Triggered Actions

Overview

Triggers are a type of Rule within the Loyalty platform. Triggers are used to monitor changes to a Loyalty Member, and to execute a specific action when a specific condition is satisfied.

Triggers contain three main components: the trigger definition, the condition, and the action.

The trigger definition indicates what the platform should monitor. The possible trigger definitions are:

When the trigger definition occurs, the platforms checks the condition, which is represented as a logical expression. The trigger action is invoked only if this condition is satisfied.

The action specifies what the platform should do with the condition is met, such as a send a message, grant a Reward, or update a Member Attribute, for example.

Trigger Groups

Triggers are typically organized into Trigger Groups, which are used to control which Triggers are executed. The platform supports two different types, or "strategies," of Trigger Groups:

Note: Triggers that execute within one Group have no impact on Actions in another Group.

For more details on how to define a Trigger Group, please see Trigger Action Settings.

Access

To access the Triggered Actions screen, select Rules from the Main Navigation Menu, then select Triggered Actions from the Sub-Category menu.

Within the Triggered Actions screen, all of the Triggers are displayed beneath a sub-heading that indicates the Trigger Group. This sub-heading displays the Trigger Group name, description, and strategy (see above).

Features

The Triggered Actions screen provides the following features:

 Searching and Sorting

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Search

The search feature allows you to search for a specified text string anywhere within the Trigger's Display Name or Internal Name.

  1. Optionally, in the search field near the top of Triggered Actions screen, enter the desired text string.

  2. Optionally, from the "Type" drop-down menu, select a Trigger type (or "Any type").  

  3. Optionally, from the "Status" drop-down menu, select a Trigger status (or "Any status").  

  4. Optionally, from the "Effectivity" drop-down menu, select a Trigger effectivity (or "Any effectivity").  

  5. Press Enter, or click the search button (magnifying glass icon).

  6. The Triggered Actions screen is refreshed to show only the Triggers that meet your search criteria. Please note that if you enter multiple search criteria, the platform displays only the Triggers that meet ALL criteria.

  7. To remove all search criteria, click the remove button ("X" icon).

Expand / Collapse

Within the Triggered Actions screen, all of the Triggers are displayed beneath a sub-heading that indicates the Trigger Group. Optionally, you can expand / collapse a Trigger Group by clicking the minus-sign or plus-sign icon next to the Trigger Group name.

Create a Trigger

The steps for creating a new Trigger are described below. 

 Create a New Trigger

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To create a new Trigger:

  1. In the "Enter Display Name" field, enter the Display Name value for the new Trigger.

  2. From the "Select Trigger Group" drop-down menu, select a Trigger Group (or "All"). For more details on how to create Trigger Groups, please see Trigger Action Settings.

  3. Click create. The "Edit Trigger" pop-up window is displayed.

  4. The "Display Name" field is populated with the value you entered above; optionally edit this value.

  5. The "Internal Name" is automatically populated based on the "Display Name" value. This field is disabled by default. To edit the Internal Name, check edit internal name. A confirmation dialog box is displayed; click ok. Edit the Internal Name value.

  6. In the "Description" field, enter a description of the Trigger.

  7. The Trigger Group you selected above is automatically selected in the "Trigger Grouping" drop-down; optionally select a different Trigger Group.

  8. From the "Triggered Type" drop-down menu, select one of the following trigger types:

Activity ProcessedActivity Processed

    1. Select "Activity Processed" from the "Triggered Type" drop-down menu.

    2. In the "Activity Types" field, select one or more activity types; processing of these activity types will trigger the execution of the Triggered Action.

    3. Optionally, from the "Metric Changed" field, select one or more metrics. If selected, the platform will execute this trigger only if the activity processing causes a change in value of one of the specified metrics.

 

Tier ChangedTier Changed

 

  1. Select "Tier Changed" from the "Triggered Type" drop-down menu.

  2. Optionally, from the "New Tier" drop-down menu, select a "new" tier level. If specified, the platform will execute the trigger upon a Member's change in tier, only if this is the Member's new tier.

  3. Optionally, from the "Old Tier" drop-down menu, select an "old" tier level. If specified, the platform will execute the trigger upon a Member's change in tier, only if this is the Member's previous tier.

Note: If you specify both a new and an old tier, then both options must be satisfied to execute the Triggered Action. If neither option is specified, the platform will execute the Triggered Action upon all tier changes.

