On today's Product Roadmap session Karl mentioned that the ability to send email from cockpit will be expected in the August release (yay!) but only for individual contacts. Whomp whomp....
As part of our scalable engagement model, we send emails out to groups of contacts on an account. Since these are signed by the CSM, our CSMs want a bit more visibility and control in what is getting sent out in their name.
We need to be able to predefine such emails that are slated to go to all or a subset of contacts on a particular account - in some cases the CSM may want to delay or cancel the sending of the email (depending on their knowledge of the account) or may want to alter the phrasing of the email before it goes out.
This will be especially critical for localization. We can have standard templates in multiple languages but giving the CSMs the ability to tweak the language to make it more conversational and appropriate to the local area from their point of view will be important.
This will help us to be more thoughtful in how we communicate with customers, as well as our ability to scale.
New Idea
Cockpit: Send an email to a group (powerlist) of users from Cockpit
Hi Jeff - We are also trying to balance the mass send with the need for CSM intervention. I had an idea around this that sounds like it might also fit your use case. I posted as a reply to this CoPilot post: https://community.gainsight.com/gainsight/topics/copilot-emails-for-csms-to-send
Check it out and add your vote if you think it might help you.
Elizabeth
Check it out and add your vote if you think it might help you.
Elizabeth
Elizabeth Panska
+4Hi Jeff -- First let me clarify that the feature operates in the following way: when building a playbook there is an option to create a special kind of task to which you can attach an email template. That playbook is assigned via a CTA in the usual way. In other words, although the template comes form Copilot, the automation is via Rules Engine at this time. Regarding how many people you can send the email to: the CSM can add as many as they want to in the cc line but only one in the TO line -- this is the one for which the tokens are replaced (e.g. first name). One thing that I may have answered slightly wrong in the webinar: in this first release of this feature, while the Rule can tell the CSM about certain contacts through the CTA, the actual TO contact is selected by the CSM.
+4Thanks for the clarification Karl. 🙂 We still have a need for CSMs to control certain email comms that will go out to a large group of contacts. Having them manually select those contacts isn't an optimal experience.
Jeff Kirkpatrick
+4Makes sense. Does the check need to be made on a per language basis or on a per Customer basis?
+4Honestly both. It would be at the customer (or relationship) level, but may need to be language specific depending on language settings at customer/relationship level (we use a "localization" field on Customer Info and/or Relationship to set the core language for the account).
I'd like to take this opportunity to re-raise this idea which is related: https://community.gainsight.com/gainsight/topics/customer360-add-email-shortcut-to-pre-defined-co-pi...
It would be incredibly valuable to have the ability to pre-define Power List template that would apply to all accounts, grouping all contacts at the customer/relationship level that share a similar characteristic (i.e. all contacts that have "Is Org Admin" flag checked). Have a space on the Customer360 from where the CSM could Send Email, and select the appropriate pre-defined powerlist template. When selected, the PL would be dynamically created for that particular account, then the CSM can send the email to a broad number of contacts. Bonus would be to have a flag that states "Create CTA?"
I'd like to take this opportunity to re-raise this idea which is related: https://community.gainsight.com/gainsight/topics/customer360-add-email-shortcut-to-pre-defined-co-pi...
It would be incredibly valuable to have the ability to pre-define Power List template that would apply to all accounts, grouping all contacts at the customer/relationship level that share a similar characteristic (i.e. all contacts that have "Is Org Admin" flag checked). Have a space on the Customer360 from where the CSM could Send Email, and select the appropriate pre-defined powerlist template. When selected, the PL would be dynamically created for that particular account, then the CSM can send the email to a broad number of contacts. Bonus would be to have a flag that states "Create CTA?"
Jeff Kirkpatrick
+1Hi Karl -
This capability is critical to our localization efforts and to the successful expansion of our automated engagements.
In its current state, Copilot requires us to create separate power lists and templates for each language. This is rapidly becoming an administrative mess due to multiple variations of each language. For example, a CSM in the UK or in Australia would not send a customer in those markets an email that is written in U.S. English. Rather than creating separate templates and power lists for each variation of English, a more sustainable solution might be to trigger a CTA to review the email for those CSMs not located in the U.S. and with "English" localization. Ideally, the CSM could make the appropriate changes and then continue with sending the email to their power list of contacts.
This capability is critical to our localization efforts and to the successful expansion of our automated engagements.
In its current state, Copilot requires us to create separate power lists and templates for each language. This is rapidly becoming an administrative mess due to multiple variations of each language. For example, a CSM in the UK or in Australia would not send a customer in those markets an email that is written in U.S. English. Rather than creating separate templates and power lists for each variation of English, a more sustainable solution might be to trigger a CTA to review the email for those CSMs not located in the U.S. and with "English" localization. Ideally, the CSM could make the appropriate changes and then continue with sending the email to their power list of contacts.
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+4Has this made it onto the roadmap yet?
Jeff Kirkpatrick
+1Hi All,
As part of the Summer Release which will be available in August, for the mails that can be sent via CTA task, we will have ability of add up to 10 Email Id's in To's and User can chose whether to Send same email to all or to Send separate emails to all.
Hope this would help.
Regards,
Hitesh
As part of the Summer Release which will be available in August, for the mails that can be sent via CTA task, we will have ability of add up to 10 Email Id's in To's and User can chose whether to Send same email to all or to Send separate emails to all.
Hope this would help.
Regards,
Hitesh
1 person likes this
+4Has any additional effort been made in creating a way to send an email to a group of contacts via Email Task without having to hand select each of them? If CSMs want to send an email to ALL contacts on an account OR Contacts that meet a specific criteria, i.e. send an email to all contacts who are flagged as an Administrator.
