Impact of modifying smart list

[Rohitshetty]

Hi Team,

I would like to understand the impact of modifying the smart lists in existing programs with the list of people exported from RTCDP.

Initially everything was configured in Marketo, but now the audience is exported from RTCDP to Marketo and I would like to understand the nuances around updating the existing programs/campaigns. 

Any guidance here or links to existing articles will help me here! Thank you in advance!

Regards,

Rohit

[SanfordWhiteman]

Afraid this is too broad to answer as-is. What are your specific concerns? Give an example of a campaign — or Marketo logic in general — that doesn’t currently incorporate RTCDP and how you expect the outcome to change?

[Rohitshetty]

to put it in simple terms, I would want to understand the impact of updating the smart list logic (to refer to static list coming from RTCDP) specifically on nurture programs and others campaigns too.

[SanfordWhiteman]

Simpler isn’t always better. 🙂

Adding “... AND Member of List” to a Smart List means you potentially get fewer qualified people (it could be exactly the same number as without the filter).

This can impact campaigns in literally infinite ways. For every possible arrangement of flow steps there would be fewer people affected. Again, you need to hone in on specific concerns.

[Rohitshetty]

Thank you Sanford for your response. 

I do not have any specific scenario here, but trying to understand the overall impact of updating the smart lists. It is not always adding 'Member of List' filter, but removing the entire smart list logic and adding only the filter without/with any additional logic.

I get your point that the impact can be in many ways, but can you help with a few critical ones.

[SanfordWhiteman]

Say you had a Smart List that excluded embargoed people (those you’re legally not allowed to send to).  If you replaced it with a single Member of List that didn’t have any such exclusions, you could be fined, or in extreme cases, criminally charged.

Or say you previously had a Smart List that used a Marketo Subscription Custom Object managed by a robust Preference Center. If you ignore people’s preferences and send them content just based on membership in a List, they would no longer be able to subscribe/unsubscribe unless they globally unsubscribed. You risk losing them completely because you deprive them of granular controls.

I could go on!

If you can’t share real-world details here, you might want to get a consultant who can look at your Smart Lists privately and give you feedback.