Due to the complex nature of journeys and the logic on which they run, it’s important to follow steps to ensure you have created a journey that considers all possible outcomes and does not accidentally allow contacts to receive stages you had not intended them to.
These simple steps will help you ensure your journeys are doing what you had expected them to do.
Journey enrollment settings.
The journey enrollment settings can be found in the settings tab of your journey. This determines the frequency in which a contact may pass through the same journey.
The default setting you will see selected is:
“Add contacts to the journey only the first time they meet the start audience filter requirements.”
This is the default and recommended position. This will not allow a user ever to run through the same journey again.
The alternative setting is:
“Add contacts to the journey every time they meet the start audience filter requirements but not if they have already been added in the last”
This will allow a contact to run through the journey again, as long as it has not been through the journey in the time frame specified.
2. Implement a Check Step with a Make Decision.
If you wish to allow users through your journey multiple times for data processing purposes, but do not wish them to be sent particular emails you can implement a check step.
Drag a decision stage before the email or SMS and use the following decision criteria;
Email Received Stage Name [IS] and then [Name of the following stage you wish to exclude]
(this will stop the user from ever receiving this stage again even if they are in the journey – if you wish them to receive it after a specific time frame then use the following as well)
AND
Received Stage Date –Relative [Before or equal to] [30] [days] [in the past] round to the [minute]
This in the first instance will send to:
YES branch - all contacts that have received the email/SMS and are within the time black out you have specified.
NO branch - all contacts that have not received the email/SMS and are safe to send to the following stage.
You should connect the YES branch to a later stage or END stage.
3. Ensure you use Transaction/Marketing stage wisely
Remember if you set your stage as being transactional, users can not unsubscribe from it. You must ensure your stage is truly transactional.
4. Processed and Unprocessed list triggering.
If your journey is triggered from an explicit data value, for example your Import key = xxx. And you wish to trigger contacts into a journey with multiple stages. But for some reason have deemed it necessary to set the journey enrollment conditions to allow contacts to pass through within a specified time range.
It is a good idea to set a final stage “Action” to add users to a Marketing List Called “Campaign Name Processed”
Within your start audience you will then set a condition using the AND operator Marketing List “IS NOT” [Campaign Name Processed]
5. Lock the start audience to a test list - while you test.
While you build your journey you may wish to test it several times with your own contact. To do this you will need to set the enrollment conditions to allow contacts through the journey each they meet the start condition.
To do this use, within the Start Audience add a further condition with the AND operator Marketing List "IS" [your test list name]
If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact your Force24 Account Manager.