Steps

How it works

Steps are the building blocks of Automation workflows. They define the actions that will be executed when the Automation runs. The following steps are available:

Step properties

Every step in an automation has the following base properties:

string

required

A unique identifier for the step. Used in connection definitions to connect steps.

string

required

The type of step. Possible values:

trigger
send_email
delay
wait_for_event
condition
contact_update
contact_delete
add_to_segment

object

required

The configuration object for the step. The shape depends on the step type.

Below is a list of all the possible step types and their configurations.

`trigger`

The trigger step starts the automation when a matching event is received.

string

required

The name of the event that triggers the automation.

{
  "key": "start",
  "type": "trigger",
  "config": {
    "event_name": "user.created"
  }
}

`send_email`

Sends an email using a template.

object

required

The published template to send. Provide id and optionally variables.

Hide properties

string

required

The ID or alias of the template to send.

object

A key-value map of template variables. Each value can be a static string or a variable reference object ({ "var": "event.fieldName" }) that resolves dynamically from the event.*, contact.*, or wait_events.* namespaces.

string

The sender email address.If provided, this value will override the template’s default value.

string

The email subject line.If provided, this value will override the template’s default value.

string

Reply-to email address.If provided, this value will override the template’s default value.

{
  "key": "welcome",
  "type": "send_email",
  "config": {
    "template": {
      "id": "062f8ef4-fbfa-44f1-b5e0-ff8e1e8ffa96",
      "variables": {
        "name": { "var": "event.firstName" }
      }
    },
    "from": "hello@example.com",
    "subject": "Welcome!",
    "reply_to": "support@example.com"
  }
}

`delay`

Pauses execution for a specified duration.

string

required

The delay duration in natural language (e.g. "1 hour", "3 days"). Maximum: 30 days.

Example

{
  "key": "wait_1_hour",
  "type": "delay",
  "config": {
    "duration": "1 hour"
  }
}

`wait_for_event`

Pauses execution until a specific event is received or a timeout is reached.

string

required

The name of the event to wait for.

string

The maximum time to wait before timing out (e.g. "3 days", "1 hour"). Maximum: 30 days.

object

An optional rule object to filter incoming events.

Example

{
  "key": "wait_for_purchase",
  "type": "wait_for_event",
  "config": {
    "event_name": "purchase.completed",
    "timeout": "3 days"
  }
}

`condition`

Branches the workflow based on rules. Condition configs can be a single rule or a logical group (and/or) of rules.

string

required

The type of condition node. Possible values:

rule
and
or

For rule type:

string

required

The field to evaluate. Must use the event. or contact. namespace prefix (e.g., event.amount, contact.email).

string

required

The comparison operator. Possible values:

eq: equals
neq: not equals
gt: greater than
gte: greater than or equal to
lt: less than
lte: less than or equal to
contains: contains a given value
starts_with: starts with a given value
ends_with: ends with a given value
exists: field exists
is_empty: field is empty

string | number | boolean | null

The value to compare against. Not required for exists and is_empty operators.

For and / or types:

object[]

required

An array of nested condition config objects. Must contain at least one item.

Single rule example:

{
  "key": "check_plan",
  "type": "condition",
  "config": {
    "type": "rule",
    "field": "event.plan",
    "operator": "eq",
    "value": "pro"
  }
}

Use and or or to combine multiple rules into a single branch:

{
  "key": "check_plan_and_amount",
  "type": "condition",
  "config": {
    "type": "and",
    "rules": [
      {
        "type": "rule",
        "field": "event.plan",
        "operator": "eq",
        "value": "pro"
      },
      {
        "type": "rule",
        "field": "event.amount",
        "operator": "gte",
        "value": 100
      }
    ]
  }
}

`contact_update`

Updates a contact’s fields. Each field value can be either a hardcoded value or a dynamic variable reference using the { var: '...' } syntax. Variable references use dot-notation with one of these scopes:

event.*: references a field from the triggering event payload (e.g., event.firstName).
contact.*: references a field from the current contact (e.g., contact.last_name, contact.properties.company).

string | object

The contact’s first name. Accepts a hardcoded string or a variable reference.

string | object

The contact’s last name. Accepts a hardcoded string or a variable reference.

boolean | object

The contact’s unsubscribed status. Accepts a boolean or a variable reference.

object

A map of custom contact properties to update. Keys correspond to your Contact Custom Properties. Each value can be a hardcoded value (string, number, boolean) or a variable reference.

Example

{
  "key": "update_contact",
  "type": "contact_update",
  "config": {
    "properties": {
      "company": { "var": "event.company" },
      "vip": true
    }
  }
}

`contact_delete`

Deletes the contact from the audience. This step does not require any configuration fields. Pass an empty object {} as the config.

Example

{
  "key": "remove_contact",
  "type": "contact_delete",
  "config": {}
}

`add_to_segment`

Adds the contact to a segment.

string

required

The ID of the segment to add the contact to.

Example

{
  "key": "add_to_vip",
  "type": "add_to_segment",
  "config": {
    "segment_id": "83a1e324-26dc-47eb-9b28-ba8b6d1fe808"
  }
}

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Resources

How it works

Step properties

`trigger`

`send_email`

`delay`

`wait_for_event`

`condition`

`contact_update`

`contact_delete`

`add_to_segment`

​How it works

​Step properties

​trigger

​send_email

​delay

​wait_for_event

​condition

​contact_update

​contact_delete

​add_to_segment

How it works

Step properties

`trigger`

`send_email`

`delay`

`wait_for_event`

`condition`

`contact_update`

`contact_delete`

`add_to_segment`