RE NXT Email Marketing... Does it work?

Tom Klimchak
Tom Klimchak
Tenth Anniversary Kudos 5 Name Dropper Participant
in Blackbaud Raiser's Edge NXT®: General Discussions
Hi... Sooo.. We've been using MailChimp for years but we like to keep an eye out for alternative ways of doing things.  We've been playing around with the Markerting|Email functionality of NXT and we're BARELY able to get it to do anything.


Is this typical?  


Example: We'll create a constituent list of 3 people (all employees) and we'll send a sample email to that list.  Usually only 1 out of 3 ever even receives the email.  The little honeycomb stats board will sometimes say '0' recipients even if someone received it.  It will sometimes list just one recipient.  


Schedule emails just... don't seem to go at all.  The little honeycomb dashboard says they went out but no one ever receives anything.  


Are we missing something basic?  Our IT department has unblocked things because it does *sometimes* work... 

Comments

  • Keith Wilson
    Keith Wilson Community All-Star
    Seventh Anniversary Kudos 5 Name Dropper Participant
    Hi Tom Klimchak, we have been using the Marketing/Email module for some time now and have not experienced any of the issues you mentioned. I have on occasion sent test emails to my work email that were flagged as spam (we have some pretty strict email protocols), but otherwise the emails generate and are sent. You may try sending your test emails to your personal accounts instead of work emails? Another thing you might check is under the "Set who receives it" is to verify which email address type is used, and if you select "emails marked as primary" is to ensure all those email addresses are actually checked as primary on the constituent record.
  • Alex Bowen
    Alex Bowen
    Sixth Anniversary Kudos 1 Participant Facilitator 1
    Hey Tom!


    I'd recommend looking into sender authentication. The big two would be SPF and DKIM. https://www.blackbaud.com/files/support/howto/coveo/edeliver/edeliver-sender-authentication.html


    Without SPF or DKIM records, many mailbox providers will think NXT is trying to "spoof" your domain, which looks like fraud. That means some mailbox providers will refuse to even deliver emails without sender authentication. 


    If you have any other questions on these processes, definitely feel free to reach out to us in Support! Some more handy articles:


    How to add a DKIM signature to outgoing email https://kb.blackbaud.com/articles/Article/65862

    What is an SPF Record? https://kb.blackbaud.com/articles/Article/40111


    Alex Bowen

    She/her/hers

    Customer Support — Associate Specialist
  • Tom Klimchak
    Tom Klimchak
    Tenth Anniversary Kudos 5 Name Dropper Participant
    Apparently some of the email addresses we were sending to had "opted out" of RE email.  An email address can opt-in and opt-out of a Blackbaud email list, but that isn't reflected on any records and our organization can't actually SEE who has opted in or out of email from Blackbaud.


    We're going to stick to MailChimp for the moment because we have so much more control over things.. 
  • Michelle Ruth
    Michelle Ruth
    Fourth Anniversary Kudos 1 Name Dropper Participant
    Hi Keith, I would love to understand HOW you use NXT Marketing Email functionality. I am struggling with the concept of different content where a constituent opts into one, but opts out of another. I see no place in Marketing emails where an email can be associated with a type of content, and that unsubscribes can show an opt out for just that type of content. Any help you have with that would be appreciated.

  • Michelle Ruth
    Michelle Ruth
    Fourth Anniversary Kudos 1 Name Dropper Participant

    @Tom Klimchak I have noticed that in RE NXT Events that you can make an event (I called mine Email Subscriptions) and then built a $0 fee, online event registration. I then configured it with my different content categories (and yes, I have business rules set to apply Solicit codes) to the extent that someone filling out the form as I have it set up, can opt-in with a yes, or opt-out with a no to each content type I have giving clear consent. If it weren't for the issue with Countries for outside the US (See Idea Bank

    This would work perfect for us. Please vote on that idea and email in RE NXT may be completely functional for you. (I know it would be for our organization.)

  • Amanda Polson
    Amanda Polson
    Third Anniversary Kudos 2 Name Dropper Participant

    @Michelle Ruth I am trying to do this same thing. Would you be willing to share how you set up your registration form? It seems like an extensive form for just signing up for a mailing list (I can't figure out how to get rid of any sections) and I'm not sure how to use the main registration part so it makes sense? I would love to see what you did!

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