Example: Closing the Loop

You use Commerce Server Business Desk to analyze your business, and then use the results of that analysis to make your site more effective and relevant to your users. Users who find your site increasingly relevant, useful, and convenient will feel increased loyalty to your company and will return to your site more often. This "closed loop" functionality of collecting user data, analyzing the data, and then delivering information to users who meet your target criteria directly impacts your Web site business by converting browsers into buyers, and buyers into repeat users.

Commerce Server 2002 provides several ways for you to analyze site activity and then update your site. The following example procedures explain just one closed loop scenario: how to customize user profile data, analyze the user information, and then create a direct mail campaign to target those users that meet your target criteria.

Step 1: Add properties to a profile definition

Step 2: Publish profile changes on your Web site

Step 3: Add a user with a new profile

Step 4: Run a static report

Step 5: Export a static report to a list

Step 6: Create a direct mail campaign

Step 1: Add properties to a profile definition

You use the Profile Definition Designer module in Business Desk to specify which data you want to collect about your users. To specify which data you want to collect, you add properties to user profile definitions. For example, you can add a property such as "favorite color," use that property to identify users who like blue, and then target blue products to those users.

To add a new property to a user profile definition

1. In Profiles, click Profile Definition Designer.
2. In the Profiles screen, select the User Object profile definition, and then click on the toolbar.
3. In the Profile screen, in the Properties list, select General information, and then click Add.
4. In the Add dialog box, select the Add a new property option, and then click OK.
5. In the Attributes section, do the following:

   Use this	To do this
   Name	Type the name for the property, such as FavoriteColor.
   Display name	Type a display name for the property, such as Favorite Color.

6. In the Advanced Attributes section, do the following:

   Use this	To do this
   Active	Verify Yes is selected.
   Map to Data	Click the ellipsis button […] to open the Data Source Picker dialog box. In the Data Source Picker dialog box, select ProfileService_SQLSource, select User Object, and then scroll down and select Custom Property 1. If you do not map the property to a data source, the property will not be available for editing in the User or Organizations modules.

7. Click OK, and then click Apply.
8. To save the property and return to the Profile Definition Designer screen, click on the toolbar.

The new property is added to the profile definition. You can now publish the profile changes on your Web site.

Step 2: Publish profile changes on your Web site

After you add a property to a profile definition, you use the Publish Profiles module to publish your changes to your Web site.

To publish profile changes

1. In Profiles, click Publish Profiles.
2. In the Publish Profiles screen, select the site, and then click on the toolbar.

The profile changes are updated and are available on your Web site. You can now add a user with the new profile.

Step 3: Add a user with a new profile

You use the Users module to add user profile information for registered users. In this step, you enter the user profile information, including the Favorite Color property you added in Step 1.

To add a user with the new profile

1. In Profiles, click Users.
2. In the Registered User Management screen, click on the toolbar.
3. In the New User screen, in the General information section, do the following:

   Use this	To do this
   Logon name	Type a logon name for the new user.
   User password	Type a password for the new user.
   Email	Type an e-mail address for the new user.
   Last name	Type a last name for the new user.
   First name	Type a first name for the new user.
   Favorite Color	Type the name of your favorite color, for example blue.

4. To save the new user and return to the Users screen, click

The user is added to the Commerce Server database. You can now target the user based on the profile information for the user.

Step 4: Run a static report

After your system administrator imports into the Data Warehouse the data that contains information about user and server activity, you use the Analysis modules to analyze your user data. Using the results of your analysis of reports, you can update your site to target ads or products to those users.

For example, you can run a Registered User Properties Report, analyze the information in the report, and then select those users you want to target a direct mail campaign to.

To run a static report

1. In Analysis, click Reports.
2. In the list of available reports, select Registered User Properties, and then click on the toolbar.
3. In the Run a report dialog box, in the Site Name section, do the following:

   Use this	To do this
   Operand	From the drop-down list, select an operand (All, Equals, Not equal to, Like, Not Like) to determine for which site the report will run.
   Parameter value	Type the name of the site for which you want the report to run.

