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Sequences and flows

How to set up marketing flows that listen for Cadence events and send messages to customers.

Sequences are the flows, automations, and journeys you create in your marketing platform to send messages when Cadence events arrive. Cadence provides the trigger and data; you design and send the messages.

Why you need sequences

Connecting Cadence to your marketing platform is only half the setup. Without flows listening for cadence_prediction events, events arrive but no messages are sent. You must create at least one flow before your store goes live.

Create one flow per prediction type for clear reporting and tailored messaging:

Flow Trigger condition Message focus
Replenishment prediction_type = due_to_replenish “Time to restock” with product and ConvertCart link
Lapse prevention prediction_type = about_to_lapse Win-back message with optional discount
Cross-sell prediction_type = primed_for_cross_sell Introduce complementary product
Subscription upsell prediction_type = primed_for_subscription Present subscribe-and-save option

You can start with just replenishment and lapse prevention flows, then add cross-sell and subscription flows later.

Building a flow step by step

These steps use Klaviyo as the example. Other platforms follow a similar pattern — see platform-specific guides in Integrations.

1. Create a new flow

In Klaviyo: Flows → Create flow → Create from scratch

Name it clearly, e.g., “Cadence — Replenishment”

2. Set the trigger

Choose Metric as the trigger type. Select the metric cadence_prediction.

Add a trigger filter:

  • Property: prediction_type
  • Operator: equals
  • Value: due_to_replenish (or the type for this flow)

3. Design the email

Create an email within the flow. Use event properties for personalization:

Property Use for
customer_first_name Greeting — e.g. “Hi [first name]” using Klaviyo’s personalization tag
product_name Product mention — e.g. “Your [product name] is running low”
cart_url Primary CTA button link
product_url Secondary link to product page

Example email structure:

  • Subject: “Time to restock, [first name]” — use Klaviyo’s first_name personalization with a default fallback
  • Body: Mention the product, explain why they’re receiving this (based on their purchase history)
  • CTA button: “Reorder now” → links to cart_url

4. Set the flow live

Change the flow status from Draft to Live. Events will trigger the flow starting at the next daily delivery window.

5. Repeat for other prediction types

Create separate flows for lapse prevention, cross-sell, and subscription upsell, each filtered on the appropriate prediction_type value.

Flow timing considerations

Cadence delivers events once daily in a batch. Your flow sends the message when the event is received (or after any delay you configure in the flow).

Recommended approach:

  • Send replenishment emails immediately on event receipt
  • Send lapse prevention emails immediately (urgency matters)
  • Cross-sell and subscription upsell can have a short delay (1–2 hours) if desired

Avoid:

  • Long delays (24+ hours) — the prediction context is time-sensitive
  • Sending multiple emails for the same prediction type — use flow filters to prevent re-entry

Using profile properties in campaigns

Beyond event-triggered flows, you can use Cadence profile properties in campaigns and segments:

  • Segment: “Customers where cadence_due_to_replenish is true” → send a batch replenishment campaign
  • Dynamic content: Insert cadence_replenishment_product_name in any email template
  • LiveBlock: Uses profile properties to render per-recipient content (see LiveBlock)

Profile properties update daily alongside event delivery.

SMS flows

If you use Attentive or Postscript alongside (or instead of) an email platform:

  1. Create a journey/automation triggered on the cadence_prediction event
  2. Filter by prediction_type as with email flows
  3. Keep SMS copy short — product name, urgency, and ConvertCart link
  4. Include the cart_url as the link in the text message

See Attentive and Postscript integration guides for platform-specific steps.

Testing your flows

Before going live:

  1. Connect your marketing platform in Cadence
  2. Create your flows and set them to Live
  3. Ask the Cadence team to enable your store (or wait for the enablement call)
  4. After the first event delivery, check your marketing platform to confirm flows triggered
  5. Verify the email/SMS content, links, and personalization render correctly

Common mistakes

Mistake Fix
Flow trigger uses wrong event name Must be exactly cadence_prediction
Flow is in Draft status Change to Live
Missing prediction_type filter Flow triggers for all event types — add a filter
CTA links to product page instead of ConvertCart Use the cart_url property for the CTA
No flows created at all Events arrive but no messages send — create at least one flow

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