Skip to content

Email Scheduling - Mail Pending

Creating New Mail

From here, you can create mail campaigns to be scheduled for certain times.

How far in advance can I schedule a mailer?

Mailers can be scheduled up to 60 days in advance.

How do I create a new campaign?

  1. Click the green ‘Create Campaign’ button in the top right-hand corner;
  2. Enter the Name of the Campaign (this will not appear on the email).
  3. Enter a Unique Value – this is to distinguish the Campaign further (for example, if you wish to send multiple emails with the same name, this gives it a unique identifier. This can also be used when requesting support from SUMS in case any issues arise – this will not appear on the email);

  4. Select the Type as either ‘Subscription’ or ‘Report’:

    1. ‘Subscription’ refers to a premade Subscription Group containing a list of recipients – these can be created within the ‘Subscription Groups’ area of the Communication module;

      Note: If you are sending a mailer to an Implicit Subscription Group, this will be sent to all member who have not opted out of the group.

    2. ‘Report’ refers to a premade report containing a list of recipients – (see our guide for ‘Creating a report for a Mailer’ for further guidance: https://docs.sums.su/user-guide/reporting/mailer-report/)

  5. Once you have chosen your Type¸ start typing the name of the Subscription Group or Report within the ‘Source’ dropdown menu to select;

  6. Select whether you wish the mailer to be sent to your members’ Personal or Organisational email;

  7. Alternatively, you can select for the mailer to be sent to your members’ ‘Preferred Email’ – this will then be sent to the relevant email they have selected as their preference (see our ‘Member Marketing Preference’ guide for further information on how members can set their marketing preferences: https://docs.sums.su/user-guide/communications/member-marketing-preference/);

    Note: This applies only to member email addresses. You may have created a subscription group that contains public contacts, to which any mailers will be sent to the email address that is listed in the group.

  8. Enter the ‘From Email’, the address from which you wish the mailer to appear, i.e. ‘[email protected]’;

  9. Enter which ‘Name’ you wish the mailer to appear from, i.e. ‘Your Students’ Union’;
  10. Enter the ‘Subject’ of the mailer - this is the line that will appear to the recipient, for example ‘Your weekly SU update!’;

  11. In the ‘Message HTML’ section, enter the HTML of your mailer, which you can copy and paste from an external email builder;

    Note: The ‘Text’ box can be left blank as long as HTML has been added.

  12. Enter the Date and Time you wish the mailer to be sent; if you wish to send the Mail immediately after creating the Campaign, leave this box empty.

  13. Click the green ‘Submit’ button.

Once you have created your mailer, it will then show in the ‘Campaigns’ list on the ‘Mail Pending’ page, with the following columns:

  1. ID – this is the system ID of the mailer
  2. Name
  3. Unique Value
  4. Scheduled Date – when initially created, this date will show yellow. Once you have sent a test email and agreed to the Terms and Conditions, this will be marked green as ready to be sent at the scheduled time (see below for further details)
  5. Test Sent – to confirm whether or not a test email has been sent
  6. Confirm Schedule – this will turn green when you have agreed to the T&C’s and sent a test email, providing there were no errors returned when confirming (i.e. no recipients in report).

What else do I need to do before my mailer is sent?

In order to allow your mailer to be sent at your scheduled time, you must send a test email prior:

  1. Click the green ‘Send’ button;
  2. Enter a relevant email address within the ‘Test Message’ section;
  3. Click ‘Submit’ to send a test mailer.

Once you have sent your test mailer, you will then also need to agree to the Terms and Conditions listed within the ‘Confirm Email Schedule’ section on the same page.

Your mailer will only be sent at the scheduled time if both of these actions have been completed.

What if I need to modify a mailer before it is scheduled to send?

You are able to adjust a mailer before it is scheduled to send by clicking the blue ‘Modify’ button.

Ensure you click ‘Submit’ once you have made any changes.

Note: A new test mailer must be sent following any modifications before it can be sent at its scheduled time. If a mailer has been modified and a new test email has not yet been sent, the ‘Test Sent’ column on the Mail Pending page will revert back to red.

Where can I find my mailer once it has been sent?

Once your mailer has been successfully sent to the relevant recipients, it will move to the ‘Mail Sent’ section of the Communications module (see here for further guidance: https://docs.sums.su/user-guide/communications/mail-sent/).

What if my mailer errors and does not send at the scheduled time?

If for some reason your mailer could not be sent, an error message will show at the top of the screen when you click the ‘Send’ button alongside the relevant mailer.

The mailer will remain within the ‘Mail Pending’ page for you to modify as necessary and select a new scheduled time for your mailer to be sent.

If the mailer fails when it comes round to the scheduled time, it will save the error and this will be visible when you hover over the ‘Failed’ flag in the ‘Status’ column so you can adjust the mailer and try again.

What if I want to stop a mailer from going out at the scheduled time?

If you wish to stop a mailer from sending at the scheduled time, you will need to either:

  • Delete the mailer from the ‘Mail Pending’ page;
  • If you wish to simply change when it sends, or delay the mailer due to possible adjustments, adjust the scheduled time.

Updated on 10th February 2022