When you add a hyperlink to a message, you can add parameters that insert information into the URL. Link parameters are useful in a variety of situations:

  • Your message contains a link to your ecommerce platform. The link parameters contain values from the contact profile that you can use to personalize the website for each recipient.

  • Your message contains a link to download a whitepaper or brochure. The link parameters contain values from the contact profile that you can use to pre-fill a request form.

  • Your message contains a link to a website or blog. The link parameters contain values from Mapp Engage that tell you which message contained the link. This information helps you track statistics in your web analytics platform.

You can add placeholders that personalize the message text and add placeholders that add variable information to a parameter in a message link. For more information, see ​Personalisation Placeholders​. Parameters can also contain static values.

Add a Parameter Manually​

In the ​Compose Message​ window, you define the parameters that are inserted into specific links in a message. The parameters consist of name and value pairs. These parameters can contain static values, personalization placeholders, and Mapp Engage Variables. When personalized, Mapp Engage replaces the placeholders in the links during sendout with the corresponding value that is stored in the system. You can add different parameters to each link in the message and multiple parameters to a single link.

As a result, each link you modify in a message includes the defined parameters. If there are specific links that you do not want to modify, you can exclude them from the application of the parameter. For more information, see ​Exclude Links From Link Parameters​.

WARNING!

When you add a parameter manually, insert the parameters in the query part of the URL. The query part follows a question mark symbol.

Mapp Engage does not support personalization placeholders in the hostname part of the URL. They create problems with link tracking.

Add Parameters to All Links Automatically​

In the group settings, you define the parameters that are inserted into every link in messages that are sent to a group of contacts. These parameters can contain static values, personalization placeholders, and Mapp Engage Variables. When personalized, Mapp Engage replaces the placeholders in the links during sendout with the corresponding value that is stored in the system.

As a result, every link in a message sent to this group includes the defined parameters. If there are links in a message that you do not want to modify, you can exclude them from the application of the parameter. For more information, see ​Exclude Links From Link Parameters​.

Link Tracking and Redirection​

When you enable link tracking in Mapp Engage, your links are redirected to a Mapp Engage site. Redirection allows to record and track the click rate. The message recipient does not notice the redirection. Mapp Engage redirects the recipient to the destination page when the click event is recorded.

Mapp Engage applies to encode and replaces unsafe characters in the URL. For example, a space is converted to %20.


Example

This example shows a link to a website. The link contains a parameter that inserts the first name of the contact into the URL.

Location

URL

Mapp Engage

The URL in the message contains the unresolved placeholder. This placeholder inserts the last name of the contact into the URL.

http://www.website.com/?FNM=<%${user['lastname']}%>

Email inbox

During sendout, Mapp Engage resolves the personalization placeholders and applies URL encoding to the link. The target domain is replaced with the domain of the Mapp Engage system that sends the message. If the last name of the contact is von Schönburg, the encoded link appears as follows:

http://secure.dmcsystem.com/re?l=6m7b4eI23cc8yI0&req=FNM=von%20Sch%F6nburg

Web browser

Mapp Engage redirects the recipient to the destination page.

http://www.website.com/?FNM=von%20Sch%F6nburg

Link Tracking Differences Between HTML and Text Emails​

HTML emails with parameters are resolved differently than text emails with parameters. HTML emails have these parameters in the query part of the URL:

  • l - The link parameter which contains an encoded version of the final destination link. Mapp Engage uses this parameter to track clicks on the link.

  • req - The request parameter has the personalized request information.
    For example, req=FNM%3Dvon%20Sch%F6nburg&

Text emails have these parameters in the query part of the URL:

  • l - The link parameter which contains an encoded version of the final destination link. Mapp Engage uses the parameter to track the link. It is the same parameter as the HTML version of the email, but the actual encoding is different.

  • u - The URL parameter. Unlike HTML emails where only the parameter is passed, with text emails, the URL and the parameter are passed.
    For example, u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.website.com%2F%3Fwebpage.jsp%3Fparam%3Dvon%20Sch%F6nburg&.
    The & indicates the end of the parameter.

  • s - The signature parameter which has additional security information that is required for processing text emails. For example, s=PKPJFBHPPLJGMKHM.

Procedures​