Management Center: Create e-mail templates using the Marketing tool in the Management Center

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Create e-mail templates using the Marketing tool in the Management Center

You can use the e-mail template editor in the Marketing tool to define the structure and content of marketing e-mails. You can specify placeholders in the e-mail template that the server replaces with actual content before sending the e-mails. You must create an e-mail template before you can create and send an e-mail activity or a Dialog activity that uses the Send Message action to send an e-mail.
As an alternative to this task, a store developer can create a custom e-mail template JSP file and then register the template in the WebSphere Commerce database so that you can use the custom template for E-mail and Dialog activities. See Sample JSP code: e-mail template.

Procedure

Open the Marketing tool.

From the toolbar, click the arrow on the right side of New; then select E-Mail Template. The New E-Mail Template page displays.

Enter the e-mail template properties...

Option Description
Name Enter a meaningful name. This name displays in the E-mail Templates - List page, and identifies the e-mail template.
Description Enter a meaningful description. This description should explain what the e-mail template is intended to do.
Record number of e-mails opened If you are interested in collecting statistics on the number of target customers who open the e-mail, select this option.
If you opt to collect this information, when customers open the e-mail, it sends a request to the WebSphere Commerce Server. If you have sent a large number of e-mails, this could affect site performance.
E-mail subject Enter the subject of the e-mail. This displays to customers as the subject in their e-mail client software.
E-mail content Enter the e-mail content. This field acts similar to a simple text editor. You can enter text directly and format it using the buttons found at the top of the field. Furthermore, you can add content spots, and e-Marketing Spots to the e-mail. This allows you to take advantage of the previously created content, and presents a consistent brand image to customers.
To add content that changes according to the customer, select a content placeholder from the Insert content list, and click Insert. Options are:

First name

Inserts a placeholder that is replaced with the e-mail recipient's first name when the e-mail is generated.

Last name

Inserts a placeholder that is replaced with the e-mail recipient's last name when the e-mail is generated.

Link

Inserts a link that becomes active when the e-mail is sent to customers. Selecting this option displays the Click action for link list.

Predefined click action

Select among the following options:

Display catalog entry

This option redirects the customer's browser to a catalog entry display page when the link is clicked. Selecting this option displays a field in which specify the target catalog entry. You can either enter the part number and click Find and Add, or click the Show utilities view icon to open the utilities view, and then search or browse for the appropriate catalog entry to display.

Display category

This option redirects the customer's browser to a category display page when the link is clicked. Selecting this option displays a field in which specify the target category. You can either enter the name of the category and click Find and Add, or click the Show utilities view icon to open the utilities view, and then search or browse for the appropriate category to display.

Add to shopping cart

This option adds a catalog entry to the customer's shopping cart when the link is clicked. Selecting this option displays a field in which specify the SKU of the catalog entry that to add to the customer's shopping cart. You can either enter the SKU and click Find and Add, or click the Show utilities view icon to open the utilities view, and then search or browse for the appropriate SKU to add to the shopping cart.

Add to wish list

This option adds a catalog entry to the customer's wish list when the link is clicked. Selecting this option displays a field in which specify the SKU of the catalog entry that to add to the customer's wish list. You can either enter the SKU and click Find and Add, or click the Show utilities view icon to open the utilities view, and then search or browse for the appropriate SKU to add to the wish list.

Unsubscribe

This option updates the customer's status for receiving e-mail when the link is clicked. If they click this link, they will no longer receive marketing e-mails.

Custom URL as click action

If you select this option, enter the URL that the browser redirects to when a customer clicks the text specified in the Text field. Enter the complete URL, for example, http://www.example.com.
If this URL directs a customer to a site outside of the store, WebSphere Commerce must be configured to allow redirects to the site before the redirect will work properly.

All of the click options except unsubscribe display a Record the number of clicks check box which you can select to record the number of times customers click on the link. This information can be used in reports to determine a link's effectiveness.

Content Spot

Inserts a placeholder that is replaced with the content matching the criteria specified for a content spot created in WebSphere Commerce Accelerator. Enter the name of the content spot between the quotation marks in name="", for example, name="HomePageContentSpot1". To check the name of a content spot, open the explorer view, select Content Spots from the search filter, and search for the content spot.

e-Marketing Spot

Inserts a placeholder that is replaced with the content displayed in an e-Marketing Spot. Enter the name of the e-Marketing Spot between the quotation marks in name="", for example, name="HomePageRow3Ads". To check the name of an e-Marketing Spot, click the E-Marketing Spots folder, and then look up the name in the Name column of the E-Marketing Spots - List page.

