epoq Connect enables a personalised email for each customer of your online shop. Individual product recommendations are generated based on the knowledge base, the click and purchase behaviour of each customer.
General
We require your product catalog in XML or CSV format for the setup of the personalised email. Afterwards we hand over the tracking code for the connection to our knowledge base, which you integrate into your online shop.
For the widget integration you will receive a code snippet from us as a placeholder for the frontend. Then you integrate it into your email template. It does not matter which email dispatch system (episerver, inxmail, Emarsys, Teradata...) you use.
Not only websites can be responsive but also emails. Here it is important that we get a template that is already responsive so that we can see the behaviour. Our recommendations, including the font, are displayed as an image. This has the disadvantage of blurring when scaling. If you can see from which end device the email is picked up, we recommend that you create an extra version for the mobile version. In this way, the recommendations are always displayed optimally.
In order for us to check all parameters for the personalised email, we need test emails from you.
Technical integration
The recommendations are created as soon as the email is opened and the images are loaded. The images are usually loaded in less than a second.
The exact process can be illustrated as follows:
- Customer opens email
- Recommendations are requested from epoq using the customerId (customer number)
- The epoq service generates the appropriate recommendations and returns them rendered to the email
It is possible to specify additional rules for the recommendations. We will be happy to advise you on this.
Example of possible recommendations in the email:
HTML template
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" border="0">
<tr>
<td border="0">
<a href="https://rsx.epoq.de/m/show?tenantId=TENANT_ID&imageno=0&customerId=TRACKING_CUSTOMER_ID&customerId2=MAIL_CUSTOMER_ID&actionId=MAIL_IDENTIFICATION&go">
<img src="https://rsx.epoq.de/m/show?tenantId=TENANT_ID&imageno=0&customerId=TRACKING_CUSTOMER_ID&customerId2=MAIL_CUSTOMER_ID&actionId=MAIL_IDENTIFICATION" border="0" moz-do-not-send="true"/>
</a>
</td>
<td border="0">
<a href="https://rsx.epoq.de/m/show?tenantId=TENANT_ID&imageno=1&customerId=TRACKING_CUSTOMER_ID&customerId2=MAIL_CUSTOMER_ID&actionId=MAIL_IDENTIFICATION&go">
<img src="https://rsx.epoq.de/m/show?tenantId=TENANT_ID&imageno=1&customerId=TRACKING_CUSTOMER_ID&customerId2=MAIL_CUSTOMER_ID&actionId=MAIL_IDENTIFICATION" border="0" moz-do-not-send="true"/>
</a>
</td>
<td border="0">
<a href="https://rsx.epoq.de/m/show?tenantId=TENANT_ID&imageno=2&customerId=TRACKING_CUSTOMER_ID&customerId2=MAIL_CUSTOMER_ID&actionId=MAIL_IDENTIFICATION&go">
<img src="https://rsx.epoq.de/m/show?tenantId=TENANT_ID&imageno=2&customerId=TRACKING_CUSTOMER_ID&customerId2=MAIL_CUSTOMER_ID&actionId=MAIL_IDENTIFICATION" border="0" moz-do-not-send="true"/>
</a>
</td>
<td border="0">
<a href="https://rsx.epoq.de/m/show?tenantId=TENANT_ID&imageno=3&customerId=TRACKING_CUSTOMER_ID&customerId2=MAIL_CUSTOMER_ID&actionId=MAIL_IDENTIFICATION&go">
<img src="https://rsx.epoq.de/m/show?tenantId=TENANT_ID&imageno=3&customerId=TRACKING_CUSTOMER_ID&customerId2=MAIL_CUSTOMER_ID&actionId=MAIL_IDENTIFICATION" border="0" moz-do-not-send="true"/>
</a>
</td>
</tr>
</table>
Parameters to retrieve the recommendations
The call parameters mentioned here can be any character strings. They are required for each call to get a recognition of the online shop and the customer.
The parameters must be added to the following URL:
https://rsx.epoq.de/m/show?
It must be ensured that the customer number (customerId), which is transferred during tracking in the shop, is available in the email dispatch system.
| Name | Description | Example | Notes |
| tenantId | The unique identification of your online shop (we tell you). | ||
| customerId | The customer ID of the customer for whom recommendations are to be created (if not known, leave blank). | 2345 | Must be identical to the ID that we receive in tracking. |
| customerId2 | The customer identification of the customer from the mail system. This identifier must be filled if customerId is not filled. | emailIDvon2345 |
The recipient's hashed email address can be used for this purpose. The ID can always be transmitted, even if the customerId is filled. |
| imageno | Placement of the product recommendation. | 0..n | |
| actionId | An identifier to identify the mailing action, preferably in numerical ascending order (all mails of an action have the same actionId). | 256 | This ID must be different for each email sent. Because the combination of customerID and actionID leads to a recommendation-freeze. So the customer gets the same recommendations when opening an email repeatedly. |
| go | This parameter is used for the links. | ||
| demo* | Use only if random recommendations are to be generated. | 5 | |
| rules | Various rules for the recommendations can be transferred here. | fg(m) | |
| locakey | Different languages of the catalog can be delivered here. | de | Important if you want to send an email in different languages. The appropriate language template will then be accessed. |
| type | Different mail types can be created using different or even the same templates. | 0, birthday | This parameter is important for our reporting. |
| version | Different widgets can be integrated. These differ in the version number. | 2 |
Only one version may be retrieved within a template. Different versions can be used for desktop and mobile display. |
* This parameter should only be used for test purposes.
Filter options for the recommendations
We can respond to specific email conditions by creating certain rules.
Example: Restricting recommendations to women's fashion if it is a customer who prefers to look at and buy women's items in the shop. Or a rule that shows only reduced items.
Example restriction to women's fashion
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" border="0">
<tr>
<td border="0">
<a href="https://rsx.epoq.de/m/show?tenantId=TENANT_ID&imageno=0&customerId=TRACKING_CUSTOMER_ID&customerId2=MAIL_CUSTOMER_ID&actionId=MAIL_IDENTIFICATION&rules=$gender(fm)$&go">
<img src="https://rsx.epoq.de/m/show?tenantId=TENANT_ID&imageno=0&customerId=TRACKING_CUSTOMER_ID&customerId2=MAIL_CUSTOMER_ID&actionId=MAIL_IDENTIFICATION&rules=$gender(fm)$" border="0" moz-do-not-send="true"/>
</a>
</td>
</tr>
</table>
Furthermore, the recommendations can be restricted, for example for theme newsletters.
For this purpose, you can define criteria in the epoq Control Desk that apply to the theme newsletter.
For example, a newsletter with a winter theme should be sent out. You can then define various attributes that match the winter theme. The result is that the newsletter is filled individually but the recommended products have the selected attributes.
Trigger Emails
Any type of email that has a personal approach to the customer is a good way to personalise.
Examples would be:
- return emails
- order confirmations
- birthdays
- anniversaries
- ...
These emails not only receive individual recommendations based on the customer's click and purchase behaviour, but can also be limited to categories or other criteria, just like the theme newsletters. The unique identification is made via the parameter "type", for example type=birthday for birthday emails. For each "type" created, individual criteria can be selected. These are valid until they are removed.
There is also a separate reporting function for each "type" in the epoq Control Desk.
Creation of the layout
The epoq service determines the recommendations and passes them on to the epoq HTML renderer. This compiles an HTML code that displays the products in the desired layout. The next step is to generate a screenshot of this HTML page, which is then cut to the correct size for the email. The recommendations (images) are delivered to the email in the final step. For the integration we need the exact layout information from you.