Create a custom channel and custom routing with a direct mail like template

[sharma_nik]

Hi

I wish to create a custom delivery channel (lets say telemarket) and use the direct mail template as a delivery template in this channel.

For example:

I want to extract all the target customers into a file (like it creates a file in direct mail delivery) and mark the delivery as a 'telermarket' delivery for all those targetted customers. The delivery logs should show the delivery into the customers log and channel should come as telemarket. I have created an external account (telemarket) and I am not able to connect this external account to a template like direct mail. 

How can I create a direct mail similar template and connect it to the "telemarket" external account such that when I select the routing to telemarket, I can get a direct mail similar template??

[isahore]

Hi @sharma_nik,

you can do so by creating an external account (that you already did) with delivery mode as external. Then in the delivery templates area, just create a new delivery template and selecting this routing account. You will see the delivery template input form changes and gives you the UI just like direct mail template.

To create a new channel, you need to add it to the messageType enumeration in the nms:delivery schema.

Let us know if that helped.

Regards,

Ishan

[sharma_nik]

Hello Ishan

Thank you for the suggestion. It worked.

I was able to use the direct mail template with both Routing channel as Phone as well as Other.

I have couple of followup questions on this though:

1. If I use "Phone" as routing channel, is there a way to remove the target address validation? It is now excluding the recipients where 'Phone' field is empty. Can we remove this validation??
2. In both the cases (Routing channel as Phone or Other and delivery mode as External), once I start the delivery, the workflow does not end and the delivery status keep showing "Ready to be delivered" ???  Why is that? Even though the file is created on the server, the workflow doesnt end and neither the status of the delivery gets updated to Finished. Only if I am manually stopping the workflow, the delivery status changes to Finished.

Thanks

Nikhil

[isahore · Accepted solution]

Hi @sharma_nik,

1. By default the target mapping of the phone delivery is also the "Recipients" mapping (mapRecipient). To overcome the removal of empty/blank/null phone recipients you can update the phone field in the mapping to an always existing field (e.g. recipientId), but that is not a very clean approach, but is simple and straightforward. You should aim to have some kind of criteria to determine whether or not the recipient can be approached by this channel.

Another thing you can do is that you create your custom channel, as you asked earlier. This way, the custom channel can still use the default (mapRecipient) target mapping without any changes, and will not exclude recipients with empty targeting field values.

2. Kindly check in case you have enabled any of the approvals on the delivery. Otherwise, you can share a screenshot of the delivery for further check.

Kind regards,

Ishan

[sharma_nik]

Hello Ishan

The solution works! Thanks for the help!!