Creating a new communication template

With iMIS, you can create reusable templates for your future communications to ensure list, messaging, and brand consistency. You can utilize your templates when emailing contacts directly, when emailing a list of contacts retrieved in a Query Menu content item, and when composing a new communication from Marketing > Communication templates.

To create a new communication template, do the following:

  1. Go to Marketing > Communication templates > New > Communication.
  2. (Header tab) Enter the following information:
    • From - Enter the email address that will send the communication.
      • (optional) To display a friendly name, enter the name before the email address. For example, “Your Organization Name <info@yourorganization.com>” will display to recipients as “Your Organization Name.”

        • Note: For advanced email, the maximum length of the From email address is 64 characters and the maximum length of the friendly name is 50 characters. Addresses and names exceeding the maximum length will be shortened when the email is sent.

    • To – This field automatically populates with {#party.Email}, which includes the primary email associated with each iMIS ID returned in the recipients query.
      • (optional) Enter additional addresses as needed. Each additional address will receive a new copy of the communication, and each new copy will have an entry in the communication log
      • (optional) Click the Cc or Bcc links to enter Cc or Bcc email recipients. These addresses will be included on each copy of the communication but will not receive their own copy or entry in the communication log.
    • Subject – Enter the subject line of the email.
      • The Subject line cannot contain the < > symbols.
      • After the communication is sent, the Subject line will contain the words iMIS Demonstration If you are using a Client key that is licensed to an iMIS demo or test system.
    • Type – Select a communication Type for the drop-down. This provides your members with classes of emails to opt in and out of.
      • Website for unsubscribe link – This option appears when the selected communication Type allows unsubscribing. Select a site to host the unsubscribe link, used by email clients to generate a one-click unsubscribe option within their interface. For more information, see Enabling one-click unsubscribe for communications.

        • Note: This option is not available for Advanced Emails.

  3. (Recipients tab) Select the contacts to whom you will send the communication.
    1. Select a query to use as the primary data source. This query retrieves the contacts to whom you will send the communication. The default primary data source is the SelectedContact query, which retrieves the contact you are signed in as or working on behalf of.
      • The query must have a column that identifies the contact’s ID.
      • If the query contains filters with required or optional Add To Search? settings, it must have default values. See Creating a list of contacts to email for more information.

      2. Important! Any recipient query that is saved in a communication template is replaced by the selected query where the template is used. For example:

      • When using an Email button on a Query Menu content item, the recipient query stored in the template will be replaced by the query that is shown in the content item.
      • When using the Email action from an account page, the template will be sent to the selected contact and the recipient query stored in the template will not be used.
      • When issuing receipts (Receipting > Issue receipts), the recipient query stored in the template will be replaced by the query that is selected for issuing the receipts.

      For this reason, if additional properties about the recipient are needed in the body of the template, it is recommended to add an additional data source instead of inserting properties from the recipient source.

    2. (optional) If the query does not contain filters with required or optional Add To Search? settings, deselect the names of any contacts you do not want to receive the email.
  4. (Data sources tab) Fields from the data sources can be inserted in the email message. The default query with an alias of party, which provides basic information about the recipients, is automatically added. To ensure that the email is received, do not remove the Default data source! To add a data source, do the following:
    1. Click Add data source and Select a query.
    2. (optional) Change the Alias of the data source. Fields from the data source will be prefixed by the Alias in the Insert field drop-down.
    3. Click OK, and then click OK again to add the data source. The data source is not added until you click OK.
    4. Click Save or Save As and save the changes to the communication. By default, the email template is saved in the $/Common/Communications folder in the Document system.
    5. (optional) If the new data source provides data about individual recipients, link the data source to the recipient query. Additionally, if you wish to insert fields that are not already available as party property fields, add an additional data source that is linked to the recipient query.

      6. Note: If ID is used as a filter in the additional data source, display columns from the additional data source that are inserted into the body of the template will remain available when the template is used in a context where the recipient query is replaced.

      Screenshot of adding an additional data source that uses ID as a filter to a new communiction, highligting a message that appears below the Alias field, which says "ID from the reciepient data source will be used a filter."

    6. Add a filter for an Id property to the new data source. Select Equal for the Comparison type and Required for Add To Search?.

      7. Viewing the Filters tab of a query, which contains a filter on the ID property.

    7. Add a display column to the recipient query for an ID property.

      8. Viewing the Display tab of a query, which contains a display column for the ID property.

  5. (Body tab) Compose the body of your communication template.
    • Use the Insert field drop-down to add fields from your data sources. Any fields that are not found from the defined data source will resolve as blank.
      • Use the {#party.FirstName} parameter to address all recipients by their first name.
      • Use the {#party.Email} parameter in the To field to send the communication to all contacts in your query.
      • Placeholders, specified using {} notation, denote areas of the communication that will resolve against the data sources. Edit the placeholders as needed.

