Optimizely

Integration type: Pre-defined

Documentation¶

• Optimizely (Episerver) Integration Guide
• Optimizely Broadcaster Setup Pages

This guide details the processes required to integrate Apteco FastStats and PeopleStage with Optimizely.

Integration options¶

• FastStats—for a one-off broadcast, use a combination of the Email Broadcasting and Email Responses wizards to upload your list, schedule a broadcast campaign, and receive responses back into your FastStats system.
• PeopleStage—automate data uploads for unattended and scheduled marketing broadcasts.
• Export and upload a file—access generic FTP support to allow data export and upload.

Optimizely integrates with your FastStats system by utilising a RESTful transport over HTTP/S, in conjunction with SFTP.

Before you begin¶

Useful to have before you start:

• Database Connection String made up of the database server instance name and FastStats system name, for example: ;Initial Catalog=RS_;User Id=faststats_service;Password=fa5t5tat5;
• The Digital Integration.zip available from apteco.com/portal/software-releases
• Decide where your FERG folders are to be created (bulk insert folder must be accessible from SQL Server)
• Virtual variables in FastStats to map to broadcast fields
• The Optimizely UI URL, Username, Password, and PIN
• The Optimizely List Name and Message Name (available from the Optimizely UI)
• The Optimizely API Username, Password, and Client ID

Process summary¶

The following diagrams describe a typical process from FastStats to Optimizely, to the customer, and back to FastStats.

1. A broadcast is initialised through the FastStats Web Service using the Email Broadcasting Wizard, which inserts a job into the Web Service Control database (WS_DB).
2. The FastStats Service picks this job up, uploads the list to the Optimizely SFTP site, and then uses RESTful communication to monitor the upload.
3. Optimizely then imports the contents of this list to its subscribers and associates them with a list name ready for use in any email campaigns.
4. A campaign can then be scheduled using the Optimizely web interface.
5. Optimizely sends messages to all recipients on the list.
6. Optimizely records any undelivered messages.
7. Optimizely records a response for each interaction with a message (for example opens and clicks).
8. A scheduled job on the FastStats server initiates the FastStats Email Response Gatherer (FERG) which checks the SFTP site for response files.
9. These responses are then imported into the Response database (RS_DB) ready for analysis by your FastStats system.

The key difference in this process is messages are sent from Optimizely automatically, allowing full control of the campaign scheduling from within Apteco software.

Apteco system configuration¶

Creating the response database¶

1. Open the FastStats Configurator and select Database Management.
2. Select the Database Creation Wizard option and click Start Wizard.

3. Enter the name of the Database Server and click Test Connection.

   Note

   The Database Server name can be found by launching SSMS and finding the SQL Instance for your FastStats system, for example TDWIN10B\SQLExpress.

4. Enter a System name and your secure password.

5. Select the Email Response check box, then click Next.

   Note

   The Response Database may already exist—see the Notes column. If it does, click X to exit the installer without completing this process.

6. Click Next on the Review actions step, then click Run Scripts, then Finish.

Linking the response database to the FastStats service¶

1. Open the FastStats Configurator and click FastStats Services.
2. Select the FastStats Service for the system to link to the response database, then click Properties.
3. Select the system tab, select Email Broadcasting from the list on the left, and enter the database connection string to your response database.
4. Click Test Connection, then click OK. Select Save from the File menu.

Installing the email response gatherer¶

1. Download the FastStats Email Response Gatherer installer from the DigitalIntegration.zip, available at apteco.com/portal/software-releases.
2. Open the EmailResponseGatherer64Setup.msi from the DigitalIntegration\EmailResponseGatherer folder.
3. Follow the installation wizard to completion. Default directory: C:\Program Files\Apteco\FastStats Email Response Gatherer x64.

Creating the configuration file¶

1. Browse to the directory where you installed the Email Response Gatherer and open EmailResponseConfig.exe. Enter your Connection String and click Test.
2. Select Optimizely from the Broadcaster drop-down list.
3. Enter the Username and Password to use with the Optimizely API.
4. Use Add to add all the required parameters for the Broadcaster.
5. Use the File menu to save the XML file to the batch and XML file folder.

