Email Personalization Playbook

A complete guide to automated remarketing. Learn how to set up dynamic product and content recommendations inside emails, configure behavioral triggers like cart abandonment, and manage your audience data.

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Wizard & Steps Overview
List & Data Sources
CSV, CRM & Site Grab
Audience Targeting
Segments & Behavior
Product Recs in Email
Cart Abandon & Cross-Sell
Content Recs in Email
Newsletters & Digests
Sender Settings
SMTP, SES & Webhook
Triggers & Frequency
Events, Delays & Limits
A/B Testing
Subjects & Content
Performance Stats
Sent, Viewed & Sales

Email Personalization Wizard

From the main "Choose a Goal" screen, select the "Email Personalization" card. This centralized wizard is your command center.

Workflow Summary

You will be guided through these 5 key steps:

  1. Select Campaign Type: Choose "Dynamic/Remarketing Email", "Product Recommendation by Email", or "Content Recommendation by Email".
  2. Define Audience (User Base): Select who receives the email (e.g., uploaded list, CRM segment, or site visitors).
  3. Design Content: Build the email using drag-and-drop templates and insert dynamic recommendation widgets.
  4. Configure Sender: Choose between Personyze SES, your own SMTP, or a Webhook.
  5. Set Triggers: Define when the email fires (e.g., "Immediately after signup" or "2 hours after cart abandonment").

User Data, Lists & CRM

Personyze unifies user data from multiple sources to create your mailing lists.

1. Import / CRM Integration

Connect your internal databases to push email lists and user attributes.

  • CSV Upload: Manually upload lists containing Email (required). Note: A User ID is optional, but First Name is recommended for personalization.
  • Live Feed: Sync via a Google Sheet URL or HTTP Feed that updates automatically (e.g., daily sync of new subscribers).
  • API Integration: Use the Personyze API to push user updates in real-time from your backend or CRM (Salesforce, HubSpot) as events occur.

2. Site "Grab" (Real-time Collection)

If you've already set up "Site Grab" or use Personyze Forms, you can target these users immediately without uploading a new list.

  • Login Fields: Automatically capture emails when users type in login/signup forms.
  • URL Parameters: Capture ?utm_email=user@example.com from newsletter clicks.
  • Cookies/Variables: Read logged-in user data from the browser storage.

Audience Targeting

Refine exactly who qualifies for each email in the "Target" step.

Inclusion Rules

  • Cart Abandonment: "User has items in cart AND has not purchased in 2 hours."
  • Brand Loyalty: "User purchased Brand X in the last 30 days."
  • Account Status: "Free Tier" users (for upgrade promos).

Exclusion Rules

Prevent spamming by excluding users who:

  • Were already in other campaigns: "Exclude users in Campaign X".
  • Recently Purchased: Don't send a promo to someone who just bought.
  • Unsubscribed: Automatically handled by Personyze.

Dynamic Product Recommendations

Inject personalized product grids into your HTML template.

Top Algorithms for Email

  • Cross-Sells for Items in Cart: "You left these behind... here are 3 matching accessories."
  • Recently Viewed: "Still thinking about this?" Reminds users of their last browsing session.
  • New in Stock (Filtered): "New arrivals in *Shoes* (based on your interest)."
  • Past Orders Recommendations: "Time to reorder?" for consumable goods.

Design

Use the drag-and-drop editor or upload your own HTML. Personyze populates the {{Product Image}}, {{Title}}, and {{Price}} tags automatically at send time.

Dynamic Content Recommendations

Create personalized newsletters and digests.

Top Algorithms for Content

  • Published Since Your Last Visit: "Here is what you missed." Highly effective for re-engagement.
  • Content Recommended for You: Based on reading history topics (e.g., "More Sports news").
  • Most Popular / Most Commented: "See what everyone is talking about."

Template Options

Choose from "Digest" layouts, "Breaking News" alerts, or simple text-based personal notes.

Sender Configuration

Configure how Personyze delivers your emails.

Option A: Personyze Mail Server (Amazon SES)

The default option. Enter your "From" address and verify it via the AWS link sent to your inbox. (Ask support for DKIM records for better deliverability).

Option B: Custom SMTP

Use your own mail server (SendGrid, Outlook, etc.). Enter Host, Port, User, and Password.

Option C: Webhook (Advanced)

Send the Data Payload (JSON) to your own ESP (Mailchimp, Klaviyo) via API instead of sending the email directly.

Timing & Triggers

Control WHEN the email is sent in the "Timing" step.

Trigger Types

  • Campaign Rules Match: Sends immediately when a user enters a segment (e.g., "User became VIP").
  • After Site Visit: Triggers X hours after the session ends (Session Abandonment).
  • Cart Abandonment: Triggers X hours after adding to cart without buying.
  • After Purchase: Triggers X days post-purchase (e.g., Review Request).

Frequency Caps

  • How long to wait: Add a delay (e.g., "Wait 4 hours after trigger").
  • Send Limit: "Max 1 email per week" to avoid spamming.
  • Send more than once: Allow repeating emails (e.g., Monthly Newsletter).

