Creating Source Code and Vendor Profiles

This chapter describes how to create source codes and vendor profiles. It includes the following topics:

About Source Codes

Siebel Marketing uses source code capabilities with exported lists, for proper campaign tracking and reporting. The source code format can include encoded information about each customer or prospect based on any business component field. You can also define and maintain multiple formats for use in different campaign scenarios. After you start the campaign, the source codes assigned to each customer can be captured as part of the response and decoded for closed-loop tracking.

Siebel Marketing supports the assignment of source codes to each contact in a campaign. A source code appears to the customer as a seemingly indecipherable mix of alphanumeric characters that typically can be found on a mailer. Marketers, however, can gather a wealth of information about the demographic makeup of the consumer responding to an offer, as well as the particulars of the marketing campaign that delivered the promotion, by decoding the source code.

In a typical scenario, a customer contacts a company’s call center to place an order for merchandise or ask questions about an item advertised in a catalog. During the first few minutes of the call, the representative asks the customer to read the code that appears on the catalog’s label or order form. Depending on the information received, the call center representative can be authorized to present to the customer a better offer on the merchandise than the one in the catalog.

The call center representative can also capture the customer’s source code to make sure that the marketing organization can make the link that this customer is responding to a direct marketing campaign.

In Siebel Marketing, a unique source code is assigned to a marketing program element each time an element is created. Marketing program elements include program, stages, segments, campaigns, and waves.

Note: When marketing programs, segments, and campaigns are created, Siebel Marketing assigns a unique source code value to new program stages, segments, and campaigns. Although the stage or campaign’s name might be duplicated, the source code field is the actual identifier. If you change the assigned source code to something more meaningful to you, make sure it is a unique value.

These individual source code components are concatenated and grouped according to the sequence and format that you specify in the Source Code Formats view to help you track your marketing program and analyze response to campaigns and offers. The source code format can contain up to 75 characters and can optionally include other tracking information.

When you load a campaign or generate source codes manually, the source code for each contact is assembled, based on the characteristics associated with the target contact in the marketing program. For example, the source code for a contact who is in Segment 1 and is in the first wave of Campaign 1 can be different from the source code for a contact who is in Segment 3 and the second wave of Campaign 1.

In addition, you can tailor the contact information that is generated for the distribution list to suit your business requirements. At minimum, a list has a contact’s name or some other identifier and a source code. It can also contain an address (if you are mailing to the contact), phone number (if you are calling the contact), email address, account number, and so on.

Creating Source Code Formats

The Source Code Formats view defines a source code format, specifies the individual components that are included, and determines how these components are arranged or sequenced. After creating a source code format, you can use the source code in the following ways:

Include in an export list.
Embed as a personalization element in an email offer.
As input in the customer-facing Web Marketing home page (in the applet named Do you have another offer?).
As a direct input to a response from any of the Response views.

The Source Code Formats list shows available source code formats. The All Components list displays details of the source code format selected in the list and is used to create the structure of the source code grouping, or format. The All Components list contains the computed length of each source code (maximum of 75 characters).

By clicking Move Up or Move Down, you can rearrange components in the format. If you delete components (for example, component 2 and component 4 of 5), click the menu button and choose Resequence to reorder the remaining components before saving the record.

Creating Source Code Formats

The following procedure describes how to create source code formats.

To create source code formats

Navigate to the Administration - Marketing screen, then the Source Code Formats view.
In the Source Code Formats list, create a new record.
Enter a name and a description for the Source Code Format.
When you save the source code format, the new format appears in the Source Code Formats list.

Defining Source Code Format Components

The following procedure describes how to define source code formats.

To define source code format components

Navigate to the Administration - Marketing screen, then the Source Code Formats view.
In the Source Code Formats list, select a source code format.
In the All Components list, create a new record.

Complete the fields for the component, using the following information as a guide.

Field	Description
Attribute	Shows the available fields from the business component. For a list of available business components, see the Type row in this table. The Attribute MLOV (Multiple List of Values) column in the Source Code formats view records the language-independent code for each Attribute. The language independent code must exactly match the field name in Siebel Tools. Do not attempt to add extension fields that exceed 30 characters. The displayed value is limited to 75 characters.
Constant Value	Specifies an optional constant value to be inserted in the source code. This is editable only when the Type field is set to Constant.
Default Value	Inserted when the input value is NULL. You can provide a default value for any source code component. For example, if you included Campaign Member Country, you could insert a value for any members with no Country in their profile.
Sequence	Sequence determines the position of the code component in the source code format. Sequence is automatically set when source code components are added to the format. Use Move Up, Move Down or Resequence to adjust the order.
Type	The Type field shows the business component used as the source of the field. The supported components are Campaign, Campaign Member, Offer, Program, Segment, Stage, and Wave. When you select one of these types, you must also select the Attribute. The Type field also supports inserting a Constant, Numeric Sequence, or Alphanumeric Sequence. You cannot use both a Numeric Sequence and an Alphanumeric Sequence in the same source code. Constant. A fixed value that is the same for all campaign members. You can have more than one constant in the source code format. For example, you can use a constant to insert a spacing character such as a hyphen (-). Numeric Sequence. Inserts a running count in the source code for each campaign member in a campaign wave. The value uses a standard integer sequence of 1,2,3...9,10,11....N. Alphanumeric Sequence. Similar to Numeric Sequence, except that the values include integers and letters of the alphabet. For example, 1,2,3....9,A,B,C....,X,Y,Z,10,11, and so on. The source code generator adds a prefix of zeros (0) to the numeric sequence and alphanumeric sequence based on the width of the field. For example, if the width is 4, the values are 0001, 0002, 0003, and so on.
Width	The width of the source code component is automatically added. However, you can change the width. The maximum width for the entire source code format is 75 characters. The following is a list of examples: If the source code width for a component is 16 characters and you specify 6 as the width in this field, the individual source code for the component is truncated to the first six characters. If the component’s code has a width of 10 characters, and you specify 20 as the width, 10 blank spaces appear in your source code format.

