Klaviyo adds Events API backfill support and changes profile conversations
Klaviyo now accepts a backfill: true flag for Create Event and Bulk Create Events, suppressing flow triggers for historical events. Its profile relationship also changes from conversation to conversations, with one entry returned for each channel, including SMS, WhatsApp, and Instagram. Shopify merchants should review both API behaviors before updating connected workflows.
Historical events can bypass flow triggers
The Events API change adds a backfill flag at the request level. When set to true, historical events do not trigger flows. This gives merchants a way to load past activity without treating that activity as a new customer action.
The flag applies to both Create Event and Bulk Create Events. The practical decision is whether an event represents past activity or a current action, because the setting changes whether related flows run. The Klaviyo changelog is the public reference for this update.
Profile conversations now return by channel
Klaviyo renamed the profile conversation relationship to conversations. The response now returns one entry per channel, covering SMS, WhatsApp, and Instagram.
Any Shopify integration that reads the former conversation relationship should be checked for the renamed identifier. Channel specific handling may also need attention because the response represents separate entries rather than one combined relationship.
What to review in a Shopify integration
For event imports, inspect whether historical records are sent through Create Event or Bulk Create Events and whether the backfill flag is included when flow suppression is required. For profile data, inspect code that reads conversation and update it to conversations.
These changes address two concrete store needs: importing past events without triggering customer flows, and reading profile conversation data separately by communication channel.
