On The Horizon | October 2020
As we get closer to the end of 2020, my appreciation for our Business Delivery Team continues to grow and grow. When we designed the team in 2018, we knew there was real value there. But over a year like this one, with twists and turns around every bend, I truly believe they’ve been at the root of our ability to remain poised and productive. So, I want to kick this off with a quick acknowledgment of Kevin Woest and his team.
(Side note: I know Kevin has built some great relationships with many of you. If you haven’t gotten to know him and want to, I’d be really happy to introduce you.)
Anyway, their work has been more crucial than ever because we want to deliver consistent, reliable, world-class support and solutions to you. We can’t control everything. We can’t guarantee things won’t break. But a year like this one is all the evidence I need that we can overcome some incredible challenges together. We want to celebrate your wins, understand your problems, fix them quickly, get it right, and be a true partner. If we’re not doing that, we’re failing. And I really believe it all starts with communication. With that, here are the latest developments and insights from behind the tech curtain.
IN THIS EDITION
- Our Transition Off MC
- WMC Lead Gen is Live
- Status Page SMS
- AR Goes to Blueshift
Daryl
SUNSETTING MESSAGE CENTRAL
Earlier this week, you should have received a message from Daryl letting you know that as of yesterday, October 1, you will no longer be able to create mailings in Message Central. Any updates to existing scheduled mailings will require a Support ticket. This has been a huge project, so we want to make this transition for you as seamless as possible. If you are a Message Central user, here is an update on the offboarding process.
OCTOBER 1 | Your role within the system was changed, and while you will be able to login to Message Central to review and copy previously existing content, you will no longer be able to create new mailings. After October 1, any updates to existing, scheduled mailings in Message Central should go through a Support ticket.
SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 15 | All mailings* should be migrated out of Message Central and over to Blueshift. From this date on, your role will only allow you to view scheduled mailings. And all mailings will need to be sent through Blueshift. Any updates to cancel mailings in Message Central should be requested through a Support ticket.
*Please note, API triggered mailings and SMS mailings will be affected by the user update on Thursday, October 1 in the sense that you will not be able to create any new mailings within Message Central. However, these mailings have their own timeline and may not be migrated over to Blueshift by Sunday, November 15.
WE’RE LIVE | WMC LEAD GEN
The WesTech Marketing Cloud Lead Gen MVP is ready to go. If you are excited to get started, please reach out to your Business Partner or send an email to Katrina Kastendieck who can coordinate your setup.
With the Lead Gen MVP live, we continue to iterate on that product and will do so throughout the end of the year. In parallel, the WMC team continues to develop the MVP e-commerce components and the integration with payment processing. We are currently working closely with the Paygate and Advantage teams to test credit card payment processing through Spreedly for Worldpay and Vantiv. These capabilities are targeted to be completed in mid-October.
WHAT’S NEXT | Q4 Integrated Planning last month allowed us to identify internal cross-team dependencies and align through break-out sessions. The prioritized list of WMC capabilities were finalized this week and will be shared with you soon. Changes are inevitable, so any updates will be provided as we go through the 4th quarter. You’ll also receive announcements in the WMC application on any new capabilities as they are deployed, so watch this space.
We’d also like to give a big shout out to Banyan Hill for going live with a marketing effort using WMC, and following that up with another larger one very soon. Here’s to many more successful efforts.
-Judy Bluhm, Platform for User-Centric Marketing Applications Product Manager
EMAIL FAILED? SIGNUP FOR SMS
Earlier this week, there was a major outage within Microsoft that affected our workplace applications. You may have had trouble accessing Outlook, 365, Teams, or other tools that we’ve come to depend on. Since the outage wasn’t in our control, what was in our control was to communicate and inform you of the outage and the status of Microsoft’s systems. In order to ensure you have these updates (especially when our own email systems aren’t working), we recommend setting Status Page as a bookmark and to also sign up for SMS messaging (blue button at the top right of the page will lead you to that choice). When Outlook fails, SMS is the second best way to receive incident messaging.
If you have any questions about Status Page, please reach out to the Global Command Center.
-Tony Browne, Director, Support
AUTO RENEWALS ARE MOVING TO BLUESHIFT
Late last month, you may have heard from me regarding our plan to migrate AR notices (CIR) from Message Central to Blueshift that kicked off yesterday and should wrap up by Friday, December 11. Your mailings in Message Central will not be canceled until each campaign has been thoroughly tested, and please note that since this is a Blueshift API triggered mailing, the November 15 date will no longer apply.
FUTURE STATE | To push the necessary and legally required fields populated on the Auto-Renew notifications, the Renewals team along with Blueshift and Spine teams are building the payload to push the necessary fields from Advantage to Blueshift. The CIR340 Advantage process will be the key component needed for the payload build and new event triggered mailings in Blueshift. (the Cir340 is needed to populate the next rate).
TEMPLATE AND CAMPAIGN | Once content migration from Message Central to Blueshift kicks off, the Renewals team (with assistance from Blueshift) will build out dynamic templates with shared assets to reduce the number of setups for the two Auto Renewal sends. This will also include new campaign journeys for the timing of both email sends.
Your Renewals account manager will reach out soon with a list of requirements and will work with their contacts on a migration timeline. If you have any questions on the process or timelines for your own accounts, please reach out to me directly.
-Jenelle Ketcham, Manager, Renewals
Daisy Smith
Assistant Director, Communications
"Don’t take yourself too seriously.”
I found myself at 14 West after 18 months of traveling and teaching in Bali, Thailand, and Australia. And now 5 years later, I’ve learned and grown with my team in extraordinary ways. I think that’s due in large part to the fact that I’ve been encouraged to approach my work and explore my potential in the same ways I’ve explored other parts of the world. I’m constantly asking questions, seeing and doing new things. And learning A LOT. I didn’t expect to find an experience like this in “an office back home.”
I love my position at 14 West because I’m invited to take on a diverse range of responsibilities. From running our Wellness Program to brand development and brand marketing to writing, I have a broad range of interests. And my role allows me to develop my skills through work that truly excites me. I have a hard time saying no to new projects, even when I already have a full plate. But when I take on too much, the leaders here are there with the support I need to get the job done. At the same time, I’m given the creative freedom to feel real ownership over my projects, which only motivates me more.
What is one thing you have to do every day in the office? Gotta have my essential oil diffuser going. Five of us share an office and we’re all hooked on the diffuser now, but it’s my job to create the perfect oil cocktail each morning to set the tone for the day. I’m obsessed.
