Best Practice for Using Promotion or Multi Content Blocks

Promotions are often the best way to display different content in your emails, web pages, SMS, and more. However, in some cases, it's easier and better to use a Multi Content Block instead of a Promotion.

In this article, you'll find information about:

• Agillic's Best Practice for Using Promotion or Multi Content Blocks
  • Promotions
    • Pros
    • Cons
  • Multi Content block
    • Pros
    • Cons
• Promotion in a Multi Content block

Agillic's Best Practice for Using Promotion or Multi Content Blocks

Promotions

Promotions are great for showing different versions of content wrapped in the same layout. The layout of a Promotion is specific to the Content Block from your template. However, the content in each Proposition changes depending on how you configure it. For example, you can show different text or different images.

When using a Promotion, you can enable Collapse Block in the right properties panel which ensures that the Promotion disappears if a recipient doesn't meet any of the Propositions in your Promotion. However, if you only have a single Proposition you should, in most cases, consider using a Multi Content Block instead.

A Promotion called 'Candy Type' which shows different candy banners depending on what the recipient's favourite candy is

Pros

• The content for each Proposition saves in the Promotion meaning it can be reused in other communications.
• Once you've set all of your Propositions, you can see a complete list of the versions you need in your email.
• Agillic remembers exposure activity for each recipient which you can use for reporting and in future configurations.

Cons

• You must use the same template block for each proposition meaning the layout of the content stays the same.
• You must create Promotion fields to house the different content for each proposition. Learn how to create a Promotion field here.

Multi Content Block

A Multi Content Block is used to display content if a recipient is a part of a Target Group. If the recipient is not a part of the Target Group, the Content Block collapses instead. Because of this, a Multi Content Block is often used as a 'Switch on or off' Block.

For example, you could show special content for any recipient who hasn't specified a preferred candy type.

A 'classic' Multi Content Block with a single version of content showing for any recipient in the Target Group 'No Candy Preference'

It's also possible to add multiple versions to a single Multi Content Block. Each version can use a different template Block. 

Pros

• You can use different template Blocks for different versions of the content.
• Quick to set up once you've created the needed Target Groups.

Cons

• Content saves in the individual email/webpage and therefore you can't reuse the content unless the content is saved as a library Block. You can read more about working with library blocks here.
• The structure of multiple Target Groups in a Multi Content Block must be re-configured for each use unless it's saved to the library.
• Unlike a Promotion, Agillic doesn't log exposures for a Multi Content Block.

Promotion in a Multi Content block

A more advanced configuration in Multi Content Blocks can be set up by using Promotions within the actual Multi Content Block. For example, you could use a Multi Content Block where the first variation is shown to any recipient without a preferred candy type.

Any recipient left would continue to the next Block, where a Promotion shows different banners, based on the recipient's preferred candy type.

A Multi-Content Block showing content if a recipient doesn't have a candy preference - if they do have a candy preference, they're instead shown one of the variations in the 'Candy Type' Promotion

Suggested Next Steps

• All You Need to Know About Promotions
• How to Insert Various Content Blocks in Agillic
• All You Need to Know about Emails and the Email Editor