---
schema_version: "1"
id: 4825be064219da53fcccdb4e44fcd53b8ba1252fd1271902399f91ed360c8c68
title: API Event Entry Source Use Case
collection: admin
version: current
locale: en-us
portal_url: https://docs.salesforce.com/admin/current/en-us/mktg/264-0-0/mc_jb_api_entry_source_use_case_1.md
canonical_url: https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=mktg.mc_jb_api_entry_source_use_case_1.htm&release=264.0.0&type=5
source_site: help.salesforce.com
content_type: documentation
content_hash: 067c6da6c40c2e11261b9e9375a8c782a0a87e03545a5335853f3d02e6b92360
description: A marketer at Northern Trails Outfitters (NTO) works with a developer to set up an API that admits customers into a Marketing Cloud Engagement journey every day. In this example, the marketer and developer work to set up the API Event and API request, and then test sending a single contact into a journey. The API is intended to send a single contact at a time. It admits contacts when they’re ready to enter the journey rather than queuing or batching them.
products:
  - Marketing
  - Marketing Cloud Engagement
release: "264"
---
# API Event Entry Source Use Case

A marketer at Northern Trails Outfitters (NTO) works with a developer to set up an API that admits customers into a Marketing Cloud Engagement journey every day. In this example, the marketer and developer work to set up the API Event and API request, and then test sending a single contact into a journey. The API is intended to send a single contact at a time. It admits contacts when they’re ready to enter the journey rather than queuing or batching them.

1. Create a journey from scratch.
2. Add the API Event onto the journey canvas as the journey's entry source.
3. Click to open the entry source.
4. Copy the Event Definition Key and provide it to the developer.
5. Configure the journey activities. Then save and activate the journey.
6. With the Event Definition Key in hand, the developer uses the instructions [here](https://developer.salesforce.com/docs/marketing/marketing-cloud/references/mc_rest_interaction/postEvent.html) to create the API request to fire the entry event.
7. The developer gets a sample ContactKey that is linked to All Contacts in Contact Builder to put into the API request. This key corresponds to the contact that enters the journey when the request is fired. The developer then uses an API client to send the test request.

The request includes the Event Definition Key generated when the marketer sets up the API Event entry source. When the API request is sent, the contact whose ContactKey is included in the request enters the journey.

#### See Also

- [Fire an Entry Event](https://developer.salesforce.com/docs/marketing/marketing-cloud/guide/how-to-fire-an-event.html)
- [Configure a Wait Until API Event Activity](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=mktg.mc_jb_wait_until_api_event.htm&release=264.0.0&type=5 "Follow these steps to configure a Wait Until API Event activity in Journey Builder. This feature uses the same API events configured for journey entry events.")