Overview
Depending on the specifics of your Loyalty program, there are several types of emails to configure for your participants and your internal team members.
Referral Campaign Emails
If your are rewarding points or rewards for referrals, Referral campaigns have their own set of transactional emails that are enabled and customized within the settings of each campaign, and triggered throughout the referral journey. View a list of those emails here, and how to configure them here.
If you are rewarding referrals with points or cash that can be redeemed for rewards in the Portal, you will also need to create and enable Portal reward Emails. Read below for how to configure those.
Rule Effect Emails
Within the "Loyalty" > "Emails" section, this is where you will create each of the email templates that you'd like to send to a participant when a rule is triggered, such as when they've been issued points, a badge, a voucher code, or completed a task. You can also send other participation emails, such as a reminder about available points to redeem or send a reward instantly via email.
How to configure emails sent to a participant when a rule is triggered
First, you have to create and customize the Email template(s). Then, you'll assign each email in the applicable Rule as an Effect.
1. To create an Email template, click on Loyalty > Emails > then, the New Email button.
2. Within the Create New Email modal, make the following customizations to the form fields:
Email Name: Enter an internal name for the email template.
Note: Make sure that it's uniquely recognizable for each reward type because it will appear in a list of email templates to select from when you setup the Loyalty Rule Effect.
Subject: Enter a subject line for the email's purpose and follows subject line best practices.
From Email & Name: This will default to the Outgoing Email Address & Domain that is setup in your Account Settings. If you change the email address, there are a two rules to follow:
It must have the same domain as what's verified in your Account Settings, otherwise you'll get an "Invalid Email Domain" error.
It must be an inbox that you can receive responses.
3. Next, use the editing tool bar or enter your own HTML to customize the email design and copy for it's intended purpose and to reflect your brand.
In the tool bar at the top, you'll find a list of "Merge Tags" you can use to dynamically pull in corresponding information into your email when it's sent.
Don't forget to customize the footer with your own address, social links!
Note: Our Unsubscribe link is required, and will provide the recipient a choice of unsubscribing from emails and/or the program. This will only unsubscribe them from the emails sent from Ambassador specifically. If you need to be notified of these unsubscribes, you can setup a recurring Contact report or webhook.
4. When ready, Save Draft Email and Send Email Test, then select Save Email to make it available for selection in your Rule Effects.
5. Once you've created and saved your email templates, setup a Rule Effect in your Rule and select the applicable email template:
From the Loyalty menu, click Rule.
If you've already created a Rule for the use-case, select it from the list and Edit, otherwise proceed to create your rule first.
After Rule details are selected, scroll down to the Rules Effect section > In the Type field select Send Email > then, in the Value field, select the name of the email template that should be sent for this rule.
Save.
Portal Reward Email Notification
Setup a Portal Reward Email for each Reward Type enabled in the Portal. When a participant redeems points or cash value for the reward, the Ambassador system will send the notification email with details about the reward. For some rewards , this email will be supplementary to the one that Tango or PayPal sends. Read below for more details.
Read below for notification details about each reward type or click here for instructions to setup the Portal Reward Email Notification for participants.
Custom Reward
Since custom rewards are fulfilled by your company (external to Ambassador), we recommend creating a Portal Email for Reward Type = Custom to provide the recipient with details about how and when they can expect to receive the reward. You should also setup a Notification for your internal team or system to fulfill it.
Voucher Code
If you will import one-time use voucher codes, such as free shipping codes or discount codes as a Portal Reward, then you must create a Portal Email for Reward Type = Voucher that includes the "voucher_code" merge tag to send them with one of the codes you've imported.
Tango Gift Card Reward (Digital Gift Cards)
When a participant redeems points or cash value in the Portal for a digital Gift Card, they will receive a secure email from Tango with their unique reward details and instructions to use it.
Since that email will be coming from Tango and not your brand, consider sending a Portal Reward Email from Ambassador that supplements the Tango email, letting the participant know to be on the lookout for the email from Tango via noreply@tangocard.com.
If you setup a Portal Email for this reward type, select the Reward Type = Tango Gift Card Reward in the template. There is no need for gift card related merge tags like the Campaign Gift Card Payment Email since the reward is delivered with the email from Tango.
Tango Cash Reward (Prepaid Cards)
When a participant redeems points or cash value in the Portal for a digital Prepaid Card, they will receive a secure email from Tango with their unique reward details and instructions to use it.
Since that email will be coming from Tango and not your brand, consider sending a Portal Reward Email from Ambassador that supplements the Tango email, letting the participant know to be on the lookout for the email from Tango via noreply@tangocard.com.
If you setup a Portal Email for this reward type, select the Reward Type = Tango Cash Reward in the template. There is no need for Prepaid Card related merge tags like the Campaign Gift Card Payment Email since the reward is delivered with the email from Tango.
Tango Cash Reward (PayPal or Venmo)
When a participant redeems points or cash value in the Portal for a PayPal or Venmo payment, they will receive an email from PayPal/Venmo with instructions to accept the payment. In addition to the PayPal or Venmo email, you can choose to send an email to the participant to be on the lookout for the email from PayPal/Venmo.
