How to Trigger Active Messages from Salesforce Marketing Cloud

1. Introduction

2. Features

3. Prerequisites

4. Installation and Configuration

5. Tracking Sends in Blip

6. Support

Brief description: Trigger active WhatsApp messages from Salesforce Marketing Cloud journeys, using contact data from the Data Extension and the approved templates from your bot in Blip.

Introduction

The Salesforce extension: Active Message Sending connects your bot in Blip to the Salesforce Marketing Cloud Journey Builder. It adds a custom activity to Marketing Cloud journeys that sends WhatsApp messages with approved templates, filled with contact data.

For example, build a journey originating from a customer Data Extension. For each contact entering the journey, the extension sends a WhatsApp template with the contact’s name and reference month. After the person responds, you can direct them to a specific bot flow and continue the conversation in support.

Features

• Sending active WhatsApp messages from the bot’s approved templates.

• Template selection within the Journey Builder activity, with message body preview.

• Filling template variables with Data Extension columns or fixed values.

• Support for templates with media in the header and buttons with dynamic values.

• Phone field defined from a Data Extension column.

• Directing the contact to a specific bot and flow after the response.

• Automatic sending for each contact entering the journey.

Supported on the following channel: WhatsApp.

Prerequisites

• A Router in Blip with the WhatsApp channel active and at least one approved message template.

• An account in Salesforce Marketing Cloud with access to Journey Builder and permission to create Installed Packages.

• A Data Extension with the journey contacts, including a column with the phone number and the columns used as template variables.

Attention: the extension works with Salesforce Marketing Cloud, not with Salesforce CRM. Access to CRM alone is not sufficient. You need access to Journey Builder, Installed Packages, and Data Extensions in Marketing Cloud.

Installation and Configuration

1. In your bot’s Router, go to the Blip Store and activate Salesforce: Active Message Sending in Blip Store. Click Start free trial, select the contract and bot, and confirm the installation. The extension will then appear in the bot’s installed list.

2. Open the extension’s configuration page. It displays the Endpoint URL, which connects Journey Builder to your bot. Copy this URL.

Attention: copy the URL exactly as the extension provides it. Do not change the domain, parameters, bot identifier, or the HTTPS protocol.

3. In Salesforce Marketing Cloud, click your Profile in the upper right corner and go to Setup.

4. In the sidebar, under Apps, open Installed Packages and click New to create a package. Enter a name and description and click Save.

5. In the package, click Add Component and choose Journey Builder Activity.

6. Fill in the activity details. For Name and Description, use identifiers that help recognize the activity. For Category, select Messages. For Endpoint URL, paste the URL copied from the extension. Click Save. The Messages category makes the component appear in the Message section of Journey Builder.

7. In Journey Builder, create a journey with an origin (entry source) in a Data Extension. In the Message section, drag the WhatsApp Blip component (it appears with your bot’s identifier) into the journey.

Attention: the journey origin needs to be a Data Extension. Without it, the activity cannot read the phone or contact variables.

8. Open the activity. In Phone Field, enter in the Salesforce Variable field the name of the Data Extension column containing the phone number, for example CELULAR. Type the column name without brackets, because the extension always treats this field as a Salesforce variable.

Note: use the phone number in international format, with country code, to avoid validation errors during sending.

9. In Message Template, select an approved WhatsApp template. The extension loads the template body and displays the variable fields.

10. Fill in the template variables. To use a Data Extension column, write the column name in brackets, like [firstName]. For a fixed value, type the value directly. If the template has a button with dynamic value, fill in the Button Variable. If it has media in the header, provide the Media Link.

11. To direct the contact after they respond, enable Position user in bot. Select the destination Bot and the Flow that will start the conversation. This step is optional.

12. Click Save. In Marketing Cloud, publish and activate the journey.

Attention: saving the activity does not start sending. The journey only begins sending messages after being published and activated. Perform an initial test with a few contacts before expanding the audience.

Tracking Sends in Blip

Sends made by the extension are recorded in Blip as active messages under the campaign "SalesForce Journey Builder". To track the sends:

1. Access the bot used for sending.

2. In the side menu, open Growth and go to the active messages area.

3. Locate the send by period, campaign, or contact.

In this area, you can check the date and time of the send, the recipient’s phone number, the template used, and the status of each message: sent, delivered, read, or failed. The contact’s entry into the journey alone does not confirm delivery. Confirm the result by the status in the Growth area.

Support

If you have questions or issues with configuration, contact the Wiv support team via email at support@wiv.com.br.

Need more help? Explore our content at Blip Academy or Blip Community, watch tutorials on our YouTube channel or ask your questions in our support channel 😃