        The {#...} placeholder embeds data into the content or title at the placeholder location.

        The receipient's first name replaces the #party.FirstName placeholder when the communication is sent.

        The placeholder consists of the following components:

        {#datasource[.property... ] [attributes]}

        • datasource - The name of the data source.
        • (optional) property - The name of the property. Can be chained together using dot notation. For example, prop1.prop2.prop3. Where the property is a collection, a specific item can be accessed using [i] notation. For example, .Address[1] would return the item at index position 1 from the Address collection.
        • attributes - (optional) A space delimited set of attributes, some of which require values. Multiple attributes can be specified:
          • uppercase - Convert the data to uppercase.
          • lowercase - Convert the data to lowercase.
          • noencode - By default, inserted properties are HTML-encoded. This means that any HTML characters in your properties are rendered as plain text. Use the noencode attribute to ensure HTML markup is rendered in the browser.

            • Example: <strong>{#Party.FirstName noencode}</strong>

          • format - specified by .NET Framework Standard Format Strings. There are both Date/Time and Number formats available.
      • Use the {foreach} placeholder to include repeating data in your communication. For more information, see Using the foreach placeholder.
    • To add a link to your communication, select one of the following from the Insert link drop-down:
      Communication Preferences Link

      The Communication Preferences Link enables users to manage their email subscriptions directly, without logging in to your site. To insert this link, select Communication Preferences Link and do the following:

      1. Enter the Link text.
      2. Select the Default website where users will manage their communication preferences.
      3. Click OK. Once the link has been inserted into the email body, you can adjust it through the hyperlink designer or directly in HTML mode. Do not adjust any of the query parameters and always test any changes to the URL.
      4. Test the link from a device not connected to your corporate network to ensure the URL is accessible outside of the network.

      Warning! If the hostname portion of the URL is localhost, or an internal server name, then the link will not work when your recipients try to click it.

      Donate link

      The communication creator comes equipped with a donation-link generator that permits the donor to skip the sign-in process. The link is tokenized, meaning the donor is identified and is not required to fill in their contact information. When the gift is processed, it is associated with the appropriate contact.

      The donation page unauthenticated users see when they click a donation link from a communication. Although the donor is not signed in, they are recognized as the donor, which is indicated by a message in the My details area of the page. The message displays the email they are giving as and provides the option to Donate as someone else.

      Note: Contacts can clear the token by using a different link on the Give Now page. No personally identifiable information is available for the contact on the Give Now page.

      To permit donors to give without logging in, add the donation link to a communication:

      1. Go to Marketing > Communication templates.
      2. Create a new template (New > Communication) or open an existing template for edit.
      3. Click the Body tab.
      4. From the Insert link drop-down, select Donate link:
        1. Enter the Link text.
        2. Define the Content or URL. By default, the ~/GiveNow shortcut is selected. Choose a different page or shortcut if you do not want to direct users to the page defined at the ~/GiveNow shortcut.
        3. Enter a CSS Class that will be applied to the link.
        4. If the Content or URL is pointing to an iMIS content record, select a Default website.
        5. Enter or select a Source code to associate this link with a marketing campaign.
        6. Enter Additional URL parameters to include in the link. To add multiple URL parameters, follow this format: param1=value1&param2=value2&param3=value3
        7. Leave Donor is auto-selected based on communication recipient enabled. This check allows the donor to be recognizable when they click the link in the communication.
          • Enter a numerical value in the Days until link expired field. The value entered here is the amount of days that the token will recognize the donor and have them automatically associated with the donation. After the number of days entered here has passed, the donor can still use the link in the communication, but they are no longer automatically associated with the donation and must login to the site as they normally would.

            • Note: The Days until link expired number must be at least 1 but no more than 366.

        8. Click OK.
      5. Continue configuring the communication.
      6. Send the communication.

      See Permitting donors to give without logging in for more information.

      Content or URL

      Select Content or URL to insert a standard link into the communication:

      1. Enter the Link text.
      2. Define the Content or URL:
        • Select content from the Document browser.
        • Type in a content record's direct path. For example, @/iCore/DefaultStaff.
        • Type in a shortcut URL. This will preserve the link even if the content is moved in the document system. The shortcut must conform to the format ~/Shortcut.
        • Type in a direct link. For example, http://www.help.imis.com.
      3. Enter a CSS Class that will be applied to the link.
      4. If the Content or URL is pointing to an iMIS content record, select a Default website.
      5. Enter or select a Source code to associate this link with a marketing campaign.
      6. Enter Additional URL parameters to include in the link. To add multiple URL parameters, follow this format: param1=value1&param2=value2&param3=value3
      7. Click OK.
      Pay Invoice Link

      The communication creator enables you to dispatch direct payment links for invoices via email. These links allow recipients, whether logged in or not, to view pertinent invoice details and pay the full invoice balance on a secure page. When a payment is submitted by an unauthenticated user, it is associated with the Bill to contact. For authenticated users, payments are linked to the account of the logged-in user, whether they are paying their own invoices or on behalf of someone else.

