Please note that Open Time Content is not supported anymore. It is only available to clients already using it.
Before you start to design and create your first widgets you should read the Open Time Content Use Cases and Examples, to get a good idea of where to place different types of content for maximum effect. Then you can get started by following the instructions below.
About the HTML tag
The Open Time Content tag is an HTML string which consists of an URL and an image path.
The <href> component is the link/URL. This performs two functions:
- It directs the recipient to a specific landing page based on the rules you define.
- It tracks the clicks and clicks-to-opens.
The <img src> component serves the image and any dynamic content you have placed over it. The image is adapted, optimized and updated at the moment it is downloaded in the email inbox.
As long as these two parts are correctly copied over, you can add additional elements such as styles or alternative texts to the HTML (see the examples below).
You can always test your tags by pasting the <img src> into a browser and seeing what is displayed.
Due to Gmail's logic for handling image extensions in html, we recommend using the extension *.gif instead of *.png for countdown timer images.
Personalizing the HTML tag
Contact data and Personalization tokens can be used in HTML tags to track individual opens and clicks and to personalize the image at the time of opening. Litmus Personalize documentation references this as "data merge". Contact data has to be entered into the HTML tags as Emarsys Scripting Language (ESL) email personalization placeholders.
You can create and check your custom fields at Management > Field Editor.
The syntax for your fields in ESL is the following: {{contact.<Field ID>}}
You can create and check your personalization tokens at Content > Personalization.
The editor of each token displays the ESL for the respective token.
The following OTC widget types can be personalized:
- Rule Builder widget (unique parameters) - For example, you can include parameters with contact data to create rules to display relevant images for the viewers or to use different widgets in different situations (before or after a promotion).
- Personalized Images - For example, you can add the first name of your customer to an image.
- Content Automation widget - For example, you can add information from your data feed (API or a webpage) and combine it with personalized information from the Emarsys contact database.
If you would like all the tags created in your account to automatically contain an email personalization variable, please contact Emarsys Support and we will make this your default setting.
Personalizing the Rule Builder widget
Do the following to create unique parameters for a rule builder widget:
1. Create a campaign by clicking New Campaign... at Add-ons > Open Time Content.
2. Enter the name of your campaign.
3. Create a new Rule Based Images mailing by clicking the highlighted icons.
4. Enter the name of your mailing. This serves only identification purposes.
5. Enter a description for your rule tags.
6. Define your rules by clicking +Add Rule.
The first rule is the default rule. This rule is implemented if none of the other conditions are met.
When editing the action of a rule, you can choose each of the widget types offered by Open Time content. If a certain condition is met, the chosen widget is displayed in the campaign using the Rule Builder widget.
The following example shows a scenario where the recipients' product preference (contact_preference here) defines the image they see in their emails (each category would require a separate rule).
Apart from many predefined conditions, the rule builder provides (click + Condition) the following unique conditions, which allow personalization:
- String parameter: This parameter accepts string values with optional logical expressions. Use this, for example, to display a different background image in your email based on gender or product preferences (any text based value in the Emarsys contact database.)
-
UTC Datetime parameter: This parameter accepts a date value in UTC format. Use this, for example, to display an image, specific to a period in an email. Think about a welcome image for new newsletter subscribers (you will need the date of the subscription in
yyyymmddhhmmssformat) which turns to a regular background image after a couple of days. - Numeric parameter: This parameter accepts numeric values with optional logical expressions. Use this, for example, to set a special image in emails for customers with a specified number of purchases (you will need the number of purchases in the Emarsys contact database).
Each of the unique parameters require a parameter name to be defined. This will be the reference in the final TAG, whose value can be entered manually or represented by an ESL snippet.
Take into consideration that the parameter name is always visible in the TAG URL.
The viewer of the content including the TAG can see the parameter name in the browser's status bar, for example, when hovering over the image.
7. After saving your rules, you will see the TAG which can be inserted in the editor. When inserting into the image block, you have to replace the %%MergeYourValue%% string with your ESL snippet relevant to the parameter name.
Using the Personalized Images widget
Please note that the Personalized Images widget is no longer supported. Use the content automation template editor instead. For more information, see Personalizing the Content Automation widget and Litmus Content Automation.
The Personalized Images widget allows inserting images with text relevant to the viewer. Although this is the easiest widget to personalize, it provides a lot of possibilities, as each contact data field can be used.
Creating a Personalized Image template
The Personalized Images widget requires an image template before creating a campaign.
Do the following to prepare a template:
- Click Add-ons > Open Time Content > Templates > Personalized Images > + New Template.
