Getting Started with Marketing
The Marketing tools in Outcomes allow you to communicate with applicants and contacts through email, text, and voice messages. You can configure your marketing settings, create and manage email templates, and build campaigns to support automated outreach. Review the information below for an overview of the primary marketing features, watch our Getting Started with the Marketing Features webinar, or see the Marketing in Liaison Outcomes section of the help center.
This overview guide will help you get started with:
- Configuring your Marketing settings.
- Creating your templates.
- Working with Quick Messages.
- Building and managing campaigns.
- Reviewing analytics.
Configuring Your Marketing Settings
Before sending messages, you'll need to confirm your settings are correct. To do so, from the Marketing section of the Settings Menu, check the following:
- Email Info: confirm your “From” and “Reply-To” details, which will appear to recipients. You may also add optional items like your website, mailing address, or privacy policy.
- Text and Voice: reserve a phone number (by area code) to send and receive text or voice messages directly in Outcomes.
If applicable, consider warming up your sending domain. Periodically review the Suppressed Items list to determine who has opted out of email, text, or phone communications.
Read more about configuring your Marketing settings.
Working with Email Templates
When sending messages in Outcomes, email templates ensure consistency and save time. There are a few different types:
- Application Email Templates: for applicant communications.
- Contact Email Templates: for communicating with contacts such as parents, counselors, or recommenders.
- System Email Templates: prebuilt system notifications (e.g., login confirmations).
- Marketing Email Templates: for more coordinated communications, usable in Campaigns and Quick Messages. Unlike the other email template options, these are configured using a more advanced drag-and-drop editor.
These email templates feature a built in a drag-and-drop editor where you can add text, images, buttons, and formatting to create polished emails. Templates can also be customized with different sender details for specialized offices or programs.
Working with Quick Messages
Use Quick Messages when you need to send a one-time, bulk communication outside of a campaign. Quick Messages can be:
- Email blasts
- Text messages
- Voice messages
Quick Messages can be targeted by audience type (e.g., applicants, contacts, or specific contact types) and refined using segments to include or exclude groups. Messages can be sent immediately or scheduled for later.
Working with Campaigns
Campaigns are a powerful tool for structuring and automating your Marketing communications.
What is a Campaign?
Campaigns are communication plans that dictate how you’ll interact with a specific audience. They allow you to send a coordinated series of messages across different stages of the recruitment and application funnel. For example, you might establish a campaign for prospective applicants.
Depending on your communication goals, you can create different types of campaigns:
- Blast Campaigns: messages are sent on predetermined dates and times. Ideal for deadline reminders, event promotions, or announcements.
- Nurture/Drip Campaigns: messages are sent based on timing and recipient actions, helping you maintain consistent engagement over time.
Campaigns are made up of tracks, and each track is made up of steps.
What are Tracks?
Tracks are series of communications you want to send, each tied to a specific goal. Within the campaign for prospective applicants, for example, you can create multiple tracks of communications, such as:
- Encourage prospects to apply.
- Remind applicants to complete their application.
- Encourage admitted students to enroll.
What are Campaign Steps?
Within each track, you can schedule multiple steps. For example, in a reminder track you might include:
- Step 1: an introductory email to welcome applicants.
- Step 2: a follow-up email reminding them of missing materials.
- Step 3: a text message highlighting important deadlines.
- Step 4: a final email with more information about your program.
Each step in a campaign can include different message types, including emails, text messages, and voice messages.
In the case of Contact-based Campaigns, you can also tailor your campaign steps using engagement-based rules. For example, you can:
- Send a follow-up message only to recipients who didn’t open the previous email.
- Adjust communications based on whether a recipient clicked a link.
- Stop sending additional messages once a recipient takes the desired action.
This ensures that your audience only receives relevant communications.
Setting Up Campaigns
To create and manage Campaigns, click Campaigns in the Marketing section of the Navigation Menu. Each campaign allows you to configure its name, active dates, audience, and other information.
Managing Campaigns
Once a campaign is created, you can:
- Copy existing tracks to save time when building new campaigns.
- Deactivate campaigns when they are no longer active (their data remains available for reference).
- Use Quick Messages for one-time communications outside of a structured campaign.
Working with Campaign Analytics
You can measure your campaign's performance by reviewing its analytics. To do so, click Analytics in the More Options menu of the Campaign Builder. From here you can review detailed statistics, including:
- Summary: campaign name, number of messages sent.
- Email Statistics: total emails sent, opened, link clicks, open rate, click-through rate, and opt-outs.
- Text Statistics: number of text messages sent and delivered.
- Voice Statistics: number of voice messages sent.
Charts and visualizations are also available to help you quickly assess engagement and trends.
What are some best practices when working with campaigns?
Here are some things to consider when building campaigns:
- Less is more: send fewer, targeted messages to engaged recipients rather than sending high volumes of emails to unengaged ones.
- Protect your sender reputation: avoid spam-like behavior and focus on relevant, valuable content.
- Use analytics to adjust strategy: regularly monitor campaign performance to refine your messaging and timing.