Migrate from Ontraport to GoHighLevel: Step-by-Step

AFFILIATE DISCLOSURE

Short n Sweet Digital is a GoHighLevel white-label implementation partner. We earn referral commissions when readers sign up for GoHighLevel via the affiliate link in this post (https://www.gohighlevel.com/?fp_ref=shortnsweet53). We disclose this upfront so you can evaluate this guide with full transparency. The migration steps and technical details reflect hands-on experience across 25+ agency deployments; they are not influenced by our commission structure. Verify all steps with GoHighLevel and Ontraport’s current documentation before migrating production data.

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You’re running campaigns in Ontraport. Your contact list is growing, your automations are complex, but Ontraport’s pricing keeps climbing and the interface feels slow. You’ve heard GoHighLevel is faster, cheaper, and purpose-built for agencies.

But the migration feels overwhelming: How do you export 50,000 contacts without losing data? How do you rebuild your email sequences? Which settings transfer automatically?

This guide walks you through a complete Ontraport-to-GHL migration in 4 hours, with a pre-migration checklist, step-by-step data export, automation rebuild, and post-migration validation.

Key Takeaways

• Estimated time: 4 hours (2 hours prep + data export, 1.5 hours automation rebuild, 0.5 hours testing and validation)
• What transfers: Contacts (with custom fields), email lists, and basic campaign structure. Ontraport-specific features (scoring, custom fields with special logic) require manual mapping in GHL.
• What doesn’t transfer: Ontraport’s legacy “Score” field (GHL uses Tags instead), custom object relationships, advanced conditional logic beyond GHL’s native automation builder, and third-party integrations (you’ll reconnect these in GHL).
• Data export method: Ontraport CSV export → Google Sheets (for validation) → GHL bulk import. No direct integration exists; CSV is the standard bridge.
• Cost savings: Ontraport’s $99–$399/month → GHL Pro $199/month (50% cheaper on average). If you’re on Ontraport’s $399 Unlimited plan, GHL Unlimited is $495 (similar cost, but with white-label and more integrations included).
• Go-live decision: Run parallel systems for 1–2 weeks (send new campaigns in GHL, keep Ontraport running for existing automations to finish). Then sunset Ontraport after validation.
• Rollback plan: Keep Ontraport data backed up for 30 days post-migration. If something breaks, you have a 30-day window to recover and retry before canceling Ontraport.

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Phase 0: Pre-Migration Assessment (30 Minutes)

Before touching any data, audit what you’re migrating and what will change.

Step 1: Inventory Your Ontraport Setup

In Ontraport, open a spreadsheet and document:

Item	Count	Notes
Contacts	[#]	Total contacts in all lists (Contacts > View All)
Email lists	[#]	Named lists (Campaigns > Segments)
Email sequences	[#]	Active and paused automations/email sequences
Landing pages	[#]	Ontraport-hosted or third-party
SMS campaigns	[#]	If using Ontraport SMS
Custom fields	[#]	Example: FirstName, Company, Industry, Score
Tags	[#]	Example: Customer, Lead, VIP, Trial
Integrations	[#]	Zapier, Stripe, PayPal, Calendly, etc.
Forms	[#]	Web forms embedded on your site
Rule-based automations	[#]	Complex conditional workflows

Example inventory (small agency):

Contacts:          12,500
Email lists:       8 (Newsletter, Leads, Customers, VIP, Trial, Inactive, Webinar, Event)
Email sequences:   15 (Welcome series, nurture, re-engagement, upsell, post-purchase)
Landing pages:     3 (Lead magnet, webinar signup, sales page)
SMS campaigns:     2
Custom fields:     12 (FirstName, LastName, Company, Industry, Phone, Score, LeadSource)
Tags:              25
Integrations:      5 (Zapier, Stripe, Calendly, Google Sheets, Typeform)
Forms:             4 (Website sidebar, landing page, webinar signup, survey)
Rule-based automations: 8

Step 2: Identify Must-Transfer Data

Not everything needs to move immediately. Prioritize:

Critical (move first):

• ✅ Active contacts (12,500 in example above)
• ✅ Active email sequences (15)
• ✅ Email lists (8)
• ✅ Custom fields (12)
• ✅ High-value tags (VIP, Customer, Lead)

