Content Blocks are what you can build your emails, prints, webpages, or advisor pages from when you're building your content in the Channels module. A Content Block cannot be added to an SMS. To use a Content Block, you have to create your outbound communication or portal page first. Then, you can then add Content Blocks to customise the layout.
Depending on your template, you will have access to Content Blocks that can contain, for example, images, text boxes, and call-to-action buttons.
In this article, you will find information about:
- How to Add a Content Block to an Email, Print, Webpage, or Advisor Page
- Multi Content Blocks
- Promotion Block
- One-to-Many Block
- Global Data Table Block
- Data-Lookup Block
- Person to Person Lookup Block
How to Add a Content Block to an Email, Print, Webpage, or Advisor Page
- Log in to Staging.
- Open the Channels module and select the communication you want to add Content Blocks to.
- Hover over a Content Block.
- Click on the '+' icon in the grey Content Block toolbar.
- When the 'Block selector' pop-up appears, select a Content Block from your template and click it.
A new Content Block has been added to your outbound communication or portal page.
How to add a new Block to an email
All newly added Content Blocks are by default static, meaning that the content in the block will be displayed to all recipients. To personalise a Content Block, such as displaying the Content Block to certain Target Groups only, the Content Block type must match the type of personalisation you're trying to achieve. This could mean you have to change your Content Block from static to a Promotion Block, Multi Content Block, or some other type of Content Block.
Multi Content Blocks
A Multi Content Block is designed to show content in a communication based on a Target Group.
If a recipient fits the Conditions set in the Target Group, the recipient will see the content. If the recipient doesn't meet the Conditions, the Block will not be displayed.
Before creating a Multi Content Block, you need to create one or more Target groups.
How to Create a Multi Content Block
- Open the Channels module and navigate to the communication you want to add the Multi Content Block to.
- Add a new Content Block or choose an existing one.
- Hover over your Content Block.
- Click the 'i' icon in the grey Content Block toolbar.
- The 'Properties' panel will appear to the right. Select 'Multi Content' from the drop-down and then click 'Save'.
- Hover over your Content Block again.
- Click on the 'i' icon in the yellow Content Block toolbar underneath your grey Content Block toolbar.
- The 'Properties' panel will appear to the right. Leave the first drop-down as it is, keeping the Block as a Static Block. Select your Target Group from the second drop-down.
- Click 'Save'.
Your Multi Content Block is now ready.
A Multi-content Block setup to show for recipients who should get a 20% discount on the webshop
Promotion Block
Once you've created a Promotion and added Propositions to the Promotion, you might want to insert your Promotion into content in order to show personalised content to different recipients.
To do this, you'll need to insert a Promotion Block and then add content to the Block.
How to Create a Promotion Block
- Open the Channels module and navigate to the communication you want to add the Promotion Block to.
- Add a Content Block and hover over the Content Block.
- Click the 'i' icon in the grey Content Block toolbar.
- A drop-down will appear in the properties panel to the right and choose 'Promotion' from the first drop-down.
- Select the name of the Promotion you want to use in the next drop down and click it.
You can change the settings of the Promotion here if you need to. (See Table 1 below) - Click 'Save'.
Your Promotion Block is now ready to have content added.
How to change a Static Block into a Promotion Block
Promotion Block Properties panel
| Field name | Description |
| Block Type drop-down | Choose 'Promotion' Block Type here. You can change the Block type in the drop-down menu if you change your mind |
| Select Promotion drop-down | Select the Promotion you want to use here |
| Proposition(s) shown | Fill in the number of Proposition(s) that you want to show at a time |
| Proposition(s) skipped | Fill in the number of Proposition(s) you want to skip if any |
| Count Exposures | Leave 'Count exposures' selected if you want to report on recipients exposure to your Propositions |
| Collapse Block | Select 'Collapse Block' if you want your Promotion Block to collapse if a recipient does not meet any of your Propositions' Conditions |
| Random Propositions | Select 'Random propositions' if you want to ignore the Conditions you set on your Propositions and instead show Propositions at random |
Table 1: Promotion Block Properties
The next step depends on what type of Content Block you need to insert your Promotion content into. In most cases, you can simply add the content as described in the steps below.
How to Add Content to a Promotion Block
- Hover over your Promotion Block. You will see a yellow inner Content Block toolbar around your Promotion Block with the name of your first Proposition.
- Click on 'all' in the grey Content Block toolbar to see all your Propositions at the same time.
- Select the field in your Promotion Block where you want to place the unique content such as
a text field or an image field. Remember, inserting a new Promotion Field will remove all HTML that was in the Content Block's field. Open the HTML panel and copy the HTML for the field before inserting the Promotion field, if you wish to reuse the current styling. - Click the 'Personalise' tab to the right and click 'Select Promotion field'. Fill in the name of the Promotion field. Name your Promotion field based on the content of the field, like 'Headline' or 'Image'. If you reuse the Promotion in different communications with different content, you can make the name more specific, like 'Welcome Email Headline'.