- Name your template.
- Click the canvas and upload a new image. You do not have to host your images, which can be an advantage in some cases.
- Add personalization blocks to your image and set their formatting. These blocks will be replaced by text according to ESL snippets in the URL.
- Save your changes.
Please note that you cannot add static text to your image at this stage. Prepare your image beforehand.
Creating a Personalized Image campaign
Do the following to create a Personalized Images campaign.
1. Create a campaign by clicking New Campaign... at Add-ons > Open Time Content.
2. Enter the name of your campaign.
3. Create a new Personalized Images mailing by clicking the highlighted icons.
4. Enter the name of your mailing. This serves only identification purposes.
5. Enter a description for your Personalized Image tag.
6. Add a click through link to your image.
7. Choose an image template. Each of your previously set personalization blocks need a Parameter Name. In the final OTC tag, these will be the references whose value has to contain the ESL snippet.
Take into consideration that the parameter name is always visible in the TAG URL.
The viewer of the content including the TAG can see the parameter name in the browser's status bar, for example, when hovering over the image.
8. After saving your settings, you will see the TAG which can be inserted in the editor. When inserting into the image block, you have to replace the value string with your ESL snippet relevant to the parameter name.
Personalizing the Content Automation widget
The Content Automation Widget is a bit more complicated to use than the other personalization widgets. However, it allows combining data from multiple sources, such as your APIs, websites and the Emarsys contact database.
Creating a Content Automation template
The Content Automation widget requires a template before creating a campaign.
Do the following to prepare a template:
1. Click Add-ons > Open Time Content > Templates > Content Automation > + New Template.
2. Add a description to your template.
3. Connect your content source. Content sources can be XML, CSV (GET or POST API request response) and Websites. They can be created at Add-ons > Open Time Content > Content Sources.
Your content source can be a simple CSV, hosted in the Emarsys Media Database. Copy its link and paste it as an endpoint in the Content Source creation window.
4. Click the canvas and upload a new background image. You do not have to host your background images, which can be an advantage in some cases. Add a generic image, which can be used for each of your addresses.
5. Add your personalization and text blocks.
In this widget type, you can add static text as well, as opposed to the Personalized images tag. A block without a content source connection remains static.
6. Personalize your blocks by either connecting them to a data field in your content source or giving them parameter names whose value can be specified in the URL tag.
Parameter name setting (for use with ESL snippets):
Content source setting (for use with APIs or Media DB CSVs):
Creating Content Automation campaigns
Do the following to create a Content Automation campaign.
1. Create a campaign by clicking New Campaign... at Add-ons > Open Time Content.
2. Enter the name of your campaign.
3. Create a new Content Automation mailing by clicking the highlighted icons.
4. Enter a description for your Content Automation tag.
5. Select your prepared template.
6. Enter a click through link. Personalized links are possible if the links are part of the content feed.
7. Select a field in your content feed for ordering and as distinct key. The distinct key provides a way to distinguish between items in the same category. For example, from a feed with clothes of the same type, only clothes with unique category names would be shown (or one item from clothes having the same category name).
8. Add an optional filter if your feed contains more data than relevant for your current widget.
9. After saving your settings, you will see the TAG which can be inserted in the editor. When inserting into the image block, you have to replace the value string with your ESL snippet relevant to the parameter name.
After inserting this into an image block URL, this TAG will allow you to display personalized images with the first name of the recipient on them and their preferred product category.
Take into consideration that the parameter name is always visible in the TAG URL.
The viewer of the content including the TAG can see the parameter name in the browser's status bar, for example, when hovering over the image.
Instagram automation tips and hints
The following tips and hints help you automatically pull the latest Instagram posts into your emails.
Supported data
Open Time Content supports the following usable Litmus Personalize payload data types:
- Id
- Caption
- Media_url
- Permalink
- Timestamp
- Media_type
- Thumbnail_url
- KD_image_or_VideoThumbnail
Instagram likes or comments are not supported, as these data are not part of the Litmus Personalize payload.
Prerequisite: create a content automation template
Make sure first you create a content automation template in Open Time Content before creating Instagram campaigns or tags.
Image object: Set the size
When adding image objects to the template, make sure to set their size (for example, 200x200) as the default size may not be satisfactory.
Image object: Crop it
Click the crop button or the auto-square crop tool to apply the crop settings to an image object.
Add filter condition: Image media type
When creating Instagram campaigns or tags (after creating the content automation template) add the filter condition that the applied media type is image. Applying this filter means that only images will be shown. Video type objects cannot be played or displayed in the inbox.
