When users are imported into CampusESP, they receive a Welcome Email. You have the option to create a custom welcome email for different family populations, such as prospective families, current families, or even more specific communities. Learn to shape the look and the feel of your welcome emails by adding content blocks, such as text boxes, images, CTA buttons, and YouTube videos.
Visit the Welcome Emails page
From the admin area, navigate to the Welcome Emails page by clicking Welcome Emails in the Configuration area of the left menu. You can also navigate directly to the Welcome Emails page by visiting https://[your-portal-url].campusesp.com/admin/welcome_emails.
The Welcome Emails page will display the default welcome email, along with any other existing custom welcome emails.
NOTE: You won't be able to click into the default welcome email to edit or delete it.
Create a new welcome email
From the Welcome Emails page, click the Add New Welcome Email button in the upper-right corner to create a new Email Template. You can also use the Clone button under any existing welcome email to create a copy of that template to serve as a starting point for your new welcome email.
You’ll build the content of your welcome email on the Email Template page. The center of the page shows a live preview of your welcome email. The right side is where you'll enter important information about your new welcome email and format its content.
Enter your welcome email details
In the right column, click Details to enter your welcome email's details, such as its name, description, and subject line.
Here's a breakdown of the information you can enter here:
Field | Description | Required? |
Email preview message | This text will be shown as a preview in the recipient’s inbox next to the subject line. | ❌ |
Template Name | Give your welcome email a name that will help you and your team recognize it later. This name is internal only; no parent/family users will see it. | ✅ |
Short description | Provide a short description of the welcome email, such as its purpose or audience. | ❌ |
Email Subject | Enter the subject line your recipients will see in their inboxes. You can also insert merge fields using the Merge Field button. See our article on Mail Merge to learn more about this feature. | ✅ |
Email background color | Choose a color for the background of your welcome email. | ✅ |
Link color | Choose a color for the links in your welcome email. Leaving this blank will default to your portal's standard link color. | ❌ |
Be sure to click the Save Changes button to save your welcome email's details before moving onto designing the content of your welcome email.
NOTE: You'll lose any changes you've made to your welcome email's details if you switch back and forth between the Details and Content tabs without clicking the Save Changes button.
Design your welcome email
By default, your new welcome email will have some standardized language we suggest including in all welcome emails, separate across a few content blocks. All of the default welcome email text (excluding the footer) is customizable. You can use the move cursor (✥) icon to reorder, or the pencil (✏️) icon to edit existing blocks.
In the right column, click Content to access additional content blocks for your welcome email, including Videos, Call to Action buttons, and Advertisements. Simply drag and drop a content block into the preview area where you would like it to appear, and enter the details as prompted. Remember to click the Create Block button to save the content block.
Preview your welcome email
Across the top of the preview area you'll see a few different buttons and links:
Button/Link | Description |
✏️ Design | Switches into design mode |
🖥️ Desktop | Previews your welcome email in a desktop browser |
📱 Mobile | Previews your welcome email in a mobile browser |
✉️ Send Preview | Email yourself a test version |
Use each of these options to preview your welcome email as you add, edit, or reorder your content blocks.
💡 Pro Tip: Spacing and formatting in the Email Template Designer may differ slightly from how the email appears in recipients’ inboxes. By sending yourself a sample email with the Send Preview link, you'll be able to see what your email will actually look like in someone's inbox!
Set a custom welcome email for specific populations of users
Now that you've built your welcome email, you'll want to make sure it gets used. Custom welcome emails can be selected when users are imported to your platform. See our guides to User Imports and Automated Imports to learn more about selecting a welcome email or setting up email rules to map specific welcome emails to values in your imported file.
Custom welcome emails can only be used with user imports. If you'd like to make edits to the default welcome email all users receive when signing up for the platform on their own, please reach out to support@campusesp.com!
If you have any issues as you’re creating your first custom welcome email, let us know at support@campusesp.com!