Content

Custom Fields

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You can define any number of custom fields to store contact information that is not one of the standard fields. Custom fields can appear on subscription forms and custom information can also be added or edited in the arpReach admin system.

“Use custom fields to store contact information that is not covered by the standard fields such as email address, name, address etc”

Important Note: Custom fields must be defined before custom information can be assigned to contacts AND before you attempt to import any custom/unique contact data into arpReach.

Managing custom fields

To add a custom field go to Content / Custom Fields / Create New.

When creating or editing a custom field, the settings as the same:

  • Name – the name for the custom field. Every custom field must have a unique name for easy management.
  • Tag – the unique tag for the custom field. This is used to pull the information from contact records into messages. For example, the tag for a “hat size” custom field could be “hat_size” and this information would be included in messages with the tag {CUSTOM_hat_size}.
    The tag can contain letters, numbers, and underscores, but no spaces.
  • Description – the description for the custom field. This is never displayed to contacts.
  • Field label – the label to be used for this field on subscription forms.
  • Field type – choose the type of input to be displayed on the subscription forms for this custom field. The field types are:
    — Single line of text – the contact can enter one line of text in a text input field.
    — Multiple lines of text – the contact can enter several lines of text on a textarea input field.
    — Dropdown list – the contact can choose one item from a predefined list.
    — Checkbox – the contact can check or uncheck a box.

To edit a custom field, go to Content / Custom Fields / Show List:

… and choose Edit from the Choose action… drop-down menu.

The custom fields can be sorted by name or description using the Order by drop-down menu.

The With selected… menu allows you to delete the selected custom fields. Deleting a custom field deletes that information in all contact records.

Using the I want to… drop-down menu, you can create a new custom field or delete all custom fields. Choosing to delete all custom fields here also deletes all custom field data in all contact records.

Under the Actions column, the Choose action… drop-down menu has the options to:

  • Edit
  • Copy
  • Copy then edit
  • Delete

“Use a dropdown list custom field to restrict the choices your contact can make when filling out a subscription form”

Single Emails

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Single emails have a specific purpose and are sent automatically when triggered by the actions of your contacts. It is unlike a broadcast message where you send it to a specific group of contacts at a certain date/time.

The ability to send a single email as the result of a contact triggering one of your predefined actions has many powerful uses and benefits to your business.

Managing your single emails

To create a single email, go to Content / Single Emails / Create New.

To edit a single email, go to Content / Single Emails / Show List:

… and choose Edit from the Choose action… drop-down menu.

When creating or editing a single email, the settings are the same.

The Settings Tab

  • Name – a unique name for the single email.
  • Description – a description for the single email. This is never displayed to your contacts.
Tracking and reporting Section

  • Track open rate for HTML and multi-part messages – check  this box to track the open rate for the single email if it is sent in HTML/multi-part format.

The Sender Tab

Email system Section

  • Send with this email system – choose the email system to be use to send the single email.
From and reply-to Section

  • Sender name – the name to be used as the From name for the single email.
  • Sender email address – the email address to be used as the From email address for the single email.
  • Reply-to email address – the email address to be used as the Reply-to email address for the single email.
Persona Section

  • Send with this persona – the persona to be used to personalize the single email.

The Message Tab

Content Section

  • Subject – the subject of the single email.
  • Format – the format of the single email.
  • Template to load into editors – choose a template to load into the plain text and HTML editors. Existing copy in the editing boxes will be lost.
  • Plain text content – the plain text copy of the single email.
  • HTML content – the HTML copy of the single email.
Layout Section

  • Manage subscriptions link – check this box to add the manage subscriptions link to the message.
  • Affiliate link – check this box to add your affiliate link to the end of the message.
Attachments Section

  • Files to attach to message – check the file attachments that you want to append to the single email.

Single emails can be sorted by date/time added, name, description, subject, send count, open count, and bounce count using the Order by drop-down menu.

The With selected… menu allows you to delete the selected single emails.

Using the I want to… drop-down menu, you can create a single email and delete all single emails.