If you setup a Portal Email for this reward type, select the Reward Type = Tango Cash Reward in the template. There is no need for Tango related merge tags in your email.
How to configure Portal Reward Email Notifications for participants
First, you have to create and customize the reward Email template(s) in Portal settings. Then, you'll create or update a Reward in Portal settings and assign the applicable reward email template in the Portal Reward Email field.
1. To create a Portal Reward Email template, go to Portal > Emails > select the New Email button.
2. Next, within the Create New Email window, fill in the form fields and type selection.
Email Name: Enter an internal name for the email template.
Make sure that it's uniquely recognizable for each reward type because it will appear in a list of email templates to select from when you setup the Portal Reward.
Subject: Enter a subject line for the email's purpose and follows subject line best practices.
From Email & Name: This will default to the Outgoing Email Address & Domain that is setup in your Account Settings. If you change the email address, there are a two rules to follow:
It must have the same domain as what's verified in your Account Settings, otherwise you'll get an "Invalid Email Domain" error.
It must be an inbox that you can receive responses.
Type: From this list, select the reward type the email template is for. This is used to populate your list of merge tags and to filter the templates when setting up the Portal Reward.
3. Customize the email design, copy, and footer using the editing tool bar or enter your own HTML.
Within the top tool bar, you'll find a list of "Merge Tags" you can use to dynamically populate corresponding information.
Note: Our Unsubscribe link is required, and will provide the recipient a choice of unsubscribing from emails and/or the program. This will only unsubscribe them from the emails sent from Ambassador specifically. If you need to be notified of these unsubscribes, you can setup a recurring Contact report or webhook.
4. Once you have setup the Portal Reward Email templates, you can assign it to an applicable new or existing Reward in Portal setting.
Go back to your Portal settings menu > click Redeem...
To assign it to an existing reward, click the reward from the list > then Edit.
If you need to create a new reward, click the New Redemption Choice button and go through the steps to select the reward type and fill in the reward details.
5. Scroll down to Portal Reward Email section in the Edit Redeem window and select the corresponding email template from the drop-down list.
Note: If no template appears, check your template and make sure you selected the right option in the "Reward Type" field.
Once you're done setting up the reward, you can "Save as Draft" or "Publish".
Internal Team Member Notifications
You can setup emails or webhooks to notify your team or a system of various activities. Click here for info on all available team member Notifications.
For the purpose of this article, below are email and webhook notifications triggered for Loyalty and/or Reward Redemptions.
Send internal EMAIL when a Loyalty Rule has triggered
A good use-case for this notification is if you need to email someone on your team to fulfill a reward that is triggered as the result of a Rule.
1. First, configure the email notification in your account Settings > Notifications.
2. Then, add it to your Loyalty Rule. Got to Loyalty > Rules > Find the existing Rule or create a new one > then, scroll down to Rule Effect > in the Type field, select Send Email > in the Value field, select the name of the notification email or webhook that was setup. Click Save.
Send an internal WEBHOOK when a Loyalty Rule has triggered
1. First, configure the webook notification in your account Settings > Notifications.
2. Then, add it to your Loyalty Rule. Got to Loyalty > Rules > Find the existing Rule or create a new one > then, scroll down to Rule Effect > in the Type field, select Send Webhook > in the Value field, select Loyalty from the list. Click Save.
Send an internal EMAIL notification when a participant has redeemed a Portal Reward.
A good use-case for this notification is if you need to email someone on your team or to fulfill a Custom Reward that was redeemed in the Portal.
1. Configure the email notification in your account Settings > Notifications.
Notify via = Email
How often = Every Time (only option available at this time)
When this happens = Reward Redemption
Redemption type = Select Custom or other reward you want to be notified of.
Email = Select the name of the team member who should receive the email notification. If they are not created yet, follow this help article to create a user account for them.
2. Click Save.
You're all set! You do not need to assign this Notification to the Reward in Portal settings like those you send to the participant.
Now, each time someone redeems that reward type in the Portal, this email will be automatically triggered and include their name, email, address, custom fields, and reward data.
Send an internal WEBHOOK notification when a participant has redeemed a Portal Reward.
A good use-case for this notification is if you need to send a webhook to a system to fulfill a Custom Reward that someone redeemed in the Portal.
NOTE: This webhook is only be triggered for Custom Rewards and Voucher Codes redemptions in the Portal.
1. Configure the webhook notification in your account Settings > Notifications.
Notify via = Webhook
How often = Every Time (only option available at this time)
When this happens = Loyalty Redemption
Webhook URL = Webhook URL from your system.
Enabled = Yes (or No until you're ready to go live).
2. Click Save.
3. Don't forget to assign the webhook in the Portal > Redeem > Reward settings. When you're ready, create a new reward or select an existing reward to Edit. Scroll down to the Webhook field and select the webhook from the pick list. Then, Save.
If you have any questions, please reach out to your Customer Success Manager or support@getambassador.com.