Define Events in FullStory

Defining events in FullStory lets you assign your own names to user behavior events you track. They’re particularly useful for giving a more human name to your most common searches, lengthy URL paths, high-interest events, and other events with complex criteria. This helps make your FullStory data more meaningful and easy to understand. After you name an event, you can search for it by name when analyzing your data.

Getting Started with Defining Events

There are three places to define events in FullStory: Inspect Mode, the event builder and Settings 

Inspect Mode

1. While watching a session, go to Page Insights > Inspect Mode. 
2. Click on an element you’d like to define, then click "Define event."
3. Name your event and add a description. 
4. Use the event builder to add additional criteria as needed.
5.  Click “Save.”

Event builder

Alternatively, you also have the option of defining an event directly from your event builder. Simply add the event criteria you're interested in, then click the vertical ellipses and choose "Define event" to save your criteria. 

Settings

Finally, you can create and manage your events under Settings > Data Management > Events. Click “Create Event” to define your criteria.

When the pop up menu appears:

1. Give your element a name
2. Write a description that helps you remember what this element represents
3. Choose a definition from the event activity filter

Search

After you define an event, you can search for it by name when building segments, funnels, metrics, and dashboards. Use the Custom Event filter to see a dropdown of all events in your account.

FAQ

Are events protected objects?
Yes. They can only be modified, archived or deleted by the original object creator (Admins or Architects).

Are events retroactive?
Yes! After you define an event, you can use it to search through all past and future FullStory data. However, these events are not retroactive in Journeys.

How many event filters can I add to an event?
You can add up to 10 event filters to your event using the "OR" operator. 

Will FullStory let me know if my site changes and my event no longer makes sense?
Yes - Data Quality Monitoring helps you identify data objects that may have configuration issues.

Do events work with Webhooks?
No, events don't work with FullStory webhooks or other webhook-based integrations such as the Zapier integration. Please use custom events defined via the FullStory JavaScript API for those integrations. 

What's the difference between defining an event and naming an element? 
Defining events allows you to assign a name to specific user behavior whereas naming elements apply to CSS selectors only. You can reference an element when defining an event (for example, clicked element “Add to Cart” when the Visited URL starts with /category-listing”).