Creating Message Templates

Message templates make setting up bulk messages quick and easy for users by providing pre-defined messages which can be loaded into the Messaging form. Once loaded, the messages can then be modified to meet the user's requirements prior to being sent.

Templates can include fields or even previously defined Message Parts to allow the user to personalize the message. The user can load existing templates or create new ones from the Bulk Messaging system. Administrators may also define message templates from the Message Templates service and arrange them in a hierarchal folder structure through the use of categories.

This topic provides the following sub-topics related to Message Templates:

• Creating Message Template Categories
• Creating a New Template from the Message Templates Service
• About the Delivered Message Templates

Creating Message Template Categories

Message Templates are presented to the user in a hierarchical folder structure. These folders and hierarchy are configured through the use of message template categories. Follow these steps to create a new category:

1. Open a new record from the Message Template Categories service.
2. Enter a Name and Description for the category.
3. If the new category is a sub-category, enter the parent message template category in the Parent field.
   • If you enter a Parent, then the new category will appear as a sub-folder beneath its parent in the Messaging dialog's Load Template window. 
4. Select the Scope for the message template category.
   • If the scope is set to Global, all users can see this category in the Load Template window, assuming they have the necessary permissions (see below).
   • If the scope is set to User, only the user listed in the Who Created field can see this category (even if the Allow Everyone To Access box is checked). 
5. Enter any optional details about this category in the Comments field.
6. Configure the category's security settings (if Scope is set to Global).
   • If you want this category to be visible to all users in the Messaging dialog's Load Template window, leave the Allow Everyone To Access box checked.
   • To limit access to this category to specific users and/or groups, follow these steps:
   1. 1. Remove the check mark from the Allow Everyone To Access box.
      2. Add the users and groups who should have access to this category under the Group Permissions and User Permissions tabs. Any user or group that has a sub-type record under one of these tabs will be able to see this category. 
7. Configure the category's availability settings.
   • If you want this category to be available system wide, select Global from the Availability drop-down menu.
   • You can limit access to this category to a set of Message Sources by selecting MessageSource and defining Message Source records on the Message Source tab.
   1. • When selecting a Message Template in the Messaging dialog, a template will only be available if its Availability is Global or if its Availability is MessageSource and the current message source is specified on the template record's Message Sources tab. Likewise, a template's category must be visible in the selection list (based on its Availability setting) in order to see the items in that category. In other words, if a template is available for a particular message source but its category is not, then the template will not be available for selection.

      • Also note that a user's ability to select a particular template in the Messaging dialog depends upon the template's availability as well as on the user's access permissions. 
        
        

        Fields Reserved for Future Use

        The Read, Edit, and Delete check boxes on the permissions form are reserved for future use. 

        
        
        

8. Save and close the record.

   • The Who Created and Date Created fields, which are visible in a Message Template Categories view, are automatically populated by the system when the record is first saved.

Creating a New Template from the Message Templates Service

Message templates can be defined either manually by creating a new Message Templates record or through the user interface on the Messaging form. The manual method is described in the steps below. 

For the sake of simplicity, Aptify recommends that templates be created using the Messaging dialog and then modified as needed (as described in the Modifying a Template's Security Settings steps). See Creating a New Message Template and Modifying a Message Template for details.

1. Open a new record from the Message Templates service.
2. Enter a Name and Description for the message template.
3. Enter the Category for the message template. This determines where in the template folder structure the template is stored and displayed to the user. within the Load Template dialog.
4. Enter a Subject to be placed in the Subject line of all messages based on this template.
5. Enter a message system into the Default Message System field. This specifies the message system that is used when this template is loaded.
   • If this message system specified in the template is different from the Messaging dialog's default, then a notification appears prompting the user to override the Messaging dialog's default setting. 
6. Enter a message source into the Default Message Source field. This field is required.
   • This field does not limit the template to a particular Message Source; all templates with the appropriate security settings are available for selection within the Messaging dialog regardless of the Message Source that is loaded.
   • This field is primarily used for messages that are generated automatically by Aptify outside of the messaging dialog (for example, as part of a process flow). Message Source is a required property to send messages. 
7. Set the Scope for the message template. By default, the scope is set to Global for templates created from the Message Templates services.
   • When set to Global, all users may use the template (depending on the Share Template option).
   • When set to User, only the user listed in the Who Created field may have access to this template. Note that templates created in the Messaging dialog default to Global scope.
   • When the Share Template option is selected on a message template, the Scope is set to Global. 
     
     
8. Configure the template's security settings (if Scope is set to Global).
   • If you want this template to be visible to all users in the Messaging dialog's Load Template window, leave the Allow Everyone box checked.
   • To limit access to this template to specific users and/or groups, follow these steps:
     1. Clear the Allow Everyone option.

     2. Add the users and groups who should have access to this template under the Group Permissions and User Permissions tabs. Any user or group that has a sub-type record under one of these tabs will be able to use this template. 
        

        Fields Reserved for Future Use

        The Read, Edit, and Delete check boxes on the permissions form are reserved for future use.

