Auto-Email Options - Genius CE & Enterprise

Introduction

 

The Auto-email functionality is a powerful feature that allows authorized users to either select from a variety of pre-existing automated emails or create new ones tailored to specific actions that occur within your instance. This capability is advantageous as it encompasses a wide range of scenarios, including the automatic dispatch of emails when accounts are created, enrollments are processed, completions are finalized, and many other events. By leveraging this feature, organizations can significantly streamline their communication processes. Additionally, these emails can be configured to be sent automatically in response to designated triggers, ensuring that relevant parties receive timely notifications without requiring manual intervention. However, for instances where immediate communication is necessary or customization is needed, admin users also have the option to send these emails manually at any time, providing flexibility to adapt to various situations as they arise. 

 

Here is a list with descriptions of all of the available built-in automated email templates. 

• Admin > System Setup > Default Templates

Name	Description
AUTO_CERTIFICATE_EXPIRES_1MO	Certification Expired
AUTO_COURSE_COMPLETION	Sent to learner when their enrollment is set to COMPLETED
AUTO_COURSE_DROP	Sent to learner when their enrollment is set to DROPPED
AUTO_COURSE_INSTRUCTOR	Sent to instructors when they are added to teach a course section
AUTO_COURSE_REGISTRATION	Sent to learners when they are enrolled in a course
AUTO_COURSE_REQUEST_DENIED	Sent to students when the course requires approval, and their request to register for a course is denied.
AUTO_CREDIT_REQUEST_DENIED	Sent to the learner when the credit is denied
AUTO_DAYS_AFTER_SECTION_COMPLETION	Sent N days after enrollment exit/completion date
AUTO_EXTERNAL_FILE_APPROVED	Sent to students when the external file is approved
AUTO_EXTERNAL_FILE_DENIED	Sent to students when the external file is declined
AUTO_JOB_EXECUTION_SUCCEEDED	Job Execution
AUTO_LEARNINGPATH_REGISTRATION	Sent to learners when they are enrolled in a learning path
AUTO_MANAGER_ASKING_FOR_APPROVAL	Sent to the manager asking for course approval
AUTO_MISSING_EXTERNAL_FILES	Sent daily to all learners missing or denied required documents
AUTO_NEW_USER_CREATED	Sent to the new user when their account is created/approved
AUTO_NEW_USER_DENIED	Sent to the new user when their account is denied
AUTO_PASSWORD_REQUEST	Sent to the user when they request their password
AUTO_PASSWORD_RESET	Sent to the user when they forget their password
AUTO_PREREQUISITES_LEARNER	Sent to the learner when one or more course prerequisites have not been completed.
AUTO_REGISTRATION_INVOICE	Sent to learners after they purchase items from the catalog. ENABLE_REGISTRATION_INVOICE parameter must be set to '1'.
AUTO_REQUIRESAPPROVAL_LEARNER	Sent to the learner notifying them that the course requires approval
AUTO_SUBSCRIPTION_REGISTRATION	Sent to the learner to confirm the subscription was activated successfully.
AUTO_WAITINGLIST_INSTRUCTOR	Sent to the instructor when a learner is added to the Waiting List for a course they instruct.
AUTO_WAITINGLIST_LEARNER	Sent to the learner when they are added to the Waiting List.

 

 

Editing Default Auto-Email Templates

To modify the existing auto-email templates, you need to click on the pencil icon that appears next to the name of the template you wish to edit. It's best to maintain consistent naming conventions for the templates. While you have the flexibility to alter the content of the email in any manner you choose, the original name must remain unchanged for the system to process the data accurately.

1. You can begin by clicking the pencil icon to start the editing process.
2.  Next, you can adjust the email message to suit your needs. You have the option to use our built-in template and editor, or you can incorporate your custom HTML to create a unique design.
3. To make sure that the email appears exactly as you intended, it is essential to preview and validate it before finalizing and saving your changes.

Enrollments

When it comes to sending bulk auto-emails for enrollments, you should navigate to the Enrollment menu and select the Bulk Actions option. The Bulk Action page provides you with the ability to search for learners based on various filters that you can apply:

• Affiliation: This filter enables you to select all learners affiliated with a specific affiliation or group that has been defined within the system.
• Category: This filter reflects all enrollments in courses assigned to the selected category.
• Course: This option will display all enrollments associated with a particular course.
• Section: This filter shows all enrollments within a specific section of a course. For example, notifications may only pertain to the Accounting 101 (F2F) section.
• Grade between: This option allows you to search for enrollments that fall within a specified grade range.
• Term: This filter enables you to select learners from a specific learning cycle, such as Spring 2024, Ongoing, or 2023. The system administrator defines the terms available.
• Start date/End date: These filters enable you to specify a specific start date or end date based on existing enrollment data. For instance, you can find all learners whose enrollment ends on December 31, 2023.

Additionally, advanced filters offer further options to refine your search. These include:

• Instructor: This filter lists learners who are enrolled in courses taught by the selected instructor.
• Learning Path: This option searches for all learners who are enrolled in a specified learning path.
• Certificate Expiration Date (Before/After): This filter enables you to search for enrollments based on specific certificate expiration dates.
• Enrollment status: This option enables you to search for specific enrollment statuses, including active, dropped, dropped during grace, completed, blocked, or future enrollments.
• Pacing: This filter enables you to identify learners who meet specific pacing criteria based on course assignments.
  • Due Dates pacing--> Here, each assignment has a due date, which defines how many assignments a learner is behind or ahead.
  • Explicit pacing--> This allows you to define the number of assignments that should be completed per week.
  • Implicit pacing--> In this case, the system determines pacing based on the number of assignments and the overall duration of the course. For example, if a course lasts 12 months and includes 24 assignments, it is expected that learners will complete two assignments each month.
• Logins: This filter enables you to search for a specific number of logins within a specified time frame.
• Coach: This option searches for all learners assigned to a specific coach.

Additionally, custom criteria filters enable you to create a tailored database search based on specific properties of learners, courses, or enrollments using standard operators.

If you plan to use the custom search in the future, the filters can be saved and easily reloaded.

Once you have defined your audience and the search has returned the desired data, the next step is to set up the Auto-Email.

• Click on the button located below the search results to add a “New Auto-Email”.

 

Crafting the Message

There are several methods available for creating an auto-email message. The most straightforward approach is to select a pre-defined template message from the drop-down menu. Please note that templates for the Enrollment menu can only be created by users who have access to the Administration section under Default Templates.

If there is no existing template of the ENROLLMENTS type, then the menu will not display any options. However, if a suitable template is available, you can select it and specify the sender's name and email address.

The checkbox labeled Modify Existing Template (create a copy) allows you to make changes to the content and variables of the selected template.

The ‘Update Sample’ button provides a preview of the message, replacing all variables with the appropriate values.

 

Periodicity.

The final step in setting up the auto-email is to determine the Periodicity, which dictates how often this email should be triggered.

• The periodicity can be defined based on selected days, but not specific times of day. For example, you can set it to trigger on Every_Sunday, Every_1^st_of_month, last_Friday_of_month, and so forth. 

The actual time at which the notification is sent is determined by a background server job managed by an administrator. This setting can be found under Administration > Edit Jobs > AutoEmails.  The admin has the flexibility to select the most appropriate time based on their time zone.

• All existing Auto-emails can be viewed in the Enrollments > Auto-Emails menu, where they can be updated or archived as necessary.