Under the Actions column, the Choose action… drop-down menu has the options to:

  • Preview – preview the message in a pop-up window. Your browser needs to allow pop-ups for this to work. The preview window has tabs for the plain text and HTML versions of the message.
  • Test – send yourself a test version of the message.
  • Reports – graphical reports on the open and bounce rates for the message.
  • Edit – edit the message settings and its content.
  • Copy/Copy then edit – create a new message by copying the message’s settings and content.
  • Delete – delete the single email.

Trackable Power Links

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What are Trackable Power Links?

Every email should have a purpose. Virtually every marketing email will contain a call to action which involves the reader clicking a link that takes them to the next stage in a marketing or sales funnel.

Rather than just provide a direct link to the next page or action, good email marketing practice dictates that the clicking action itself is recorded and associated with the contact.

One of the standard reasons for this “click-tracking” is to allow you to start to segment your contacts at a basic level into groups of “interested” or “not”, but arpReach trackable links give you massively powerful additional advantages. Every trackable link becomes a “power link” that allows you to trigger one or more additional actions.  For example, a contact who clicks a trackable link can also be tagged, added to segments for remarketing, moved to a different autoresponder campaign, and have custom form fields added or edited.

Trackable links can also be used to cloak (hide) the URL of the destination web page as this is not shown when the link is inserted into messages.

In this section:

To create a trackable link go to Content / Trackable Links / Create New.

When creating or editing a trackable link the settings are the same:

  • Name – a unique name for the link.
  • Tag – unique tag to insert the link into messages. They can contain letters, numbers, and an underscore ( _ ), but not a dash ( – ).
  • Description – the description for the link. This is never displayed to contacts.
  • Web page to redirect to – the URL of the web page that the contact will be redirected to when they click the link. This option has a test (check) icon to ensure the correct URL has been entered.
  • Post contact – check this box to send the contact data to the redirect page as an HTTP post request.
  • Add contact variables to URL – check this box to add the contact data variables to the redirect page’s URL.

To edit a trackable link, go to Content / Trackable Links / Show List.

… and choose Edit from the Choose action… drop-down menu:

Important Note: While you can edit every element of the trackable link, if you change the actual tag ({LINK_this_bit}), any links in any emails that are using the original tag will break.

The Contacts column shows the number of unique contacts who have clicked the link at least once. Click the number in that column to view those contacts.

The trackable links can be ordered by name or description using the Order by drop-down menu.

The With selected… menu allows you to delete the selected trackable links.

Using the I want to… drop-down menu, you can refresh the Links list screen, create a new trackable link, or delete all trackable links.

Under the Actions column, the Choose action… drop-down menu has options to:

  • Report (graphical charts on click-throughs)
  • Edit
  • Copy
  • Copy then edit
  • Delete

Adding trackable links to your emails

If your trackable link Tag setting is “my_link”, then you would insert this link into your follow-up and broadcast messages using:

{LINK_my_link}

Advanced use on landing pages

Sending your contact data using either of the available methods could be used to personalize the page your contact is sent to with their name.

The Post contact option is more secure than the Add contact variables to URL option. The Add contact variables to URL option appends all of the contacts details to the URL in plain text, while the Post contact option hides the contacts details.

You or your programmer could then extract and display/use the contact’s variables using CURL or PHP.

A PHP example that finds the First Name for the contact is:

$_GET[‘first_name’]

To display the first name of the contact using PHP, you would use a code similar to:

echo $_POST['first_name'];

Ads

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Ads are blocks of plain text and HTML that you manage centrally and can insert the latest version into follow-up and broadcast messages with simple tags such as {AD_Shoes_S}. If you change the content of an ad, the new version will automatically be used in your messages without having to edit them.

Managing your ads

To create a new ad, go to Content / Ads / Create New.

To edit an ad, go to Content / Ads / Show List:

… and choose Edit from the Choose action… drop-down menu.

When creating or editing an ad, the settings are the same.