Scheduling the response gatherer¶

Set FERG to run on a scheduled basis using Windows Task Scheduler:

1. Open Windows Task Scheduler and select Create Basic Task.
2. Enter a Name and Description, then click Next.
3. Select the Trigger interval and enter the Start Date and Time, then click Next.
4. Select Start a program, click Browse, navigate to the folder containing your batch files, select the file, and click Open.
5. Check the Summary, then click Finish.

FastStats broadcasting and responses¶

Enable email broadcasting¶

1. Open the FastStats Configurator > Web Service > click OK > click Client Configuration.
2. Select the Discoverer client associated with your system and click Edit.
3. On the Plugins tab, ensure Apteco.Discoverer.Plugins.EmailBroadcasting is selected, then click OK.

Configuration in FastStats¶

1. Open Apteco FastStats, select the Users explorer, right-click on the Global node then navigate to Modify > Plugin Configurations.
2. Expand the Wizard node, clear the Inherit check box for Email Broadcasting (User Defined Fields), then click Edit.

3. Click Add to add a new template. Enter a Name, select the appropriate Resolve Table, and select Optimizely from the Broadcaster drop-down.

   Note

   The Optimizely integration name in the FastStats system is called Optivo.

   Field	Setting
   Client ID	Your Optimizely Client ID
   URN Field Name	URN
   Email Field Name	Email
   Use Dated List	false
   Template List Name	*ClosedLoopWebServiceTemplate: master
   Upload Only Folder	%LISTNAME%
   Upload and Broadcast Folder	%LISTNAME%\%MESSAGENAME%
   Use Closed Loop	true
   Closed Loop Layout	*Kunden ID\|Email\|Salutation\|Title\|Firstname\|Lastname\|mobile\|fon\|fax\|...\|Communication Key
   Encoding	UTF8

   Note

   You need to exit out of FastStats and log in again for these changes to take effect. You need to create the additional fields in the same order as the pipe-delimited text in the Closed Loop Layout.

Adding a predefined broadcasting field set¶

1. From FastStats select Tools > Administrative Functions > Setup Broadcasting Fields.
2. Click Add New Broadcasting Field and enter the Set Name to match the Template Name in Optimizely.

3. Click Add New Broadcasting Field and complete each Update Broadcasting Field dialogue until the list of broadcasting fields is complete.

   Field	Description
   Set Name	Template name in Optimizely
   Variable	Select the Variable that you wish to include in your sequence
   Output Style	Select Code or Description
   Email Field	Select this check-box when defining the Email field
   SMS Field	Select this check-box when defining the SMS field
   Sequence ID	Allows you to order your variables in the set

4. At least one of the fields must be an Email Address.

Checking your configuration¶

1. Select the Email Broadcasting icon from the Output Wizards panel.
2. Select the Upload Template and click Next.
3. Drag a selection from FastStats with the contact(s) you wish to send a test message to.

4. Complete the Email Broadcasting Details form and click Finish.

   Field	Description
   List Name drop-down	Click the List Name retrieve button and select a list
   Message Name	Click the Message Name retrieve button and select a message
   Email Address	Enter an Email Address for notification once the list has been processed

5. If you entered a message name, a Broadcast Warning message displays. Click Yes to commit this action.

Email responses wizard¶

1. Open the Email Responses wizard.
2. Enter the name of the message used in the Email Broadcasting wizard, then click Next.
3. Check Create a virtual variable from this information if required, then click Next.
4. Follow the remaining steps to store the virtual variable.

