The Marketing Automation Canvas
In this Article
Canvas orientation — What you see when you open a flow
When you create or open a Marketing Automation flow, you land on the canvas. Here's what you'll find:
Area | Location | What it does |
Node picker | Left side panel | Lists all available node types. Drag a node from here onto the canvas to add it. |
Canvas workspace | Centre | The main area where you build your flow. Drag, connect, and arrange nodes here. |
Listen node | Centre (always present) | The starting point of every flow. Cannot be removed. All other nodes connect downstream from here. |
Zoom controls | Top-right corner | + / − buttons to zoom in and out. Reset view button to snap back to the Listen node. |
Bottom bar | Bottom of canvas | Contains Activate/Stop/Pause buttons, Flow Settings, Save as Template, Goals, and Node Stats. |
Moving around the canvas
The canvas works like a map — you can pan, zoom, and reset your view.
Action | How to do it |
Pan / scroll | Click and drag on an empty area of the canvas. |
Zoom in | Click the + button (top-right) or use your mouse scroll wheel / trackpad pinch. |
Zoom out | Click the − button (top-right) or scroll/pinch in the opposite direction. |
Fit to window | Click Fit to window (top-right) to view the full flow within the window. Useful when you've scrolled far on a large flow.  |
Add a node
The process is the same for all node types.
In the node picker (left side panel), find the node type you want to add.
Drag and drop the node onto the canvas.
The node appears on the canvas in Draft status (grey badge). Click it to open its settings panel and configure it.
💡 Good to know: The Listen node is always present in every flow and cannot be removed. It's the mandatory entry point — build your journey from there.
Tip: If the node type you want is already on the canvas, use the duplicate node functionality to save time. Available from the ⋮ icon in the top right corner in every node (except listen node).
Connect and disconnect nodes
Nodes must be connected for profiles to move between them. A disconnected node is effectively invisible to profiles in the flow.
Connect nodes
Hover over a node's output connector (the small circle on the bottom or side of the node).
Click and drag from the output connector to the input connector of the next node.
Release to create the connection. A line appears between the two nodes showing the path profiles will follow.
Disconnect nodes
To disconnect a node, click on the connection line between two nodes and delete it (click on the Delete icon shown below).
⚠️ Important: If any nodes in your flow are disconnected, profiles will not move past the break — and you won't be able to activate the flow. The platform will warn you about disconnected nodes when you try to activate. Always check that every node is connected before going live.
Branching nodes
Some nodes have multiple outputs — for example, the Check Profile node has a Yes and No output, and the Split node has two or more branches. Connect each output to its own downstream path. Every branch should eventually end with an End Flow node.
Duplicate a Node
Duplicating a node creates a copy with the same configuration — saving you time when you need a similar node elsewhere in the flow. You can duplicate any node on the canvas using the three-dot menu (⋮) in the top right corner of the node.
Hover over the node you want to duplicate
Click the ⋮ icon in the top right corner
Select Duplicate
The duplicated node will appear on the canvas in Draft status, disconnected from the flow. Connect it to the relevant node before activating. Duplicating a node does not affect profiles currently in the original node. It's a safe operation that has no impact on live flow behaviour.
💡 Good to know: The duplicate inherits the original node's full configuration (settings, email content, conditions, etc.). You only need to change what's different — not rebuild from scratch. This is especially useful for A/B testing different email variants in separate branches, or for reusing a configured Check Profile condition at multiple points in the flow.
Use case: A/B testing email content
You want to test two versions of a follow-up email. Add a Split node, then duplicate the Email node. Connect one copy to each branch. Change the email content in the duplicate, and you have an A/B test — without rebuilding the node from scratch.
Use case: Reusing a configured time delay
Your flow has multiple branches that all need a 3-day delay. Configure one Time node, then duplicate it for each branch. All copies inherit the 3-day setting.
Delete a Node
To delete a node, click the ⋮ icon in the top right corner of the node and select Delete. The Listen node cannot be deleted. It's permanently fixed as the entry point of every flow.
