Calendar File token as a Variable Element

[Brittany_Striew]

Hi everyone - 

We recently worked to set ourselves up with a brand new email template to use going forward. We wanted to make as many pieces of the template featuring variable elements as we possibly could. 

For our monthly webinars hosted in GoToWebinar, we generate our confirmation email from the Marketo side. When trying to add buttons for Add to Calendar that have both a standard .ics calendar file and a Google calendar file, we're running into an issue using the Calendar File token type. When trying to call to token {{my.Calendar}}, when the email hits the inbox, the Outlook calendar button links to <a href='target="_blank" rel="noopener">http://go.corcentric.com/rs/787-PWO-482/436/Achieving+AP+Success+-+The+Metrics+that+Matter+in+2020+w... to Calendar</a>.

As a first attempt, I linked directly to the URL generated by the {{my.Calendar}} token, but the tokenized details in the Description are lost. Typically, our calendar files include all of your details and your PURL generated by GoToWebinar by calling to the tokens. 

Anyone have any suggestions or guidance on how to work around this? 

Thanks in advance! 

[SanfordWhiteman]

This is very strange misbehavior by the ICS (Calendar) {{my.token}}. The whole idea of a Calendar {{my.token}} is that it contains a link to a remote ICS file: are you saying that it instead is linking to an LP?

Are you sure you don't have a confusion between tokens of the same name?

[Brittany_Striew]

Hey Sanford - unfortunately no token confusion. It appears that the way the template was built, by adding the {{my.Calendar}} token in the variable spot of the template, it applies <a> tags that are not needed and messes with the linking. I included some screenshots below of the builder and the token. 

Upon receipt of the email, you can see where it seems to go wrong and that link tag is applied. 

[SanfordWhiteman]

Are you adding a fully-formed <a> link inside another <a>?  That isn't allowed in HTML.

[Brittany_Striew]

No I'm not. I'm not sure how that variable is set up on the backend HTML of the template. Thinking I may have to create a support ticket to figure out what's going on...

[SanfordWhiteman]

Look in the template and find where that ${variable} is output. If it's intended to be the href attribute of an existing <a> in the template, then you definitely can't push an entire <a> link inside it.

[Michael_Florin · Accepted solution]

Just wanted to mention that you also could use the GTW hosted ics file and create a link to that file dynamically in your email. Discussed here: 
https://nation.marketo.com/t5/Product-Discussions/GoToWebinar-Tokens-member-registration-code-and-me...

[Brittany_Striew]

Thank you Michael! A combination of your advice and @SanfordWhiteman 's advice got me to a solution! 

I used the GTW hosted ics file and instead of calling to our token {{my.Event Number}}, the unique ID for the webinar, I swapped it with the exact code and voila, we have a winner! Smooth opening of the Outlook calendar file 👍

Thank you both for your help!