Automated Programs let you eliminate manual processes to deliver your marketing campaigns with low effort. Create and edit your Act-On Automated Program campaign flows in the Automated Journey Builder.

Getting Started

Create a New Program

To create a new Automated Program in the Automated Journey Builder:

1. Go to Automation > Automated Programs.
2. At the top right of the Automated Programs listing page, click: 
   
3. The Automated Journey Builder opens to build your new program.

Edit a Program

To edit an existing Automated Program in the Automated Journey Builder:

1. Go to Automation > Automated Programs.
2. Hover over the program you'd like to edit and click Edit:

3. The Automated Journey Builder opens to edit your program

If the program is running, you can view it in the Automated Journey Builder but can’t make any changes. You’ll need to pause the program before it can be edited.

If you’d like to edit the content of the messages included in the program, follow these steps.

Saving your Program

Click the Save button at the top right of the page to save your changes. If the program isn’t fully configured, you’ll see a message with details on what is missing/incorrect. You can save a draft without all the required information, but the program can’t run until these issues are resolved.

Automated Journey Builder Features

In the Automated Journey Builder, some functions, such as those in Settings, Build > Program messages, and Lists & segments are similar to the classic editor. The most significant changes are in Build > Program flow.

General Settings

1. In Settings > Program Details (on the right), enter a Program Name and a Description for your program.
2. Under Contact Sources, select any list(s) or segment(s) that you would like to use as the source of contacts for this program.
3. Next, select how contacts from the source list(s) or segment(s) enter the program:
   • Manually: Choose to leave your program unscheduled if you plan to run the program only on the existing contacts in your source lists, or if you plan to manually check for new contacts by clicking the Now button on the program's dashboard.
   • Immediately: If you choose to associate your program with only a single source list, rather than a segment or multiple sources, you have the option to enter contacts into the program as soon as they are entered into the source list.
   • On a Schedule:
     • Daily: Enter new contacts daily, or as often as every hour. Choose the appropriate Run frequency and Start Time.
       • At the specified Start Time, the Run frequency starts and runs until the end of that day at 11:59 pm. The program then stops entering new contacts into the program until the Start Time on the following day.
       • To run an hourly cycle over days, set Run to 'Every Hour' and the Start Time to 12:59 am. This enters new records hourly until 11:59 pm and then starts again at 12:59 am.
       • Check the Weekdays Only box if you want new contacts to be added to the program Monday through Friday only.
     • Weekly: Choose to enter new contacts weekly, specify the day of the week and the start time.
     • Monthly: Choose to enter new contacts on a specific day of each month, specify the date, and the start time.
     Notes on scheduling:

     • If you schedule the program to run Daily, Every Hour, or use a Start Time of Noon, the program will only run hourly between the hours of Noon and Midnight each day.
     • You may change your selected schedule at any time, even after the program is running, or click the Now button on the program's dashboard to do a one-time check for new contacts.
4. Choose any additional options that you may need for your program:
   • Allow Contacts to repeat steps: This allows you to loop contacts back to a previous step. This should be used with caution to prevent unwanted repetition.
   • Disable program history: This removes the standard program reporting. The dashboard page will load more quickly, but program step tracking will not be available. Use this option with caution and only when you do not need program reporting (such as when the program is designed to move data rather than communicate with customers).
   • Use alternate unique identifier: This lets you use a field other than the email address to send contacts through the program so that the same contact can enter more than once under different criteria. For example, you could use "Order ID" to send a contact through this program for each separate purchase they make.
   • Suppress entrants on suppression lists: This ensures that contacts on bounce lists or suppression domains are blocked from entering.
     
     It’s highly recommended that this option be selected.
   • Allow contacts to re-enter: This lets any contact enter this program more than once. This should be used with caution to avoid unwanted repetition.
   • Ignore email fatigue rules: This ensures that program emails are not blocked due to your account's email fatigue suppression settings.
   • Attach sent notes to contacts or leads from my CRM lists: Leave a note or task in your CRM indicating a message was sent to the contact. Applies to all messages in the program regardless of the message setting.
     If any of these options are not available for you, you can contact our support team to have them enabled.
5. Finally, on the right, select the Time zone used by the program.

Program Flow

This is where you build your Automated Programs in a visual workflow. For information about program flow features, see the Automated Journey Builder Program Flow Guide.

Program Messages

In Build > Program messages, add all the email messages that you plan to send through your program. You can then use these messages in the program flow.

To add a program message:

1. Click +Add Message
2. Choose whether to start with a blank message (which opens the email composer) or any of the existing templates or drafts in your account
3. Check the box next to all the messages you want to add, then click Submit.

Once messages have been added to the program, you can make changes to content by hovering over one and clicking Edit.

Managing Program Messages

To avoid unwanted changes to your sent message reporting, follow these guidelines when updating your messages:

• Editing messages
  • You can edit a message by clicking Edit from Program Messages, or from Outbound > Other Messages > Triggered Messages > Programs (this option does not require stopping the program to edit)
  • If you remove a message from a program and add it again, it will be treated as a different message in reporting and program logic
  • Whenever possible, edit your message from within the program and do not remove it
• Using the same message in multiple program steps
  • Edits made to the message in the Program Messages tab will automatically apply to all steps
  • There will be one single report for that message in the program's dashboard as well
  • To track the message separately for each step, copy the message and use Add Program Message to add the copies separately
• Messages must include an opt-out link (in HTML and plain text versions) to be sent through a program.

Lists & Segments

Build > Lists & segments includes all lists and segments associated with your program, including your program source lists, marketing lists that are updated in a program step, and all lists and segments used to make decisions in your steps. When building out your program steps, these lists and segments will appear for selection.

To add lists or segments, click +Add List or Segment and select the desired lists or segments. You can view or remove a list from your program at any time.

Also, see Use Lists and Segments in Automated Programs.

Early Exits

Early Exit conditions are optional rules that will automatically remove contacts from the program. As soon as a contact meets the criteria for one of these rules, they’ll be removed immediately.

To select an early exit condition, go to Build > Early exits, click +Add Condition, define your criteria, and click Submit. You may add as many early exit conditions as you want.

Start or Pause a Program

To start or pause your program, see our article here for full instructions: Start or Stop an Automated Program.

Program Reports

To view the performance of your program and the messages included in it, navigate to the Automated Program Dashboard.