Real-Time Toolbox White Paper

In-Editor Solution for Marketing Platforms

Email is very much alive and evolving, but the world and economy are moving fast. The instant an email is sent, the content starts to age. Relevance and value begin to drop. The reason for sending — the “why” — starts fading as market conditions shift.

At the same time, paradoxically, people are keeping email longer. The #1 action people take with an email of interest, according to the UK DMA, is to save it for later.
Real-time fundamentally expands data-driven content across several dimensions. The ‘where and when’ of email engagement become actionable content dimensions, specific to the place, time and device. ‘Who’-driven personalization can be 1:1 intelligent; new customer data and open patterns drive intelligent content updates. And the ‘what’ — market conditions, pricing, inventory and more — are no longer fixed in time.
As Oracle ‘s CX Marketing group said:
“…because of real-time content’s unique benefits, Oracle Marketing Consultants consider it to be a low adoption–high impact email marketing trend, which means that using live content offers not only significant benefits but also a competitive advantage.”
This is a fundamental challenge for digital marketing platforms; real-time content is complex, incredibly performance-sensitive, and requires extensive development resources.
The Real-Time Toolbox provides a platform-ready solution. This lightweight cloud-and-edge-based Javascript plugin puts real-time content inside the editor. Integration is simple. Roadmap milestones take days, not years.
Real-time content adds new long-term revenue streams, based on opens instead of sends. With flexible pricing and licensing models, marketing platforms can bring a highly-competitive feature set to market without expending dev resources.
This white paper covers the key capabilities and architecture of the Real-Time Toolbox from Campaign Genius.

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1 INTRODUCTION

The Real-Time Toolbox from Campaign Genius delivers a wide and constantly-growing range of real-time content capabilities inside the email editor. Email marketers can incorporate real-time into their workflow, free from technical integration projects, external solutions and high-cost professional services. It extends the capabilities of email platforms, bringing the inherently real-time elements of Internet email into the marketing mix, without technical re-architecting.

By design, each of the tools in the Toolbox focuses on exploiting a single aspect of real-time in depth. This single-focus approach is akin to the Unix philosophy for code; simple, clear and modular things done well. It provides an onramp into real-time for email marketers. Over time, like Unix and Lego, more complex capabilities will be constructed on these focused building-blocks.

Real-time template design is delivered in a smart editor pop-up, implemented as a Javascript plugin. Integration requires little more than a few lines of Javascript and CSS, with a ‘handshake’ based on platform user IDs. The real-time functions of the templates are self-contained in the HTML code that the tools insert within email templates. Template modifications live in the same UX, with History items allowing change and re-edit by email teams.

The Toolbox supports several different signup & transaction modes, including silent white-label, user optin, and modular “in-app subscriptions.” It is a complete white-label solution to add real-time to any platform that sends email.?

1.1 What Is Real-Time Content?

Every email client in common use — billions of them — supports real-time email content.

‘Real-time’ means just what it says; content that is live and updated at the moment of open. Conventional email use has focused on send-time content, but vendors like Campaign Genius, Movable Ink and Liveclicker have successfully delivered billions of real-time messages.

Real-time content (sometimes called “live content”) does not involve email client scripts, additional or proprietary technologies, new scripting, new languages, nor in fact any technical changes to email and CRM platforms. Instead, real-time utilizes live image-tag updates and hyperlink redirects.

Billions of email clients have the capability to handle real-time content built in; it just hasn’t been widely used. Oracle’s CX Marketing team had this to say:

In fact, because of live content’s unique benefits, Oracle Marketing Consultants consider it to be a low adoption–high impact email marketing trend, which means that using live content offers not only significant benefits but also a competitive advantage. 1

The technical standards enabling real-time content are utilized across the martech landscape already. Open rates and click reports are built on these same standards, but with a more limited purpose with no customer/content impact.

With constantly-escalating demands for recipient attention, real-time provides a natural evolutionary path for email marketing. People are wired for visual communication; society is becoming ever-more-real-time. The theoretical capability for real-time has been in place for decades; now marketers are starting to discover the advantages of finally putting it to use.

1.2 Real-Time vs Send-Time

Many advanced email and CRM platforms deliver time-of-send content selection. While send-time content selection widens the content palette for marketers, it does not address the same problems, or change email capabilities, in the same way as real-time.

1.2a Send-Time disadvantages

* Limited to in-platform query data, typically list-centric and flat.

