Email and text templates are communications that have already been drafted and saved and are ready to send with just a few clicks.
Templates usually include variables which can intelligently change parts of a message without any effort on your part. For instance, "LeadFirstName" is a variable which will be replaced by the first name of whatever lead receives the message. For example, if you have a text template that begins
and you send that template to Cepeda Jackson and Rosa Arroyo, Mr. Jackson will receive a text that begins, "Cepeda, thank you for registering your child...." and Ms. Arroyo will receive a text that begins, "Rosa, thank you for registering your child....".
But the true power of templates is not just that they save time when you send individual leads an email or text. Templates can also be used by Business Rules to automate communications, by Group Communications so you can message dozens, hundreds or thousands of leads at once, and by Client Forms when sending out thank you emails.
(The screenshots below show email templates, but text templates work the same way.)
Step 1: Click Marketing > Templates > Email Templates or
Marketing > Templates > Text Templates
Step 2: Click "+ Add Template".
Step 3: Fill out the form header.
Template Name: Give the template a name that easily tells you and your staff what the template is for. Many people start the name with a number or number and letter to keep them in chronological order when sorted.
Communication Type: Select "Marketing" if the purpose of the template is to pitch your services, "Service" if it is a reminder of an upcoming event, or "General" otherwise.
Hierarchy Type: This controls whether the next field down on the form is Location, Brand or Location Group.
Location or Brand or Location Group: Determines which organization unit the template is assigned to (and can be used by).
Subject: The subject line of the email.
Template Group: Template groups are used by the system, for example in Business Rules and Client Forms, to let the system send different templates from different locations for the same purpose, for example an inquiry thank-you. (You don't need different templates if the only differences are the variables.) If the template you are creating is going to be part of a template group, include the template group here.
(To start a new template group, click Settings > System Settings > Pick Lists, click "Email Template Group" or "Text Messaging Group", and then click the "+" icon under "Add".)
Email Attachment: Select an uploaded document to email.
Corporate Only: Check this box if you want this template to only be accessible to users who can access the "Corporate Only" templates.
Step 4: Compose your message.
To use Variables: Place your cursor in the message at the place you want the variable to appear and click once. Then click the category your variable is in--that will expand the category and show you the variables within that category. Then double-click the desired variable and it will be added to your text.
Step 5: Click "SAVE" at the bottom.
(The screenshots below show email templates, but text templates work the same way.)
Step 1: Click Marketing > Templates > Email Templates or
Marketing > Templates > Text Templates
Step 2: Click the row of the template you wish to edit/delete.
Step 3: To edit, make the desired edits (see steps 3 & 4 above for guidance) and then click "SAVE".
To delete, just click "DELETE".