Creating an Email Campaign Layout and Template

Objective

After completing this lesson, you will be able to create an email campaign layout and template.

Email Campaigns

Candidate Relationship Management email campaigns enable recruiters to send bulk email campaigns with high deliverability to up to 2 million candidates at once. Email campaigns can be sent to both external and internal candidates. Brand consistency is maintained through the use of email layouts and email campaign content templates. Email recipients can be added in a variety of ways, but campaign emails are sent only to recipients who have opted in to receive marketing emails.

The general steps to create and send email campaigns are as follows:

  1. Create an email layout (optional)
  2. Create an email content template (optional)
  3. Write the campaign email
  4. Add recipients
  5. Send the email campaign

With custom reply to addresses, recruiters can get candidate replies right in their inbox, or staffing organizations can use a central inbox. Companies can track emails to understand campaign effectiveness to improve candidate marketing on an ongoing basis. Email Campaign information is reportable through Report Center.

Remember that, in our use case, Best Run will assist in developing promising candidates by providing remote training opportunities to help them prepare for the role, such as the following:

  • Learn how to recruit, hire, and train new members of the sales staff
  • Build your coaching skills
  • Characteristics of highly effective sales managers

In addition, Best Run often offers remote sessions to highlight their employment brand to prospective candidates for a variety of positions. For example, they host A Day in the Life webinars to give candidates the opportunity to hear from experienced members on Best Run's staff.

Below is a mock-up of the Best Run email campaign use case we will configure.

A screenshot of the Best Run email campaign

Email Layout

After Candidate Relationship Management is enabled, the ability to configure Email Layouts and Data Capture Forms appears in Career Site Builder.

Creating email layouts allows the organization to manage the branding and layout used for all manually sent Recruiting emails. The following email layout for the Best Run brand exists in the training instances. A separate email layout can be created for every brand and locale.

The screenshot shows a sample email layout, highlighting these elements: header, text, configurable text area, and footer.

The components available for email layouts are:

  • Header – Includes a logo to the left or right of text
  • Configurable Text Area – This is where the customizable content goes
  • Text – Multiple text components can be added to an email layout
  • HTML – Can be used like the custom plugin component on other pages: create two columns for the email, add images, and so on.
  • Footer – Contains text

With the exception of the Configurable Text Area, all components for email layouts are configured within Career Site Builder. The Text component can be added multiple times to a layout; the other components can only be added once. The Email Layout feature is responsive, so ensure the layouts that you create are responsive too.

Use Email Layouts for Branded Manual Recruiting Emails

Once created, email layouts can be used for email campaigns or when manually sending email to one or more candidates. Manual emails can be sent from:

  • Candidates→Search→Select candidates→Send Mail
  • Candidate Profile→Email
  • Candidate Workbench→Select candidates→Action→Email candidate
  • Application→Email
  • Offer Letter→Send via email

Note that a branded email cannot be used when sending email associated with a candidate status or a Recruiting email trigger.

A screenshot of email layout elements, including a Brand dropdown menu with the option Red selected, and Email Layout dropdown with the option Red Brand selected.

Email Layout Creation

To begin using email layouts, we recommend starting with a simple design, for example, add a logo to the header and perhaps change the font for the text components.

Email layouts are created in Career Site Builder under Layout→Email Layout. Add the desired components and order them. You can add the brand logo, change the background color for the email, and more.

Screenshot of the Email Layout Editor, which includes as Add Component button

Note that email layouts cannot be deleted but can be deactivated.

Create an Email Layout

Business Example

Best Run would like an email layout for the Red brand, similar to the layout for the Best Run brand.

Steps

  1. Within Career Site Builder, navigate to Layouts→Email Layouts.

  2. Click +Add to create a new layout.

    1. For the Name field, enter Red Brand, select the EnglishLocale, and select Red for the Brand.

    2. Save.

    3. On the Details page, select YES for Is Active.

    4. The Styles page is where the background color for the email can be changed, if desired.

    5. From the Email Layout page, notice that the Configurable Text Area component exists by default. Click Add Component and add each of the available components. Add the Text component a second time.

    6. Reorder the components in this way: Header, Text, Configurable Text Area, HTML, Text, Footer.

    7. Save.

  3. Click to open the Header component and view the available options.

    1. From the Details page, add this Header Text: Be part of a winning team: Join us at Best Run!

    2. Click the "T" icon above the Header Text and change the Size to 16. Click Close.

    3. On the Logo page, click Select Image and select Red_Brand_logo.png.

    4. On the Styles page, change the Header Text color to Best Run Red.

    5. Save.

  4. Click the back arrow and select the Text component. Add this Text: Best Run’s Red Brand has a variety of satisfying careers to choose from: Find yours today!