 

Metric ChangedMetric Changed

    1. Select "Metric Changed" from the "Triggered Type" drop-down menu.

    2. In the "Metric" field, select one or more metrics. The platform will execute this Triggered Action when one of the specified metrics is changed.

 

  1. Click save. The Trigger is added to the screen, within the specified Trigger Group section. By default, the new Trigger is added to the very bottom of its Trigger Group (see "Rearrange Triggered Actions" below for more details on how to move a Triggered Action within its Group). .  

Next, you need to define the logical conditions for the Trigger, identify the resulting action that the platform should take when the conditions are met, and set the Trigger's status and effectivity period. See below for more information on these processes. 

 

 Define Trigger Condition

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The "condition" is used to express the business rules for executing the Trigger . The condition for each Trigger is displayed within the "Condition" column on the Triggered Action screen.

To define or edit a condition:

  1. Within the "Condition" column of the desired Trigger , click the edit icon. The "Conditions" pop-up window is displayed.

  2. To add a condition, click the Add Rule button (smaller plus-sign icon). The platform adds a new blank row for defining the logical condition.

  3. From the first drop-down menu, select the desired field. This menu is populated with all of the different attribute types for building a condition (see below for more details on how to build rules using each of the different attribute types).

  4. Select a mathematical operator. The available operators will vary based on the data type of the selected field.

  5. Enter or select a value.

  6. Some attribute types require you to define a date range. Click "Edit." From the "In period" drop-down menu, select one of the pre-defined date ranges, such as "Year to Date" or "Previous Month." To define a custom date range, select "Custom," then enter the begin and end dates. Click save.

  7. To add more logical conditions to this rule, repeat the above steps as needed. Once you define more than one condition, you must select the logical operator -- AND or OR. The default option is AND; to use OR, click the OR toggle button.

  8. By default, the conditions use "include" logic, meaning the Trigger will select records that match the logical condition(s). Optionally, you can use "exclude" logic, so that the Triggered Action selects Members that DON'T match the logical conditions. To use "exclude" logic, check the "NOT" check box.

  9. Optionally, you can organize logical conditions into a group. The group has its own AND / OR operator which allows you to define more complex, sophisticated Triggered Actions. To create a group, click the Add Rule Group button (larger plus-sign icon). The platform adds a new blank row for defining the logical condition within the group. You can create more conditions within the group, by clicking the Add Rule button (smaller plus-sign icon) within the group box. You must also select the logical operator (AND or OR) for the conditions within the group.

Note: It's important to distinguish which "add" button you want to use (Add Rule or Add Rule Group), and also where the button is located. The smaller plus-sign icon is used to add a single new logical condition. If you have a group within your Triggered Action, you'll see an Add Rule button at the parent level, and also within the group, so be sure you click the right one, depending on where you want to add the new condition. The larger plus-sign icon with a square around it is used to add a new group. This button is available at the parent level, and also within the group (allowing you to create a nested group).

  1. If you need to remove a condition, click the Delete Rule button (smaller minus-sign icon). Likewise, if you need to remove an entire group (which removes all conditions within the group), click the Delete Rule Group button (larger minus-sign icon).

  2. When finished click save. The condition logic is displayed as a Groovy code expression within the "Condition" column on the Triggered Actions screen.  

Note: The "condition" for a Trigger consists of only one Rule (potentially with multiple logical conditions contained within it). Unlike when building Segment logic, a Trigger can't have more than one Rule.

Attribute Types

The available attribute types when setting up a Trigger condition are described below.

Member Profile -- AttributeMember Profile -- Attribute

Compare a Member profile attribute with a specified value (or values) using a mathematical operator.

Examples:

  • Mailing City is one of Chicago, Denver

  • Current Tier is Silver

  • Age less than or equal to 40

 

Member Profile -- PreferenceMember Profile -- Preference

Compare a Member profile attribute with a specified value (or values) using a mathematical operator; includes the ability to handle multiple value preferences.

Examples:

  • Favorite Games contains one of Scratcher, Keno

  • Preferred Airport is set

  • Brands contains Cooper & Madison

Note: The "contains" (and "does not contain") operator behaves differently depending on whether the preference is a single value preference or a multiple value preference. Single value preferences are strings and the "contains" operator does a string contain; that is, it checks if the value is a substring of the preference value. Multiple value preferences are lists and the "contains" operator checks if the list of specified preferences includes the specified value (that is, one of the preference values equals the specified value).