Promotion Code

This option issues a unique promotion code to the customer. Selecting this option displays a field in which specify the coupon promotion that to send to the customer. You can either enter the coupon promotion and click Find and Add, or click the Show utilities view icon to open the utilities view, and then search or browse for the appropriate coupon promotion to send to the customer.
Each customer must receive a unique promotion code. That is, all promotion codes that are issued to customers must be different from one another.

Click Save.

Results
The e-mail template is displayed in the E-mail Templates - List.

Related concepts

E-mail templates
E-mail activities
Action: Send Message
Content spots

Related tasks

Changing e-mail templates
Delete e-mail templates

Related reference

Sample JSP code: e-mail template

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Option	Description
Name	Enter a meaningful name. This name displays in the E-mail Templates - List page, and identifies the e-mail template.
Description	Enter a meaningful description. This description should explain what the e-mail template is intended to do.
Record number of e-mails opened	If you are interested in collecting statistics on the number of target customers who open the e-mail, select this option. If you opt to collect this information, when customers open the e-mail, it sends a request to the WebSphere Commerce Server. If you have sent a large number of e-mails, this could affect site performance.
E-mail subject	Enter the subject of the e-mail. This displays to customers as the subject in their e-mail client software.
E-mail content	Enter the e-mail content. This field acts similar to a simple text editor. You can enter text directly and format it using the buttons found at the top of the field. Furthermore, you can add content spots, and e-Marketing Spots to the e-mail. This allows you to take advantage of the previously created content, and presents a consistent brand image to customers. To add content that changes according to the customer, select a content placeholder from the Insert content list, and click Insert. Options are: First name Inserts a placeholder that is replaced with the e-mail recipient's first name when the e-mail is generated. Last name Inserts a placeholder that is replaced with the e-mail recipient's last name when the e-mail is generated. Link Inserts a link that becomes active when the e-mail is sent to customers. Selecting this option displays the Click action for link list. Predefined click action Select among the following options: Display catalog entry This option redirects the customer's browser to a catalog entry display page when the link is clicked. Selecting this option displays a field in which specify the target catalog entry. You can either enter the part number and click Find and Add, or click the Show utilities view icon to open the utilities view, and then search or browse for the appropriate catalog entry to display. Display category This option redirects the customer's browser to a category display page when the link is clicked. Selecting this option displays a field in which specify the target category. You can either enter the name of the category and click Find and Add, or click the Show utilities view icon to open the utilities view, and then search or browse for the appropriate category to display. Add to shopping cart This option adds a catalog entry to the customer's shopping cart when the link is clicked. Selecting this option displays a field in which specify the SKU of the catalog entry that to add to the customer's shopping cart. You can either enter the SKU and click Find and Add, or click the Show utilities view icon to open the utilities view, and then search or browse for the appropriate SKU to add to the shopping cart. Add to wish list This option adds a catalog entry to the customer's wish list when the link is clicked. Selecting this option displays a field in which specify the SKU of the catalog entry that to add to the customer's wish list. You can either enter the SKU and click Find and Add, or click the Show utilities view icon to open the utilities view, and then search or browse for the appropriate SKU to add to the wish list. Unsubscribe This option updates the customer's status for receiving e-mail when the link is clicked. If they click this link, they will no longer receive marketing e-mails. Custom URL as click action If you select this option, enter the URL that the browser redirects to when a customer clicks the text specified in the Text field. Enter the complete URL, for example, http://www.example.com. If this URL directs a customer to a site outside of the store, WebSphere Commerce must be configured to allow redirects to the site before the redirect will work properly. All of the click options except unsubscribe display a Record the number of clicks check box which you can select to record the number of times customers click on the link. This information can be used in reports to determine a link's effectiveness. Content Spot Inserts a placeholder that is replaced with the content matching the criteria specified for a content spot created in WebSphere Commerce Accelerator. Enter the name of the content spot between the quotation marks in name="", for example, name="HomePageContentSpot1". To check the name of a content spot, open the explorer view, select Content Spots from the search filter, and search for the content spot. e-Marketing Spot Inserts a placeholder that is replaced with the content displayed in an e-Marketing Spot. Enter the name of the e-Marketing Spot between the quotation marks in name="", for example, name="HomePageRow3Ads". To check the name of an e-Marketing Spot, click the E-Marketing Spots folder, and then look up the name in the Name column of the E-Marketing Spots - List page. Promotion Code This option issues a unique promotion code to the customer. Selecting this option displays a field in which specify the coupon promotion that to send to the customer. You can either enter the coupon promotion and click Find and Add, or click the Show utilities view icon to open the utilities view, and then search or browse for the appropriate coupon promotion to send to the customer. Each customer must receive a unique promotion code. That is, all promotion codes that are issued to customers must be different from one another.