      Important! This feature does not support partial payments. Additionally, the Direct Debit payment method is only supported for authenticated users and is not accessible for guest payments.

      To add the pay invoice link in a communication, do the following:

      1. Go to Marketing > Communication templates.
      2. Create a new template (New > Communication) or open an existing template for edit.

        3. Tip! The sample Event Invoice, Event Invoice Report Writer, Invoice Notice, Invoice Notice Report Writer, Order Invoice, and Order Invoice Report Writer. templates include the pay invoice link out-of-the-box. If you choose one of these templates, ensure the link correctly points to your website.

      3. Click the Recipients tab. Ensure the recipient query contains display columns for the contact’s ID and the InvoiceID. If the InvoiceID column is missing, a warning message displays when previewing or sending a communication with the Pay Invoice Link.

      4. Click the Body tab.
      5. From the Insert link drop-down, select Pay Invoice Link:

        1. Enter the Link text.
        2. Define the Content or URL. By default, the ~/PayInvoice shortcut is selected. Choose a different page or shortcut if you do not want to direct users to the page defined at the ~/PayInvoice shortcut.
        3. (optional) Enter a CSS Class that will be applied to the link.
        4. Select a Default website.
        5. (optional) Enter Additional URL parameters to include in the link. To add multiple URL parameters, follow this format: param1=value1&param2=value2&param3=value3
        6. Click OK.
      6. Continue configuring the communication.
      7. Preview, then Send the communication.
    • To add an anchor link for recipients to jump to a specific location in the email, do the following:
      1. Highlight the word or sentence you want the link to jump to and open the Hyperlink Manager (Ctrl + K).
      2. Click the anchor tab.
      3. Generate an ID, enter a value for Name, and click OK.

        4. Clicking the Link icon opens the Hyperlink Manager window. The Anchor tab of the window contains an ID field, which has a refresh button on the right-hand side.

      4. Go to the text you want to link, highlight it, and open the Hyperlink Manager (Ctrl + K).
      5. Select the appropriate anchor from the Existing Anchor drop-down and click OK.

        6. From the Hyperlink tab of the Hyperlink manager window, the Existing Anchor option provides a drop-down ove the available anchors.

    • To include a PDF or RDL (SSRS report) in your communication, select Add attachment and do the following:
      1. Navigate to the Document System folder where the file will be saved.
      2. Click New > Adobe PDF or Reporting Services Template.
      3. Select the file.
      4. Enter a file Description, then click Upload.
      5. Select the file, then click OK.
      6. If your report requires a parameter other than an ID, enable Pass query values to matching report parameters. For more information, see Creating a communication with an attached report.

        Note: Reports containing subreports will not display properly when included as PDF attachments. It is recommended that you do not send reports containing subreports as attachments.

    • To include a .doc, .docx, .gif, .ics, .jpg, .jpeg, .png, .ppt, .pptx, .txt, .xls, .xlsx, .webp file type, select Add attachment and do the following:

      1. Navigate to the Document System folder where the file is saved.
      2. Select the file, then click OK.
  6. Click Preview to view a preview of the email for each recipient.
    1. Ensure that any merge fields in the email appear correctly.
    2. Click Prev or Next to review the email for each recipient. The preview will stop showing after the 18th record.
  7. Click Save or Save As to save this email as a reusable template. The Document browser is displayed, allowing you to define a Name for this template. By default, the email template is saved in the $/Common/Communications folder in the Document system.
  8. (optional) Click Send to send the email to the recipients immediately. Review the Communication Confirmation, then click Yes, Send Now or No, Go Back to make additional changes.

    9. The Communication confirmation window states the Communication subject and the amount of reciepients, then allows you to choose Yes, Send Now or No, Go Back to make additional changes.

  9. A confirmation notification is displayed indicating that the number of messages attempted matches the number of results selected. Errors are listed individually explaining why the email was not sent. To review the status of your communication, go to the Communication logs (Marketing > Communication logs). For more information, see Communication logs.

Note: If any emails bounce, check to see if the email contains invalid characters. For more information, see Regular expression to validate email addresses.