Email Settings

Email settings in the Ascent360 ESP, including information on tracking parameters, seed lists and test lists.

Email Settings Overview

This email settings section is specific to clients using the Ascent360 ESP (email platform). 

With the Ascent360 Email Designer, you can quickly and easily upload Seed Lists, Test Lists, modify your default Tracking Parameters (appended tracking strings for Google Analytics) as well as adjust the default settings for Domain, Reply-To and From Email Info. This list of articles will teach you how to do this.

Note: During onboarding, Ascent360 will setup the Domain, Reply-To, From Email and Tracking Parameters with you. The Email Settings section will allow you to change those settings after the initial setup. 

If you need to change the Domain or From Email information, please reach out to the Ascent360 Help Desk or your CSM to ensure that we provide the necessary records to update the settings in your DNS provider first.

Please see Sending Domain and DNS Records for more information.

To navigate to the email settings section, simply click on your profile/user icon in the top right corner and click on Settings

You will then see the settings page as shown below:

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Email Tracking Parameters

If you utilize Google Analytics UTM tracking, Ascent360 can automatically append a tracking string to each of the links in your emails. Setting this up in Email Settings allows you to set default Tracking Parameters for all your emails. With a default value, you can still customize each parameter for a specific email sent from Ascent360.

Available Parameters

  1. Campaign Source – we recommend setting this as Ascent360.
  2. Campaign Medium – use this to identify the medium like Cost Per Click (CPC), social media, affiliate or QR code. We would recommend setting this as Email (or SMS, for text message marketing).
  3. Campaign Term – use this mainly for tracking your keywords during a paid AdWords campaign. You can also use it in your display ad campaigns to identify aspects of your audience.
  4. Campaign Content – use this to differentiate links that point to the same URL.
  5. Campaign Name – this is typically your email or campaign name.

Add or Edit Tracking Parameters

To add tracking parameters, hover over the Profile icon in the top-right corner and select Settings. Then, go to Email Settings.

Note: If you don’t see the Email Settings option, please contact the Help Desk to request the necessary permissions.

In the Tracking Parameters section, you’ll be able to view and edit available parameters. By default, all five parameters should be visible.

To edit a parameter, click Edit. For each one, you can set a Default Value and toggle the setting on (blue) or off (grey) as needed.

Once you've saved your settings, the configured tracking parameters will be visible. These default parameters will automatically be applied to all draft emails. As a result, when recipients click any link within your email, the tracking parameters will be appended to the URL, allowing tools like Google Analytics and other site analytics platforms to capture and report the data.

Using System Fields as Parameters

You can use the following to dynamically insert values as UTM parameters:

  • {{[DesignName]}}
  • {{[SourceName]}}
  • {{[SendDatetime]}}

For the values to work properly, the brackets must be included.

Best Practice: To avoid issues with the UTM values it is best to use "_" or "-" between values and leave out spaces and certain special characters such as "!"

Test Lists

Adding a test list allows you to quickly send test emails to a specified group of contacts for review & approval. It also makes sending to larger test lists more efficient by eliminating the need to manually enter the emails one by one.

Add a Test List

Navigate to Settings by hovering over the blue icon in the top right of the Portal.

Within Email Settings, select Add List in the Test List section.

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Name your Test List and click Save.

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After saving, you will see the name of your list in the drop-down as well as a new View option. Click View to add contacts to the list. 

To load contacts in bulk, click choose file option and select the file. In your file, please use "Email" as the column header name. You can also click Add in the bottom right-hand corner to add contacts manually.

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If you click Add to enter them in one by one, you will get another prompt to enter in the email address.

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After saving the email, you will see the email added to the test list and the Active Status = True.

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Repeat this process to add any additional contacts to the test list.

To change the status of a contact from the seed list, click “Edit” and toggle the Active status from True to False. When false, the button is gray and to the left, when True, the button is blue and to the right. 

Only contacts with their Active status equaling True will be seeded on the outgoing email.

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To learn how to send an email to your newly created test list, please see our How to Send/Schedule and Email article

Seed Lists

Adding a seed list allows you to keep key internal stakeholders informed of outgoing emails. If an email is configured to send to a seed list in addition to the required audience, individuals on the seed list will receive the email, even if they don't qualify for the audience you are sending to.