 

Member FunctionsMember Functions

Member Functions provide a mechanism to encapsulate common vertical or program specific expressions into an easy-to-use and understand abstraction.

Examples:

  • getAgeGroup() is 25-40

  • getEngagementLevel() is high

 

Member Metric: ChangeMember Metric: Change

Compare the change value for a specified metric. The condition can be specified using one of the following change types:

  • Earned: Compare the earned value.

  • Redeemed: Compare the redeemed value.

  • Balance: Compare the balance value.

Examples:

  • Points Earned within Last 1 month >= 100

  • Points Redeemed Year to Date >= 0

  • Points Balance This Year <= 1000

 

Activity History: FrequencyActivity History: Frequency

Compare the count of a specified activity type over a specified time period.

Example

  • Referral activity within last 1 month >= 5

 

Activity History: AggregateActivity History: Aggregate

Similar to count but allows an aggregation on a field. To define an aggregate as part of a Segment rule, you must define the following additional information:

  • Attribute to Aggregate. The name of the attribute in the activity, whose value is to be aggregated.

  • Aggregation Function: Sum, Minimum, Maximum, or Average.

  • Time period

Example

  • Sum of amount of Purchase activity within last 1 month >= 1,000

 

 

 

 Define Trigger Action

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When the conditions of a Trigger are satisfied, the platform will execute the action, or event, associated with the Trigger. To identify what action the platform should execute:

  1. Within the "Action" column of the desired Trigger, click the edit icon. The "Edit Triggered Action" pop-up window is displayed.

  2. From the "Action Type" drop-down menu, select an action. The platform supports a wide range of actions, such as sending a message, granting an Reward, or updating a Member Attribute. See Action Types for more details. 

  3. Depending on the option you selected above, the "Edit Triggered Action" pop-up window displays additional properties that you must enter or select in order to configure the action. For example, if you selected "Grant Award," you'll be prompted to select the desired Reward to grant. Or, if you selected "Update Member Attribute," you'll be prompted to pick the Attribute, and enter its new value.

  4. When finished click save. The action is displayed within the "Action" column on the Trigger screen.  

Note: Only one action can be assigned to a Trigger. If you need the platform to perform multiple actions, you need to define separate Triggers for each one. You can then use Trigger Groups to control the relationship between those different Triggers.  

 

 Set Status and Effectivity Period

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To set the Trigger's status and effectivity period:

  1. Within the "Status" column of the desired Trigger, click the edit icon. The "Edit Trigger" pop-up window is displayed.

  2. The Trigger status is used to specify when a Trigger is actively in use. From the "Status" drop-down menu, select the desired status value -- Draft, Published, or Archive.

  3. Select an effectivity option:

  • Always: This Trigger doesn't expire.

  • Scheduled: Enter a start date and end date. Optionally, check "Recurring" to use a recurring schedule. Select the desired schedule from the "Recurring Schedule" drop-down menu, or define a new recurring schedule (see below for details on that process).

  1. Click save. The status and effectivity period are displayed within the "Status" column on the Triggered Actions screen.

Define a New Recurring ScheduleDefine a New Recurring Schedule

To define a new recurring schedule for this item's effectivity:

  1. From the Recurring Schedule drop down menu, select Enter Schedule. The Repeat pop up window is displayed.

  2. Select a recurrence frequency of Weekly or Monthly from the Frequency drop down menu.

  3. In the text field, enter the interval.

  4. For a Weekly frequency, select one or more days of the week. For example, Tuesdays and Thursdays.

  5. For a Monthly frequency, choose one of the following options:

  • Day of month: Select one or more days of the month. Ex: the 15th and the 30th.

  • Day of week: Select one or more days of the week, for each of the four weeks within a month. Ex: the second Wednesday of the month.

  1. Click ok. The system adds the new schedule to the Recurring Schedule drop down menu.

 

Manage Triggers

Features relating to managing your existing Triggers are described below. 

 Deploy Triggered Action Metadata

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After you've created a Trigger, you must deploy the Triggered Action metadata.