- Click the '+' icon and then select HTML. We recommend selecting HTML over TEXT as you can format even plain text with HTML code. However, if you need to use the Promotion in an SMS, you will need to choose TEXT as an SMS only supports text with no styling.
- Insert your unique content into the field for each of your Propositions.
- Click 'Save' to save your changes and repeat step 3-7 for each field where you want to insert unique content.
You've now added a Promotion to your communication and the communication is ready to use.
It's important to note, you can reuse the content in your Promotion across different communications such as emails, webpages, advisor pages, and print files. Therefore, you don't need to recreate the content each time you use the Promotion. However, if you change the content in one outbound communication, it will also change in all other outbound communications where the Promotion is used.
We recommend that you test your Promotion before sending it out to live recipients to make sure it will look as expected to your recipients.
If your Content Block is set up with Block parameters, you'll need to use a different method to add content to your Promotion. The available Block parameters depend on how your template developer has designed your email template. If you don't see the necessary fields to insert your Promotion fields into, you should contact your template developer so he/she can add them.
First, create all necessary Promotion fields and ensure that they're either created as LINK, IMAGE, or STRING type depending on what kind of content you want them to store. Then, once you've created the fields, you should add all the necessary content to your different Proposition variations.
How to insert a new Promotion Field in the Email Editor
How to insert a new Promotion Field in the 'Promotion' tab in the Channels module
Then, you'll be ready to add the Promotion Fields to your Content Block with Block Parameters.
How to Add Promotion fields to a Content Block using Block Parameters
- Hover over your Promotion Block and click the 'I' in the toolbar.
- Open the 'Options' panel.
- To insert a Promotion field LINK, select 'Promotion Link' in the URL drop-down and select your desired Promotion field in the 'Promotion Field Link' drop-down.
- To insert a Promotion field IMAGE, select 'Promotion' in the Image drop-down and select your desired Promotion field in the 'Image Promotion field' drop-down.
- To insert a Promotion field with text elsewhere, such as the text for a button, click on the field and fill in the following text: <promotionfield>Promotionfieldname</promotionfield>.
- Click 'Save'.
A Block set up with Block Parameters. The Promotion field 'Picture' is used to insert different images, the 'URL' Promotion field is used to insert different types of links and the call to action button's text is personalised by having <promotionfield>Text</promotionfield> inserted in the 'Text' field
One-to-Many Block
A One-to-Many Block is a type of Content Block, which can show One-to-Many Data. You can use a One-to-Many Block to e.g. show your customers the latest purchase or subscriptions.
How to Create a One-to-Many Block
- Open the Channels module and navigate to the communication you want to add the One-to-many to.
- Add a Content Block and then hover over it.
- Click the 'i' icon in the Content Block toolbar. A drop-down will appear in the properties panel to the right.
- Choose 'One to Many' from the drop-down.
- Select the One-to-Many Table that you want to display in the 'Select Table' drop-down.
- Select which field to sort your One-to-Many Table based on.
- Select if the data should sort as ascending or descending.
- Fill in a number for how many rows should show as a maximum.
- Click 'Save'.
Your One-to-Many Block is now ready to have One-to-Many data inserted.
Setting up a One-to-Many Block
The above settings are necessary due to the nature of One-to-Many data. Since one recipient can have multiple rows of One-to-Many data in a One-to-Many Table, the One-to-Many Block will need to know how to arrange this data.
You can also add Conditions to your One-to-Many Block to ensure that only certain types of One-to-Many data will show. Learn how to create Conditions here.
How to Insert a One-to-Many Field
- Click on the area in the One-to-Many Block where you want to insert a One-to-Many field.
- Click on the 'Personalise' panel.
- Select the One-to-Many Field that you want to insert from the 'Select One-to-Many field' drop-down
- Repeat steps 1-3 until you have all the One-to-Many fields you want to include in your communication.
- Click 'Save'.
A One-to-Many Block set up to show the One-to-Many fields NAME, STORE, PRICE, and ID from a PURCHASES One-to-Many table. The condition ensures that only PURCHASES from the past day will show.
Global Data Table Block
A Global Data Table Block is a type of Block which shows data from a Global Data Table. For example, this could be product data from a product catalogue in your outbound communication or portal page.
First, insert the Global Data Table Block into your outbound communication or portal page and configure the Block, then insert data into the Block by inserting Global Data Table fields.
How to Insert a Global Data Table Block
- Log in to Staging.
- Open the Channels module and navigate to the communication you want to add the Global Data Table Block to.
- Add a Content Block.
- Hover over the Content Block.
- Click the 'i' icon in the Content Block toolbar. A drop-down will appear in the properties panel to the right.
- Choose 'Global Data Table' from the drop-down.
- Select the Global Data Table you want to display in the 'Select Table' drop-down.