Optional (move later or skip):

• ⚠️ Inactive contacts (pause 6+ months) – consider archiving in Ontraport instead
• ⚠️ Completed sequences (historical, no longer active) – export but don’t import
• ⚠️ Ontraport-specific scores – convert to GHL Tags (VIP tier 1, tier 2, etc.)
• ⚠️ Legacy integrations (if Ontraport-specific) – disable, then reconnect in GHL

Step 3: Review Ontraport Custom Fields

Custom fields are the backbone of CRM data. Identify which ones you need:

In Ontraport: Contacts > Fields > Manage Fields

Document each custom field:

Field Name	Field Type	Required?	Mapping to GHL
Company	Text	Yes	Custom field (same name)
Industry	Dropdown	No	Custom field (dropdown)
LeadSource	Dropdown	Yes	Tag or custom field
Score	Number	Yes	GHL Tags (VIP, High, Medium, Low)
LastPurchaseDate	Date	No	Custom field (date)

Note: Ontraport’s “Score” field has no direct equivalent in GHL. You’ll convert scores to Tags:

• Score 90–100 → Tag “VIP”
• Score 70–89 → Tag “High-Intent”
• Score 50–69 → Tag “Medium-Intent”
• Score <50 → Tag “Low-Intent”

Step 4: List Email Sequences to Rebuild

In Ontraport, open each sequence and document:

Sequence Name	# Emails	Trigger	Conditional Logic	Priority
Welcome Series	5	New contact	None	High (rebuild first)
Nurture 30-Day	10	After welcome	Click tracking, tag-based branching	High
Abandoned Cart	3	Ecommerce trigger	Purchase price > $X	Medium
Re-engagement	4	No open 60 days	Tag-based condition	Medium

GHL’s automation builder is different from Ontraport’s. Most sequences rebuild 1:1, but advanced conditional logic may need simplification.

Step 5: Verify Data Integrity in Ontraport

Before exporting, audit your Ontraport data for quality:

1. Check for duplicates: Contacts > Tools > Find Duplicates. Merge or flag duplicates before export.
2. Verify custom field data: Open 10–20 random contacts. Confirm custom fields are populated (not blank).
3. Review email list membership: Contacts > Segments. Verify counts match expected list sizes.
4. Test a sequence: Send a test email to yourself. Confirm deliverability.

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Phase 1: Data Export from Ontraport (1 Hour)

Step 1: Export Contacts as CSV

1. In Ontraport, go to Contacts > View All
2. Apply filters if needed (e.g., exclude inactive contacts):
   • Click Filters > Add filter: Status = Active (if using status field)
   • Or: LastActivity > 6 months ago = No (to exclude truly inactive)
3. Click Select All (or select the checkbox to select all contacts in the view)
4. Click Export (usually a dropdown or menu option)
5. Select CSV as the export format
6. GHL will prepare a download; click Download
7. Save the file as ontraport-contacts-export-2026-08-19.csv

CSV columns you’ll see (example):

FirstName, LastName, Email, Company, Phone, Industry, LeadSource, Score, CustomField1, Tags, DateCreated, LastActivity
John, Doe, john@example.com, Acme Corp, 555-123-4567, Tech, Webinar, 85, Value1, Customer;VIP, 2025-01-15, 2026-08-18
Jane, Smith, jane@example.com, Tech Inc, 555-234-5678, Tech, Organic, 72, Value2, Lead, 2025-03-20, 2026-08-15

Step 2: Export Email Lists (Segments)

In Ontraport, each email list (segment) is a saved filter. Export separately:

1. Go to Campaigns > Segments
2. For each segment:
   • Click the segment name
   • Click Export > CSV
   • Save as ontraport-segment-[SegmentName]-2026-08-19.csv
3. Repeat for all 8 segments (in the example above)

Why export segments separately? GHL’s list import requires segment/list names. Exporting separately helps you map Ontraport segments to GHL lists during import.