The Settings Tab

  • Name – a unique name for your ad.
  • Tag – a unique tag for this ad that will be used to insert its contents into your messages. For example, your ad tag is Shoes_S. You would use the tag/shortcode {AD_Shoes_S} to insert the ad’s content into a message. Using {AD_Shoes_S Currently Not Available} would display “Currently Not Available” if no content is stored for the ad Shoes_S.
    The tags {AD_Shoes_S} and {AD_TEXT_Shoe_S} will insert the plain text version of the ad into messages, while the tag {AD_HTML_Shoes_S} will insert the HTML version of the ad into messages.
  • Alternative tags (plain text) – alternative tags that will be used to insert the plain text version of this ad into messages. Exclude braces, and the tag should be different from any tag already used by arpReach. Separate multiple tags by commas. For example: TEXT_ShoeAdSmall, TEXT_ShoeAd01.
  • Alternative tags (HTML) – alternative tags that will be used to insert the HTML version of this ad into messages. Exclude braces, and the tag should be different from any tag already used by arpReach. Separate multiple tags by commas. For example: HTML_ShoeAdSmall, HTML_ShoeAd01.
  • Description – a description for this ad. This is never displayed to contacts.

The Content Tab

  • Plain text content – the plain text version of the ad.
  • HTML content – the HTML version of the ad. You can add the content as raw HTML or use the built-in WYSIWYG editor by clicking the Toggle editor link.

Ads can be sorted by name, description, tag, or content using the Order by drop-down menu.

The With selected… menu allows you to delete the selected ads.

Using the I want to… drop-down menu, you can create a new ad or delete all ads.

Under the Actions column, the Choose action… drop-down menu has the options to:

  • Preview
  • Edit
  • Copy
  • Copy then edit
  • Delete

#V2-exclusive: RSS to Email

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The RSS to Email feature gives you the ability to use RSS Feeds within your emails and drive your readers back to the source of information, which is usually your blog. You can use this feature in lots of creative ways as part of your marketing automation strategy.

#V2 allows you to connect to and read an RSS Feed into variables, which you can then use to insert to your follow-up and broadcast messages.

To connect an RSS Feed, go to Content / Variables / List RSS Feeds:

… and choose Connect new RSS feed from the I want to… drop-down menu:

To edit an RSS Feed, choose Edit from the Choose action… drop-down menu.

When adding or editing an RSS Feed, the settings are the same.

  • Variable Prefix – enter a unique prefix for variables to be populated from RSS Feed. V2 will generate a set of variables for each RSS Feed numbered from 1 for the very newest post and up to the max number of posts to read (e.g., Blog1_TITLE, Blog1_LINK, Blog1_DATE, Blog1_CONTENT, Blog1_ENCLOSURE for the newest post and Blog2_TITLE, Blog2_LINK, Blog2_DATE, Blog2_CONTENT, Blog2_ENCLOSURE for the previous post).
    Use variable tags to insert their content into messages. For example:

    New post "{VARIABLE_Blog1_TITLE}" at {VARIABLE_Blog1_DATE} was published <a href="{VARIABLE_Blog1_LINK}">HERE</a>. Read it now: {VARIABLE_Blog1_CONTENT}
  • RSS Name – enter a unique name for the RSS Feed.
  • RSS URL – enter the URL of the RSS Feed.
  • Max number of posts to read – enter the max number of posts to read from the RSS Feed. This limits the number of variables to be generated. When an RSS Feed contains fewer posts, variables would be generated for existing posts only.
  • Fetch Feed Interval (hours) – enter the interval (in hours) to fetch the RSS Feed and renew the variables.

Once you have added/connected your RSS Feed, you will see the first and last variables that you can use.

The RSS Feed variables that are also available for you to use will also be listed on the Variables list screen (Content / Variables / Show List).

The RSS Feed variables will appear after any existing variables in the list. Depending on how many variables you have available, you may need to use the list paging buttons (see image above) to go to the next page.

Tip! Create a looping autoresponder message which gets sent to your contacts once per week. In the message, you could include the RSS Feed variable tags/shortcodes for your latest blog posts. Providing you update your blog with a new post at least once a week, your readers will get fresh content delivered by email with a link to read the full blog post on your blog.

RSS Feeds are read during the run of the #V2 script (cron job) as scheduled (based on the Fetch Feed Interval settings). You can enable/disable the RSS Feeds reading task in Setup / System Settings / Scheduled Tasks / Settings / Enable schedule tasks.

Variables

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Variables are small blocks of information (e.g., prices) that you manage centrally. You use simple tags such as {VARIABLE_Price} to insert the information into follow-up and broadcast messages. If you change the content of a variable, the new information will automatically be used in your messages without having to edit them.