Add a Seed List

Navigate to Settings by hovering over the blue icon in the top right of the Portal.

Within Email Settings, select Add List in the Seed List section.

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Name your Seed List and click Save.

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After saving, you will see the name of your list in the drop-down as well as a new View option. Click View to add contacts to the list.

To load contacts in bulk, click choose file option and select the file. In your file, please use "Email" as the column header name. You can also click Add in the bottom right-hand corner to add contacts manually.

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If you click Add to enter them in one by one, you will get another prompt to enter in the email address.

Hit the blue Save button to save the email into the test list.

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After saving the email, you will see the email added to the seed list and the Active Status = True.

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Repeat this process to add any additional contacts to the seed list.

To change the status of a contact from the seed list, click “Edit” and toggle the Active status from True to False. When false, the button is gray and to the left, when True, the button is blue and to the right.

Only contacts with their Active status equaling True will be seeded on the outgoing email.

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To learn how to send an email to your newly created seed list, please see our How to Send/Schedule and Email article

Email Template Quality Check Guidelines

Before scheduling an email, it’s important to complete a quick but thorough quality check to ensure accuracy, consistency, and a smooth recipient experience. This checklist outlines the essential steps to confirm your content, design, links, settings, and sending details are all correct. Use it as a reliable final review to catch errors early and send every message with confidence.

Email Details

ItemDescription
Campaign NameIs the email using the correct naming convention?
Subject LineIs the email using the appropriate subject line?
Preview HeaderIs the email using the needed preview header?
Contact SourceHave you chosen the correct audience for this email? Are you contacting the correct guests with this audience?
From NameIs the correct From Name listed?
From Email AddressIs the correct From Email Address listed?
Reply To Email AddressIs the correct Reply To Email Address listed?

Header Icons

ItemDescription
Header IconsConfirm that email is using the correct Header Icons.
URLsVerify that all Header Icons are using the correct links.
Alternative TextMake sure that all Header Icons are using appropriate Alternative Text.

Hero Image

ItemDescription
ImageConfirm that the email is using the correct Hero Image.
URLsVerify that the Hero Image has the correct link applied.
Size/DimensionsConfirm that the Hero Image is using the correct size and fits the email template.
Alternative TextVerify that the Hero Image is using appropriate Alternative Text.

Body Text

ItemDescription
CopyIs the email using the correct copy?
Merge TagsDoes the Body Text include Merge Tags? Are they displaying correctly?
FormattingIs the Body Text using the correct formatting indicated by the client? Or is it using the same formatting as previous emails? This includes font-size, font-family, text-decoration, etc.
Hyperlinks Are hyperlinks using the correct URLs?

CTAs

ItemDescription
CopyIs the CTA using the correct copy?
URLsVerify that the CTA is using the correct link.
FormattingIs the CTA using the correct formatting indicated by the client? Or is it using the same formatting as previous emails? This includes font-size, font-family, text-decoration, etc.

Display Conditions

ItemDescription
Display ConditionsAre Display Conditions being applied?
RulesAre the rules set up correctly and identifying the right information?
ImagesConfirm that the image(s) you're using are correct. Are they using the right dimensions? Are they using the correct link(s)? Do they have appropriate Alternative Text?
CopyConfirm that the Display Conditions are utilizing the correct copy.
CTAsCheck that the Display Conditions are using the correct copy and styling.
Final QCTest the Display Conditions by entering Preview Mode and by sending yourself a Test Send Email.

Hyperlinks

ItemDescription
UnsubscribeEnsure that the email includes an unsubscribe link.
Link TrackingLink tracking behavior varies by ESP.

Create Fallback Text Version

ItemDescription
Convert to TextAfter completing the above, convert your email to text if the ESP you're using has the option to do so.

Test Sends

ItemDescription
MobileView the email in Mobile Preview Mode. Also, send a test version of the email to yourself and verify that it's displaying correctly on Mobile.
DesktopView the email in Desktop Preview Mode. Also, send a test version of the email to yourself and verify that it's displaying correctly on Desktop.

Download Email Template Checklist

Click on the link below to download this same guide and go down the list to make sure that you've checked off everything before scheduling your email.

Email QC Template.xlsx