Launching Composer

Overview

Composer can be used to craft rich content for emails, and combined with the power of groups, used for targeted communication with constituents. Unlike using email distribution lists, which can be utilized directly from the user’s regular email client, Composer is used as an “email builder” from within Axiom. This article will cover two major facets of creating emails with Composer:

1. Where and how to launch Composer from within Axiom.
2. The basic workflow for creating an email from start to finish: using drafts and templates, specifying options about the email, selecting and excluding recipients, sending a test email, and finally clicking the “Send” button.

Launching Composer

Composer may be launched (always in a new window/tab) from the Communications homepage, as well as several other places throughout Axiom.

Launch From the Communications Homepage

From the Communications homepage, there are four options. The first three are presented at the top of the page in the “Start a New Email” section, and the fourth is available after scrolling down and clicking on a channel.

• Option 1: Recipients from Query. Select a query, which can be modified if desired. Click the Action  button to launch Composer from the query results. See “Launch From a Query” below for details.
• Option 2: Recipients from Group. Select a group category; note that it is simply a pre-defined query which can be modified. Click “New Composer Draft” to launch Composer, or click the group name and then “New Composer Draft” on the Group detail screen. See “Launch From a Group” below for details.
  • “Advanced Reports” is also an option in this category. Click this option to design a query to pull up an advanced report. Select desired options, run the query, and click the name of the desired report. Click “New Draft…” to launch Composer. See “Launch From an Advanced Report” below for details.
• Option 3: Write Email. Any drafts that you have begun will be accessible here.
• Option 4: Start an email from a channel. Scroll down the page and click a channel’s name. Navigate to the “Drafts” tab and then click “New Draft…”

Launch From a Query

Composer can be launched from the Communications homepage, but also from any query results grid that includes the Person ID field.  From the query results, click the Action  button from a query results grid and then click “Send an email.” There is a second prompt with two dropdown menus:

• “Choose the recipient Person ID field.” This defaults to the Person ID field in the given table, but can be changed to a related Person ID (not a Household ID or other ID). It is required so that Veracross knows which person to whom to send the email.
• “Select a channel (optional).” Optionally at this stage, select a channel from which to send the email (a channel will be required later if not selected here).

Click “Go” to display the “Launch Composer” link, which pulls up a new window/tab where the email can be begun.

Emails begun from a query do not have the ability to include additional recipients, as this was (presumably) accomplished by running the query.

Manually exclude individuals by unchecking them from the “Include” column at the “Select Recipients” stage (see below).

Launch From a Group

In addition to being launched from the Communications homepage, Composer can also be launched from a group’s detail screen. Read more about school-defined groups.

To start an email from a group, simply navigate to the desired group’s detail screen and click “New Composer Draft.”

Note that the group from which the draft was begun will be selected by default in “Included Groups” when selecting recipients, but both included and excluded groups may be modified.

Launch From an Advanced Report

Beginning a Composer email from an advanced report is similar to beginning one from a group. Read more about advanced reports.

From the General tab of the report, click “New Draft…”

Similar to beginning from a query, emails begun from an advanced report do not have the include additional recipients, as this was (presumably) accomplished by running the report.

Manually exclude individuals by unchecking them from the “Include” column.

To learn more about building an email within Composer, read Workflows After Launching Composer.