Triggers overview
Every automation starts with a trigger — the event that kicks off the workflow.
Trigger types
| Type | How it works | Best for | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| Event | Fires instantly when something happens | Reacting in real time | Form submitted, contact created, opportunity changed |
| Time-based | Fires on a daily, weekly, or monthly schedule | Recurring tasks | Every Monday at 9 AM, 1st of each month |
| Manual | Fires when you click "Run" on a record | One-off tasks | Run for a specific account, company, or contact |
| Advanced | Fires from an external system | Third-party integrations | Webhook received, Zapier, API request |
Trigger scope
Your trigger determines which actions are available downstream.
| Scope | What's in context | Example triggers |
|---|---|---|
| Account | Account data (tags, products, salesperson) | Account created, product activated |
| Company | Company + its account | Form submitted, company added to list |
| Contact | Contact + company + account | Contact created, web chat lead captured |
| No entity | Nothing — create records from scratch | Webhook, API trigger, on a schedule |
Need data from a different scope? Use a lookup step (Find company, Find contact) to bring additional records into context.
Trigger conditions
Add conditions to filter which events qualify:
| Logic | How it works | Example |
|---|---|---|
| AND | All conditions must be true | Industry is "Healthcare" AND city is "Edmonton" |
| OR | Any condition can be true | Form A submitted OR Form B submitted |
Available triggers
Companies
Fires when a call is logged on a company record
Fires when a company is added to a CRM list
Fires when a company record is created or any field changes
Fires when a form linked to a company is submitted
Fires when a company is removed from a CRM list
Fires when a form linked to a contact on a company is submitted
Fires when an email is logged on a company record
Fires when a meeting is logged on a company record
Fires when a note is added to a company record
Fires when a sales task is created on a company
Fires when a sales task on a company passes its due date
Contacts
Fires when a form linked to a contact is submitted
Fires when a call is logged on a contact record
Fires when a contact is added to a CRM list
Fires when a contact record is created or any field changes
Fires when a contact is removed from a CRM list
Fires when an email is logged on a contact record
Fires when a meeting is logged on a contact record
Fires when a note is added to a contact record
Fires when a sales task is created on a contact
Fires when a sales task on a contact passes its due date
Custom objects
Fires when a custom object record is added to a list
Fires when a custom object record is created or updated
Fires when a custom object record is removed from a list
Accounts
Fires when a new account is created
Fires when an account record is modified
Fires when an account is added to a list
Fires when custom data fields on an account change
Users
Fires when a user submits a question through Business App
Fires when a user completes email verification
Fires when a user is added to an account
Fires when a user logs into or interacts with Business App
Campaigns and emails
Fulfillment
Fires when a Task Manager project changes status
Fires when a fulfillment project linked to an order changes status
Fires when a Task Manager task changes status
Products
Fires when a customer views or clicks on a package
Fires when a product is activated on an account
Fires when a product is deactivated on an account
Fires when items are added to or removed from a shopping cart
Sales
Fires when an opportunity is created or its stage/fields change
Fires when a sales activity (call, email, meeting) is logged
Fires when a salesperson is assigned to an account
Legacy trigger — fires when a sales task changes status
Fires when a Snapshot Report is generated or refreshed
Billing
Fires when a wholesale billing event occurs
Fires when an invoice goes past its due date
Fires when a customer makes a payment
Conversations
Fires when an AI conversation summary is generated for a contact
Fires when a visitor submits their info through Web Chat
Fires when a message is sent or received in Conversations
Manual
Run on demand for a selected account
Run on demand for a selected company
Run on demand for a selected contact
Run on demand for a selected order
Sales orders
Fires when a sales order moves to a new status
Fires when a sales order approaches its expiration date
Advanced
Fires when an external system calls the automation API for an account
Fires when an external system sends a POST request to the webhook URL
Fires when an external system calls the automation API for an order
Fires when the Vendasta Zapier app's "Run Automation" action is used
Integrations
Fires on QuickBooks Online invoice events for a contact
Fires on QuickBooks Online payment events for a contact
Fires on QuickBooks Online sales receipt events for a contact
Fires on ServiceMonster invoice events for a contact