Template creation
You create a template by assembling existing components. As you set up your system, you must create the other components before you can create templates.
Plan your templates
Before you begin building templates, you must analyze your organization's needs, then decide on the templates you need.
For example, your organization might run three different types of On-demand Campaigns, with different target selection criteria and different workflows. You most likely need three different templates for these On-demand Campaigns.
In addition to planning the number and types of templates, you must plan for the types of objects you need in those templates. For example, the three On-demand Campaign templates you need can share the Summary form, but require different Selection Criteria forms and Workflows.
Plan template contents
After you plan the types of templates you need, you must determine the contents of those templates; that is, you must decide which fields to include, and how to organize those fields.
You should capture this information about paper or in a spreadsheet, then use the Forms Editor to define the tabs and fields you need.
For example, you might determine that an On-demand Campaign template must include a field for the business unit that requests the campaign. You could list the requirements for this field as follows:
Field Attribute | Value |
---|---|
Internal Name | Business Unit |
Display Name | Business Unit |
Tab/grouping | In the Summary tab, under the Collateral Request Info section |
Input field type | Single-Select |
Possible values or database table to retrieve values from | Retail Banking, Investment Services, Insurance, Credit Card Brochure, Postcard, DataSheet, Intro Folder, White Paper, Print Ad, or a table name or column name where Distributed Marketing should look up these values. |
Required field/error message, if missing | Business Unit is a required field. |
Help Tip | Enter the business unit that requests this collateral piece. |
As a best practice, create a similar table for each field you require before you begin creating fields and tabs in the Forms Editor.
Before creating templates
Templates depend on the existence of other, lower-level components. Therefore, you must set up the following objects before you set up templates:
- Forms
- Icons
- Data Mapping
- Workflows
- Roles