PeopleStage broadcasting and responses¶

Defining the broadcast channel in PeopleStage¶

1. Open PeopleStage, select File > Administration > Channel Editor.

2. Click Add Email Channel through the context menu. Enter a Channel Name.

   Field	Description
   Broadcaster	Select Optimizely from the drop-down
   Username	Enter your API username
   Password	Enter your API password
   Variable Name	Select Email Address from the drop-down
   Variable Description Override	Enter the description, for example "Email". This must correspond to the email field within Optimizely
   Upload but don't broadcast	(Optional)—select to upload the list only
   Response File Key Type	Should be set to Communication Key for Optimizely
   Message Content Type	Always Broadcaster Template

   Field	Setting
   Client ID	Your Optimizely Client ID
   URN Field Name	URN
   Email Field Name	Email
   Use Dated List	false
   Template List Name	*ClosedLoopWebServiceTemplate: master
   Upload Only Folder	%LISTNAME%
   Upload and Broadcast Folder	%LISTNAME%\%MESSAGENAME%
   Use Closed Loop	true
   Closed Loop Layout	*Person URN\|Email\|Salutation\|Title\|Firstname\|Lastname\|fon\|Message\|Discount\|Communication Key
   Encoding	UTF8

   Note

   You need to create the additional fields in the same order as the pipe-delimited text in the Closed Loop Layout parameter.

3. Add any additional variables on the Additional Variables tab.

4. Click Save & Close.

Broadcasting in PeopleStage¶

1. Drag your new Optimizely channel from the Library to your Delivery step.
2. Select from the available messages in Optimizely from the Message Name drop-down.
3. Deselect the As above check-box to use the same List Name as the Message Name.

Configuring Optimizely¶

If you wish to automatically broadcast the list to a message, you need to create a message within Optimizely using a Smart Campaign.

The following items are required in Optimizely:

Recipients¶

Create a Recipient list which includes yourself for initial testing. You can either create a recipient or Import a recipient to a list.

Smart campaign¶

1. Create a Smart Campaign with the following minimum items: Recipients, Wait Step, and Message.
2. Connect the steps.
3. Recipients—select the list to use.
4. Wait Step—set to Wait until import has been finished.
5. Message—create an Email message and personalise.

API parameters¶

Email response gatherer parameters¶

Email broadcasting parameters¶

Example batch file¶

@echo off
REM File Name: OptimizelyBatchFile.bat
D:
cd D:\FastStats\FERG
cls
SET FERG="%ProgramFiles%\Apteco\FastStats Email Response Gatherer x64\EmailResponseGatherer64.exe"
SET LOGFILE="Logs\Optimizely.txt"
SET LOGFILEDETAILS="Logs\Optimizely_Details.txt"
echo. >> %LOGFILE%
echo. >> %LOGFILEDETAILS%
echo %date% %time% - Starting FastStats Optimizely Response Download >> %LOGFILE%
echo %date% %time% - Starting FastStats Optimizely Response Download >> %LOGFILEDETAILS%
%FERG% Optimizely.xml >> %LOGFILEDETAILS%
IF ERRORLEVEL 9003 goto FailedException
IF ERRORLEVEL 9001 goto FailedDownload
IF ERRORLEVEL 9000 goto FailedLogin
:OK
echo %date% %time% - FastStats Gathered Optimizely Responses OK >> %LOGFILE%
goto Complete
:FailedLogin
echo %date% %time% - FastStats Gatherer Failed - Login Failed to Optimizely >> %LOGFILE%
goto Complete
:FailedDownload
echo %date% %time% - FastStats Gatherer Failed - Downloading from Optimizely >> %LOGFILE%
goto Complete
:FailedException
echo %date% %time% - FastStats Gatherer Failed - Optimizely API Exception >> %LOGFILE%
goto Complete
:Complete
echo %date% %time% - Completed FastStats Optimizely Response Download >> %LOGFILE%

Troubleshooting¶

Error received when running FERG using a batch file

Error: Could not read email response configuration file: Could not find file D:\FastStats\FERG\Optimizely.xml

Optimizely.xml refers to the filename referenced in the batch file at %FERG% Optimizely.xml. The location is set by cd D:\FastStats\FERG in the batch file.

Solution: Ensure the file exists at that path or change the filename in the batch file to match.