Step 3: Export Email Sequences

Ontraport’s “campaigns” (email sequences) don’t export as CSV. Instead:

1. Go to Campaigns > Emails
2. For each active email sequence:
   • Click the sequence name
   • For each email in the sequence:
     • Click the email subject
     • Click Edit
     • Copy the email body (Ctrl+A, Ctrl+C)
     • Paste into a Google Doc or Notion page titled [SequenceName] - Email Rebuild
     • Include: Subject line, body copy, call-to-action URL, attachments, send delay/conditions
3. Save the Google Doc / Notion page with all sequence details

Example document structure:

# Welcome Series - Export

## Email 1: Welcome
Subject: Welcome to [Company]! 🎉
Send Delay: Immediate (on signup)
Body:
Hi [FirstName],

Thanks for joining us. This is your first email...

[CTA: Get Started → https://example.com/start]

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## Email 2: [Name]

![Email 2: [Name]](/images/2026-08-19-migrate-from-ontraport-to-gohighlevel-s1.jpg)

Subject: ...
Send Delay: 1 day after email 1 open
Body:
...

Why manual export? Ontraport’s email automation is tightly coupled to the UI. GHL’s automation builder works differently, so you’ll rebuild sequences step-by-step in GHL’s visual editor (Phase 3).

Step 4: Export Integrations and Zaps

Document your active integrations:

1. In Ontraport, go to Settings > Integrations (or Zapier if Zapier is your integration platform)

2. Screenshot or list:

   • Integration name (e.g., “Stripe → Ontraport”)
   • Trigger (e.g., “Payment received in Stripe”)
   • Action (e.g., “Add tag ‘Customer’ in Ontraport”)
   • Status (active/paused)

3. If using Zapier:

   • Go to Zapier.com
   • Open each Zap connected to Ontraport
   • Screenshot the trigger and action steps
   • Note the Zap name and status
   • Do NOT delete Zaps yet – you’ll update them in Phase 4

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Phase 2: Data Validation and Preparation (30 Minutes)

Step 1: Import CSV into Google Sheets (Validation Check)

Before importing into GHL, validate your Ontraport export in Google Sheets:

1. Open Google Sheets
2. Click New > Spreadsheet
3. Click File > Import > Upload
4. Upload ontraport-contacts-export-2026-08-19.csv
5. Click Import data

Step 2: Audit Data Quality

In Google Sheets, check for:

Issue	How to Spot	Fix
Empty email cells	Filter column Email = blank	Delete rows with blank emails (they won’t import into GHL)
Duplicate emails	Use Data > Data validation > Unique	Merge duplicates or flag for manual review
Malformed phone numbers	Phone column has mixed formats	Standardize to format: +1-555-123-4567 (optional – GHL handles formats)
Blank custom fields	Custom field column is empty for many rows	This is OK – GHL allows blank custom fields. But if every row is blank, the field wasn’t exported correctly; re-export from Ontraport.
Special characters in text fields	Look for non-ASCII characters (é, ñ, etc.)	GHL handles UTF-8; should be fine. But save CSV as UTF-8 (not ASCII) to avoid corruption.

Step 3: Clean Up Data

Delete rows that won’t import:

1. In Google Sheets, delete rows where Email is blank (GHL requires an email for each contact)
2. Optionally, delete inactive contacts (if you documented them as “optional” in Phase 0, Step 2)
3. In the Score column, replace numeric scores with GHL Tag equivalents:
   • Open Find & Replace (Ctrl+H)
   • Find: ^[89]\d$|^90[0-9]?$ (regex for scores 80–100)
   • Replace: VIP
   • Repeat for other score ranges (70–79 → “High-Intent”, etc.)

