Zoho Campaigns: Updates in 2023

Hello, fellow Zoho Campaigns users! It comes as no surprise that there have been a series of improvements in 2023. This article digs into the specific updates.  

What is Zoho Campaigns?

Zoho Campaigns is Zoho's email marketing software that is primarily utilized for broadcast messages, such as a newsletters. A company can create email campaigns that are mobile-friendly (responsive designs) with customized messaging using contact field data, such as company name. You can segment email campaigns based on a variety of data points including email activity and contact fields. And you can use a simple drag-and-drop builder to create robust workflows that are automated.

One of the biggest advantages to using Zoho's email marketing application is the long list of built-in integrations including Zoho CRM, Salesforce, Hubspot, Zoho Commerce, Shopify, Zoho Flow, Google Analytics, Zoho Analytics, Zoho Survey, Survey Monkey, Zoho Forms, and Zoho Meeting among many others (here's the list of integrations in case you're curious). 

Many New Updates to Zoho Campaigns in 2023

Last year, the big change was Topic Management. While it was annoying at first, this was a huge improvement to the user experience for your email contacts. It provided the opportunity for your email contacts to opt in and out of particular topics, rather than completely unsubscribe. This update included the new syncing with your CRM. There is no longer a need to create custom views in the CRM (i.e. filter to only show active clients) to sync with Zoho Campaigns. The Zoho team also added their own SMS Gateway for text messaging marketing within Zoho Campaigns. 

This year, there have been a TON of updates that piggie-back off of the updates from 2022. We're excited to bring you some important updates to enhance your experience with the email marketing platform. This article highlights some of the latest changes. So let's dive in!

What Changed in 2023?

1. Unsplash Integration was Removed  

2. Removal of Social Campaigns

3. Shopify API Update

4. Merge Tag updates 

5. Autoresponders Discontinued

6. Footer Updates

7. Streamlined Integrations 

8. Roles and Privileges Updates

9. Introduction of Workspaces

Merge Tag Migration: Making Tag Selection Easier

In May, Zoho Campaigns began automatically allowing custom fields to be created within your organization as merge tags. This update simplifies the tag selection process, so you to easily customize emails with those fields. Users can choose from available tags, rather than creating new tags from scratch each time. For example, when adding the sender's name, you can select a merge tag from the default options in the drop-down list. Don't worry – any previously created merge tags will remain accessible for use.

Autoresponder Migration: Transitioning to Workflows

To improve the creation of automated emails within Zoho Campaigns, the company decided to discontinue the outdated "Autoresponder" function. The good news is that if you already were using autoresponders, then all of the actions or scenarios are still achievable through using workflows - which are WAY better anyway. Zoho will provide migration option to convert your existing autoresponders into workflows in the future. 

Footer Migration: Simplified Email Campaign Design

A somewhat minor update is the footer functionality within the Zoho Campaigns builder. This makes it much more convenient to add customized footers to email campaigns. You are no longer restricted by the footers created in your settings. Now there is a Footer Element in the template editor, and you can bookmark it to use it in the future. However, you won't be able to edit existing footers using the 'Header and Footer' option in Settings.

Streamlined Integrations: Improved Sync Process

Zoho Campaigns has streamlined the integration process. All app integrations have been moved to the organization level, and only the admin will have the authority to perform integrations and syncs. This will significantly help when employees who are overseeing Zoho Campaigns management change out. In the past, when an employee left the company then the syncs all had to be re-done which can be very frustrating.

Each application integration (i.e. CRM, Survey, Analytics) will be limited to one sync per module, which should also minimize any confusion and ensure consistent data.

Your existing syncs will continue to function normally until the migration to the new setup is complete. You have probably already notice a big alert in your Zooh Campaigns account - that is asking you to migrate.  Admins will see the option to change the synced account later while retaining the data of the previously synced account for reference. After migration is complete, existing active syncs will remain active until July 15, 2024. After next July, they will be deprecated. 

Revamped Roles and Privileges: Better Control and Organization

User roles and privileges have also been updated in the system to provide better control and organization for administrators. Previously, users with "Self" privileges could create sender addresses and custom fields that couldn't be deleted by the admin, leading to a ton of frustration. With the new setup, admins can now assign different levels of access, such as Editor, Manager, and Viewer, to team members based on their specific roles and responsibilities.

This fine-tuned access control allows for more efficient collaboration within the organization. For instance, a designer can be given Editor access, while a marketer can be given Manager access to launch campaigns. Admins have the flexibility to create custom roles and control their privileges, ensuring tighter security and control over the organization's data.

Introducing Workspaces: Streamlining Campaign Management

One of the BIG NEW FEATURES for 2023 in Zoho Campaigns is the introduction of workspaces. The goal of Workspaces is to provide a separate space within Zoho Campaigns for different product or service lines. This is where your company can create and organize campaigns and workflows per Workspace. Admins have the authority to create multiple workspaces within a single account and then assign other users accordingly. This should ultimately allow for more efficiency and organization when managing different products and teams.

By creating separate workspaces for each product, businesses can maintain data separation. This will ensure that customer data for one product is not accessible to those managing other products. It also enhances data security and minimizes the risk of confusion or errors when coordinating marketing efforts across multiple departments or business units.

Conclusion

We are really excited about the updates to Zoho Campaigns in 2023. These are fairly significant improvements that should make email campaign management easier and more organized. The introduction of workspaces brings enhanced security as well as operational improvement. Similarly, the updates to roles and privileges make user management smoother. These updates reflect Zoho's commitment to enhancing the user experience and maintaining data security within the platform. And that is why Beckmann Collaborative is a Zoholic!