Add steps to a journey

Whether you're building a welcome series or a multi-touch abandoned cart flow, steps are what make your journey actually do something. Each step you add either triggers a message, updates subscriber data, or controls the logic of how your journey flows.

Before you begin: This article assumes you're familiar with how journeys work. If you're just getting started, check out What are journeys?

What is it?

Steps are the building blocks of every journey. You'll find them in the Steps panel on the left side of the journey builder, organized into two groups:

Actions are steps that directly engage your subscribers. There are six action steps:

• Send text message — triggers a custom SMS to a subscriber at a specific point in the journey
• Send auto-reply text message — automatically triggers a response to a specific keyword or reply from a subscriber during a Two-Way Journey™
• Add custom attribute — updates a subscriber's profile with a custom data attribute when they reach that point in the journey
• Send email — sends an email to a subscriber at a specific point in the journey
[Beta] Send push notification — sends a push notification directly to a subscriber's mobile device, appearing on their lock screen or notification tray even when they're not actively using your app. This is a new step. Because native branching on push is not yet supported (built-in branching functionality is coming as a fast follow), we recommend using this step followed by a Branch step if you want to follow up via SMS or email. Subscribers who don't have the app will automatically skip the push step and flow into the branch. 
• Trigger integration — fires an event to a connected third-party platform when a subscriber reaches that point in the journey

Rules are steps that control the timing and logic of your journey, shaping which path each subscriber takes. There are four rule steps:

• Wait — pauses the journey for a set amount of time before moving on to the next step
• Branch — splits the journey into two or more paths based on a subscriber's behavior or attributes
• A/B test — splits your audience across different message variants so you can test which approach performs better
• End journey — marks the point where a subscriber's journey is complete

How do I use it?

All steps work the same way to get started: in the Steps panel, find the step you want to add, drag it onto the + icon where you want it to appear in your journey map, and configure it in the settings panel that opens on the right. Here's what to configure for each step:

Actions

Send text message

1. Drag Send text message onto the + icon in your journey map.
2. In the settings panel, write your message. You can include up to 160 characters, emojis, images, shortlinks, personalization variables, and offers.
3. Configure Smart Sending and Quiet Hours as needed.
4. Click Save.

Send auto-reply text message

1. Drag Send auto-reply text message onto the + icon in your journey map.
2. In the settings panel, configure the keyword or reply that will trigger the auto-reply.
3. Write the response message.
4. Click Save.

Add custom attribute

1. Drag Add custom attribute onto the + icon in your journey map.
2. In the settings panel, select the attribute you want to set and enter the value.
3. Click Save.

Send email

1. Drag Send email onto the + icon in your journey map.
2. In the settings panel, click Use drag-and-drop editor to build your email visually, or Use HTML editor if you prefer to code it directly.
3. Compose your email and click Save.

Rules

Wait

1. Drag Wait onto the + icon in your journey map.
2. In the settings panel, set the length of the delay — for example, 1 hour or 24 hours.
3. Click Save.

Branch

1. Drag Branch onto the + icon in your journey map.
2. In the settings panel, configure the condition for the branch — for example, "Has made a purchase" or "Is opted in to email."
3. Click Save.
4. Add the steps you want to happen in each path by clicking the + icons beneath each branch.

A/B test

1. Drag A/B test onto the + icon in your journey map.
2. In the settings panel, set your traffic split. By default traffic is divided evenly, but you can adjust the percentages to send more traffic to one variant.
3. Click Save.
4. Add the step you want to test — like Send text message or Send email — inside each variant branch.

End journey

1. Drag End journey onto the + icon at the point where you want the journey to close.
2. No additional configuration needed — it's ready to go as soon as you drop it in.

To edit or delete any step: click on it in the journey map to open its settings panel. Make your changes and click Save, or click Delete and confirm to remove it. Note that deleting a Branch or A/B test step will also remove all steps nested beneath it.

Why should I use it?

Steps are what turn a simple trigger into a fully personalized subscriber experience. Here's what becomes possible when you use them intentionally:

Reach subscribers on the right channel. With action steps for SMS, email, and push notifications all available in the same journey, you can build true multi-channel flows that meet subscribers wherever they're most likely to engage — without having to manage separate campaigns for each channel.

Make your messages feel timely, not intrusive. The Wait step lets you pace your journey so messages arrive at moments that make sense. A well-timed follow-up after a cart abandonment will always outperform a message that fires the second someone leaves your site.

Stop treating every subscriber the same. Branch steps let you send completely different messages to different subscribers within the same journey, based on what they've actually done. Subscribers who purchased get a thank-you; subscribers who didn't get a nudge. The more relevant your messages, the better your results.

Learn what works and double down on it. A/B test steps give you a built-in way to test different messaging strategies — offers, copy, timing, channel sequence — and let the data guide your decisions instead of your gut.

Keep your other tools in sync. Trigger integration steps mean your journey activity doesn't stay siloed in Attentive. Fire events to your CRM, data warehouse, or other platforms in real time so your entire stack reflects what's happening with your subscribers.

Build a richer subscriber profile over time. Add custom attribute steps let you tag subscribers based on their journey behavior, so every journey they complete makes your data smarter and your future targeting more precise.