Step 4: Add Required Columns for GHL Import

GHL’s bulk import expects certain columns. Add if missing:

1. Add a column: Status (value: “Active” for all rows, or “Paused” if desired)
2. Add a column: List (value: the list name the contact belongs to, e.g., “Newsletter”, “Leads”, “Customers”)
3. Ensure Email column exists and is not blank
4. Ensure Phone (optional) is present if you have phone numbers

Final Google Sheets structure (example):

FirstName | LastName | Email | Company | Phone | Status | List | Tags | CustomField1
John      | Doe      | john@ | Acme    | 555-  | Active | Customers | VIP | Value1
Jane      | Smith    | jane@ | Tech    | 555-  | Active | Leads | High-Intent | Value2

Step 5: Export Clean Data as CSV

1. In Google Sheets, click File > Download > Comma-Separated Values (.csv)
2. Save as ontraport-contacts-clean-2026-08-19.csv
3. This is the file you’ll import into GHL in Phase 2, Step 6

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Phase 3: Setup GoHighLevel Account (30 Minutes)

Step 1: Create or Log Into Your GHL Account

1. Go to GoHighLevel
2. If new: Sign up for Pro or Unlimited plan (Pro recommended for first migration; $199/month)
3. If existing: Log into your main agency account (not a white-label sub-account)

Step 2: Navigate to Contacts and Create Lists

1. In GHL, click Contacts > Lists
2. For each list from your Ontraport export (Customers, Leads, Newsletter, etc.):
   • Click + New List
   • Enter list name (match your Ontraport segment names for clarity)
   • Click Create
3. Repeat for all lists (you created these manually in Phase 1, Step 2)

Example lists created:

• Customers
• Leads
• Newsletter
• VIP
• Trial
• Webinar
• Event
• Re-engagement

Step 3: Map Custom Fields

Before importing, tell GHL which custom fields to create:

1. In GHL, click Settings > Custom Fields
2. For each custom field from Ontraport (Company, Industry, LeadSource, etc.):
   • Click + Add Custom Field
   • Enter field name (match Ontraport name exactly)
   • Select field type:
     • Text → “Text”
     • Dropdown/Select → “Select” (add options matching Ontraport values)
     • Date → “Date”
     • Number → “Number”
   • Click Save
3. Repeat for all custom fields

Example custom fields created:

• Company (Text)
• Industry (Select: Tech, Finance, Healthcare, Retail, Other)
• LeadSource (Select: Organic, Webinar, Paid Ad, Partner, Event, Direct)
• LastPurchaseDate (Date)

Step 4: Verify Email Provider Configuration

GHL needs to know which email provider to use for campaigns. Verify:

1. Click Settings > Email
2. Check if you have a connected email provider (Gmail, custom SMTP, GHL’s native email)
3. If none: Connect your email address (Gmail recommended for new accounts)
   • Click + Add Email
   • Select Gmail
   • Follow OAuth flow to connect
   • Verify it shows as “Connected”

Step 5: Create or Verify User Roles and Permissions

If you have a team helping with migration:

1. Click Settings > Team
2. For each team member:
   • Click + Add User
   • Enter email
   • Set role: Admin (if managing settings), Agency (if managing clients only), or Custom
   • Click Add

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Phase 4: Import Contacts into GHL (45 Minutes)

Step 1: Start Bulk Import

1. In GHL, click Contacts > Import
2. You’ll see an import wizard with options:
   • Upload CSV file
   • Map columns
   • Select destination list

Step 2: Upload Your CSV File

1. Click Choose File or Drag & Drop
2. Select ontraport-contacts-clean-2026-08-19.csv (from Phase 2, Step 5)
3. Click Upload or Next

GHL will preview the first 10 rows. You should see:

• FirstName, LastName, Email, Company, Phone, Status, List, Tags, CustomField1 columns
• Sample contact data rows

Step 3: Map Columns

GHL will ask you to map CSV columns to GHL fields:

CSV Column	GHL Field	Match
FirstName	First Name	✅ Auto-matched
LastName	Last Name	✅ Auto-matched
Email	Email	✅ Auto-matched
Company	Custom Field: Company	✅ Match to custom field (or skip)
Phone	Phone	✅ Auto-matched
Status	Status	✅ Match to “Active” / “Paused”
List	List / Segment	✅ Select list to import to
Tags	Tags	✅ Auto-matched
CustomField1	Custom Field: CustomField1	✅ Match (or skip)

GHL will auto-match most columns. Review the mapping and adjust if needed:

• Drag columns to reorder
• Click column header to change the GHL field it maps to
• Uncheck columns you don’t want to import

Step 4: Select Import Settings

1. Choose destination list: Select the primary list (e.g., “All Customers”). Or select “Map from CSV” if your CSV has a “List” column that specifies per-contact list assignment.
2. Duplicate handling: Choose Skip duplicates (if email exists in GHL, don’t re-import) or Update existing (overwrite if email exists)
3. Consent: If you have a GDPR/consent column, map it. Otherwise, GHL will mark all imported contacts as opted-in by default.

