You can use different targets in an Open-Time Email experience to personalize the content that each recipient sees. The personalization is based on information that Monetate gathers at the time the recipient opens the email.
In addition to using each target individually, you can also combine targets to achieve a greater level of granularity and personalization. For example, rather than just targeting all email recipients who open an email where it is raining, you can target all recipients who open an email where it is raining in a few select cities. For more information on using multiple targets, see Use Multiple Content Areas & Targets in an Email Experience.
Standard Email Experience Targets
This table contains the targets you can use in an email experience.
| Target | Purpose | How It Works |
|---|---|---|
| Category Recently Viewed | Target based on the product category or categories that the recipient viewed in the last 7 days on your site before opening the email; the target product category or categories must appear in the account's default product catalog | Send an email to all recipients, and target an ad for a sale on men's jeans, based on product ID, to all recipients who viewed the "Men's Jeans" category in the last 7 days. Any recipient who didn't view that category sees the default content. |
| City | Target based on the city where the recipient is when opening the email | Send an email to all recipients, and target an ad for Boston Red Sox apparel only for recipients who open the email in Boston. Any recipient who opens the email in another city sees the default content. |
| Near Locations | Target based on the location within a predetermined distance to the recipient's location at the time of opening the email | Send an email to all recipients, and target an ad for swimwear to recipients who are within 50 miles of one or more of the beach-side store locations that you've uploaded to Locations Manager. Any recipient who doesn't open the email within 50 miles of the specified location(s) sees the default content. |
| Country | Target based on the country where the recipient is when opening the email | Send an email to all recipients, and target an ad for US residents that shows US Olympic gear. Any recipient who opens the email in another country sees the default content. |
| Date/Time | Target based on the time and date in the recipient's time zone at the time of opening the email | Send an email to all recipients, and target an ad for a one-day sale only to recipients who open the email on Saturday, March 4, between midnight and 11:59 PM. Any recipient who opens the email outside of the specified time frame sees the default content. |
| Device Platform | Target based on the mobile platform on which the email is opened: iPhone, iPad, Android phone, Android tablet, or Windows phone | Send an email to all recipients, and target an ad for your site's new iPad app to all recipients who open the email on an iPad. Any recipient who opens the email on a difference device sees the default content. |
| Device Type | Target based on the recipient opening the email on a mobile device or a or desktop device | Send an email to all recipients, and show content that uses large click zones and minimal scrolling for recipients who open the email on a mobile device. Any recipient who doesn't open the email on a mobile device sees the default content. |
| Products Recently Viewed | Target based on the product(s) that the recipient viewed on your site in the last 7 days before opening the email; the target product(s) must appear in the account's default product catalog | Send an email to all recipients, and target an ad for a hat to all recipients who viewed within the last 7 days a specific jacket, as identified by its product ID. Any recipient who didn't view the jacket sees the default content. |
| Query Parameter | Target based on first-party data provided by your email service provider | Send an email to all recipients, and use a query parameter target for membership level. Use a different piece of dynamic content for silver members, gold members, and platinum members, respectively. Any recipient who doesn't match a query parameter for one of the three membership levels sees the default content. |
| State | Target based on the US state the recipient is in when they open the email | Send an email to all recipients, and target an ad for flights departing from an airport located in New Jersey for all recipients who open the email in New Jersey. Any recipient who doesn't open the email in New Jersey sees the default content. |
| Weather | Target based on current weather at the time the recipient opens the email; include or exclude snowing, raining, cloudy conditions, or sunny conditions | Send an email to all recipients, and target an ad for umbrellas only to recipients who open the email in a location where it is raining. Any recipient who opens the email in a location where it isn't raining sees the default content. |
Additional Information for Certain Targets
Near Locations
You can choose to target recipients who are within a specified distance of an address or who are within a certain distance of a location type as identified by a tag you've included with the address in Locations Manager. Therefore, to use this target you must ensure the location addresses are in Locations Manager and have the appropriate tag(s).
In the email experience shown in this screenshot, the recipients who open the email when they're within 20 miles of one of the 30 locations uploaded to Locations Manager and that have the "retail" tag see the dynamic content.
Here are some suggestions for useful locations to upload to Locations Manager:
- Retail locations
- Distribution centers
- Local attractions
For more information on creating and uploading a locations file, see Upload a Locations List.
Query Parameter
When you use a query parameter target, you must input the parameter name and the merge tag you want to target. The parameter name applies to each piece of dynamic content you include in the experience.
For example, you want to show one ad to recipients who have attained the silver level in your site's loyalty rewards membership club; a second, different ad to recipients who are gold-level members; and a third, different ad to recipients who are platinum-level members. For each of the three dynamic content variants, fill in the conditional operator and query parameter value that you want to target. When configuring each target, you input each membership level for the matching value for its respective dynamic content.
When you send the email, your email service provider (ESP) fills in the correct query parameter value for each recipient. Monetate delivers the personalized content and tracks analytics for each piece of dynamic content at open time.
Category Recently Viewed and Products Recently Viewed
The Category Recently Viewed and Products Recently Viewed target options are useful when you want to target recipients who have viewed certain items or groups of items on your site. Keep in mind these key details about how each option works:
- Monetate starts to target the recipients 15 minutes after they view a product or category
- Each target has a lookback period of seven days
- If a recipient qualifies for more than one piece of content in a single experience, they see the content with the highest priority.
