CIS Cell option: cell represents a control group

[Eitan123]

Hey,

My client wants to create control groups for campaigns. In Customer Intelligence Studio 6.6 there's a checkbox, in cells, called "cell represents a control group". Is there any written explanation regarding the behavior of this option? especially if the created control groups can be monitored through several campaigns

[JamesAnderson · Accepted solution]

Hi Eitan123,

The easiest way to create control groups within a campaign is to use the feature called "Automatic holdout control groups" within the communication node. This feature essentially takes a random sample of the marketing cell and holds it back from the export file. If this sampling doesn't meet your needs and you want to be more explicit in the allocation of subjects to the control group then you can do this in the campaign diagram and use the "cell represents a control group" feature to do that by connecting it to the communication node. This will then set an indicator the Common Data Model (CI_CELL_PACKAGE.CONTROL_GROUP_TYPE_CD)  allowing you to historically know that cell was a control group. The advantage of the "automatic holdout" method is that it creates the association between the target and control groups in the CI_CTL_GRP_CELL_X_TEST_CELL table, and many other features within the UI are based around the use of automatic holdouts.

More information can be found in the Marketing Automation User Guide section called "Control Groups"

Regards

James

[Eitan123]

Firstly, thank you for your solution.
Secondly, I'd like to know one more thing - I guess I can join tables CI_CELL_PACKAGE & CI_CTL_GRP_CELL_X_TEST_CELL via cells, and know the exact ID's of the population that has been exported through the combination of campaign_cd, communication_cd, treamtment_cd, response_tracking_cd, row_create_date (feel free to correct me if I'm wrong/inaccurate).
Is there a better way to find those ID's? I'm asking because, from what I've seen, I can hold certain groups from being exported, and the cell will be marked in those tables you've mentioned, but that cell got a population according to a certain select block in CIS which, each day, slightly changes its population. So I need a good practice for finding those ID's.

[JamesAnderson]

Cell_Package_SK is your friend for this. 

The list of IDs selected for the campaign is in the Contact History table and each time a campaign is executed, each cell gets a new unique value for Cell_Package_SK. So by joining Contact History to CI_CELL_PACKAGE & CI_CTL_GRP_CELL_X_TEST_CELL via Cell_Package_SK and Marketing_Cell_SK you will get each target cell and control group membership for each execution of the campaign.

[Dmitry_Alergant]

There are exactly three implications from this checkbox.

1) It is reflected in the CDM data model, under the CI_MARKETING_CELL table there is a column corresponding to this flag. And If my memory doesn't fail me, in CI_CONTACT_HISTORY too there is a similar column

2) In the Communication node, under "Export" tab, there is a checkbox - "Include holdout control group members". If it's checked, members of the control group (any kind - one defined via this checkbox on a cell node, or an "automated holdout" which is a different kind of a control group) will still be exported to the export file/table;  If it's unchecked, they won't be.

3) If you ARE exporting control group members (see #2), then it's possible to differentiate between who's a member of a control group vs who's not in the output file, by adding a column to be exported: Marketing Cell => Control Group Flag

[Eitan123]

I marked another response as the solution (before you wrote your own), but I saw yours too so I just want to say thank you! 🙂