Journey entry triggers overview

Learn how journey entry triggers work, how to configure them, and how journey settings affect contact entry.

What we'll cover

Concepts
Trigger types
How to add and configure an entry trigger
How journey settings affect trigger entry
Best practices and business examples
FAQ
Need help?

1 Concepts

Entry triggers are the starting point of every journey. A contact enters a journey when one of the configured entry triggers is satisfied.

You can use one trigger or multiple triggers in the same journey, depending on how many ways contacts should be allowed to enter.

Note: A journey must have at least one entry trigger and one configured action step before the Start button is enabled.

2 Trigger types

Tarvent supports several trigger types for different kinds of automation, including contact-based triggers, engagement triggers, website and form triggers, API triggers, and CRM triggers.

Each trigger has its own configuration options, but most use a similar right-side editor structure with Name, Settings, and Apply to which contacts.

Contact and date triggers for audience and field-based automation
Engagement and behavior triggers for campaign, website, form, survey, and landing activity
Goal and conversion triggers for journey milestone automation
API, transaction, and CRM triggers for advanced and integration-driven workflows

3 How to add and configure an entry trigger

Here are the steps:

Open the journey, and click Add.
Add a New entry trigger.
Select the trigger type you want to use.
Enter a clear trigger Name.
Configure the trigger Settings.
Set Apply to which contacts to All contacts or Only contacts that meet criteria.
Click Save.

Pro-tip: Start with one trigger during testing. After you confirm the journey works as expected, you can add more entry triggers.

4 How journey settings affect trigger entry

Trigger configuration works together with journey Settings. Even if a trigger fires, the journey settings still determine whether the contact can enter.

Run once per contact prevents repeat entry after a contact has already been through the journey
Run multiple times per contact allows re-entry on future trigger events
Allow simultaneous runs allows a contact to be in multiple active runs of the same journey

Note: If contacts do not enter when expected, check both the trigger settings and the journey settings.

5 Best practices and business examples

Use cases and business examples

New lead follow-up: Use a form or landing page trigger to start a follow-up journey immediately after a signup.
Renewal reminders: Use a contact date based trigger to automate reminders from a date field.
Sales handoff: Use a campaign, conversion, or CRM pipeline trigger to move contacts into a handoff process.

Best practices

Use clear trigger names that describe the business purpose
Use Apply to which contacts to prevent broad, unintended entry
Test with a small internal segment before launching to all contacts
Document which trigger is the primary entry method if a journey has multiple triggers

6 FAQ

Can a journey have more than one entry trigger?

Yes. A journey can have multiple entry triggers, and each one can allow contacts to enter based on different events or conditions.

Why did a contact not enter when a trigger fired?

Check the trigger Settings, the Apply to which contacts criteria, and the journey Settings (such as Run once per contact).

Do all triggers use the same editor layout?

They are not identical, but many trigger editors use the same pattern with Name, Settings, and Apply to which contacts.

Can I use entry triggers and manually add contacts in the same journey?

Yes. A running journey can use entry triggers and also accept manual contact adds, and the same journey settings still apply.

7 Need help?

If you need help configuring journey triggers, contact support. We’re happy to help!