Sequences (Automations)

Sequences are automated email workflows that send the right message at the right time based on subscriber actions, tags, or events. They’re the heart of marketing automation in Sequenzy.

What Are Sequences?

A sequence is a series of connected steps that execute automatically:

┌─────────────────┐
│    TRIGGER      │  ← Starts the sequence
│ (Tag or Event)  │
└────────┬────────┘
         │
         ▼
┌─────────────────┐
│     ACTION      │  ← Does something
│  (Send Email)   │
└────────┬────────┘
         │
         ▼
┌─────────────────┐
│     LOGIC       │  ← Controls flow
│ (Wait 3 days)   │
└────────┬────────┘
         │
         ▼
┌─────────────────┐
│     ACTION      │
│ (Send Email #2) │
└─────────────────┘

Sequence Components

Triggers

Triggers define when a sequence starts. Each sequence has exactly one trigger.

Trigger Type	Description	Use Case
`contact_added`	Subscriber added to list	Welcome sequence
`tag_added`	Tag applied to subscriber	Customer onboarding
`event_received`	Event triggered via API	Post-purchase flow

Actions

Actions perform operations on the subscriber.

Action Type	Description
Send Email	Send an email from your templates
Add Tag	Apply a tag to the subscriber
Remove Tag	Remove a tag from the subscriber
Webhook	Call an external URL with subscriber data

Logic Nodes

Logic nodes control the flow of the sequence.

Logic Type	Description
Delay	Wait for a specified time (minutes, hours, days)
Condition	Branch based on a single condition
Branch	Multi-path branching (if/else if/else)
Wait for Event	Pause until an event occurs or timeout

Building Sequences

The Visual Editor

Sequences are built in a visual drag-and-drop editor:

Add a trigger - How does the sequence start?
Add actions - What should happen?
Add logic - When and how should it happen?
Connect nodes - Define the flow between steps
Activate - Turn on the sequence

Example: Welcome Sequence

┌─────────────────────┐
│ Trigger: Tag Added  │
│ "new-signup"        │
└──────────┬──────────┘
           │
           ▼
┌─────────────────────┐
│ Send: Welcome Email │
│ "Getting Started"   │
└──────────┬──────────┘
           │
           ▼
┌─────────────────────┐
│ Delay: 2 days       │
└──────────┬──────────┘
           │
           ▼
┌─────────────────────┐
│ Send: Tips Email    │
│ "5 Pro Tips"        │
└──────────┬──────────┘
           │
           ▼
┌─────────────────────┐
│ Delay: 3 days       │
└──────────┬──────────┘
           │
           ▼
┌─────────────────────┐
│ Send: Feature Email │
│ "Discover Features" │
└─────────────────────┘

Example: Post-Purchase Sequence

┌────────────────────────┐
│ Trigger: Event         │
│ "saas.purchase"        │
└───────────┬────────────┘
            │
            ▼
┌────────────────────────┐
│ Send: Thank You Email  │
└───────────┬────────────┘
            │
            ▼
┌────────────────────────┐
│ Delay: 7 days          │
└───────────┬────────────┘
            │
            ▼
┌────────────────────────┐
│ Wait for Event:        │
│ "feature_activated"    │
│ Timeout: 14 days       │
└───────────┬────────────┘
            │
       ┌────┴────┐
       │         │
  Event Fired  Timeout
       │         │
       ▼         ▼
┌───────────┐ ┌───────────┐
│ Add Tag   │ │ Send Help │
│ "engaged" │ │ Email     │
└───────────┘ └───────────┘

Condition Types

Conditions let you branch sequences based on subscriber data.