Device Targeting for iPhone
The way device targeting and reporting works is standard for most devices except for the iPhone. Apple reports all screen resolutions for iPhones in points, not pixels. This may affect analytics and targeting for experiences.
For more information about points versus pixels, refer to Apple's View Programming Guide for iOS. To find resolution information for specific iPhone models in points and rendered pixels, refer to The Ultimate Guide To iPhone Resolutions.
Using Geo-Targeting in an Email Experience
Geo-targeting describes those targets available to use in Open-Time Email that allow you to provide specific content to your email recipients based on what city, US state, or country they're in when they open the email.
For example, you want to target dynamic content to recipients based on country. First, add the email's default content, or click SHOW NOTHING. Next, scroll as necessary to the Dynamic Content section of the Email Experience editor, and then select Country from Target based on. Click ADD DYNAMIC CONTENT, and then select or upload the image you want the recipients who qualify to see. Next, click ADD CLICK URL, and then input the URL to which you want recipients directed when they click the image.
To configure the specific country target for the dynamic content, type the country's name into Country. If you want to target multiple countries, add each one into Country, with each country automatically separated by "or." If you want to exclude recipients in the country or countries you've identified from seeing the dynamic content, then chose not in from the selector that appears after For subscribers.
The process for adding other geo-targets, such as city or US state, works exactly the same as the process for country.
Using Device Targeting in an Email Experience
You can target recipients of an email experience by device type or device platform. Device type allows you to specify mobile or desktop, and device platform includes a number of different mobile platforms such as iPad, Windows Phone, or Android.
For example, you want to ensure recipients who open an email see the version of the creative optimized for display on mobile devices. First, add the email's default content, or click SHOW NOTHING. Next, scroll as necessary to the Dynamic Content section of the Email Experience editor, and then select Device Type from Target based on. Click ADD DYNAMIC CONTENT, and then select or upload the mobile-optimized creative you want the recipients who qualify to see. Next, click ADD CLICK URL, and then input the URL to which you want recipients directed when they click the image. Finally, select Mobile from Device to indicate the dynamic content only appears for recipients who open the email on a mobile device.
If you want to add additional types of targets for the dynamic content, repeat this process for each additional target type.
Using Weather Targeting in an Email Experience
You can target specific content to email recipients based on their current weather. A common use case for this target is to send an email with an ad for a winter jacket to recipients where it's snowing.
To create this email experience, first add the email's default content, or click SHOW NOTHING. Next, scroll as necessary to the Dynamic Content section of the Email Experience editor, and then select Weather from Target based on. Click ADD DYNAMIC CONTENT, and then select or upload the image you want the recipients who qualify to see. Next, click ADD CLICK URL, and then input the URL to which you want recipients directed when they click the image.
To specify snowy weather conditions, click the Weather field and then select Snowing.
If the winter jacket you're advertising is great for winter rainfall as well as snow, you can target recipients who open the email where it's raining by clicking the Weather field again and then selecting Raining. These two values are joined by "or," so a recipient must either open the email where it's raining or where it's snowing to qualify for the dynamic content.
When you send the email, eligibility for the dynamic content is determined by the current weather where the recipient opens the email.
Using On-Site Behavior Targeting in an Email Experience
The Products Recently Viewed and Category Recently Viewed target options rely on on-site behavior profiles established by a unique identifier for each email recipient.
To begin, add default content or choose to show nothing. Navigate to the dynamic content and select Product Recently Viewed or Category Recently Viewed.
Click ADD DYNAMIC CONTENT. Specify the products that you want to include. For example, recipients who recently viewed a North Face sleeping bag or a Marmot tent qualify for this experience.
Keep in mind that multiple products added to the same piece of dynamic content are treated as "or" statements. Recipients only need to have viewed one of the specified products to qualify for the experience.
You can add additional pieces of dynamic content for different products. However, the recipient only sees the first piece of content that matches their recently viewed products.
When you finish building the experience, you can send it out through your email service provider (ESP). The dynamic content that recipients see is determined by the products they recently viewed before opening the email.
Using Query Parameter Targets in an Email Experience
The query parameter target option allows you to provide specific content to email recipients based on first-party data provided by your email service provider (ESP).
A common use case for query parameter targets is to show recipients content based on an available merge tag, such as ##membership##. Consult your ESP about acceptable merge tags.
To build an email experience with a query parameter target, first add the email's default content, or click SHOW NOTHING. Next, scroll as necessary to the Dynamic Content section of the Email Experience editor, and then select Query Parameter from Target based on. Type the parameter name into PARAM NAME, and then input the merge tag into the appropriate field.
Next, click ADD DYNAMIC CONTENT, and then select or upload the image you want to appear for the specified query parameter value. Click ADD CLICK URL, and then input the URL to which you want recipients directed when they click the image.
Finally, determine the target for this dynamic content. Input a valid parameter value into the text field for the dynamic content's WHO statement, and then select how you want to target on that parameter value: contains, doesn't contain, exists, doesn't exist, is equal to, isn't equal to, etc.
If, for example, you're building an experience targeting two membership levels—silver and gold—you can configure the first piece of dynamic content to appear to all email subscribers who have a silver-level membership. You'd then add a second piece of dynamic content and configure it to appear to gold members. Recipients who don't have a silver or gold membership see the default content.
Once you finish building the experience, you can send it through your ESP. When the email is sent, your ESP fills in the correct query parameter value for each recipient. Monetate then delivers a personalized experience depending on each recipient's query parameter value.