Calendar features

The calendar in Distributed Marketing displays Lists, On-demand Campaigns, or Corporate Campaigns. You can also edit the views.

The Distributed Marketing calendar has the following features:

  • The calendar includes start and end dates for the displayed items.
  • You can display Corporate Campaigns and On-demand Campaigns on the same calendar in different colors for easy differentiation.
  • You can open a Corporate Campaign, List, or On-demand Campaign directly from the calendar.

Default and per session calendar views

You can use one of two types of settings when you view the calendar:

  • The default calendar settings, which are in effect every time you log in.
  • The per session calendar settings. The per session calendar is the calendar that results from making temporary changes to the calendar view, without changing the default settings.

Objects displayed in a calendar

You can display any of the following objects in a calendar:

  • Corporate Campaigns
  • On-demand Campaigns
  • Lists
  • Corporate Campaigns and On-demand Campaigns

Calendar item dates

Each List, On-demand Campaign, or Corporate Campaign that is displayed in a calendar has a start and end date. These are the target start and end dates you set when you create the object.

Display options for the calendar

You can modify the calendar display in the following ways:

  • You can modify the default calendar settings.
  • You can set the calendar view for the current session.
  • You can toggle between calendar views:
    • Timeline view
    • Calendar grid view
    • Text view
  • You can use the advanced search feature to filter the Lists, On-demand Campaigns, or Corporate Campaigns that are displayed in the calendar.

Timeline view

This view displays a time-based view of the Lists, On-demand Campaigns, or Corporate Campaigns you select to display. You can select the time range for the calendar items you select to display in a timeline view.

In a timeline view, each calendar item is displayed as a horizontal bar across its date range. If you enable color coding, each calendar item is colored according to attributes you select.

You can select the date range for the timeline from the following options:

  • Week displays one week. Each day is listed as a column. The starting day is either Sunday or Monday, depending on the default calendar settings.
  • Month displays a single calendar month. Each day is listed as a column, and days are grouped into weeks.
  • Quarter displays three calendar months. Each week is listed as a column, and weeks are grouped into months.
  • Fiscal Year displays a fiscal year. Your administrator can configure the starting month for a fiscal year. Each month is listed as a column, and the months are grouped into quarters.
  • Calendar Year displays a calendar year that starts in January and ends in December. Each month is listed as a column, and the months are grouped into quarters.
Note: Any day that is specified as non-work time is disabled in a timeline view.

Month-based text or calendar grid view

A month-based calendar view displays a calendar for a selected month.

In addition to a month-based timeline view, you can select from the following month-based calendar views:

  • 1-Month Text: Each day contains a text listing of selected, Lists, On-demand Campaigns, or Corporate Campaigns.
  • 1-Month Calendar Grid: Each calendar item is displayed as a horizontal bar that begins on the item start date and ends on the item end date. If you enable color coding, each calendar item is colored according to attributes you select.
Note: Any day that is specified as non-work time is indicated by a gray X in the background in a calendar grid view.

Color-coded by attribute view

You can color-code the calendar display for Lists, On-demand Campaigns, or Corporate Campaigns by selected attributes. You can apply color-coding to a calendar grid view or to a timeline view.

You can filter the calendar display for Lists, On-demand Campaigns, or Corporate Campaigns according to the values of a selected attribute, such as the following.

  • Execution status
  • Schedule status
  • Template type

The calendar displays a legend in the lower-right corner of the screen.

For example, consider the following On-demand Campaign attribute and its possible values:

  • Attribute name: Campaign Execution Status
  • Valid attribute values: Active, Complete, Under development

If you group and display On-demand Campaigns by Campaign Execution Status, the resulting calendar is displayed with four colors in the legend. There is one color for each valid attribute value, and one for N/A.

Note: The color that is assigned to N/A is displayed in the calendar when calendar items are not assigned a value for the selected attribute.

Horizontal bars used in calendars

The timeline view and calendar grid view display calendar items as horizontal bars.

Note the following information about bars:

  • The bars represent the date range for objects that are displayed on the calendar.
  • The bar color depends on values of an attribute you optionally select for color coding.
  • The shape of the bars determines the following about item start and end dates:
    • Rounded left end: The start date is the date indicated by the left end of the bar.
    • Rounded right end: The end date is the date indicated by the right end of the bar.
    • Flat left end: The start date is before the visible date range.
    • Flat right end: The end date is beyond the visible date range.