Personalization Rules

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Overview

Personalization rules control which parts of a message each recipient sees. With InsertIf and InsertElse blocks, Mapp Engage evaluates the data of each recipient at sendout and inserts only the content that matches.

Rules can apply to text, images, and links. They do not change the layout of the message. They only include or exclude content depending on recipient data.

Audience > Segmentation > Personalization

Usage and Scope

Purpose

Use personalization rules to:

  • Show different content to different audience segments within a single message

  • Define fallback content when no condition is met

  • Save common logic, such as a salutation, and reuse it in other messages

When you insert a saved rule, its code is copied into the message. Later changes to the saved rule do not change messages that already contain it. See Personalization Builder.

Where personalization rules can be used

  • Message content (HTML and text)

  • Subject lines

  • Message headers and footers

  • SMS and mobile push messages

How Personalization Rules Work

A personalization rule consists of at least one InsertIf block and optional InsertElse blocks. Each block has a condition that is evaluated for every recipient during sendout.

  • If a condition is true, the content of the block is inserted.

  • If it is false, the block is skipped and the next condition is evaluated.

  • If no condition is met, the default InsertElse block without a condition is used, if the rule has one.

The blocks are evaluated in the order in which they are defined.

Supported Rule Structures

  • Rule without content: An InsertIf block wraps existing content in the message, for example a paragraph. The content is only shown if the condition is met.

  • Rule with content: The content is part of the rule, for example a complete salutation. You save the rule and reuse it as one unit.

  • Alternatives: InsertElse blocks after the InsertIf block define alternative content. An InsertElse block without a condition is the default.

  • Nested rules: Blocks inside other blocks first segment recipients by one attribute and then refine the content with further conditions. Examples are regional variations with further personalization per region, or a salutation by gender within the block for contacts with a last name.

Note

There is no end tag for a rule as a whole. An InsertElse block always belongs to the preceding InsertIf block. The next InsertIf block at the same level starts a new rule.

For the code of each structure, see Personalization Rules Syntax. For worked examples, see Personalization Rule Examples.

Creating Personalization Rules

  • Personalization Builder (graphical interface): Recommended for most use cases, including nested rules and default blocks.

  • Code View: For advanced logic, for example with functions. Requires familiarity with expressions.

Both methods produce the same result at sendout. For step-by-step instructions, see Create a Personalization Rule.

Result and Outcome

During sendout, Mapp Engage evaluates the rules separately for each recipient:

  • Only the content of the first matching block of a rule is inserted.

  • The content of non-matching blocks is omitted entirely.

  • Each recipient receives one coherent version of the message.

Best Practices

  • Keep conditions focused and readable. Use nesting instead of overly complex single expressions.

  • Add a default InsertElse block if every recipient should get content.

  • Test rules with contacts that match each branch, including contacts with empty values. See Personalization Builder: Preview.

  • Save rules for common patterns, such as salutations, and give their blocks descriptive names. Block names appear in the email message statistics.

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