* No mechanism to update content after send.

* Send-time graphics compositing is not available in any major ESP or CRM.

* Send-time processing requires additional server capacity.

1.2b Real-Time advantages:

* Real-time content combines list and segment data with in situ on-open data.

* Marketers can perpetually modify content and hyperlink destinations.

* Real-time platforms provide full on-the-fly delivery of data-driven graphics.

* Recipients’ email client device issues requests.

1.3 Integration Considerations

* Campaign Genius real-time content requires no IT integration or data exports.

* Recipient data is transmitted via ‘merge fields’ in each email message.

* Image and link requests from email clients relay recipient-specific data to real-time engine.

* Content design remains “live”; templates can be changed after send.

1.4 Email Client Support

All major email clients, including standard corporate email systems, support the HTML email body part. While email HTML has limited CSS support and no scripting, image and link content is handled on the cloud side of the HTTP ‘fetch’. Certain clients, including Gmail, utilize proxy servers for image fetch. This mainly affects geolocation, but does not affect personalization or real-time content updates.

1.5 Design Limitations

Real-time content comprises image tags and hyperlinks. Images can include any mix of text (static and dynamic), background, and composited visuals. Recipients can read text-on-image copy just as well as body copy, with the benefit of more fonts and design options. Campaign Genius provides dynamic control of background images, animations, static/dynamic text and picture-on-picture compositing.

1.6 Limitations of Real-Time

* Real-time content updates are “on-open”; messages left open will not update.

* Content design must account for static body copy and real-time messaging.

* While offline email is increasingly rare, real-time content depends on live Internet

* Clients who turn off default “view with images” settings will see static <alt=”” content.

The Real-Time Toolbox

The marketing technology ‘landscape’ comprises some 8,000 different companies circa 2020. Many hundreds crowd into the formal email marketing corner; thousands more handle email in some form.

Despite the age and well-settled standards involved, email is not a monolithic function. Different layers of the email “stack” — editing, authoring, content management, message transfer, deliverability and others — are complex enough to be ecosystems of their own.

The Toolbox introduces a new piece to the martech puzzle. While legacy, standalone real-time content solutions have been available for over a decade, they have struggled for mass adoption. Technical complexity, habit and the sheer workload of email marketing are a few of the key obstacles. By adding real-time content into the editor via simple, no-code integration, martech platforms can offer real-time without expending development cycles.

The Toolbox is available as a direct Javascript ‘plugin’ for email editors. Implementation is simple, and a range of partnering/revenue models are built in.

Platforms utilizing 3rd party editors also have an option. The BEE Plugin — the most widely-licensed email editor — offers the Real-Time Toolbox as an AddOn.

2 Real-Time Toolbox Overview

This snapshot of the current tools (Q1 2021) provides a glimpse of the other capabilities available, to give context to a more in-depth discussion of Optimize.

2.1 Content-Set Targeting Tools

These tools allow marketers to direct a set of content alternatives (paired images + links) in real-time. They all share a very similar interface. Marketers can upload or drag/drop a set of images onto the tool, and set a hyperlink destination for each image. A templated set is assigned a single URL for image delivery, and a matching URL for link redirects. This single URL is inserted into the email template. The images are delivered as-configured when emails are opened.

The configuration of these tools is “live.” An email marketer can return to History, retrieve a set, and change the configuration. Future deliveries are altered as soon as the changes are saved. For example, each content row (image + link) has a left-side checkbox. If the checkbox is cleared (un-checked), that content is removed from use. If re-checked, that content goes back into use.

Each of these tools also offers the capability of configuring delivery for 2 sets of content at once; one group for mobile devices, and another for non-mobile devices. This is controlled row-by-row with a checkbox labeled “mobile only.” If 6 rows are populated, and 2 are flagged “mobile only”, content delivery on mobile devices (on-request) will come from the set of 2, and non-mobile devices from the set of 4.

Each set is saved in user History. High-level stats are fed back into the History item in real-time; a marketer can return to their History from any point in the email editor to check on real-time progress.

2.1a Schedule Content with ‘Schedule’

The Schedule tool allows marketers to decide what content shows up when — in short, to schedule it. Schedule is granular down to the minute, and is set with a simple calendar-picker control. The scheduled date/time is absolute, based on the local time of the user. If the green backpack goes online at midnight Eastern time, it will go online at 11 Central / 10 Mountain and so on. (Recipient-relative time zone targeting is on the roadmap.)