Tag Conditions

Condition: has_tag "customer"
  ├─ Yes → Send upsell email
  └─ No  → Send conversion email

List Conditions

Condition: in_list "VIP Customers"
  ├─ Yes → Send exclusive offer
  └─ No  → Send standard offer

Field Conditions

Condition: field_equals "plan" "enterprise"
  ├─ Yes → Assign to sales team
  └─ No  → Send self-serve resources

Available Operators

Operator	Description	Example
`has_tag`	Subscriber has tag	`has_tag "customer"`
`in_list`	Subscriber in list	`in_list "Newsletter"`
`field_equals`	Field exact match	`field_equals "plan" "pro"`
`field_contains`	Field contains string	`field_contains "company" "Inc"`
`field_greater_than`	Numeric comparison	`field_greater_than "mrr" 100`
`field_less_than`	Numeric comparison	`field_less_than "age" 30`

Wait for Event

The “Wait for Event” node pauses execution until a specific event occurs.

Wait Types

Wait Type	Description
`email_opened`	Wait for previous email to be opened
`email_clicked`	Wait for link click in previous email
`email_replied`	Wait for reply to previous email
`event_received`	Wait for a custom event by name

Timeout Behavior

Every wait has a timeout. When the timeout expires:

The sequence continues down the “timeout” path
You can send follow-up emails or take alternative actions

┌─────────────────────┐
│ Wait for Event:     │
│ "demo_scheduled"    │
│ Timeout: 5 days     │
└──────────┬──────────┘
           │
      ┌────┴────┐
      │         │
   Event    Timeout
      │         │
      ▼         ▼
┌──────────┐ ┌──────────┐
│ Send     │ │ Send     │
│ Prep     │ │ Follow   │
│ Email    │ │ Up Email │
└──────────┘ └──────────┘

Branching

Simple Condition (2 paths)

┌─────────────────────┐
│ Condition:          │
│ has_tag "customer"  │
└──────────┬──────────┘
           │
      ┌────┴────┐
      │         │
     Yes        No
      │         │
      ▼         ▼
┌──────────┐ ┌──────────┐
│ Upsell   │ │ Convert  │
│ Email    │ │ Email    │
└──────────┘ └──────────┘

Multi-Branch (3+ paths)

┌─────────────────────────────┐
│ Branch:                     │
│ ├─ plan = "enterprise"      │
│ ├─ plan = "pro"             │
│ └─ else (default)           │
└─────────────┬───────────────┘
              │
     ┌────────┼────────┐
     │        │        │
 Enterprise  Pro    Default
     │        │        │
     ▼        ▼        ▼
┌────────┐ ┌────────┐ ┌────────┐
│ VIP    │ │ Pro    │ │ Basic  │
│ Email  │ │ Email  │ │ Email  │
└────────┘ └────────┘ └────────┘

Sequence States

State	Description
`draft`	Being edited, not active
`active`	Running, processing subscribers
`paused`	Temporarily stopped
`archived`	No longer in use

Tokens (Subscriber Journeys)

When a subscriber enters a sequence, a “token” tracks their progress:

{
  "subscriberId": "sub_abc123",
  "automationId": "auto_xyz",
  "currentNode": "node_456",
  "status": "active",
  "context": {
    "entryPoint": "tag_added",
    "emailsSent": 2,
    "waitingFor": "email_opened"
  }
}

Token States

State	Description
`active`	Currently progressing through sequence
`waiting`	Paused at a wait/delay node
`completed`	Finished all steps
`failed`	Error occurred
`cancelled`	Manually stopped

Real-World Sequence Examples

SaaS Trial to Paid

Trigger: Event "saas.trial_started"
    │
    ▼
┌───────────────────┐
│ Send: Trial       │
│ Welcome Email     │
└─────────┬─────────┘
          │
          ▼
┌───────────────────┐
│ Wait: 3 days      │
└─────────┬─────────┘
          │
          ▼
┌───────────────────┐
│ Send: Tips Email  │
│ "Get the Most..." │
└─────────┬─────────┘
          │
          ▼
┌───────────────────┐
│ Wait: 4 days      │
└─────────┬─────────┘
          │
          ▼
┌───────────────────────┐
│ Condition: has_tag    │
│ "customer"            │
└───────────┬───────────┘
            │
       ┌────┴────┐
       │         │
      Yes        No
       │         │
       ▼         ▼
   (End)    ┌───────────────┐
            │ Send: Last    │
            │ Chance Email  │
            └───────────────┘

