# Editing the copy and activating a journey

**Category:** [CRM](https://help.totalctrl.app/hc/totalctrl/totalctrl-help-center/en-US/categories/crm-1)
**Updated:** 2026-10-04

Starter journeys arrive as drafts precisely so you can put them in your own words before anyone receives them.
### Edit first

- Open **CRM › Journeys** and click a journey.
- Edit each email's subject and body.
- Use `{{first_name}}` to greet the person by name — it falls back to “there” when you have no first name on record. `{{email}}` is also available.

### Then activate

Change the journey's status from **Draft** to **Active**. Only then does anything send.

**Read this before activating a filter-based journey.** “Trial ending soon” and “Trial expired” enrol everyone who *already* matches the moment you switch them on — not just people who match from that point forward. If ten accounts are currently inside their last three days, all ten receive the email shortly after activation. Make sure the copy is right first.

The **Welcome** and **Onboarding drip** journeys behave differently: they only enrol contacts created *after* activation, so switching them on never mails your existing list.

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## Related Articles

- [How people are enrolled](https://help.totalctrl.app/en-US/articles/journeys-enrolment)
- [CRM Templates: tailor your Contact, Company & Task forms](https://help.totalctrl.app/en-US/articles/crm-templates-tailor-your-contact-company-task-forms)
- [Work pipelines and deals](https://help.totalctrl.app/en-US/articles/crm-pipelines-and-deals)
- [Journeys API: integration guide (with code)](https://help.totalctrl.app/en-US/articles/journeys-api-integration)
- [Trial and lifecycle information on contacts](https://help.totalctrl.app/en-US/articles/journeys-trial-data)

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