Campaign workflow activities

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Introduction

Marketing automation is a crucial part of streamlining customer engagement, and with Odoo 18, managing campaigns through workflow activities has never been easier. The Campaign Workflow Activity feature in Odoo’s Marketing Automation app allows businesses to automate communications, actions, and interactions, ensuring personalized experiences for customers and prospects.In this article, we will dive into how Campaign Workflow Activities function, their different types, and how to configure them to optimize your marketing campaigns in Odoo 18.

Step-by-Step Instructions

 

What is a Campaign Workflow?

In Odoo 18, a workflow is the structural backbone of a marketing automation campaign. It defines the sequence of activities and actions that will occur as part of a campaign, ensuring that all communication processes happen in a specific order.While there can only be one workflow per campaign, that workflow can include multiple activities to cater to the unique needs of the campaign. Activities are the individual tasks that define how the campaign will interact with its audience.A typical workflow could involve a sequence of three activities where the final one may have a trigger condition like “Mail: not opened,” meaning the next action is based on whether a recipient opened the previous email.

Types of Activities in a Workflow

Activities are the key components that form the structure of a workflow. They define how your campaign will interact with the target audience. There are three main types of activities available in Odoo’s Marketing Automation:

  1. Email Activity
  2. Server Action Activity
  3. SMS Activity

Let’s look at each of these in detail:

 

1. Email Activity

An Email activity involves sending emails to your target audience as part of the campaign. When you set this activity type, you can either select an existing email template or create a new one. The Email Template used in this activity serves as the subject and content of the email sent to the recipients.

 

Steps to Configure an Email Activity:

  • Activity Name: Give your email activity a name.
  • Pick a Template: Choose an existing email template or create a new one.
  • Configure Trigger: Define when the email should be sent, based on the desired conditions.

You can trigger email activities to occur after specific actions such as when an email is opened, replied to, or clicked.

 

Example Trigger:

If the trigger is set to Mail: clicked, the email activity will be executed when a participant clicks on a link within the email.

 

2. Server Action Activity

A Server Action activity is used for executing internal database actions within Odoo. For instance, it could trigger the creation of a new record, send an email, or update existing data in the system. Server actions can be predefined or custom-built actions that cater to specific business needs.

Steps to Configure a Server Action Activity:

  • Activity Name: Give your server a name.
  • Pick a Server Action: Choose from a pre-configured server action or create a new one.
  • Configure Trigger: Set when the server action should be triggered within the workflow.

Types of Server Actions:

  • Create Record: Creates a new record in Odoo.
  • Send Email: Sends an email, potentially using a template.
  • Execute Code: Runs a custom Python script.
  • Update Record: Updates an existing record in the database.

You can also configure more advanced actions when Developer Mode is enabled, such as defining which user groups can execute specific actions.

 

3. SMS Activity

An SMS activity sends text messages (SMS) to your target audience as part of your marketing automation campaign. You can create SMS templates or use existing ones, and define when the SMS will be sent.

Steps to Configure an SMS Activity:

  • Activity Name: Provide a name for the SMS activity.
  • Pick a Template: Select an SMS template or create a new one.
  • Configure Trigger: Decide when the SMS should be sent, based on the actions or conditions you define.

Like email activities, SMS activities can also be triggered by actions such as whether the recipient clicked a link in the SMS.

 

Triggering Activities: When Should Activities be Executed?

Triggers are the conditions or events that define when a particular activity should be executed in the workflow. Triggers are central to making your marketing automation campaigns responsive and engaging. In Odoo 18, you can set the following types of triggers:

  1. Beginning of Workflow: Executes the activity right when the campaign starts.
  2. Another Activity: Executes after another activity in the sequence has been completed.
  3. Mail-Related Triggers:
    1. Mail: Opened
    2. Mail: Not Opened
    3. Mail: Replied
    4. Mail: Not Replied
    5. Mail: Clicked
    6. Mail: Not Clicked
    7. Mail: Bounced
  4. SMS-Related Triggers:
    1. SMS: Clicked
    2. SMS: Not Clicked
    3. SMS: Bounced

Example:

If your first email activity in the campaign is triggered by the “beginning of the workflow,” you can set up a child activity that sends a follow-up email if the recipient does not open the first email. The trigger for this child activity would be Mail: not opened.

 

Configuring Expiry Duration and Activity Domain

Expiry Duration

The Expiry Duration allows you to set a timeframe within which an activity must be executed. If the activity isn’t completed within the set duration, it will be canceled.

For example, you can set an activity to expire 2 days after it is triggered, ensuring that delayed activities are automatically removed from the workflow.

 

Activity Domain

The Activity Domain section allows you to narrow down the audience for the activity. You can use filters to define specific criteria that a target group must meet in order to trigger an activity. This is useful when you want to target specific records within your customer base or prospects.

 

Child Activities: Building a Sequence

 

A Child Activity is any activity that is triggered by a parent activity. Child activities are added to the workflow by hovering over the parent activity and clicking the Add Child Activity button.

For instance, an email activity might be followed by a child activity that sends an SMS if the email is not opened. The triggers for child activities depend on the outcome of the parent activity. The possible triggers include conditions like “opened,” “not opened,” “clicked,” etc.

 

Example of Email Activity with Child Activities:

  • Parent Activity: Email sent to customer.
  • Child Activity 1: If the email is not opened within 24 hours, send a reminder email.
  • Child Activity 2: If the email is clicked, send an SMS to confirm interest.

Conclusion

 

Campaign workflow activities in Odoo 18 offer businesses a powerful way to automate and personalize their marketing efforts. By strategically setting up email, server action, and SMS activities, businesses can engage with their audience at the right time and with the right message. Additionally, Odoo’s trigger and expiry configurations ensure that the workflow runs smoothly and effectively.

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