If you have changed Triggers in your account that haven't yet been deployed, a warning message is displayed at the top of the Triggered Action screen. In a multi-user account, you could have Triggers created by different users. When you deploy the Triggered Action metadata to the server, the process automatically deploys the metadata for ALL modified Triggers, so you should always verify what Triggered Actions will be deployed before you run the deployment process.  

  1. Within the warning message for undeployed Triggers, click the "Show diff" link.

  2. The platform displays a pop-up window, showing the difference between the deployed and undeployed Triggers, so that you can see all the changes that will go into effect when you deploy metadata. When finished reviewing the differences, click close.

  3. From the "Actions" menu in the top-right corner, select "Validate Trigger Rules Metadata."

Note: You can deploy metadata immediately, but the best practice is to validate the Triggered Actions logic before deploying metadata to ensure no incorrect expression code gets deployed to the server that could cause issues.

  1. If the validation step passes, you'll see a message that says, "Trigger Rules metadata is valid." If the validation step fails, you'll receive an error message; review and correct your Triggered Action expressions, then retry the validation step.

  2. Click deploy trigger rules metadata.

  3. If the deployment was successful, you'll see a message that says, "Trigger Rules metadata as been deployed." 

Note: You can also deploy Triggered Action metadata by selecting "Deploy Trigger Rules Metadata" from the "Actions" drop-down menu.

 

 View Deployed Triggered Action Metadata

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To see the details of what Trigger metadata has been deployed:

  1. From the "Actions" menu in the top-right corner of the screen, select "View Deployed Trigger Rules." The "View Snapshot" pop-up window is displayed.

  2. Click the plus-sign to expand the message to view additional details, such as the total number of deployed Triggers. You can also drill in deeper, to see details of each deployed Trigger (name, type, conditions, etc.).

  3. When finished, click the "X" icon to close the pop-up window.

 

 Rearrange Triggers

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The sequence in which the Triggers appear within a Trigger Group controls the sequence in which the platform executes the Trigger. For example, if you have five Triggers within a Group, and that Group is configured to use the "Execute only first applicable rule" strategy, the platform will interrogate the first Trigger in the Group. If that condition fails, the platform will move on to the second Trigger, and so forth.

To rearrange the Triggers:

  1. To the left of the desired Trigger, click and hold on the "handle" area.

  2. Drag-and-drop the Trigger to its desired new sequence.

Note: You can't drag-and-drop a Trigger into a different Trigger Group. To change a Trigger's inclusion in a Group, you must edit its properties (see below for more details on this process).

 

 Edit Trigger Properties

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To edit the properties of a Trigger:

  1. Search, sort, or filter the Triggered Actions screen as described above.

  2. Within the appropriate column ("Trigger," "Condition," "Action," or "Status" ) of the desired Trigger, click the edit icon. The corresponding pop-up window is displayed.

  3. Make any necessary changes to the Trigger properties.

  4. Click save.

 

 Delete a Trigger

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To delete a Trigger:

  1. Search, sort, or filter the Triggered Actions screen as described above.

  2. Within the right-most column of the desired Trigger, click the delete icon. A confirmation dialog box is displayed.

  3. Click confirm.

 

 Evaluate Expression

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 Download JSON

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To download the underlying JSON code for all Triggers:

  1. From the "Actions" menu in the top-right corner of the screen, select either "Download JSON" or "Download JSON (Batch)."

  2. The JSON code for all Triggers in your account is displayed in a separate browser tab.  

Marigold Engage

You can configure triggered actions to send messages via Marigold Engage when processing activities, metric changes, or tier changes. The action "Send Message via Marigold Engage" can be used to configure triggered actions to send messages via Marigold Engage. The trigger will send any configured data that is a part of personalization details of the trigger in a request to Engage to create or update the Engage profile associated with the Loyalty member email address, and leverage the data configured in the trigger to personalize the message sent via Engage.

Marigold Engage+

You can configure personalization details such as member values, metrics, or other activity details in messaging triggers used by Marigold Engage+ without the need for scripting. Users can configure personalization details using selectors as the default process which simplifies and speeds up the configuration process. Users may still use scripting if desired for these messaging triggers by using the Advanced mode.

Personalization details for the below actions include new a new configuration settings dropdown for Type that include Attribute, Metric, Content Token, and Advanced options:

Note: Existing triggers will default to the Advanced Type, and the Name and Value Elements will not be changed.

 Back to Rules Overview

Last Updated: October 2024