What’s the difference between event-based and behavior-based automation?

• Event-based and behavior-based automation are related but distinct approaches to triggering emails.
• Event-based automation:
• Triggered by discrete, defined events in your system.
• Account created
  Order placed
  Subscription renewed
  Password changed
  Support ticket opened
• Events are typically singular, timestamped occurrences recorded in your database or system logs.
• Behavior-based automation:
• Triggered by patterns of user activity, often aggregated or analyzed.

Browsed products but didn't purchase
Visited pricing page multiple times
Engagement declining over time
Spent time on specific content categories

• Behaviors often require interpretation or tracking over time rather than single events.
• Key differences:
• Clarity: Events are binary (happened or didn't). Behaviors often have thresholds ("visited 3+ times").
• Timing: Events trigger at a specific moment. Behaviors may accumulate before triggering.
• Complexity: Events are simpler to implement. Behaviors require more tracking and analysis.
• Examples comparison:

Event: "Customer made a purchase" → Send order confirmation.
Behavior: "Customer browsed hiking boots 3 times this week" → Send targeted product email.

Event: "Trial started" → Send welcome email.
Behavior: "Trial user hasn't logged in for 5 days" → Send re-engagement prompt.

• Best programs use both:
• Events for transactional and immediate responses. Behaviors for nurturing and personalization.
• Events capture what happened. Behaviors reveal what it means. Both inform how to respond.