Every Custom Flow begins with a start element. It's the condition that triggers the flow. Below you'll find every available start element and how to set it up.
Where to find it
Go to Automations → Custom flows.
Click + New flow in the top right corner.
Start from scratch or use a template.
In the editor, click the empty card at the start of the flow. The Start element panel opens on the side with the list of elements.
Choose an element, set the conditions, and save.
New customer in base
The flow starts when a new email with the status "Newsletters and automations" or "Automations only" appears in your base.
Product viewing
The flow starts when a customer views a specific product, a product from specific categories, or any product.
For a specific product, choose the field (product title, URL, or ID), the condition (contains / does not contain / is / is not), and enter the value. For categories, you need to have sent your product feed, because categories come from the feed.
Entering a specific URL
The flow starts when a customer enters a given URL. You can add several rules and choose whether the customer must meet one or all of them.
Available conditions: URL is / URL is not / URL contains / URL does not contain. Type the full URL or just a part of it.
Adding to cart
The flow starts when a customer adds a specific product, a product from a category, or any product to the cart. Setup is the same as for Product viewing.
Abandoned cart
The flow starts when a customer adds one or more products to the cart and leaves the store. The flow waits 3 hours before the next step to check whether the purchase was completed.
Making a purchase
The flow starts when a customer places an order for a specific product, a product from a category, or any product. Setup is the same as for Product viewing.
Adding a new review
The flow starts the moment a customer adds a review (edrone Reviews). Use it for an automatic thank-you, a discount coupon, or different paths depending on the rating (few or many stars).
Editing an existing review
The flow starts when a customer edits a review. It helps you notice a change of opinion, for example a higher rating after a problem was solved, and adjust your communication.
Ready Flow stage
This element is new. Use it to continue the communication in a Custom Flow after a customer reaches a chosen stage of a Ready Flow.
How to set it up:
In the Ready Flow field, choose the Ready Flow, for example Loyalty Program, Post-Purchase, Abandoned Cart, Reactivation, or Birthday.
In the Ready Flow stage field, choose the stage. Each stage shows its number, channel, and a message preview, for example "1. Email — message subject".
Save.
The Custom Flow starts when at least one message from the selected Ready Flow stage is submitted for sending.
Only Ready Flows and stages with configured messages appear. If there are none, the panel shows: "No Ready Flow with configured messages was found." or "This Ready Flow has no configured message stages."
Example: after the "Thank you for your purchase" message from the Loyalty Program is scheduled, the customer continues in a Custom Flow with an extra offer or a reminder.
Interaction with an email
The flow starts when a customer opens the email, clicks a link in it, or interacts with it in any way.
Subscription status changed
The flow starts when a customer subscribes or unsubscribes. It works only for contacts that already exist in your base.
Customer birthday
The flow starts on the customer's birthday. You need to collect birthday dates first. Idea: send a personalized message with a gift coupon.
Getting a tag
The flow starts when a tag is assigned to the customer.
API
The flow starts when your store's system calls an endpoint. The panel shows the endpoint for this flow (with a copy button) and ready-made examples in cURL, JavaScript, Python, and PHP. Replace the sample email with the customer's email before you send the request. Each flow has its own identifier in the endpoint.
Need more help?
If you have any further questions about start elements in Custom Flows, please do not hesitate to contact us at hello@edrone.me