Two sets of content — one for mobile, one for non-mobile — can be configured via ‘mobile only’ checkmark.

2.1b Live Testing & Optimization with ‘Optimize’

The Optimize tool gives marketers a no-code, drag-and-drop method to utilize real-time split testing and automated content optimization, within the email editor. The result is unprecedented new speed and control over content optimization. While the tool is simple to configure and use, the impact of real-time testing and real-time optimization merits forethought and planning. Marketer-designated sets of content (image + links) are stored in the cloud, and assigned an ID. The ID is used in both image request SRC tags, and hyperlink redirects. Optimization can be triggered a range of methods, including CTR sample-size, total impressions, deadline and external webhook.

2.1c Geotargeting & Geo-demographics with ‘Geo’

The Geo tool delivers content targeted to the location of the recipient, as reported by the IP address of the image request. Location targets are designated with ISO-3166-standard country codes (US, GB, DE, etc). This can be further refined with lower-case region codes (AUS-nsw, AUS-sa, US-ca, US-wa). A default * is sent to all non-designated requests. The Geo tool also provide geo-demographic targeting in the US. Targeting is based on decile divisions of 12 different statistics, including population, age, family size, household income. See separate white paper on Geo Targeting for a more in-depth discussion.

As with other Content Targeting tools, availability is controlled via checkbox, and mobile/non-mobile sets can be designated with the ‘mobile only’ setting.

Accurate recipient addressing for Gmail/GSuite users is based on Google’s handling of image requests. Google currently opts to route image requests through common proxy servers in major metro areas. (See Appendix 1 – Gmail Issues.) A technical solution to this has already been identified, and is on the roadmap for a future release.

2.1d Language Targeting with ‘Language’

The Language tool matches content to the language settings of the email client requesting content. Language preferences are part of the HTTP standard; language preference values are included in HTTP request headers. Depending on device and configuration, language preferences may be singular or multiple-with-weighting:

Accept-Language: fr-CH, fr;q=0.9, en;q=0.8, de;q=0.7, *;q=0.5

As above, row availability is controlled via checkbox, and mobile/non-mobile sets can be designated with the ‘mobile only’ setting.

2.2 Active Content Tools

This group of tools provide a range of data-driven content. Some update based on recipient conditions; some on remote conditions, and others on time-based data.

2.2a Package Tracking with ‘Tracking’

This tool provides real-time updates of tracking status for a single package. 18 carriers are currently supported, including the major US carriers UPS and Fedex. Additional template designs can be requested and will generally be added relatively quickly.

2.2b Animated Countdowns with ‘Timers’

This tool provides one of the most common real-time content forms, countdown timers. The Toolbox version provides color control, a range of styles and format options (GIF or animated PNG). A wide range of configurable dynamic parameters are built in to facilitate use in triggers and automation. See separate white paper “Countdown Timers” for more detail.

2.2c Live AccuWeather from ‘Weather’

The Weather tool pulls real-time data from AccuWeather, the leading commercial weather service. Templates can be configured for a fixed address, or can deliver recipient-location-based weather. Current designs and configurations include conditions, 1-day forecast and 5-day forecast. Location can also be merged in dynamically on-send — for example, to provide travellers with destination conditions.

2.2d Live Tweets with ‘Twitter’

The Twitter tool accepts a Twitter @handle, and returns the latest tweet from the designated account. Media elements, logos, and like/retweet counts are included in the final image. Use cases include email signatures, and “re-purposing” company Twitter content to make email current and dynamic.

2.2e Fixed or Recipient location with ‘Maps’

The Maps tool provides a streamlined, in-the-editor interface to configure Google Maps images. Users control map size, style and a few other essential parameters. As with weather, location can be designated, merged on-send, or matched to recipient’s reported geolocation.

2.2f Webpage Snapshots with ‘Webshots’

“Webshots” render a web page into an image. Images are updated daily. Use cases include commercial situations, such as “current sale” pages; news, sports scores, or other frequently-changed page content.

2.3 Visual Resources

2.3a Royalty-Free Photos

The Photos tool puts over 5 million royalty-free images from Unsplash, Pexels and Pixabay at marketer’s fingertips. Photographer credits are provided, and automatically inserted into the ALT tag field. Editing provides on-the-fly resizing; image size can also be adjusted dynamically via parameter.