A/B Testing Emails

Optimize your open and click rates.

What to Test

  • Subject Lines: "You forgot something" vs. "Your cart is waiting".
  • Algorithms: "Most Popular Products" vs. "Recently Viewed".
  • Offer: "10% Off" vs. "Free Shipping".

Personyze splits the send list and tracks the winning variation based on Open Rate, CTR, or Conversion.

Performance & Analytics

Track the full funnel from Sent to Sale.

Metrics & Definitions

  • Sent: Total number of emails successfully dispatched.
  • Viewed: Open Rate (Unique users who opened the email).
  • Links Clicked: CTR (Percentage of users who clicked a link inside the email).
  • Added to Cart: Users who clicked "Add to Cart" directly in the email or added items after clicking through.
  • Purchased: Users who completed a transaction after engaging with the email.
  • Contribution Ratio: The percentage of total site revenue influenced by this email campaign.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does Personyze replace my current ESP (like Mailchimp)?
Not necessarily. Personyze can act as a standalone sender for triggered emails (like Cart Abandonment), but for mass newsletters, we often integrate with your ESP. We can push personalized HTML blocks (recommendation widgets) into your existing Mailchimp/Klaviyo templates via API or Webhook.
How do you get the user's email?
We capture emails in four primary ways: 1) Personyze Forms: You can build and deploy lead capture forms directly within Personyze to ask visitors for their email. 2) Site Scraping: When a user logs in or signs up on your site. 3) URL Parameters: When a user clicks a link in one of your newsletters. 4) Import: From lists you manually upload or sync via CRM.
How does the "Default Sender" (Amazon SES) work?
Personyze uses Amazon SES as the default sending service. When you configure your "From" address, you will receive an email from Amazon AWS asking you to click a link to verify permission. To ensure high deliverability and prevent spam filtering, we also provide DKIM/SPF records that you should add to your domain's DNS settings.
What is "Open-Time" Personalization?
This refers to generating the email content (like product recommendations) at the exact moment the user opens the email, rather than when it was sent. This ensures the products shown are still in stock and the pricing is current.
Can I A/B test subject lines?
Yes. The Email Wizard includes an A/B testing step where you can test Subject Lines, Pre-header text, and the internal content design (e.g., Grid vs. List layout) to optimize Open Rates and CTR.
What happens if a recommended product goes out of stock?
If you use our "Open-Time" widgets (embedded images), the system checks stock status in real-time. If an item is out of stock when the user opens the email, it is automatically replaced with the next best recommendation.
Can I limit how many emails a user receives?
Yes. You can set a global "Frequency Cap" (e.g., Max 1 email per week) to prevent overwhelming your customers, even if they trigger multiple campaigns (like Cart Abandonment + Browse Abandonment).
How do I track revenue from emails?
Personyze automatically appends tracking parameters (like `utm_source=personyze`) to all links in the email. When a user clicks and purchases, our tracker on your site attributes that sale to the email campaign.
Can I send SMS instead of Email?
Yes, via Webhooks. You can set up a "Trigger" in Personyze (e.g., "Cart Abandoned") and have it send a payload to an SMS provider like Twilio or your CRM's SMS gateway instead of sending an email directly.
How do users Unsubscribe?
Personyze automatically adds an Unsubscribe link to the footer of every email sent via our system. Additionally, if you manage a custom preference center, you can use our API or Client-side JavaScript code to Programmatically unsubscribe a user from future communications.
Can I recommend articles in emails?
Yes. Just like products, you can recommend "Articles You Missed" or "Trending News" based on the user's reading history. This is ideal for weekly digests or publisher newsletters.
Do I need to know HTML?
No. We provide a Drag-and-Drop editor with pre-made templates for Cart Abandonment, Welcome Series, and more. However, you can upload your own custom HTML if you prefer.
Can I target based on weather?
Yes. Since we know the user's location, you can inject weather-specific content (e.g., "It's raining in London today") or recommend products suitable for their current local weather.
What is a "Beacon" or "Pixel"?
This is a tiny, invisible image included in the email. When the email loads, the image loads, telling Personyze that the email was "Opened." This allows us to calculate Open Rates.
How fast are emails sent?
Triggers are processed in near real-time. For "Immediate" triggers (like a Welcome email), the delay is typically a few seconds. For behavioral triggers (like Cart Abandonment), you can configure the delay (e.g., "Wait 1 hour").

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White Glove Service

Onboarding, training, and campaign setup—guided by your dedicated success manager.

Wizards & Templates

Personyze comes with responsive templates for different industries and scenarios.

Performance Analytics

Continuously improve with a performance dashboard featuring default metrics and custom KPI tracking.

Email Simulator

Preview recommendations before they go live by seeing exactly what the user will see in their email.

CRM and User Data

360° user profiles for hyper-personalization, with easy plug-and-play integration to your CRM.

API & Integrations

Broadcast via Personyze (Amazon SES), your own SMTP, or trigger automated emails via Webhook/API.