⚠️ Reminder: If you delete a node in a paused Marketing Automation flow, all Profiles currently present in that node will be removed from the flow. The response data will still reflect as an Marketing Automation Event on those Profiles.
Customise a node title
By default, nodes are labelled with their type name (e.g. "Email", "Time", "Check Profile"). For complex flows — especially those with multiple nodes of the same type — custom titles make the flow much easier to read and manage.
Click on the node to open its settings panel.
Click on the node title at the top of the panel to make it editable.
Type the new title — e.g. "Welcome email — Day 1" or "Check: Country = Sweden".
Click away or press Enter to save.
To reset a node to its default title, erase the custom text — the node will revert to its type name.
💡 Tip — Naming best practices:
Email & SMS nodes: Include the purpose and timing — e.g. "Welcome email — Day 1", "Re-engagement — SMS follow-up".
Check Profile nodes: Describe the condition — e.g. "Check: Opened email?", "Check: VIP tag".
Time nodes: State the delay — e.g. "Wait 3 days", "Wait until Monday 09:00".
💡 Good to know: Custom titles are visible to all users in your Apsis One workspace with Marketing Automation access — not just your own. They also appear in the Marketing Automation Report, making it much easier to interpret report data.
Note: Custom titles are not reflected in audience exports or event data. If you need to identify a node in export data, use the Node ID (visible in the node's settings panel).
The bottom bar — Your flow control centre
The bottom bar runs along the bottom of the canvas and contains all the controls for managing your flow's lifecycle and settings. Here's a complete reference:
Button / Tab | What it does | When to use it |
Activate | Starts the flow. Profiles begin entering via the Listen node in real time. | When the flow is fully configured, tested, and ready to go live. |
Stop | Stops the flow completely. No new profiles enter. Existing profiles freeze in place and resume when reactivated. | When you need to change consent/subscription settings, or permanently deactivate the flow. |
Pause | Pauses the flow. New profiles still enter but are held in the Listen node. Existing profiles freeze in place. | When you need to make quick edits (e.g. update an email design, adjust a time delay) without losing incoming profiles. |
Flow Settings | Opens the settings panel: Entry Limit, Terminate tag, Subscriptions, Time Zone. | Before activation — and any time you need to adjust flow-level configuration. See Create a Marketing Automation Flow for detailed settings guidance. |
Save as Template | Saves the current flow structure as a reusable template with a name and description. | When you've built a flow pattern you want to reuse — e.g. a standard welcome series or re-engagement sequence. |
Goals | Free-text field to note the flow's purpose, connected assets, or internal documentation. | Always — to help teammates (and Apsis Support) understand the flow's intent. |
Node Stats | Shows real-time profile counts per node: In the node, Completed, Left the flow. | After activation — to monitor flow performance and troubleshoot profile movement issues. |
Activate — Pre-launch validation
When you click Activate, the platform checks your flow for issues. If it finds problems, it shows a warning and highlights which nodes need attention. Common issues include:
Nodes in Draft status (not fully configured)
Disconnected nodes
Missing subscription settings in Flow Settings
Click Show Nodes in the warning to jump directly to the problematic nodes.
Pause vs. Stop — Quick comparison
| Pause | Stop |
New profiles entering | Yes — queued in the Listen node | No — blocked entirely |
Existing profiles | Freeze in current node | Freeze in current node |
On reactivation | Queued profiles release from Listen; existing profiles resume | Existing profiles resume; no queued profiles |
Best for | Quick edits (email design, time delays, adding a node) | Consent/subscription changes, seasonal deactivation, full rework |
Save as Template
Click Save as Template in the bottom bar.
Give your template a name and optional description.
Click Save. The template is now available when creating new flows.
The template icons help you categorise the templates in the overview:
💡 Tip: Templates are great for standardising commonly used flow patterns across your team — e.g. a welcome series template, a re-engagement template, or an internal notification template. When you create a flow from a template, you get the full node structure and connections but can customise each node's configuration independently.
Goals
The Goals field is a free-text area for documenting your flow's purpose. Good documentation helps your team and Apsis Support if troubleshooting is needed. Consider noting:
The overall objective of the flow (e.g. "Increase trial-to-paid conversion by 15%").