4. In the Run a report dialog box, in the Number of users section, do the following:

   Use this	To do this
   Select	From the drop-down list, select a parameter for the number of users to include in the report: All. All users in the Commerce Server database who meet the query criteria. Top. The upper limit on the number of users in the Commerce Server database who meet the query criteria. You type the number of top users in the Parameter value box. Distinct. A particular user in the Commerce Server database who meets the query criteria.
   Parameter value	Type the number of top users that you want the report to return.

5. Click OK.

The static report runs and, when completed, is available for viewing in the Completed Reports module. The report can now be exported as a list into List Manager, and then used to target users in a direct mail campaign.

Step 5: Export a static report to a list

Data from static reports can be used in direct mail campaigns. A direct mail campaign can be targeted toward specific users by using mailing lists that reside in List Manager.

To export a static report

1. In Analysis, click Reports.
2. In the Reports list, select the static report that contains the data you want to export, for example, Registered User Properties, and then click on the toolbar.
3. In the Run a report dialog box, in the Site Name section, do the following:

   Use this	To do this
   Operand	From the drop-down list, select an operand (All, Equals, Not equal to, Like, Not Like) to determine for which site the report will run.
   Parameter value	Type the name of the site for which you want the report to run.

4. In the Run a report dialog box, in the Number of users section, do the following:

   Use this	To do this
   Select	From the drop-down list, select a parameter for the number of users to include in the report: All. All users in the Commerce Server database who meet the query criteria. Top. The upper limit on the number of users in the Commerce Server database who meet the query criteria. You type the number of top users in the Parameter value box. Distinct. A particular user in the Commerce Server database who meets the query criteria.
   Parameter value	Type the number of top users that you want the report to return.

5. Click OK.
6. In the Export report as a list dialog box, do the following:

   Use this	To do this
   Static	Verify that Static is selected.
   List Name	Type a unique name for the list.

7. Click OK.

Your static report is exported to List Manager as a list. You can now use the list to build a direct mail campaign

Step 6: Create a direct mail campaign

Direct mail campaigns are a way to get users to view your ads. You use the Campaigns modules to create direct mail campaigns, which can be targeted toward specific users by using mailing lists that reside in List Manager. You can use these lists to run direct mail jobs in order to more successfully target your users.

The following procedure assumes you have already created a customer and a campaign.

To create a direct mail campaign

1. In Campaigns, click Campaign Manager.
2. In the Campaign Manager screen, select the campaign for which you want to create a direct mail campaign, click on the toolbar, and then select New Direct Mail Campaign from the drop-down list.
3. In the Direct Mail Properties screen, in the Direct Mail Item section, do the following:

   Use this	To do this
   Direct Mail Name	Type a name for the direct mail job.
   Message From e-mail Address	Type the address from which the direct mail is being sent.
   Reply to address	Type the address to which the recipient is to reply, if different from the default address. This box defaults to the address from which the direct mail is being sent.
   Message subject	Type the subject text for this direct mail job.
   File Path or URL Containing Message Body	Type the path of the file or the URL that you are using to display the direct mail message.
   Attachment	Type the file path and name of the attachment being sent with the message. If no attachment is being sent, leave this box clear.
   Mailing list	Select the mailing list that this direct mail campaign will use, for example, Registered User Properties, from the drop-down list.
   Personalization	Select Yes or No from the drop-down list: Yes. Enables personalization for this direct mail campaign. No. Disables personalization for this direct mail campaign.
   Mail Format	Select the format for this mail. The options are: Text. Formats the mail in ASCII format. MHTML. Formats the mail in multilingual HTML. MIME. Formats the mail with Multipurpose Internet Mail Extensions (MIME).
   Comments (not included in message)	Type any required comments that are pertinent to this direct mail job.

4. To save the direct mail campaign and return to the Campaign Manager screen, click on the toolbar.

The direct mail campaign is added to Campaign Manager and the mailing will be sent to users from the specified mailing list, closing the loop.

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