Save the component.

Note: To add more components, repeat Step 3 through Step 5, one row at a time.
Adjust the sequence of the components by clicking Move Up and Move Down.
To reorder deleted components before saving the changes, click the menu button and choose Resequence.

Setting Up Vendor Profiles

Vendors are external partners that receive lists of target contacts when you start a campaign. Your campaign strategy might call for vendors such as call centers, fulfillment centers, and printers to split lists of contacts. Some customers would receive a telephone call, others a direct mail offer, and a third group would receive promotion samples.

Use the Vendors view to create a library of vendor profiles for your marketing programs. Vendors include telemarketers, fulfillment houses, and any other company you retain to help you with campaign distribution.

Vendor Tasks

When you start a marketing campaign, the generated output list is sent to the specified vendor using the vendor’s preferred distribution method and communications protocol (File Transfer Protocol, email, and so on).

Before creating a vendor record, make sure the following tasks have been performed:

Create Export List Formats. Determine what format the vendor prefers for the generated distribution lists. For example, does the vendor want the list to contain a header or does the vendor prefer ASCII (default) or fixed-width output? Then, create an output file layout tailored to the vendor’s preferences.
You are asked to provide the default export list format when creating the vendor profile. For more information, see Oracle Marketing Segmentation Guide.

Determine Distribution Method and Create Distribution Profile. As you are creating the vendor record, you must select a distribution method and a distribution (communications) profile for the method. Set up distribution profiles that reflect each vendor’s requirements.
For example, if your vendor prefers to receive list files using File Transfer Protocol (FTP), you would set up a communications profile for that vendor containing information about HostName, IP Address, Password, and so on. Communications profiles are set up using the Communications Administration screen’s Communications Drivers and Profiles view.
If the list files are sent to the vendor attached to email, set up a communications profile for email, and verify that the vendor contact has provided an email address. For more details, see Defining Distribution Profiles for Vendors.
If someone in your marketing department receives the distribution list, rather than an outside vendor, a vendor record and communications profile that includes the team member’s email address must be set up.

Defining Vendors

Use the following procedure to set up profiles for the third-party vendors who receive the distribution list of contacts. If your marketing department is the list recipient, set up a vendor profile using the marketing department contact as the vendor.

To define vendors and assign list distribution methods

Navigate to the Administration - Marketing screen, then the Vendors view.
In the Vendors list, create a new record.

Complete the fields for the vendor definition, using the following table as a guide, and save the record.

Note: If one vendor can handle multiple list formats, such as a direct mail format and a telWeb Marketing format, create separate vendor profiles for each type. For example, the profiles can be named Ace Fulfillment: Direct Mail, and Ace Fulfillment: TelWeb Marketing.

Field	Comment
Contact Name	Select the contact name, if it exists. If the contact does not appear in the list, add the relevant information using the All Contacts list. By default, the server looks for the email address in the EMAIL_ADDR column of the S_CONTACT table. If you store the email address in a different column, see Siebel CTI Administration Guide to configure the Recipient Email Address field.
Distribution Method	Choose the method that describes how the distribution list is sent to the vendor.
Distribution Profile	Choose from the list of predefined distribution profiles. Distribution Profiles are defined using the Administration - Communications screen, then the Communications Drivers and Profiles view.
Email Address	The email address for the vendor is populated if it was defined for the selected vendor contact. You cannot add the email address in this view. If you plan to send a generated list to the vendor using email, you must add the email address for the contact in the All Contacts or My Contacts view.

Defining Distribution Profiles for Vendors

Use the Communication Administration screen’s Drivers and Profiles view to define communications profiles for email, fax, and FTP distribution of lists to vendors. Output file layouts and vendor profiles must be defined for all types of lists. If you are using email or FTP, you must also define Email Address, Distribution Method, and Distribution Profile in the Vendor profile. For more information about using delivery profiles, see Siebel Marketing User Guide.

Siebel Marketing provides default drivers in its library that can be modified for use when sending files to a vendor. An administrator can create distribution profiles for each of these driver types that override the default parameters for that driver. For more information about communications drivers and profiles, see Siebel CTI Administration Guide.