2.3b GIFs and Stickers from ‘Giphy’

The Giphy tool provide search access to the largest GIF and sticker collection available. Images can be resized in the editor, or dynamically within email templates.

2.3c Thumbnails from ‘YouTube’

The YouTube tool handles the time-consuming manual job of capturing YouTube thumbnails by working directly with the YouTube API. Thumbnails can be captured as static JPGs. The tool also offers the option to generate an animated GIF preview of the video. (Caveat: video length and processing time prevent some videos from rendering as GIFs.)

2.3d Icon Library

The Icon Library tool is currently unavailable, due to legal concerns regarding ambiguities in the original provider’s API license. Other sources are being reviewed.

3 Toolbox-to-Platform Integration

The working assumptions of the technical design of the Toolbox are:

* Partners offering a browser-based SaaS platforms.

* Email authoring is part of the platform

* Either direct account/user customer model, OR “white-label” partner-customer-user model.

* The means to deliver a reliable, unique user ID to an editor page; if this is not available, the Toolbox direct user-signin option can be used.

3.1 Editor Code Integration

Adding the Toolbox to the editor is straightforward. The editor code must include:

* A visible button to launch the Toolbox

* Addition of a single Toolbox Javascript (URL) to the page

If the platform can pass a user ID, the UID is passed as a query parameter in the Toolbox URL.

The Toolbox popup is a modal window, with the Toolbox UI delivered on-demand as an iFrame. None of the HTML, CSS or script involved in Toolbox functions needs to be on the page; just the key iFrame URL and modal popup.

Visual styling is covered under Administration.

3.1a Editor HTML Integration

The end “output” of all tools is a chunk of email-template HTML. The Toolbox currently supports 2 different delivery mechanisms for the HTML. The iFrame can pass back the HTML via postMessage. If the editor can be configured to respond to a postMessage event, and (ideally) can track insertion-carat position, the experience is “click to close and insert.”

Optionally, if postMessage or carat tracking are problematic, the Toolbox can be configured to put the HTML snippet on the clipboard. This “click to Copy” requires one extra step from the user, but copy/paste is a familiar action.

Some functions and metrics are improved by the addition of merge tags to the URLs. The roadmap for the Toolbox includes substantial content-personalization, which will be require merge-tag use. Merge field names and delimiters will be configurable by the platform or (alternately) the user.

3.1b Real-Time Template Management

Collections of content (images + hyperlinks), managed under a common ID by a single tool, are generically called ‘templates.’ A set of 3 images + hyperlinks in the Optimize tool would be “a template”; a set of content, managed with a schedule in the Schedule tool, a template, and so on.

Tools automatically generate a unique ID for each new template, and a URL structure with the data to allow partner, account, user and (optionally) client or job-code tracking. The URL and tracking structures are fixed (should not be edited), and any query parameters required in the URL are automatically attached. Users can add additional query parameters — for example, Google Analytics UTM parameters — at will. These parameters will be “passed through” in click traffic.

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Content Snippet Example

All templates are added automatically to a user’s History. On subsequent opens of the Toolbox, the user can retrieve a template from History and continue to edit and modify it. The content of email messages using that template will be altered by any changes made and saved. Thus, an email marketer has live and continued control over their message content, even after send.

3.1c Template History Item Metrics aka ‘Metrics Maps’

History items also include content metrics. The “Metrics Map” is a distinct value-add from real-time content.

Metrics Maps Screenshot

Partners control visibility and styling; metric maps (and other features) can easily be set as unavailable.

3.2 Partner Toolbox Configuration Control

Partners have live control of the tools, api keys, and styling of their Toolbox. Tool availability and order is set in a drag-and-drop interface:

Configuration allows for optional “Child” accounts, with separate API keys and separate configurations. Child accounts can be used with the BEE Editor AddOn, or in standalone implementations, to provide different tool groupings. For example, a platform could offer additional tools on a higher-tier subscription.

(1) Visual Style Control

Toolbox admin provides complete CSS ‘override’ over the Toolbox styles. Some caution and experimentation are advised, as CSS is critical in the visual operation of the tool. But with relatively little effort, platforms can match the Toolbox style to fit their native editor.

1 https://blogs.oracle.com/marketingcloud/live-content-in-emails

ToolboxMatthew DunnMay 4, 2021