How to Create Behavior-Triggered Email Automations

I set up this behavior triggered email automation system to send targeted emails based on what people do on your site. Page visits, clicks, video watches. Every action becomes a trigger.

Behavior-triggered emails outperform scheduled sends because they reach people when engagement is highest.

What You Need Before Starting

• Python 3.8+ with Flask and requests
• Anthropic API key
• Website event tracking
• ESP with webhook triggers

Step 1: Set Up Event Tracking

// Track user behavior
function trackEvent(name, props) {
    fetch('/api/track', {
        method: 'POST',
        headers: {'Content-Type': 'application/json'},
        body: JSON.stringify({event: name, properties: props, email: getUserEmail(), ts: new Date().toISOString()})
    });
}
trackEvent('viewed_pricing', {plan: 'pro'});

Step 2: Build Webhook Handler

from flask import Flask, request

app = Flask(__name__)

RULES = {
    "viewed_pricing": {"delay": 30, "type": "pricing_followup"},
    "started_checkout": {"delay": 60, "type": "checkout_nudge"},
    "watched_demo": {"delay": 15, "type": "demo_followup"},
}

@app.route("/api/track", methods=["POST"])
def track():
    data = request.json
    event = data.get("event")
    if event in RULES:
        queue_email(data["email"], RULES[event]["type"], RULES[event]["delay"])
    return {"ok": True}

Step 3: Generate Context-Aware Emails

import anthropic
from dotenv import load_dotenv

load_dotenv()
client = anthropic.Anthropic()

def generate_triggered_email(email_type, event_data):
    message = client.messages.create(
        model="claude-sonnet-4-20250514",
        max_tokens=512,
        system="Write triggered email based on behavior. Helpful, not creepy.",
        messages=[{"role": "user", "content": f"Type: {email_type}. Action: {event_data}. Write subject + body."}]
    )
    return message.content[0].text

Step 4: Queue and Send

import sqlite3
from datetime import datetime, timedelta

db = sqlite3.connect("triggers.db")

def queue_email(email, email_type, delay_min):
    send_at = datetime.now() + timedelta(minutes=delay_min)
    db.execute("INSERT INTO queue (email, type, send_at, status) VALUES (?,?,?,?)",
        (email, email_type, send_at.isoformat(), "pending"))
    db.commit()

What to Build Next

Add suppression rules. If someone already purchased, skip the checkout nudge. Layer in purchase data to prevent awkward emails.

Related Reading

• AI for Email Marketing Automation - how AI transforms email marketing operations
• The Automation Decision Tree - framework for deciding what to automate first
• Building Your First Automation: A Complete Guide - framework for deciding what to automate first