Connected assets — which forms, segments, custom events, or external systems are involved.
Dependencies — other flows that feed into or follow this one.
Owner — who is responsible for maintaining this flow.
Node Stats — Monitor profile movement
Once a flow is activated, Node Stats (bottom bar) gives you a real-time view of how profiles are moving through the flow. Click it to see four metrics per node:
Metric | What it means |
In the node  | Number of profiles currently sitting in this node — e.g. waiting in a Time node, or queued in the Listen node. |
Completed the node  | Number of profiles that have passed through this node and moved to the next one. |
Left the flow 
| Number of profiles that exited the flow while in this node — e.g. due to a Terminate tag, node deletion, or flow stop. |
Deleted profiles 
| Number of profiles that have been deleted while present in this flow step/node. |
💡 Tip: Node Stats is a great troubleshooting tool. If profiles aren't progressing past a certain node, the "In the node" count will be unusually high — pointing you directly to the bottleneck.
Common causes: a Time node with a long delay, a Check Profile node with overly strict conditions, or a Draft-status node that hasn't been configured.
Use cases: Canvas workflows in practice
Editing a live flow safely
Scenario: Your welcome flow is live, but you need to update the email copy.
Steps: Click Pause (bottom bar) → Click the Email node → Edit the email in the editor → Save → Click Activate to resume. Profiles that entered during the pause are released from the Listen node and continue normally.
Expanding a flow with a new branch
Scenario: You want to add an SMS follow-up to profiles who didn't open the email.
Steps: Pause the flow → Add a Check Profile node after the Email node → Connect its Yes output to the existing End Flow → Add a new SMS node and End Flow node → Connect the Check Profile No output to the SMS node → Configure all new nodes → Activate.
Building a template from a proven flow
Scenario: Your re-engagement flow is performing well and you want to reuse the pattern for other segments.
Steps: Open the flow → Click Save as Template → Name it "Re-engagement — 3-touch multi-channel" → Add a description → Save. Now available for any team member when creating a new flow.
Diagnosing why profiles aren't progressing
Scenario: Your flow has been active for a week but the Email node shows 0 completions.
Steps: Click Node Stats → Check the node settings before the Email → If "In the node" count is high, profiles are still waiting. Check the delay duration. Update accordingly.
Troubleshooting
Problem | Likely cause | Solution |
Can't activate the flow — warning shown | One or more nodes are in Draft status, disconnected, or missing required configuration (e.g. email without unsubscribe link) | Click Show Nodes in the warning. Fix each highlighted node. Ensure all nodes are connected. |
Profiles stuck in the Listen node | Flow is paused, or the flow was recently stopped and reactivated | Check the flow status in the bottom bar. If paused, click Activate. If stopped, reactivate — profiles that entered during pause will release. |
Accidentally deleted a node with profiles in it | N/A — deletion of nodes with profiles is permanent | Create a segment with the response event corresponding to the now deleted node. Consider appropriate action. |
Node Stats show "Left the flow" on a node where profiles shouldn't leave | A Terminate tag was triggered, the flow was stopped, or the node was deleted while profiles were present | Check Flow Settings → Terminate to see if a tag is actively ejecting profiles. Review recent flow status changes. |
Custom node title isn't showing in exports | Custom titles don't appear in audience exports or event data — by design | Use the Node ID (visible in the node's settings panel) to identify nodes in export data. |
Duplicated node is in Draft even though the original is Active | This is expected behaviour — duplicates always start in Draft | Click the duplicate to review its configuration, make any needed changes, then it becomes Active when the flow is activated. |
What's next?
Marketing Automation Nodes — Full reference for every node type and its configuration.
Profile Data in Marketing Automation Nodes — How to use attributes, tags, events, and segments in your nodes.
Marketing Automation Report — Detailed analytics for your flow's performance.
Duplicate a Node — Dedicated article on the duplication feature.
Troubleshooting Your Marketing Automation Flow — Extended troubleshooting guide.