Email Configuration in CI360 Part 1. Email Opt-Outs
Introduction
This post is the first in a two part series that covers some recent changes to email configuration in CI360. In this first post, we will discuss some amendments to the email opt-out options. The previous approach had some known limitations, due to recent changes in the external technological and regulatory landscapes. Starting in the September 2024 CI360 release, we now have a new way to handle email opt-out requests.
Email Opt-Outs. The Historic Approach
When creating an Email Task, the Layout Manager inserts default opt-out text in the mail content by including an Opt-Out Text element in the layout. This Opt-Out Text element includes a merge tag and directs email recipients to a predefined URL defined during your implementation of SAS Customer Intelligence 360.You also have the option of editing this default link, or configuring any link as the opt- out link by using link tracking.
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Please note that due to legal requirements in most countries, if an attempt to delete the opt-out text is made, the notice shown here appears, reminding you of the probable legal requirement. This simply ensures that your email has at least one unsubscribe link.
The link provided in the opt-out element automatically unsubscribed a user when clicked. However, many spam filtering software open links contained within emails. This means that users could get automatically unsubscribed without their knowledge. In addition to this, industry best practice, and many companies internal policies, now require a two-click unsubscribe approach.
It was possible for the user to build a two-click opt out, but this required the input from SAS Technical Support. As a result, around 90% of CI360 customers stayed with the default option.
Email Opt-Outs. The New Approach
It should be noted that the process for adding an unsubscribe link in CI360 is completely unchanged. It remains as described above. What does change is how the email recipient interacts with this unsubscribe link.
The new approach is to have a two stage approach as standard. When a recipient clicks on the unsubscribe link, a browser window will open showing a confirmation page.
On this page, they can either confirm they want to unsubscribe, or click cancel. When they cancel, the browser will close, and nothing further will happen. It does not affect their contact preferences. When they click on the confirmation button, they will see a goodbye page.
This confirmation means that the contact preferences table has been updated, and the action will also be registered in the opt-out tables with a timestamp of when it happens.
Both the confirmation and goodbye pages are SAS hosted by default and the layout is shown above. However, customers are also free to make their own pages, or even use a hybrid approach of a SAS confirmation page and customer hosted goodbye page. This can be done by contacting SAS Technical Support.
The SAS confirmation page and SAS goodbye page are available in 11 languages, shown below.
- English
- French
- German
- Italian
- Brazilian Portuguese
- Spanish
- Polish
- Russian
- Japanese
- Korean
- Simplified Chinese
The language used is automatically set by the recipient’s browser locale, providing that this locale is also one of the 11 supported languages. If a user’s browser locale not set to one of these 11 languages, then the message defaults back to English. Previously, the SAS-hosted unsubscribe pages were only displayed in English.
The recipient’s e-mail address is also masked on the SAS confirmation and goodbye pages.
It is important to note that this feature does not affect the “one click” unsubscribe feature available by many email providers. Providers such as Yahoo and Gmail have a one click unsubscribe feature at the top of the email. This still works as normal, because the feature is in the email header rather than in the body of the email.
It also does not affect the unsubscribe via email reply option, available in CI360.
Further information
There is more information on this feature in the Email Development and Delivery lesson, which is part of the SAS Customer Intelligence 360 learning subscription.
Find more articles from SAS Global Enablement and Learning here.