In this section:

“Variables are great for small snippets of information that you need to insert into messages but may need to keep changing”

Managing your variables

To create a new variable, go to Content / Variables / Create New.

When creating a variable, you need to supply:

  • Name – a unique name for the variable.
  • Tag – a unique tag for this variable. Use tags to insert the variable’s content into messages. For example, your variable tag is Discount_Price. You would use the tag/shortcode {VARIABLE_Discount_Price} to insert the variable’s content into a message. Using {VARIABLE_Discount_Price Call For Details} would display “Call For Details” if no content is stored for the variable Discount_Price.
  • Description – a description for this variable. This is never displayed to contacts.
  • Content – the content that will be inserted into messages.

    #V2-exclusive: The content can be plain text or HTML.
    If the content contains HTML, the tag/shortcode {VARIABLE_Discount_Price Call For Details} will display the HTML version in HTML/multi-part messages and the RAW HTML in plain text messages. To display just the content in plain text messages, wrap the shortcode to be shown inside the HTML to TEXT conversion code: {HTML_TO_TEXT {VARIABLE_Discount_Price Call For Details}} (note the space between the word TEXT and the second open curly bracket). In the image below, you will see how the shortcode is being used on a broadcast message’s content in both plain text and HTML formats.

To edit a variable, go to Content / Variables / Show List:

… and choose Edit from the Choose action… drop-down menu.

Variables can be sorted by name, description, tag, or content using the Order by drop-down menu.

The With selected… menu allows you to delete the selected variables.

Using the I want to… drop-down menu, you can create a new variable or delete all variables.

Under the Actions column, the Choose action… drop-down menu has the options to:

  • Edit
  • Copy
  • Copy then edit
  • Delete

#V2-exclusive: Nested Variables

#V2 allows you to work in a smart way to deliver highly topical content to your contacts by using Nested Variables.

A nested variable is where two or more variables are joined together to provide a more focused level of content based on your contacts needs or wants.

As an example, look at this HTML code which uses a nested variable:

<p>It looks like you are based in {VARIABLE_Country_{COUNTRY_CODE __NONE__}}.</p>

To explain it, we can break this code down into its elements by color:

  1. {VARIABLE_Country_xxxxxxx}
  2. {COUNTRY_CODE xxxxxxx}
  3. __NONE__

1 is the main variable Country_.
2 is, in this case, a two-letter country code which is called from and set in the Standard Contact fields.
3 is the default text that will be shown if a contact does not have a country code assigned in the Standard Contact fields. (If you have set up IP2Location, you should get a country code for all contacts.)

Let’s say you only created variables for contacts in the United Kingdom and the United States of America, the two-character country codes are GB and US.

By using Nested Variables, #V2 would convert the full variable for contacts in the UK and the USA to:

{VARIABLE_Country_GB}
{VARIABLE_Country_US}

Continuing this example, because you did not set up a variable for contacts in, say, Australia, Australian contacts would receive messages with the default variable (which you must setup):

{VARIABLE_Country___NONE__}

If you create and save the following as variables:

NAMETAGCONTENT
Country GBCountry_GBthe United Kingdom
Country USCountry_USthe United States of America
Country NONECountry___NONE__a lovely part of the world

The HTML code we started with:

<p>It looks like you are based in {VARIABLE_Country_{COUNTRY_CODE __NONE__}}.</p>

… would display the following message for contacts in the UK:

It looks like you are based in the United Kingdom.

… the following message for contacts in the US:

It looks like you are based in the United States of America.

… and the following message for contacts in Australia or any other country that has not been configured (Because they will see what is detailed for __NONE__ ):

It looks like you are based in a lovely part of the world.

Of course, if you do create a variable for the county code AU with the content “Australia”, Australian contacts would see the message:

It looks like you are based in Australia.

You are limited only by your creativity when using Nested Variables, but make sure to thoroughly test your messages before you make them live.

Attachments

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The attachment library is a central repository of files that you can attach to your messages.

By managing the files centrally, you can easily update a file without the need to edit all of the messages that have that file as an attachment.

“Centralized management of attachments means you can change them without having to change your follow-up or broadcast messages”

Managing your attachment library

To add an attachment to your library, go to Content / Attachments / Add an Attachment.