- Select which field in your Global Data Table that should sort your shown data.
- Select if the data should sort ascending or descending.
- Fill in how many rows to show as a maximum.
- Click 'Save'.
These settings are necessary due to the nature of Global Data Tables. Since a Global Data Table has multiple rows of data, the Global Data Table Block will need to know how to arrange this data. Learn more about Global Data Tables here.
You can also add Conditions to your Global Data Table Block to ensure that only certain types of data from the Global Data Table show. Learn how to create Conditions here.
Your Global Data Settings are now finished and are ready to have data from the Global Data Table inserted.
Setting up a Global Data Table Block
How to Insert A Global Data Table Field
- Click on the area in the Global Data Table Block where you want to insert a Global Data Table field.
- Click on the 'Personalise' panel.
- Select the Global Data Table field you want to insert from the 'Select Global Data Table field' drop-down.
- Repeat steps 1-3 until you have all the Global Data Table fields that you want to include in your communication.
- Publish to Production to go live with your change.
A Global Data Table Block set up to show data from a Global Data Table called PRODUCT with a Condition added, ensuring that only chocolate products with a 1 ranking will show
Data-Lookup Block
You can show data based on your Data Lookup in a Data Lookup Block. A Data Lookup has a match if a recipient, for example, has a FAVOURITE_CANDY_TYPE set to 'Chocolate' and you have a Global Data Table with a chocolate product category. In this case, your Data Lookup Block can then be set up to show chocolate products to that specific recipient.
In order to set up a Data Lookup Block, you will first need to create a Data Lookup. When you have created the Data Lookup, insert the Data Lookup Block and configure it. Then, insert a data field into it.
How to Insert a Data Lookup Block
- Open the Channels module and navigate to the communication you want to add the Data Lookup Block to.
- Add a Content Block and hover over it.
- Click the 'i' icon in the Content Block toolbar. A drop-down will appear in the properties panel to the right.
- Choose 'Data Lookup' in the drop-down.
- Select your Data Lookup in the 'Select Lookup' drop-down.
- Select which data field you'd like to sort your Data Lookup through.
- Select if the data should be sort ascending or descending.
- Fill in how many rows should show as a maximum.
- Click 'Save'.
You've now configured a Person to Person Lookup. It's ready to have the data inserted.
The above settings are necessary due to the nature of a Data Lookup. Since one recipient can have multiple rows of matched data in a Data Lookup, the Data Lookup Block will need to know how to arrange this data.
You can add Conditions to your Data Lookup Block to ensure that only certain types of data will show. Learn how to create Conditions here.
A Data Lookup Block set up to show data from a Data Lookup, where a match based on a Global Data Table and recipient's favourite candy type
How to Insert Data into a Data Lookup Block
- Click on the area in the Data Lookup Block where you want to insert some data.
- Click on the 'Personalise' panel.
- Select the data field that you want to insert from the second drop-down - the fields that are available will depend on your chosen Data Lookup.
- Repeat steps 1-3 until you have inserted all the data fields that you want to include in your communication.
- Click 'Save'.
You've now completed the set up of your Data Lookup Block.
Setting up data fields in Data Lookup Block
Person to Person Lookup Block
You can use a Person to Person Lookup Block to show data based on a match between two recipients' data in an outbound communication or portal page.
To insert a Person to Person Lookup Block, you will first need to create a Person to Person Lookup. When you've created the Person to Person Lookup, insert a Person to Person Lookup Block and configure it. Then, insert a data field into it.
How to Insert a Person to Person Lookup Block
- Log in to Staging.
- Open the Channels module and navigate to the communication you want to add the Person to Person Lookup Block to.
- Add a Content Block and then hover over it.
- Click the 'i' icon in the Content Block toolbar. A drop-down will appear in the properties panel to the right.
- Choose 'Person to Person Lookup' in the drop-down.
- Select your Person to Person Lookup in the 'Select Lookup' drop-down.
- Select if you would like to show data for the Child or the Parent in the Person to Person Lookup.
- Select if you want the data sorted ascending or descending.
- Fill in how many rows you want showing as a maximum.
- Click 'Save'.
You've configured your Person to Person Block and it's now ready to have data inserted.
Setting up a Person to Person Lookup Block
How to Insert a Data Field into a Person to Person Lookup Block
- Click on the area in the Person to Person Lookup Block where you want to insert the data.
- Click on the 'Personalise' panel.
- Select the data field that you want to insert from the second drop-down - the fields available will depend on your chosen Person to Person Lookup.
- Repeat steps 1-3 until you have inserted all the data fields you want to include in your communication.
- Click 'Save'.
- Publish to Production to go live with your change.
You've now completed the set up of your Person to Person Lookup Block, and the Block will show data if a match is made based on your recipients' data.
A Person to Person Lookup Block which is set up to show a parent recipient's data in the form of a contact person