Example 1: Sending out a personalized e-mailing

Before you start the Outbound Script Wizard, you will have to prepare:

1. A database with recipient contact details. Since Emailrobot supports ODBC, which can connect to almost any database, it can be your current contact database. If you don't have a contact database you will have to create one.

2. A text for the e-mail. The text can include database fields in the following format:[*FIELD*]. For example, to address an e-mail personally, you would write:

Dear [*Name*],

We are just sending you this e-mail to let you know that we are running a special offer on [*Product*]. We are sure that [*Company*] would like to take advantage of this!

Step1: Start up the 'Outbound Script Wizard' by selecting 'Add Inbound Script' from the 'Task' menu in the 'Emailrobot Task Manager'. Click 'Next' to continue on to the first page of the Wizard.

Step 2: Specify the database name and table, which contains the list of contacts/customers that you wish to send the e-mailing to. Click 'Next'. Remember that your database must be set-up as an ODBC data source.

Step 3: Of the available fields, specify the fields you will be using. This includes the field which contains the e-mail addresses, but also any fields that you want to use in the text. For example, if you want to send the above text, you have to select the fields 'Name', 'Product' and 'Company'.

Step 4: Now you must specify which contacts from the database should receive e-mail. To do this you can set conditions which have to be met. For example, if you want to send a mail to all prospects with interest in the product 'FAXmaker', you must have a field product interest, and set the condition:

"If - Product interest - is equal to FAXmaker."

Step 5: If you wish to keep track of whom you sent an e-mail mailing, you will have to specify a flag field in your database, which the Emailrobot can update to, for example 'TRUE', or 'YES'.

Step 6: Enter the e-mail text you wish to send.

Step 7: Specify E-mail subject, Reply to address. In addition you must select which database field contains the e-mail address. You can also add an attachment and delay sending the message.

Step 8: Here you must give the script a name and enter the file name to save the script in the Program Files\ERobot\scripts\files directory. If you wish to preview the e-mails before sending them out, check 'Hold for previewing'.

After creating the script, the Outbound Script Wizard will automatically start up the Task properties dialog. The Task properties dialog allows you to specify when the Emailrobot should run your script (=Task). You can specify to run it manually (from the menu 'Task', 'Run Now'), each time e-mail is downloaded, or at scheduled intervals. After configuring, when you wish Emailrobot to run the script, click OK. Your task will now be listed in the main window of the Emailrobot Task Manager.

Step 9: To run the Task now, select the Task in the Emailrobot Task manager, and select 'Run Now' from the Task menu.

Your e-mail will be prepared. If you have specified 'on hold for previewing', you will have to start up the Queue View utility, check whether the e-mail is correctly addressed and created, and if so, select Send!


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