Best Practices: Keeping Organized in the Experiture Platform

Here are some best practices for using the Experiture Platform that will keep your instance usable and your workspace tidy and functional

Maintaining organization in the Experiture platform is crucial for optimizing workflows and ensuring smooth collaboration across teams. Below are some best practices that will help keep your workspace tidy and functional, covering key elements like naming conventions and configuring campaign categories.

Following these best practices ensures clarity, efficiency, and scalability within the Experiture platform. This system also makes it easier to train new team members and maintain a high level of consistency across all campaigns.

Naming Conventions

Using clear, descriptive, and consistent naming conventions is essential for ensuring easy identification of campaigns, templates, and variables.

Campaigns:

  • Format: [ClientName]_[CampaignType]_[Date]_[Objective]
    • Example: AcmeCorp_EmailCampaign_2024-10-21_WelcomeSeries
  • Purpose: This format helps identify who the campaign is for, what type it is (e.g., email, SMS, direct mail), when it was created, and its core objective (e.g., promotion, nurturing).
  • Tips:
    • Keep names concise yet descriptive.
    • Use underscores (_) instead of spaces to ensure compatibility across systems.
    • Ensure dates follow a consistent format like YYYY-MM-DD to maintain sorting by time.

Templates:

  • Format: [CampaignType]_[TemplateType]_[SpecificUseCase]
    • Example: Email_Template_WelcomeNewUser
  • Purpose: This format clearly identifies what type of communication the template is for and the specific use case.
  • Tips:
    • Use “template” in the name to avoid confusion between live campaigns and templates.
    • Include the target audience or message theme where necessary (e.g., Email_Template_WelcomeVIP).

Variables:

  • Format: [VariableType]_[Purpose]_[SpecificUseCase]
    • Example: PURL_DirectMail_CustomerOffer
  • Purpose: Ensures variables are easily identifiable and categorized by type and function.
  • Tips:
    • Group similar variables together by starting with the same prefix (e.g., all variables related to URLs should start with URL_ or PURL_).
    • Avoid abbreviations unless they are widely recognized.

Campaign Categories

Organizing campaigns into categories can help you track performance and stay aligned with strategic objectives.

Configuring Campaign Categories:

  • Purpose: Campaign categories allow you to easily filter and report on different types of campaigns. Organize campaigns by objectives, target audience, or channel to make analysis simpler.
  • Suggested Categories:
    • By Objective: Awareness, Engagement, Retargeting, Conversion, Loyalty.
    • By Channel: Email, SMS, Direct Mail, Website Personalization.
    • By Audience: New Leads, Existing Customers, High-Value Customers, Inactive Users.
    • By Product or Service: If campaigns focus on specific product lines, create categories that reflect these.
    • By Region/Geography: For global companies, separating campaigns by target regions helps localize performance analysis.

Best Practices for Categories:

  • Be Specific but Broad: Ensure your categories cover the broadest possible campaigns while still being specific enough to be meaningful.
  • Use Consistent Language: Stick to the same terms across categories for uniformity and easier navigation.
  • Assign Subcategories (Optional): If your campaign types are complex, consider creating subcategories (e.g., “Email Campaigns > Promotional” or “SMS > Retargeting”).

Using Tags and Labels

In addition to campaign categories, tags and labels can add another layer of organization, especially for filtering or searching.

  • Best Practices:
    • Use tags for temporary initiatives like seasonal campaigns (e.g., “Black Friday” or “2024 Q1 Promo”).
    • Add audience-specific tags like “VIP” or “Frequent Purchaser.”
    • Keep a document with a list of approved tags to avoid redundancy (e.g., both “Promo” and “Promotion”).

Version Control for Templates

When creating templates, it’s important to differentiate between versions clearly to avoid confusion.

  • Format for Versioning: [TemplateType]_[SpecificUseCase]_v#
    • Example: Email_Template_AbandonedCart_v1
  • Best Practices:
    • Always increment the version number (e.g., _v1, _v2) when making significant edits.
    • Archive older versions rather than deleting them, in case you need to revert changes.

Folder and Asset Management

Organizing assets like images, PDFs, and documents is also key to smooth campaign creation.

  • Folder Structure:
    • By Campaign Type: Separate by Email, SMS, Direct Mail, etc.
    • By Date/Timeframe: Organize assets by year, quarter, or campaign duration.
    • By Audience: If certain assets are specific to certain audiences (e.g., VIP customers), use this as a folder category.

Campaign Documentation

Each campaign should have associated documentation (stored in a shared file or system) that includes:

  • Goals & KPIs: Clear objectives for the campaign and how you’ll measure success.
  • Audience Segments: Defined target segments.
  • Assets: Links to associated creative assets (e.g., images, copy).
  • Metrics to Track: Outline what you’ll be measuring (e.g., CTR, conversion rate).

Automation and Workflow Documentation

If your campaigns include automated workflows (e.g., welcome series), document these as well:

  • Naming Conventions: Follow the same naming rules as regular campaigns.
  • Workflow Map: Store a visual or detailed description of the automation steps, triggers, and intended actions.