Ideally, we would create a powerlist that targets use cases like the above, with the ability to restrict it to the current account for which the CTA has been triggered, and the CSM can select a PowerList group of ALL contacts or Admin contacts.
Ideally, we would create a powerlist that targets use cases like the above, with the ability to restrict it to the current account for which the CTA has been triggered, and the CSM can select a PowerList group of ALL contacts or Admin contacts.
Jeff Kirkpatrick
+2Hey Jeff, this sounds a lot like this thread: https://community.gainsight.com/gainsight/topics/mini-copilot-just-for-csms-to-send-messages-to-thei...
🙂
🙂
+4Hey Dan! I was already pretty vocal on that thread ;)
I don't like the idea of a mini-copilot - no way I'm giving CSMs access to creating their own powerlists - just too much can go wrong there, even if its just to their own customers. One mistake and you lose credibility. PL logic, template creation and outreach scheduling must remain admin functions.
I liked Karl's idea in that thread though: "What would you think about a button like we have with Gsnap that floats on the Cockpit page that you can use to initiate an email. You select from some predefined set of template options and Power List (or a variation like the 'admin at this account' idea that Elizabeth proposed -- that is super cool). Wouldn't get logged as a CTA Task, of course, but would as an Activity of Type email in our (forthcoming!) Notes, Activity and Timeline feature. "
There just needs to be a way for CSMs to be able to quickly target a group of contacts. But a mini-copilot would leave too much room for logic error.
I don't like the idea of a mini-copilot - no way I'm giving CSMs access to creating their own powerlists - just too much can go wrong there, even if its just to their own customers. One mistake and you lose credibility. PL logic, template creation and outreach scheduling must remain admin functions.
I liked Karl's idea in that thread though: "What would you think about a button like we have with Gsnap that floats on the Cockpit page that you can use to initiate an email. You select from some predefined set of template options and Power List (or a variation like the 'admin at this account' idea that Elizabeth proposed -- that is super cool). Wouldn't get logged as a CTA Task, of course, but would as an Activity of Type email in our (forthcoming!) Notes, Activity and Timeline feature. "
There just needs to be a way for CSMs to be able to quickly target a group of contacts. But a mini-copilot would leave too much room for logic error.
Jeff Kirkpatrick
I second Jeff on this one, too. This has a lot of potential for our organization.
+2Good to see you active on the community again, Jeff. :)
"Mini Copilot" might sound a bit too scary. Essentially the idea was to allow selecting a group of customers and group of contacts for a single outreach initiated by the CSM (or end user).
Currently the CTA route requires a 1:1 relationship between individual outreach and customer/account record.
Where this gets challenging is if you want to email a number of customers (lets say 20) with the same message - you'd have to trigger 20 CTAs and email assist tasks. It would be great if that could be simplified such that you select the contacts (could be from different customer accounts) and then create the message.
Thoughts on that use case?
"Mini Copilot" might sound a bit too scary. Essentially the idea was to allow selecting a group of customers and group of contacts for a single outreach initiated by the CSM (or end user).
Currently the CTA route requires a 1:1 relationship between individual outreach and customer/account record.
Where this gets challenging is if you want to email a number of customers (lets say 20) with the same message - you'd have to trigger 20 CTAs and email assist tasks. It would be great if that could be simplified such that you select the contacts (could be from different customer accounts) and then create the message.
Thoughts on that use case?
I agree that the use case has value - I would just be really thoughtful about how it's implemented. I loved Karl's idea, but was less crazy about something that functioned more like CoPilot does today. Glad to help more on this as needed as it's something we've been wanting.
Elizabeth Panska
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+4What Elizabeth said :)
I agree that there is a need for a way to target a group of contacts, however I also think that if you provide the ability for CSMs to select contacts from multiple customer accounts in one fell swoop that could backfire with CSMs targeting the wrong contact or wrong account. Wouldn't it be embarrassing if the CSM was trying to include contacts at Target in an email and he accidentally sends it to contacts at Walmart?
There is a certain level of safety in having the email assist task be 1-1 to a customer.
That said, as long as we aren't giving CSMs any sort of Powerlist-generating or Outreach-scheduling capability, I will keep an open mind. :)
Most CSMs will not be as skillful with Logic criteria as you most likely are, Dan 🙂
I agree that there is a need for a way to target a group of contacts, however I also think that if you provide the ability for CSMs to select contacts from multiple customer accounts in one fell swoop that could backfire with CSMs targeting the wrong contact or wrong account. Wouldn't it be embarrassing if the CSM was trying to include contacts at Target in an email and he accidentally sends it to contacts at Walmart?
There is a certain level of safety in having the email assist task be 1-1 to a customer.
That said, as long as we aren't giving CSMs any sort of Powerlist-generating or Outreach-scheduling capability, I will keep an open mind. :)
Most CSMs will not be as skillful with Logic criteria as you most likely are, Dan 🙂
Jeff Kirkpatrick
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Jeff, I'm honored to be sympatico with you. :)
I would also add that the ability to pull from a series of templates is important to us. While I'm not vehemently opposed to CSMs writing their own, the core concept is for them to pull something from a library, tweak it if needed and send to the relevant contacts.
I would also add that the ability to pull from a series of templates is important to us. While I'm not vehemently opposed to CSMs writing their own, the core concept is for them to pull something from a library, tweak it if needed and send to the relevant contacts.
Elizabeth Panska
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