9. Configure the template's availability settings.
   1. If you want this part to be available system wide, select Global from the Availability drop-down menu.
   2. You can limit access to this template to a set of Message Sources by selecting MessageSource and defining Message Source records on the Message Source tab.
      • When selecting a Message Template in the Messaging dialog, a template will only be available if its Availability is Global or if its Availability is MessageSource and the current message source is specified on the template record's Message Sources tab.
      • Also note that a user's ability to select a particular template in the Messaging dialog depends upon the part's availability as well as on the user's access permissions. 
10. Click the Delivery tab and configure the delivery options.
    • See About the Message Templates Form for the complete list of options.
    • These fields automatically flow down to the Messaging dialog's Options > Delivery tab when the template is loaded. 
11. Enter the message text on the HTML and/or Plain Text tabs. Use the proper syntax when entering the message on a particular tab.
    1. If the template is for text-only messages (that is, a message sent by a Message System that does not support HTML), enter the message syntax into the Text Body field. The information entered into the Text Body field is written so that the data can be viewed in a text-based message.
    2. If the message is to be sent by a Message System that supports HTML, enter the message syntax into the HTML Body field. This syntax is written using normal syntax from the HTML language to format the appropriate information so that it can appear in an HTMLbased message.
       • Aptify's Messaging Engine also supports the ability to pass in record data to a message's HTML code using Aptify's mark-up convention (the <<Field Name>> format). In addition, the Messaging Engine can format money fields with its proper currency symbol if a field uses this convention: <<Money Field:C>>. See About the Order Confirmation Message Template for Dot Net Mail for information on the sample Message Template that illustrates these features. 
    3. Also, if the Message System supports HTML, you can enter the message on either tab or on both tabs. If you enter the message on both tabs, a recipient receives the HTML message unless the recipient's email program does not support HTML. In that case, the recipient receives the message in Plain Text. 
12. Define any applicable actions that should be executed after the message template is sent on the Actions tab.
    • See Configuring Message Actions for more details. 
13. Save and close the record.

About the Delivered Message Templates

The following delivered message templates are included in the standard Aptify installation.

• About the Address & Order History Message Template
• About the Address Verification Message Template
• About the Aptify Bulk Message Template
• About the Aptify Order Confirmation Message Template for Outlook
• About the Meeting Activity Notification Message Template
• About the Meeting Invitation Message Template
• About the Order Confirmation Message Template for Dot Net Mail

About the Address & Order History Message Template

This template for the Persons service generates an email message that asks the recipient to verify his or her address and includes information on that person's order history with the organization. By default, this template is available to all users in the Verification Email category, and it uses the Outlook Mail message system. To display the address fields from the Persons record, this template uses the One Line Address Block message part. To display the order history information, the template uses the Order History Part message part.

About the Address Verification Message Template

This template for the Persons service generates an email message that asks the recipient to verify his or her address based on address fields obtained from that person's Persons record in Aptify. By default, this template is available to all users in the Verification Email category, and it uses the Outlook Mail message system.

About the Aptify Bulk Message Template

This template for the Persons service generates an email message and illustrates how an organization can create standardized email templates using an organization's logo and contact information to send bulk email messages. By default, this template is available to all users in the Marketing category, and it uses the Outlook Mail message system. Note that the HTML code for this template illustrates how you can use Aptify's mark-up convention (using the <<Field Name>> format) to pass record data into a message.

About the Aptify Order Confirmation Message Template for Outlook

This template for the Orders service generates an email message that provides an order summary to a Ship To person. By default, this template is available to all users in the Order Processing category, and it uses the Microsoft Outlook Mail message system. To display the order lines information from the Orders record, this template uses the Order Lines message part. Note that the HTML code for this template illustrates how you can use Aptify's mark-up convention (using the <<Field Name>> format) to pass record data into a message. In addition, this template illustrates how to configure the message to display money fields with its proper currency symbol using this convention: <<Money Field:C>>.

This template is similar to the Order Confirmation template used for the Dot Net Mail message system. See About the Order Confirmation Message Template for Dot Net Mail for more information.

About the Meeting Activity Notification Message Template

This template for the Orders service generates an email message that provides a notification of any recent registration activities, including the ID of the registration order and the meeting's start date and time and other meeting related information. By default, this template is available to all users in the Order Processing category, and it uses the Outlook Mail message system by default. To display details about the meeting, this template uses the Order Lines message part.

About the Meeting Invitation Message Template

This template for the Campaign List Details service generates an email message that provides a invitation to register for a meeting that includes the meeting title, meeting date and time, and the location and website location of the meeting. By default, this template is available to all users in the Seminar Promotion category, and it uses the Dot Net Mail message system by default. To display the meeting related information, this template uses the Meeting Title, Meeting URL, Meeting StartDate, Meeting Location, Meeting City, and Meeting State message parts.

About the Order Confirmation Message Template for Dot Net Mail

This template for the Orders service generates an email message that provides an order summary to a Ship To and Bill To person (as an additional address in the CC: field). By default, this template is available to all users in the Order Processing category, and it uses the Dot Net Mail message system. To display the order lines information from the Orders record, this template uses the Order Lines message part. Note that the HTML code for this template illustrates how you can use Aptify's mark-up convention (using the <<Field Name>> format) to pass record data into a message. In addition, this template illustrates how to configure the message to display money fields with its proper currency symbol using this convention: <<Money Field:C>>.

This template is similar to the Aptify Order Confirmation template, which uses the Microsoft Outlook Mail message system. See About the Aptify Order Confirmation Message Template for Outlook for more information.