E-commerce Abandoned Cart

Trigger: Event "cart.abandoned"
    │
    ▼
┌───────────────────┐
│ Wait: 1 hour      │
└─────────┬─────────┘
          │
          ▼
┌───────────────────────┐
│ Condition: has_tag    │
│ "completed-purchase"  │
└───────────┬───────────┘
            │
       ┌────┴────┐
       │         │
      Yes        No
       │         │
       ▼         ▼
   (End)    ┌───────────────┐
            │ Send: Cart    │
            │ Reminder      │
            └───────┬───────┘
                    │
                    ▼
            ┌───────────────┐
            │ Wait: 1 day   │
            └───────┬───────┘
                    │
                    ▼
            ┌───────────────┐
            │ Send: 10% Off │
            │ Coupon        │
            └───────────────┘

Re-engagement Campaign

Trigger: Tag Added "inactive-30d"
    │
    ▼
┌───────────────────┐
│ Send: We Miss You │
└─────────┬─────────┘
          │
          ▼
┌─────────────────────┐
│ Wait for Event:     │
│ "session_started"   │
│ Timeout: 7 days     │
└─────────┬───────────┘
          │
     ┌────┴────┐
     │         │
   Event    Timeout
     │         │
     ▼         ▼
┌──────────┐ ┌──────────┐
│ Remove   │ │ Send     │
│ Tag      │ │ Special  │
│ inactive │ │ Offer    │
└──────────┘ └────┬─────┘
                  │
                  ▼
             ┌──────────┐
             │ Wait     │
             │ 14 days  │
             └────┬─────┘
                  │
                  ▼
             ┌──────────┐
             │ Add Tag  │
             │ "churned"│
             └──────────┘

Best Practices

1. Start Simple

Begin with 3-5 step sequences before building complex flows:

Trigger → Email → Delay → Email → End

2. Use Tags for State

Track sequence progress with tags:

- "onboarding-started" (at trigger)
- "onboarding-complete" (at end)

3. Set Reasonable Delays

Welcome emails: immediate to 30 minutes
Follow-ups: 2-4 days
Re-engagement: 1-2 weeks

4. Always Have Exit Conditions

Check if the goal is achieved before sending more emails:

Condition: has_tag "customer"
  ├─ Yes → End sequence
  └─ No  → Continue emails

5. Personalize with Conditions

Different paths for different subscribers:

Branch on plan:
  ├─ Enterprise → High-touch content
  ├─ Pro → Feature-focused content
  └─ Free → Conversion content

Events

Trigger sequences with events

Campaigns

One-time broadcasts vs sequences

Transactional

Immediate emails via API

Get Started

Core Concepts

Email Features

Guides

​Sequences (Automations)

​What Are Sequences?

​Sequence Components

​Triggers

​Actions

​Logic Nodes

​Building Sequences

​The Visual Editor

​Example: Welcome Sequence

​Example: Post-Purchase Sequence

​Condition Types

​Tag Conditions

​List Conditions

​Field Conditions

​Available Operators

​Wait for Event

​Wait Types

​Timeout Behavior

​Branching

​Simple Condition (2 paths)

​Multi-Branch (3+ paths)

​Sequence States

​Tokens (Subscriber Journeys)

​Token States

​Real-World Sequence Examples

​SaaS Trial to Paid

​E-commerce Abandoned Cart

​Re-engagement Campaign

​Best Practices

​1. Start Simple

​2. Use Tags for State

​3. Set Reasonable Delays

​4. Always Have Exit Conditions

​5. Personalize with Conditions

​Related

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