Build and test a welcome workflow, then choose nodes for follow-up messages, branches, and waits.
Build this short workflow: a test contact meets your criteria → wait five minutes → send your welcome email → exit. Start with one contact so you can check each step before expanding the audience.
Have a contact record for an inbox you control. The screenshots use a sample contact; substitute your own test contact’s email address.
Finish your welcome email. You can assemble the workflow while the email is a draft, but it must be published and free of issues before activation.
Check the test contact’s subscription status and communication limits. Matching a workflow’s entry criteria does not by itself make a contact eligible to receive email.
Open Workflows, click New workflow, and name it User guide - Welcome workflow. A new workflow starts Paused. You can build and review it before contacts enter.
2
Set the entry condition
Click Contact meets criteria, then Add criteria. In the Statement Builder, choose Contact, select Email, choose equals, and enter the email address of your test contact.You can also describe the same rule with Ask AI, then inspect the generated field, operator, and value. See Find contacts with the Statement Builder.
3
Check the match and re-enrollment settings
Confirm that the rule matches your intended contact. For this exercise, expect 1 match. A zero count usually means the record is missing or the address differs; more than one means you should inspect the matching records before proceeding.Close the criteria editor. Leave Allow re-enrollment off for this first welcome flow so contacts do not repeatedly enter it. Leave the optional Exit condition empty for this simple workflow.
The trigger shows the criteria count and the separate re-enrollment setting.
A criteria trigger reacts to contacts meeting a rule. A form submission or other event trigger reacts to something happening. For a real welcome workflow, choose the trigger that represents the moment someone should start, such as submitting your signup form.
A node is a step in the workflow. The trigger controls who enters; the nodes control what happens next. This example uses Time delay, Send email, and Exit.
1
Find a node in the palette
Click a blank area of the canvas to open the node palette on the right. Search for Time delay.
Click the blank canvas to see the palette. Use its search field to find the node you need.
2
Add and configure the delay
Drag Time delay onto the connection between the trigger and Exit. Click the new node and set Wait for to 5 Minutes. The node should now read Wait 5 minutes.
Selecting Time delay opens its settings on the right. Check both the number and the unit. This example also shows the email node you will add next.
3
Add the welcome email
Click the blank canvas again. Drag Send email onto the connection between the delay and Exit. Click the email node, open Select an email…, and choose User guide - Welcome email.Follow the connecting lines to verify the order: trigger, delay, email, then exit. If the email is still unpublished or incomplete, the node explains what must be fixed. Click Manage to open it, resolve its issues, preview and test it, then publish the reviewed email.
The email node shows the selected asset and anything that prevents sending. The workflow stays paused while you finish these checks.
Read the confirmation, including Immediately run workflow for … matching contact(s). Select this option only when you want contacts who already match to enter now. For this exercise, confirm the count is one and the criteria identify your test contact.
Click Confirm and activate when you are ready for the workflow to run.
Without the immediate-run option, an already matching contact does not enter just because you activated the workflow. The workflow waits for qualifying changes. See criteria-based triggers for enrollment and re-enrollment behavior.
Open Runs, select your test contact, and follow the highlighted path. The contact should wait at Time delay, reach Send email, then finish at Exit. Open a node to inspect its execution details. Check the Emails tab and your inbox for the email outcome.If the contact does not enter, check the trigger, activation choice, and re-enrollment setting. If they enter but do not receive an email, check the node result and recipient details rather than assuming the trigger failed. The Runs reference explains statuses and timing.When the test is complete, pause the workflow before changing its entry criteria for a wider audience. Recheck the matching contacts and activation options before using it again.
Add and configure each node from the palette as you did above. For enrichment, record updates, Salesforce actions, or integrations, choose from the full node catalog and follow that node’s configuration page.
Suppose you want a different follow-up for people who clicked the welcome email.
Time Delay, then If/Else Branch: wait two days, then check whether the contact clicked. Every contact reaches a decision after the delay.
Wait Until Condition Met: move on as soon as the click condition is met. Add a timeout if contacts who never click should receive a different follow-up.
Use the Statement Builder to select the specific email and activity. Leaving the email selection empty can match activity on other emails.
An If/Else Branch sends a contact down the first matching path. If you put a broad condition before a narrow one, the broad condition may catch people you intended for the narrow path.For example, place “Enterprise customers in the United States” before “All enterprise customers.” Then choose a useful All others path, such as exiting or receiving a general message.Before activating a branched workflow, check a contact who should match each path and one who should reach All others. Repeat the activation checks and inspect each contact’s run before expanding the audience.
Was this page helpful?
Assistant
Responses are generated using AI and may contain mistakes.
