How to create an SDD in Campaign Manager in 6 easy steps:
First, create an SDD from a Student Database segment
Please note: SDD Campaigns can only be created from Student Database Segments
In your segment results, choose "Create an SDD from this segment" in the 'more options' (3 little dots) menu:
This means that you can create any segment of students using filters in Student Database, Applicant Open Days, Applications, Enquiries, Event Manager, Mobile Event Capture, Pre-applicant Open Days, Prospectus Requests, and Rapid Response.
1. About
Complete your About details; notice that all new SDDs start with the status 'Inactive'. Click 'Save' and move to the next bus stop:
2. Schedule
Choose from Daily, Weekly, or Monthly, and pick the days and time you want it to be sent out on. Next, set a starting date and when you want it to auto deactivate (optional), click 'Save' and move to the next bus stop:
3. Contents
Choose how you want the data to be output: Data file or Labels.
How to set up a Data File CSV
Add the password required to open it at the other end, and select which fields you want to appear in the file. Select either 'Grouped' or 'A-Z' to set the order the fields are sorted by in your data file, and choose the number of rows you want in the final data file. Click 'Save' and move to the next bus stop:
Include activity info from other apps
Compact - Each summary_info field contains a basic overview text narrative (all in one field) of what the student has done in this app. The contents of each include pipe-separated actions that the student has undertaken, such as 'applied', 'enquired, 'booked', etc in each app.
For example, if you select the field 'applications_summary_info' you get the following text in one extra column added to each student's record, showing all applications ever, sorted by the newest first (this example shows just one):
APS x 1 &
Action = Applied &
Application Date = 23 Jul 2021 09:35 &
Application ID EBS = YGrs57715 &
Course Applied For MSc Sports Directorship &
Course Applied For ID = 26154 &
Course Applied For YOE = 2021 &
Status = REF &
Campus = ETH &
Agent = ABC Agency PLC &
Conditions = Passing your UAL Extended Diploma with Merit or higher &
UCAS Applicant Ref = 123457811 &
Occurrence Name = APV: UCAS applications (passive) &
Occurrence ID = 4524 &
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The following summary info fields are available to select, and appear as extra added to the end of each student record in the data file:
summary_info_applicant_open_days (Phase 2) |
summary_info_applications (Phase 1) |
summary_info_enquiries (Phase 1) |
summary_info_event_manager (Phase 2) |
summary_info_mobile_event_capture (Phase 2) |
summary_info_pre-applicant_open_days (Phase 2) |
summary_info_prospectus_requests (Phase 2) |
summary_info_rapid_response (Phase 2) |
Verbose - Each summary_info app you choose exports the fields as separate columns as you get one row per activity per student (bigger file).
How to set up a Labels PDF
Pick 14-up labels or 21-up labels. Note that the student's name and address fields are fixed but it selectively displays the 'Country' field if you have overseas student addresses in your segment results. With 14-up labels, you can (optionally) add a PPI that gets printed into each address label next to the address. Add the password required to open it at the other end, and click 'Save' and move to the next bus stop:
4. Delivery
Enter the email address of the person (or persons, just use a comma between multiple emails) who will receive the data file when this SDD runs, and add some helpful instructions too. Click 'Save' and move to the next bus stop:
5. Activate
Check that the details are all correct, and click 'Activate SDD' to start sending, or 'Deactivate SDD' to stop an active SDD sending.
6. Deliveries
The SDD is sent by email, with a link to download the file (Data CSV or Labels PDF). The recipient will need to know the password you set up in advance.
This lists all the deliveries that have been sent out when the SDD's status was 'active'.
You can search by delivery ID or the destination email address. Use the actions to 'Resend this file to an email address' or 'Download this file to your computer.
Sample 'Verbose' data file
A sample data file containing 'ID', 'Firstname', "Middlename" and 'Lastname' fields selected from the Student's record card, and 'summary_info' from all the available types of activities from AOD, APS, ENQ, EVM, MEC, POD, PRQ and RAP:
Sample 'Compact' data file
A sample data file containing 'ID', 'Firstname', 'Lastname', 'Email', 'Tel' and 'Mobile' fields selected from the Student's record card, and 'summary_info' from Enquiries:
Sample segment that created the data file
Want to see ideas for SDD segments you could build? See: https://help.student-crm.com/en/articles/5508588-sdds-with-example-segments-for-fresh-data-every-day)
FAQs
Q. Can I backdate the starting date?
A. No, and there is no need to. The first time your SDD runs it finds all the students who match. On the next run, it only finds the newest ones.
Q. What happens if there are no new students to send?
A. If, when the Schedule runs, it finds no new matching students, ie: no new applications today, it still sends out the usual email to the recipients but it says: "Contents: 0 records". If you do click the Download button you just get an empty CSV file with the Header Record only, but no students underneath.
Q. Why are the Data files and Labels PDFs zipped?
A. It makes the download smaller.
Q. Why are the Data files and Labels PDFs password-protected?
A. Each file (Data CSV or Labels PDF) contains students' personal data, so they are always password-protected in case the downloaded file should fall into the wrong hands.
Q. How can I open a zipped, password-protected file on a PC and on a Mac?
Q. How do I include the "CRM" Field?
A. No need; this field will be automatically included in the SDD.
Q. Is this different from the SDDs I can create in other apps?
A. Yes. In Campaign Manager, you can add far more fields from the Student's Record Card to your CSV data file. You can include new fields "Summary Info" from other apps, like Applications, Enquiries, etc.
Q. What is in the summary_info fields?
A. Each summary_info field contains a basic overview text narrative (all in one field) of what the student has done in this app. The contents of each include pipe-separated events (and event and course IDs), the newest first, that the student has engaged with, in that app. For example in Pre-applicant Open Days, it might show that the student has attended 2 open days and is most recently interested in MSc Sports Directorship in 2022.
Q. Can I get the activities for each app with the fields split out into separate columns, instead of all in one?
A. Yes. Just select 'Verbose' when choosing the number of rows.
Q. How far back do the summary_info fields look?
A. All time. They include all actions ever. You might have a student with 50 x enquiries, 20 x bookings, 10 x applications, etc. They are all included in each data file that the student is in.
Q. Can I add more than one destination email address, so my mailing house gets it and I do too?
A. Yes. Please separate multiple emails with commas.
Q. How can I edit an active SDD?
A. Just go to the 'Activate' bus stop and set the status to 'Inactive' and then you can change any setting. Whilst the status is 'inactive' it does not send.