To edit an attachment, go to Content / Attachments / Show List:

… and choose Edit from the Choose action… drop-down menu.

When adding or editing an attachment, the settings are the same.

  • Name – a unique name for the attachment.
  • Description – a description for the attachment. This is never displayed to contacts.
  • File to upload – choose the file to be uploaded from your computer and stored in the attachment library.

Note that the maximum upload file size is dependent to your web host limitations. If you need to upload a file that is larger than what is currently allowed, contact your web host and ask them to increase the limit.

Attachments can be sorted by name and description using the Order by drop-down menu.

The With selected… menu allows you to delete the selected attachments. There is no need to make any changes to the messages that had those attachments.

Using the I want to… drop-down menu, you can add a new attachment or delete all attachments.

Under the Actions column, the Choose action… drop-down menu has the options to:

  • Preview – preview the attachment in a pop-up window. Your browser needs to allow pop-ups for this to work.
  • Edit – edit the attachment settings and its file content.
  • Copy/Copy then edit – add a new attachment by copying the attachment’s settings and file content.
  • Delete – delete the attachment.

Adding an Attachment to a Message

When creating or editing a follow-up, broadcast, and single email message, you can choose the attachment/s to be added to the message by selecting them from the attachments list.

For follow-up messages: Add or edit a message, go to the Message tab, expand the Attachments section, then check off the attachment/s to be added to the follow-up message.

For follow-up message variants, add or edit a variant, expand the Attachments section, then check off the attachment/s to be added to the follow-up message variant.

For broadcast messages: Schedule or edit a broadcast, go to the Message tab, expand the Attachments section, then check off the attachment/s to be added to the broadcast message.

For broadcast message variants, add or edit a variant, expand the Attachments section, then check off the attachment/s to be added to the broadcast message variant.

“Both broadcast and follow-up message variants can have different files attached”

For single emails: Create or edit a single email, go to the Message tab, expand the Attachments section, then check off the attachment/s to be added to the single email.

Templates

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Within the Content menu, there are two sub-menus relating to templates: Templates and Template Groups.

Templates

A template can be a framework or it can be used to create and store re-usable blocks of content that you can easily pull into follow-up and broadcast messages. Each template has a unique name, a description for your use, plain text content, HTML content, and an optional template group.

To create a template, go to Content / Templates / Create New.

The Settings tab allows you to set the name, description, and the group that you want the template to belong to.

The Content tab allows you to enter the text and HTML versions of the template. You can preview your template content in both sections by clicking their respective Preview links.

“Make sure your browser has pop-ups enabled for all arpReach preview features to work”

#V2-exclusive: As a #V2 user you only need to create your template in the HMTL content box. This is because #V2 automatically converts HTML content (including links) into Text and then automatically populates the Plain text content box.

This saves you time and ensures that when you send Multi-part emails (text and HTML combined) the content of both message types is exactly the same which helps reduce the risk of your content being mis-diagnosed as spam.

Very Important Note: When you update or change the HTML content box you MUST delete the existing content in the plain content box before saving. This will ensure that the plain text content gets updated with the new HTML content.
If you don’t delete the plain text content before saving the HTML changes your plain text version will be different to the HTML content which will likely cause delivery problems.

For the HTML content, the box opens in “HTML mode” which means you need to paste or create your content in HTML. Click the Toggle editor link for a comprehensive visual WYSIWYG editor.

Important Note: The WYSIWYG editor will strip some HTML tags from your template such as the HTML that appears in the <head> of a message. Templates should contain only the body HTML and copy that you want to appear in the body of your messages. Headers and footers are created under a different menu option, and we explain how to create and use your templates in the relevant Autoresponder and Broadcast sections.

arpReach Tip! We recommend that you create your template in HTML first. Then, with the WYSIWYG editor selected, copy the entire text inside the HTML content box and paste it in the Plain text content box.

This ensures that you have the exact same words in both the plain text and HTML versions of the template, and will help ensure that your template does not trigger any spam filters due to different word content.

#V2-exclusive: As a #V2 user you only need to create your template in the HMTL content box.  This is because #V2 automatically converts HTML content (including links) into Text and then automatically populates the Plain text content box.