  5. Click the back arrow and select the Configurable Text Area component. Notice that the background color can be changed here. (If necessary, click on the Background color and select white.) The actual text is added in SAP SuccessFactors Recruiting before the email is sent.

  6. Click the back arrow and select the HTML component. We will not make any changes here.

  7. Click the back arrow and select the Text component. Add this Text: Would you like more information about an open position? Please contact our Staffing Team.

  8. Click the back arrow and select the Footer component and add this Footer Text: Best Run is an equal opportunity employer.

  9. Save and preview. (Obviously the layout will look different when the actual email is sent.)

Email Campaign Content Templates

Email campaign content templates can be used to create the text to be inserted into the branded emails that are sent to candidates via email campaigns. Alternatively, the text can be entered directly into the individual email campaigns. Permission to create content templates is typically restricted, often to the company's employment brand professionals, rather than recruiters. Be aware that the content can be edited by Recruiting users before an email is sent.

Email campaign content templates are created from Admin Center→Manage Email Campaign Content Templates. Enter the content for the email in the rich text editor. To add a token, click on the ellipsis button (3 dots), select Recipient Field, and select the desired token.

Screenshot of an email editing toolbar, which includes an Insert Recipient Field button. Selecting this button opens an Insert Recipient Field popup, which shows tokens like first name, last name, and email.

Hint

Create reusable content templates by using a placeholder (such as angle brackets: <>) for content that should be replaced when the email is sent. In this way, fewer content templates are required.

For example, if a company plans to hold career fairs in multiple cities, you could create one content template with placeholders such as this: "Please join us on <date and time>, at <location>." The content template is then added to multiple email campaigns, and the placeholders are completed with the relevant information for that email: "Please join us on Friday, November 16, at our U.S. Headquarters: 3999 West Chester Pike, Newtown Square, PA 19073."

Note

Note that these placeholders are not the same as tokens, which are automatically replaced when the Email Campaign is sent. In this example, the token is replaced with the candidate’s first name: [[CANDIDATE_FIRST_NAME]]

Create an Email Campaign Content Template

Business Example

To provide consistency in their email campaigns, Best Run's marketing communications team will create a content template for each of the remote training opportunities. In this exercise, you will create an email campaign content template to invite candidates to the training Build Your Coaching Skills.

Notice that we will be using placeholders marked like this: < >. After adding the template to an email campaign, you will replace the placeholders with the relevant text.

ExerciseStart Exercise

Steps

  1. As an admin, navigate to Admin Center→Manage Email Campaign Content Templates.

  2. Click New Content Template and make the following selections:

    1. Locale: English US

    2. Status: Enabled

    3. Content Template Name: Build Your Coaching Skills training invite

    4. Email Subject Line: Invitation to Best Run's "Build Your Coaching Skills" Training

    5. Enter the Content (Email Body). To add a token, such as [[CANDIDATE_FIRST_NAME]], click the ellipsis button (3 dots), select Recipient Field, and select the desired token.

      Dear [[CANDIDATE_FIRST_NAME]] [[CANDIDATE_LAST_NAME]],

      Best Run has a strong track record for developing our employees' skills. We are also serious about developing the skills of promising candidates!

      Would you like to be a more effective coach? You are invited to attend a remote-based training session: Build Your Coaching Skills. This training will help you improve overall team performance by having more mutually beneficial coaching conversations.

      The next training session will be offered at <date and time>. Please reply to this email if you would like to attend.

      Here are some of the skills you learn in this training:

      • Ask guiding questions
      • Be a good listener
      • Recognize what's going well
      • Understand their perspective
      • Provide constructive feedback
      • Talk about next steps

      Reply to this email to receive the login details for the Build Your Coaching Skills training session. Feel free to forward this invitation to other strong Sales Manager candidates! The training will not be recorded.

      We look forward to talking with you,

      Best Run Staffing Department

  3. Apply any formatting that you want.

  4. Save.

Summary

  • Candidate Relationship Management (CRM) email campaigns let recruiters send high-deliverability bulk emails (up to 2 million recipients) to internal/external candidates who have opted in, using branded layouts/templates; replies can go to a recruiter or shared inbox, and performance is trackable/reportable (Report Center).
  • How email layouts work (branding): Email layouts are built in Career Site Builder → Layouts → Email Layouts to standardize branding across campaigns and many manual-email entry points. Layouts use components (Header, Text, Configurable Text Area, HTML, Footer), are responsive, can’t be deleted (only deactivated), and can’t be used for candidate-status/trigger emails.
  • How content templates work (message reuse): Campaign content templates are created in Admin Center → Manage Email Campaign Content Templates, can include tokens (auto-filled, e.g., [[CANDIDATE_FIRST_NAME]]) and placeholders (manually replaced, e.g., <date and time>), enabling consistent invitations like Best Run’s "Build Your Coaching Skills" training email.
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