Step 5: Review and Confirm

1. Review the import summary:
   • Total rows: [12,500]
   • Contacts to be created: [12,500]
   • Lists: [Customers, Leads, Newsletter, …]
2. Click Import or Start Import

GHL will process the import in the background. You’ll see a progress bar. For 12,500 contacts, import typically takes 5–15 minutes.

Step 6: Verify Import Completion

1. Once import finishes, click View Results

2. GHL shows:

   • ✅ [12,500] contacts imported successfully
   • ⚠️ [50] contacts skipped (duplicates or invalid emails)
   • ❌ [0] contacts failed

3. Navigate to Contacts > View All to spot-check:

   • Open 5–10 random contacts
   • Verify: First/last name, email, company, custom fields, tags all populated
   • Confirm contacts appear in the correct lists (click a list name to see members)

If all looks good, your contact data is in GHL. If import failed or is significantly lower than expected, troubleshoot:

• Re-check CSV formatting (no extra spaces, proper encoding)
• Verify email column has no blank cells
• Check column mapping (did you map “List” correctly?)

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Phase 5: Rebuild Email Sequences (1.5 Hours)

Now rebuild your Ontraport sequences in GHL’s automation builder.

Step 1: Understand GHL’s Automation vs. Ontraport’s

Feature	Ontraport	GHL	Rebuild Approach
Email sequences	”Campaigns” (date-based or trigger-based)	“Automations” (trigger-based workflows)	Rebuild in GHL automation builder (visual editor)
Conditions	IF/THEN branching (advanced)	IF/THEN branching (simplified but effective)	Most sequences rebuild 1:1; complex logic may simplify
Time delays	Wait X days or specific date/time	Wait X hours/days/weeks	Rebuild wait steps in GHL
Tags/scoring	Score-based branching	Tag-based branching	Convert Ontraport scores to GHL tags in conditions
Email templates	Saved email designs	Email builder (drag-drop)	Rebuild emails in GHL’s email designer; copy body from Google Doc

Step 2: Start with Your First Sequence (Welcome Series)

Open your “Welcome Series” Google Doc (from Phase 1, Step 3).

1. In GHL, click Automations > New Automation
2. Name the automation: “Welcome Series”
3. Set the trigger:
   • Click + Add Trigger
   • Select Contact > New Contact (for new signups)
   • Or select Contact > Tagged if your Ontraport sequence was tag-based
   • Click Add

Step 3: Add First Email

1. In the automation canvas, click + Add Action
2. Select Send Email
3. Click Create Email (if you don’t have a template):
   • Subject: Copy from your Google Doc (e.g., “Welcome to [Company]! 🎉”)
   • Body: Copy from your Google Doc
   • CTA button: Add if present in original
   • Click Save Email
4. Back in automation, the email is now added to the workflow

Step 4: Add Time Delay for Second Email

1. Below the first email, click + Add Action
2. Select Wait (or Delay)
3. Set the delay:
   • Value: 1 (from your Google Doc: “1 day after email 1 open”)
   • Unit: Days
   • Condition (optional): If original was “1 day after email 1 opens”, set condition to “Email opened”
4. Click Add

Step 5: Add Second Email

1. Below the wait step, click + Add Action
2. Select Send Email
3. Create or select the second email (copy body from Google Doc)
4. Click Add

Step 6: Repeat for All Emails in Sequence

Continue adding wait steps and emails until all 5 emails from your “Welcome Series” are in the automation.

