Automation trigger

An automation trigger is the “when” behind your marketing automation. The specific action, event, or condition sets something else in motion, like a spark that lights a fuse. Think of it as the domino that starts the chain reaction. For example, when someone downloads your ebook, that could trigger an email follow-up. Or when a lead views your pricing page twice in one day, that might trigger a notification to your sales team.

At its core, an automation trigger is a rule. If X happens, then do Y. Those rules help businesses respond faster, stay consistent, and scale up activities without adding more manual work. They make it possible to personalise communication and workflows across thousands (or millions) of contacts.

Automation triggers live inside marketing platforms, CRM systems, and customer journey tools. You’ll often set them up as part of a workflow or campaign. The trigger is the first step: it listens for a specific behaviour or update, and then kicks off the next sequence. What follows depends on what you set: it might send a message, update a record, assign a task, or move someone into a new audience segment.

There are many types of automation triggers, but they usually fall into a few common categories:

Behaviour-based triggers: Someone opens an email, clicks a link, visits a page, watches a video, or abandons a basket. These are often signs of interest or intent.
Data change triggers: A contact field changes, maybe their job title updates, or they hit a certain lead score. This can signify a shift in profile or readiness to buy.
Time-based triggers: Days since last contact, a subscription expiry, or a key anniversary. These are great for nurture sequences and lifecycle messaging.
External triggers: APIs or integrations pass in events from outside your platform, like a new payment via Stripe or a form submission through another system.

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