensure the same identity via ID Merge so events carry a consistent distinct_id. With the Simplified ID Merge API, send $device_id for anonymous events, call identify() to set $user_id on login, and Mixpanel will merge them; note merges can take up to 24 hours to reflect in all reports (Identifying Users (Simplified), Funnels FAQ).
Given your scenario (applicant applies, poster approves/declines):
- Create a Group (e.g., group key = creator_id or job_id).
- Ensure both “Apply” and “Approve/Decline” events include that group key so they attribute to the same group.
- Build the funnel and switch the “Users” selector to that Group to measure conversion across the two different users but the same shared entity (Group Analytics).
