Entry Points

Entry points are the triggers that kick off your automation flow. Each one corresponds to a specific event: when that event occurs, the contact is automatically added to the flow you’ve set up.

Below is an overview of the main entry points available in the system, along with an explanation of how each one works.

• Contact enters list: this entry point is triggered whenever a contact is added to a list, regardless of how it happens (whether through a signup form, file import, or manual addition). It’s especially useful for automatically starting a welcome flow, onboarding sequence, or any other automation designed for new contacts in your list.
• Contact enters segment: this entry point is triggered automatically when a contact becomes part of a segment (a dynamic group of contacts who share specific characteristics or behaviors). For example, it could include users who opened a particular email, clicked on a link, or live in a specific geographic area. It’s a powerful way to launch targeted and relevant automations based on your contacts’ profiles or actions.
• Contact anniversary date: this entry point is triggered on a specific date associated with the contact. It can be the subscription date or any custom date field, such as a birthday, expiration date, or anniversary.
  You can choose to start the automation exactly on that date, or a certain number of days before or after. It’s ideal for sending recurring messages, reminders, or personalized greetings.
• Contact field value: this entry point is triggered when a specific contact field meets a defined condition. For example, you can use it to start a flow when a custom field like “Status” changes to “Customer”. It’s a great way to automate actions based on updates in your contacts’ data, making your communications more relevant and timely.
• Message opened: this entry point is triggered when a contact opens one of your emails. It’s an effective way to track your contacts’ interest and send targeted messages based on their level of engagement.
• Message clicked: this entry point is triggered when a contact clicks on a link within one of your emails. It helps you identify which content captures the most attention and allows you to send targeted emails based on your contacts’ specific interests.
• Message delivered: this entry point is triggered when one of your emails is successfully delivered to a contact’s inbox. You can use it to launch automations that track email delivery and schedule follow-up communications based on this confirmation.
• Inbound API call: this entry point is triggered when an external platform sends data to Emailchef via an API call. It’s ideal for connecting different systems and starting automations immediately, for example, after an e-commerce purchase, a form submission in a CRM, or any other event generated by an external application.

Normally, a contact cannot enter the same flow more than once to avoid duplication of sent emails. However, by enabling the Re-enter Flow option, the contact can execute the same flow multiple times. This option is reserved for very experienced users and should be used carefully to avoid sending duplicate or unwanted emails.

Each entry point has an Exit Condition: if this condition occurs at any time, the contact immediately exits the flow, regardless of everything else. This allows you to stop the flow for contacts that no longer meet certain conditions.
Each entry point has a series of parameters that you can configure to customize the behavior of the flow. Here’s a table that describes the parameters available for each entry point: