It’s much easier to create new or edit existing Automation Center programs with the New Editor. Besides plenty of useful features, the New Editor provides you with a smoother and more comfortable editing experience.
Notes:
- From March 2021 onwards, the New Editor will open by default when you create a new Automation Center program. You can also switch programs built using the legacy editor to the New Editor.
- All programs built with the legacy editor will be switched to the New Editor during the first week of April, 2021. For more information, see Switching programs to the New Editor.
Features of the New Editor
Email behavior check node
This node replaces the Didn’t respond to email and Didn’t click link nodes. You will find the Email behavior check node under the Action nodes. You can check how contacts responded to your email campaigns with this node. This node manages contacts as follows:
- those who match the defined email behavior criteria will continue their journey,
- those who do not match the specified criteria or did not receive your email will exit the program.
If your program was built with the legacy editor and you switch to the New Editor, then the Email behavior check node will keep the settings of your Didn’t respond to email or Didn’t click link nodes and the preceding Wait node.

Here you can choose from the following options:
-
Contact behavior - Only contacts who fulfill the selected criteria will continue their journey:
- Received an email campaign and did not respond to it
- Received an email campaign and did not click on a specific link
-
Timeframe - This node checks your contacts’ behavior within the selected time period:
- Anytime in the last 13 months
- Within a specific time range
You can select a custom time period within the last 13 months.
-
Email campaign - It checks how your contacts responded to the email selected in the previous Send email node.
- Use the email campaign defined in the previous Send email node - Uncheck this checkbox only if you would like to select another email.
Notes:
- You can select campaigns that are available within email behavior segmentation as well.
- If this checkbox is selected and you change the campaign used in the previous Send email node, then the email will be updated automatically in the Email behavior check node.
- When you copy a program, then all campaigns used in that program will be copied, too. If this checkbox is selected, then the copied campaign will be set in the Email behavior check node of the copied program by default.
- Link - It checks whether or not your contacts clicked the selected link.
When you change the campaign in the previous Send email node or copy an Automation Center program, then you need to select the link again.
Transfer to program node
This node is only available in the New Editor. You can forward the participants of your current program to another one starting with the Entry from program node by using this node.
You can only transfer participants from one Automation Center program to another.

Changing your program
Disabling or enabling nodes
You can easily disable or enable channel message and channel distribution nodes regardless of your program’s status in the New Editor. As a result, contacts will skip the deactivated nodes without triggering any messages. You can reactivate disabled nodes anytime.
Here is what you need to do to disable or enable a channel node:
1. Double-click the channel node you would like to disable or enable.
2. Click the node status button in the top-right corner, then select the required action.

3. Click OK and Save to finalize the changes, then confirm the updates:
- if your program’s status is Scheduled, Active or Finished by clicking Save & Apply.
- if your program’s status is Paused or Frozen by clicking Save.
If you do not save your program, then the changes will be lost.
Result:
Disabled nodes will become:
- light-blue on the canvas,

- greyed out on the Program Summary page and (disabled) will be displayed next to the node’s name.

Fewer program statuses and actions
To make things easier, there are fewer program statuses and actions in the New Editor.
When you change your program’s status, only the available options are displayed in the Program Status drop-down.

Program statuses:
- In design
- Scheduled
- Active
- Paused
- Frozen
- Finished
- Aborted
- Fail-safe
Program actions:
- Activate
- Pause
- Freeze
- Finish
- Abort
You can see how programs behave in different states in the following table:
Status | Contacts can enter the program |
Contacts can finish their journey | You can make small adjustments to the program | You can change the structure of your program |
---|---|---|---|---|
In design | No | No | Yes | Yes |
Scheduled | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Active | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Finished | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Paused* | No | No | Yes | Yes |
Frozen | No | No | Yes | Yes |
Fail-safe | No | No | Yes | Yes |
Abort | No | No | No | No |
*The status of Paused programs changes to Frozen after three days. New contacts cannot enter the program but they are queued and will enter it when you reactivate the program. Contacts will not advance in your program.
Making small adjustments to your program
You can make the following small adjustments to a program regardless of its status:
- changing the program’s name,
- changing the campaigns (email, push, SMS, In-app or CRM Ads),
- changing the segments used in your program,
- modifying the program’s schedule,
- modifying the settings of nodes (e.g. Update contact list),
- modifying the settings of the Wait node,
- disabling or enabling a channel message or channel distribution node.
The changes come into effect right after you confirm and save them. As a result, contacts will continue their journey in the updated program.
Changing your program's structure
The limitations mentioned in this section apply to all program statuses except for In design. You can modify programs the status of which is In design without any restrictions.
You can change the structure of your program regardless of its status as follows:
- You can add new nodes to your program.
You can insert a new node between two others by dropping it on the arrow connecting the two nodes. You can delete newly added nodes by clicking the Undo icon (before saving your program) or by discarding your changes.

- You can connect nodes with other nodes and delete connections.
- You can create new paths and add new branches to A/B splitter nodes.
- You can link a program to another one by adding the Transfer to program node to it.
Notes:
- You cannot delete nodes that were previously added to your program.
- You cannot change the participation settings of your program.
- Although you cannot delete branches of the A/B splitter node, you can set specific branches to 0%. After modifying branches, it is important to check that their sum equals 100%.
- Nodes that are not connected to other nodes cannot be left on the canvas.
- After saving the changes, the most recent version of your program will be displayed on the Program Summary page regardless of the selected interval. If you set the timeframe to a time period before you modified the program, then 0 will be displayed above the newly added nodes.
Opening the selected resource
You can quickly open a resource in the New Editor:





Assets used in Form, Data change and New contact nodes
You can create multiple programs starting with Form, Data change or New contact nodes that use the same resources in the New Editor.
More comfortable editing experience
With the New Editor, you can easily:
- Drag and drop nodes to the canvas:
◦ To connect two nodes, drop a node on the other one.

◦ To insert a node between two nodes, drop it on the arrow connecting the two nodes.

If you hover your mouse over the Undo or Redo icon, then your last action will be displayed.

- Add the Finish node to the last nodes automatically, so you don’t need to add it to the program manually.

Small changes in the New Editor
- Send Time Optimization works with recurring and batch programs only.
Notes:
- You cannot launch transactional programs using Send Time Optimization. To launch such campaigns, first you need to deactivate Send Time Optimization in the Send email node.
- Please note that Send Time Optimization did not work with transactional programs in the legacy editor as expected. What happened was that it sent out all messages at the same time and contacts waited 24 hours after that.
- After creating a program, you need to give it a name and save it. (Previously, when you created a program, it was saved and given an automatically assigned name.)
Creating a program in the New Editor
Notes:
- You can switch back to the legacy editor by clicking Switch back to old editor in the top right corner. You cannot switch back programs containing the Email behavior check node to the legacy editor because it is only available in the New Editor.
- All programs built with the legacy editor will be switched to the New Editor during the first week of April, 2021.
Your feedback is welcome. Please share your experience with us before switching back to the legacy editor by clicking Give us feedback in the bottom right corner.
To create a program with the New Editor, proceed as follows:
1. Navigate to Automation > Automation, click Create Program and select Audience-focused journeys (Automation Center).
2. The New Editor will open automatically.
Editing an existing program in the New Editor
Notes:
- You can switch back to the legacy editor by clicking Switch back to old editor in the top right corner. You cannot switch back programs containing the Email behavior check node to the legacy editor because it is only available in the New Editor.
- All programs built with the legacy editor will be switched to the New Editor during the first week of April, 2021.
Your feedback is welcome. Please share your experience with us before switching back to the legacy editor by clicking Give us feedback in the bottom right corner.
To edit an existing program by using the New Editor, proceed as follows:
1. Navigate to Automation > Automation and click the Edit program icon.
2. Click Switch to new editor in the top-right corner.
This change will only affect your current program.

Keyboard shortcuts
You can see the most important keyboard shortcuts for the New Editor in the following table.
Action | Windows keyboard shortcut | Mac keyboard shortcut |
---|---|---|
Delete the selected item | Backspace | Delete |
Undo last action | Ctrl+Shift+Z | Command+Shift+Z |
Redo last action | Ctrl+Shift+Y | Command+Shift+Y |
Move node selection to the left | Left Arrow | Left Arrow |
Move node selection to the right | Right Arrow | Right Arrow |
Move node selection up | Up Arrow | Up Arrow |
Move node selection down | Down Arrow | Down Arrow |
Save program | Ctrl+S | Command+S |
Nodes and features not supported in the New Editor
The nodes and features listed in this section are currently not supported in the New Editor. You can still have the functionality that these nodes provide, but through a different node or a combination of them.
Not supported nodes
Entry points:
You can switch programs starting with the Anniversary node to the New Editor. In this case, the Anniversary node will be replaced with a Recurring filter and a Quick filter node that is set to Date of Birth Is today (ignoring the year).
You can switch programs starting with the Batch email node to the New Editor. In this case, the Batch email node will be replaced with a Target segment and a Send email node.
You can switch programs starting with the Recurring batch email node to the New Editor. In this case, the Recurring batch email node will be replaced with a Recurring filter, a Segment and a Send email node.
Response nodes:
You can use the Email behavior check node instead of the Didn’t respond to email and Didn’t click link nodes in the New Editor. You cannot switch back programs containing the Email behavior check node to the legacy editor because it is only available in the New Editor.
Not supported features
Notes:
- Only active programs built in the legacy editor using Advanced participation settings will keep those settings in the New Editor.
- If you copy a program using Advanced participation settings, then you can only activate it after turning off the these settings in the New Editor.
Although currently the Test program status is not available in the New Editor, we are working on a new solution. To test programs in the New Editor, follow the instructions in How to test programs in the New Editor and How to check if contacts are passing through your program.
Do you have any ideas about program testing? Please share your thoughts with us on the Emarsys Community Hub.
- Design Advisor
- Node and program descriptions - the description field is not available within the Program Settings and Node Settings dialogs.
- You cannot rename branches in the A/B splitter node.
FAQ
How to test programs in the New Editor
Here is what you need to do to test programs in the New Editor:
1. Open the program you would like to test and change the segments to test segments.
2. Activate the program, check the content of the messages and whether its structure is built logically.
What to do next?
If you are satisfied with the results, you can return to your original program as follows:
If you need to make structural changes to the program, then copy it and modify it as needed.
1. Change the test segments to the original segments.
2. Save your changes. Now your program will send messages to your real target audience.
How to check if contacts are passing through your program
If you would like to check how contacts are progressing along your program before activating it, proceed as follows:
1. Make sure that there are no channel message and channel distribution nodes in your program.
You cannot remove nodes from active programs.
2. When you are ready, activate the program.
Result:
Now you can check how contacts are passing through your program without sending messages to them.
What to do next?
Here is what you need to do to return to your original program:
1. Copy the active program.
You cannot make structural changes to active programs.
2. Add channel message and channel distribution nodes to your program as required.
3. When you are ready, activate the program.