Final Welcome Series automation (visual):

Trigger: New Contact
  ↓
Send Email #1: Welcome
  ↓
Wait 1 Day
  ↓
Send Email #2: [Name]
  ↓
Wait 2 Days
  ↓
Send Email #3: [Name]
  ↓
Wait 1 Day
  ↓
Send Email #4: [Name]
  ↓
Wait 3 Days
  ↓
Send Email #5: [Name]

Step 7: Activate the Automation

1. At the top of the automation, click Activate or Save & Activate
2. GHL will confirm: “Automation is now active”
3. The automation will trigger for all new contacts going forward

Step 8: Rebuild Remaining Sequences

Repeat Steps 1–7 for your other sequences:

• Nurture 30-Day (triggered by tag or after welcome series)
• Abandoned Cart (triggered by ecommerce event, if available in GHL)
• Re-engagement (triggered by no-open-in-60-days condition, if available)

Estimated time per sequence:

• Simple sequence (3–4 emails, no branches): 10–15 minutes
• Complex sequence (8–10 emails, multiple conditions/branches): 20–30 minutes

For 15 sequences, budget 2.5–3 hours total. But start with your 5 most critical sequences (welcome, nurture, abandoned cart); the rest can rebuild in Phase 5.5 (optional).

Step 9: Test a Sequence

Before going live:

1. Create a test contact in GHL (use your own email)
2. Apply the tag or trigger that activates the sequence
3. Wait for the first email to arrive (1–5 minutes)
4. Verify:
   • Email arrives with correct subject and body
   • Links in the email work
   • Send time matches delay settings
5. Reply to the email to test 2-way communication (if enabled)

If the test passes, the sequence is ready. If something’s wrong, edit the automation and re-test.

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Phase 6: Reconnect Integrations (30 Minutes)

Step 1: Audit Ontraport Integrations

From Phase 1, Step 4, you documented active integrations. Now reconnect them in GHL:

Common integrations:

• Stripe (payments)
• Calendly (appointment booking)
• Google Sheets (data sync)
• Typeform (forms)
• Zapier (custom workflows)

Step 2: Connect Stripe (if used)

If you used Stripe → Ontraport to tag customers on payment:

1. In GHL, go to Settings > Integrations > Stripe
2. Click Connect
3. Follow OAuth flow to authorize GHL to access Stripe
4. Once connected, go to Automations
5. Create a new automation:
   • Trigger: Stripe > Payment Received
   • Action: Tag Contact → “Customer” or “Paid”
   • Activate

Step 3: Connect Calendly (if used)

If you used Calendly for appointment booking:

1. In GHL, go to Settings > Integrations > Calendly
2. Click Connect
3. Authorize GHL to access Calendly
4. Once connected:
   • Go to Calendly > Settings > Integrations
   • Enable GHL as a connected calendar
   • Appointments in Calendly will sync to GHL contacts

Step 4: Set Up Zapier Webhooks (if used)

If you used Zapier for custom workflows:

1. Log into Zapier.com
2. For each Ontraport Zap:
   • Click Edit
   • Change the action from “Ontraport” to “GoHighLevel”
   • Select the appropriate GHL action (e.g., “Create Contact”, “Update Contact”, “Tag Contact”)
   • Test the Zap
   • Turn back on
3. Repeat for all Zaps

Example Zap update:

Trigger: Stripe Payment Received
Action: Update Ontraport Contact → Tag "Customer"

BECOMES:

Trigger: Stripe Payment Received
Action: Update GHL Contact → Tag "Customer"

Step 5: Reconnect Google Sheets (if used)

If you had Ontraport syncing contacts to Google Sheets:

1. In GHL, go to Settings > Integrations > Google Sheets
2. Click Connect
3. Authorize GHL
4. Set up sync:
   • Source: GHL Contacts (from a specific list)
   • Destination: Google Sheet
   • Sync frequency: Daily or real-time
5. Test: Add a contact in GHL; verify it appears in Google Sheets within 1–5 minutes

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Phase 7: Migration Testing and Parallel Run (1 Hour)

Step 1: Test All Critical Workflows

Before sunsetting Ontraport, test each rebuilt automation:

Workflow	Test Method	Success Criteria
Welcome series	Signup with test email	Receive all 5 emails at correct intervals
Nurture sequence	Tag test contact with “Lead”	Receive first nurture email within 1 hour
Abandoned cart	Trigger with Stripe test payment	Receive abandonment email within 2 hours
Re-engagement	Wait 61+ days or manually trigger	Receive re-engagement email
Form submission	Submit