This saves you time and ensures that when you send Multi-part emails (text and HTML combined) the content of both message types is exactly the same which helps reduce the risk of your content being mis-diagnosed as spam.

Very Important Note: When you update or change the HTML content box you MUST delete the existing content in the plain content box before saving.  This will ensure that the plain text content gets updated with the new HTML content.
If you don't delete the plain text content before saving the HTML changes your plain text version will be different to the HTML content which will likely cause delivery problems.

 To edit your templates, go to Content / Templates / Show List:

… and choose Edit from the Choose action… drop-down menu.

Templates can be sorted by name, description, or group name using the Order by drop-down menu.

The With selected… menu allows you to change the group of or delete the selected templates.

Using the I want to… drop-down menu, you can create a new template or delete all templates.

You can also filter the templates list by group using the Filter drop-down menu.

Under the Actions column, the Choose action… drop-down menu has options to:

  • Preview (pop-ups must be allowed)
  • Edit
  • Copy
  • Copy then edit
  • Delete

Template Groups

Template groups allow you to more easily manage your templates. Each template group can contain any number of templates and you can move templates from group to group at any time. If you are planning to have or use lots of templates, we recommend you use groups to make it easy for you to find what you want to work with.

“Create groups for your templates for ease of management”

To create a template group, go to Content / Template Groups / Create Group.

A template group simply has a name and a description.

To edit your template groups, go to Content / Template Groups / Show Groups:

… and choose Edit from the Choose action… menu.

Template groups can be sorted by name, description, or template count using the Order by drop-down menu.

The With selected… menu allows you to delete the selected groups. Note that deleting a template group does not delete the templates in the group.

With the I want to… drop-down menu, you can create a new group or delete all groups. This does not delete the templates in those groups.

Under the Actions column, the Choose action… drop-down menu has the options to:

  • Edit
  • Copy
  • Copy then edit
  • Delete (Templates in the group are not deleted)

Content Overview

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Your content section is the hub and gateway to your “asset” storage. Assets are valuable.

Every message you send should have a primary purpose, like getting your reader to take the action of visiting a webpage. But with a little know-how, you can begin to automate common marketing tasks, collecting, storing, and using relevant factual data about your customers’ choices to improve your relationship and the service you offer or provide them.

In this section, you’ll discover how to use arpReach to provide your contacts with highly relevant content that will help you build trust and improve conversion rates.

Don’t assume that everything in this section is obvious. The basics will get you up and running but the advanced features and capabilities will help you reach your goals and targets faster and open up new opportunities.

You can access all of the content functionality by hovering over Content on the menu bar:

Each of the options available is covered in greater detail. Use the navigation links in the Content Section menu on the left of this page.

Email Templates

Not all email templates are created equal and, once again, the flexibility of arpReach’s template functionality shines through.

With the ability to create multiple header sections, footer sections, and content sections, and then use them all interchangeably, you can create and build your own library that you can use for any purpose.

arpReach templates use a few tricks that will improve your email deliverability so we recommend you discover how to use your templates to their full potential.

Variables

Variables are snippets of information that you can include in your follow-up and broadcast messages. Information such as product prices can be included in messages and easily updated centrally without having to edit messages individually.

Ads

Ads are larger blocks of information in both plain text and HTML format that you can “pull” into your messages with simple tags. For example, you could use these to advertise products or affiliate programs. Central management means you can change the content without having to edit messages individually.

Trackable Links

Every email has a purpose and, generally, that will be getting your reader to click a link. In arpReach, the links can do more than send your reader to a page.

They also act as triggers to power simple or complex automations that take your marketing to the next level.

Because of the power and flexibility a link can have, arpReach does not automatically convert every link in your emails because it doesn’t know what you want it to trigger until you tell it.

You can just add a link to your emails as normal, but we recommend you find out how to use trackable links to their full potential.

By managing them centrally, you can change them without having to edit your messages individually. For example, you could choose to change an affiliate link that you promote and that change will automatically appear in all the messages that contain it.

Custom Fields

arpReach not only allows you to collect basic data about your prospects and customers in its standard fields, but it also allows you to create and utilise an unlimited number of custom fields.

If your business needs to collect unique data or information from your contacts, arpReach allows you to do it.

Find out more about collecting, storing, and using custom data HERE.