Journey Hub allows you to quickly create many different types of cross-channel automated campaigns based on a defined series of events, but you may have additional events that you want to trigger a journey. A custom event in Journey Hub allows you to define this action that would trigger a journey. Custom Events allow you to pass additional data to personalize a contact's experience.
📌 For example, a custom event can be triggered when a user creates a wish list on your site. In the event you can pass information about the items that were added. This product information can then be used in a decision split to tailor the type of message received or featured in the body of the message.
📷 Need some inspiration? View an example Wishlist Creation journey.
Integrating Custom Events
Custom Events can be triggered by a List Import, Listrak JavaScript Integration, or utilize Listrak's Cross Channel API to send information to Listrak when the event occurs.
📃 Learn more about configuring a List Import.
ℹ️ Learn more about integrating with JavaScript.
⚙️ An integration can be configured under Integrations > Integrations Management >New Integration > Cross Channel API. Learn more about Listrak's REST API.
Creating a Custom Event
After you have chosen your import method, the first step is to configure the custom event in Listrak's Custom Event Manager. The Custom Event Manager allows you to define the event by name and create additional proprieties, or data points, that support the specific event. For example, you can use the custom event to pass information when a wishlist is created and use the event properties to send information about multiple products, such as image, product tile, or price.
The Custom Event Manager can be found in the menu under Automation > Journey Hub Custom Events.
Click Create New Custom Event
Give your custom event a name
Configure your event properties by giving each of these a name and specifying the type of data
💡 These event properties allow you to send additional data via your import method. Up to 50 custom event properties may be included.
Ensure the 'Make this event accessible by Journey Hub' checkbox is checked
Click Save
💡 An ID will be created when the event is first created. Copy the ID to use in your integration.
Data Type | Use |
String | Text data |
Integer | Whole Number |
Double | Prices, Decimals |
Date | Date fields |
Configuring a Custom Entry Event Journey Hub
Once you have created the custom event and established your integration, you are ready to begin creating your journey. The configuration controls when contacts become eligible for your journey.
Navigate to Journey Hub under Automation > Journey Hub Journeys and click New Journey.
Select Custom Event from the entry event picker.
Open the properties for the entry event.
Select the Custom Event you configured from the dropdown.
💡 If an event does not appear, confirm the 'Make event accessible' checkbox is checked in your custom event.
Configure any Re-entry Rules or Entry Prevention Rules based on your specific use cases.
After your entry event properties are configured you can construct the specific flow of the journey using the available elements relevant to your specific goals. Custom Event Journey feature many of the features as other journey types, but you can also harness the information from your custom event in a decision split or use it to personalize the message content.
⚠️ A contact must be subscribed to the email or SMS list to be eligible to receive the messages included in your journey. The Data Management action step allows you to subscribe a contact if you are creating a new list for your custom event campaign. Learn more about this action type.
Using the Custom Event Details Decision Split
In the Custom Event Journey, you may want contacts to have different experiences based on the information you pass in the Event Properties you configured in the Custom Event. Using the Custom Event Details Decision Split you can tailor a participant's experience based on this data. For example, sending specific emails based on the product if it backordered or tailoring the path if it is in-eligible for promotions.
The specific configuration of your decision split will depend on the data type you selected when configuring your event. For example, a date event type will have options such as Is On or Is After, whereas the String type will have options such as Is In the Comma Delimited List.
To configure, add the decision split to the canvas.
In the properties panel, select the custom event.
💡 All custom events will appear in the dropdown. Typically the same decision split that was used in the entry will be used in the split.
Select the Event Property.
Configure the criteria for the split based on the data type.
💡 The custom decision split allows you to configure up to 10 different criteria per split using the multiple paths option.
Personalizing Emails with Custom Event Data
In the Custom Event Journey, you can use decision splits to personalize a contact's experience by determining what message they receive based on the data passed in the event, but you may want to further personalize this experience by including this data in the message itself. For example, adding the tag to call out the product that was added to a wish list in the subject line.
The tags below can be pasted into an HTML message or easily added to a text element in Composer or to an SMS message. The tags will appear in the personalization drop-downs in both Composer and SMS.
Custom Event Tags for HTML
Custom Event Name
[[Journey:Custom.Event.Name]]
Custom Event Property Value
[[Journey:Custom.{PropertyName}]]
Adding a Default Value
A default value can be added to a personalization tag to be used if a value is not populated in the Custom Event API call or import.
To include a default it must be specified in the tag by adding it after the tag variable.
[[Journey:Custom.{PropertyName}default=value]]
⚠️ If the default value includes multiple words it must include single quotation marks around the full default value that should be inserted.
[[Journey:Custom.{PropertyName}default='this is the default value']]
Example Custom Event Journey
📷 Click on the image to enlarge
Above is an example of a custom event journey. In this journey, contacts are entered into the custom event when they complete a wishlist sign up. The company sells coffee, tea, and brewing equipment. This information is sent to Listrak as part of the Custom Event JavaScript Integration. The custom event collects information on the title, product category, and price of the first five items on a contact's wishlist. A link the contact's new wishlist is also collected.
All contacts will enter the custom event journey when they create a new wishlist. No contacts will be stopped from entering due to participation in another journey or limited by frequency based on the goals of the wishlist campaign.
Next, they will flow into the Data Management action step. This step subscribes contacts to the new email list called Wishlist. Only contacts who were identified by their email address in the JavaScript will be subscribed to the list. They will then receive the confirmation email of their wishlist creation. Then they will wait a few moments and if they are subscribed to the SMS program will also receive a confirmation of wishlist creations via SMS. No Data Management step is used here because only currently subscribed contacts should be eligible to receive this type of message.
The email message contains the information about the products on the wishlist. The SMS message only contains the link to the wishlist that can be used to track conversions and direct the contact back to their list. After four days, contacts are directed to the Custom Event Decision Split, which uses the category of the first product to determine a contact's next message. A multi-path decision split sends contacts different email messages if for those who added consumable coffee products to their wishlist and those who added brewing equipment, such as coffee makers. These messages contain nurture information about the different products as well as information on how to share their wishlist with friends and family. If a contact's first item is not in one of these categories they will receive a default generic email message.