Subscriptions

Want to continually grow an audience you can email via Marketing Cloud? eComm can provide a simple subscription form with a tool called FormAssembly (example below) along with a Salesforce audience that will update automatically with subscribers (thanks to a behind-the-scenes integration). Users can drive subscriptions by posting the form to their website, and then send emails to that audience as desired.

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Understand FormAssembly Subscriptions

Examples at CU

The following forms are the most common and simple examples, collecting the minimum requirements of first name, last name, and email.

The following forms collect more information than the minimum of first name, last name, and email. This additional information collected remains in FormAssembly and is not sent to Salesforce. Users can request this data via a file as needed or on a regular frequency.

A FormAssembly form is used to create new Contacts within Salesforce. Users can follow these instructions to Manage Campaign Members (expand Add New Contacts section). 

CU Advancement sends numerous emails each year on Giving Day. To avoid having individuals opt out of all Giving Emails (via the Giving Opportunities preference) or all communications, recipients can opt out of the series of emails for Giving Day.

These unsubscription forms integrate with Salesforce the same as subscription forms, by populating a Campaign with Campaign Members. The difference is that the sender will use the Campaigns associated Report/Data Extension as an Exclusion (rather than an Inclusion). 

Integration Details

  • When an email address is provided, it matches against all email fields on a Contact in Salesforce (Email, UCD Email, UCB Email, UCCS Email, or SYS Email).
    1. If the email address is found in Salesforce, that Contact is added to the Campaign as a Campaign Member. 
    2. If the email address is NOT found in Salesforce, a new Standard Contact is created (with First Name, Last Name, Email ) and added to the Campaign as a Campaign Member.

This FormAssembly integration mirrors how the Cvent-Salesforce integration behaves.

Integration Details

Additional information provided while subscribing is NOT sent to Salesforce. This data lives in FormAssembly and can be provided on a regular cadence if desired.

Compare FormAssembly Subscription to External Site Form

  FormAssembly / eComm Subscription External Site Form
Request Form Submit a request to be fulfilled in 3-5 days. User may or may not be able to request a form via their unit's resources.
Access to Create / Edit System Office Only User may or may not have access to create/edit forms via their unit's resources.
Display Control

Promote URL

Publish with an iframe | example

Embed form HTML | example

Forms native to the site appear embedded.

Data Access (if more than FN, LN, Email collected) System Office only, available on-demand or on a regular frequency. The user or their team likely has access to data on-demand.
eComm Salesforce Integration: Campaign Member Integrated to match on email provided to add Campaign Members to the Campaign. Must be manually processed via an audience creator (likely by creating a Campaign and then using Apsona to add Campaign Members).
eComm Salesforce Integration: Update Email Address Provided

Email provided is used to match an existing Salesforce Contact as a Campaign Member to a Campaign. An existing Contact would never have their email address updated.

If the email provided is not in Salesforce, a Standard Contact will be created with the First Name, Last Name, and Email provided.

If done manually, the user could send data to Ascend to process the updated email address. 

If done manually, the user could send data to Ascend to process the updated email address. 
eComm Salesforce Integration: Add Additional Data No. eComm's instance of Salesforce doesn't allow for additional information to be added to Salesforce. No. eComm's instance of Salesforce doesn't allow for additional information to be added to Salesforce.
Ascend Salesforce Integration

Not automatic or manually managed by eComm.

The user could request the data from eComm, process it, and send it to Ascend to be created/updated in Salesforce. Must be familiar with their standards and processes.

The user could send data to Ascend to process manually. Must be familiar with their standards and processes.

STEP 1 | Create Salesforce Subscription Campaign

A Campaign must exist before submitting a request. This will require creating a Campaign at this time or using an existing Campaign. 

The eComm specialist should create a Campaign in Salesforce with a Subscription Form type to start the process. That URL will need to be provided when a subscription form request is submitted (step 2) to the system office.  

  • Salesforce >> Select Campaign tab >> Create New Campaign in the top-right >> Check the Subscription Form radio button

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  • Name Campaign per convention below

Naming Convention

  • Subscribe Campaigns | 0X_Subscribe_Name/Title
    • with X indicating your campus number
  • Unsubscribe Campaigns | 0X_Unsubscribe_Name/Title
    • ​with X indicating your campus number

  • Check the Active checkbox >> Select Save button in the bottom-right 

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  • Share with Users/Public Groups as needed & create an audience with CAN-SPAM compliance (Report/Data Extension).
    • Run a Report to see if anyone who subscribed to a certain communication has opted out of the broader email preference category. The user can reach out personally to encourage they opt back in - otherwise, they will not get the commercial emails). 
  • You will need to provide the Subscription Campaign URL to request a subscription form (Step 2).
You may have already been adding Campaign Members to a Campaign (individually or via Apsona) and now want to make the process more automated. This is a great use-case for a subscription.

  • Update the Campaign Type to Subscriber List.
  • Update the Campaign Name to be something like: 00_Subscribe_Whatever You Want
    • 00 = Your Campus | 01=Boulder, 02=Anschutz, 03=Denver, 04=UCCS, 08=System, 09=Advancement
  • Share with Users/Public Groups as needed & create an audience with CAN-SPAM compliance (Report/Data Extension).
  • Run a Report to see if anyone who subscribed to a certain communication has opted out of the broader email preference category. The user can reach out personally to encourage they opt back in - otherwise, they will not get the commercial emails). 
  • You must provide the Subscription Campaign URL to request a subscription form (Step 2).
    • Select 'Campaign Existed Previously & Already contains Campaign Members' in Column H.
    • Then add the Campaign Name and URL in columns H & I.
 

STEP 2 | Submit Request

Spell Check Be sure to run your text through spell check before pasting it into the sheet. The exact text provided will be copied and pasted.

  • Populate columns A-O
    • Provide the Campaign Name and URL from Step 1 (column I & J)
  • Submit a help ticket and anticipate a 5-day turnaround for simple forms.
    • Requests with lots of customization or back-and-forth with embedding will require an extension. 

Populate Request Details | Columns A-Q

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STEP 3 | Launch & Test

Once the subscription form is created, you will be able to test and review it. Once satisfied, you or your user can post the URL publicly and start collecting subscribers. 

  • Melanie Jones will contact you within 5 days of submitting the request with a live URL to the subscription form (column R)
  • The requester will need to complete a test (column P) by subscribing and confirming the Salesforce Contact populates in the Campaign as a Campaign Member (created in step 1).

Integration Details

  • When an email address is provided, it matches against all email fields on a Contact in Salesforce (Email, UCD Email, UCB Email, UCCS Email, or SYS Email).
    1. If the email address is found in Salesforce, that Contact is added to the Campaign as a Campaign Member. 
    2. If the email address is NOT found in Salesforce, a new Standard Contact is created (with First Name, Last Name, Email ) and added to the Campaign as a Campaign Member.

This FormAssembly integration mirrors how the Cvent-Salesforce integration behaves.

Integration Details

Additional information provided while subscribing is NOT sent to Salesforce. This data lives in FormAssembly and can be provided on a regular cadence if desired.