Segmentation vs. Velocity

[Jo_Pitts1]

All,

I'm creating a snippet to display specific content in transactional emails based on whether someone is subscribed or unsubscribed.  

But that isn't what my question is about 🙂

I can adopt two methods to control the display of this information.  

Segmentation - I can create segments based on unsubscribe status and then set up dynamic content in my snippet.

Velocity - I can use Velocity to control the display of content based on unsubscribe status.

My question isn't HOW to do either of those 🙂 - technically I find both straightforward (these days - thanks to the astounding efforts of @SanfordWhiteman in helping me get to grips with (and even love) velocity).

This is my question: Given both have similar effort involved, how would you approach this challenge?

Cheers

Jo

[SanfordWhiteman · Accepted solution]

I wouldn't spend one of my precious Segmentations on this, but YMMV. If the content is going to be authored by non-technical users, it's easier to use Dynamic Content(tm) as opposed to Velocity-driven dynamic content.

[Jo_Pitts1]

@SanfordWhiteman, As always, I appreciate your brain cycles!  Like you, I am thinking that Velocity is the way I'll go - but I was trying to get a broader world view on this.

The content is constant (show text and a CTA if unsubscribed from marketing emails, and show nothing if they are subscribed).

My only other ponderings are whether I put it into a snippet, a module, or bake it directly into the template (can velocity detect if an email is transactional or not?)

[SanfordWhiteman]

Can Velocity detect if an email was marked Operational? No.

[Phillip_Wild]

I agree with Sanford, really it's up to how technical the marketers in your platform are. Velocity isn't something many people are comfortable with - it's not necessarily the friendliest way to learn to code, if you're not familiar.

The benefits of velocity scripts I see mostly in things like the ability to override at various folder levels, since they are tokens. However, this can lead to issues if you ever have to roll it back to the parent version!

The other consideration is, as Sanford noted, that segmentations are limited. And once used, if you want to delete them you need to delete all related content. A big pain. 

Overall, if you can ever see a future where non-technical users are in Marketo, then I would build out Marketo email templates with a clear strategy for how to use your segmentations/snippets, and use Velocity for the rest. But if it will only ever be semi-technical users or developers, go all-in on Velocity. 

[Michael_Florin]

Just to add one - obvious - thought: If we apply snippets/segmentations to processes, we almost always apply them to emails and landing pages, which rules out Velocity right away.

[Jo_Pitts1]

Everyone's input in this has been awesome... thanks so much.

In regards my musings on whether to do it is as a snippet, module, or baked into the template... again, all are equally easy from my perspective.  

The thing that would stop me baking it into the template is whether Velocity can determine if an email is marked as transactional or not.

Thoughts?

Cheers

Jo

[Phillip_Wild]

Nope, don't think it can. But I don't think a segment would be able to do that either.

A segment, or anything in Velocity, is based upon a relationship to a person and their associated fields / objects. The email itself is where the "operational" flag would be marked. So I wouldn't think you could do this without creation two segments / Velocity tokens: one for operational, one for marketing, and then choosing the correct template in the required situation.

[SanfordWhiteman]

---

The email itself is where the "operational" flag would be marked.

Yep. And while (speaking broadly) that might have left a mark somewhere that Velocity could check, it doesn’t.

Although... you can detect if a particular is getting the email only because it’s Operational. If you see they’re Marketing Suspended=true or Unsubscribed=true in Velocity, that means the email must be Operational. But that wouldn’t work for those leads who would get the email either way.

[Jo_Pitts1]

I had zero expectation that I'd be able to achieve it... so your thinking confirms it.

---

@SanfordWhiteman wrote:

---

Suspended=true or Unsubscribed=true in Velocity, that means the email must be Operational. But that wouldn’t work for those leads 

---

I'll be using those flags to control the output of the module I'll build.  

My hope was that the module could have been baked into the base template rather than being a drag and drop affair.  However, drag and drop will have to the approach given I can't detect whether the email is transactional or not.

Cheers

Jo