Basics

1. Introduction to Content Management

The Content Management System (CMS) in Mapp Engage provides a structured and efficient way to create, manage, and reuse email content. Instead of copying and modifying old emails, you can build your messages from predefined templates and flexible content blocks. This approach helps teams work faster, maintain consistent branding, and reduce errors.

Whether you're a marketer or an email developer, the CMS offers tools tailored to your needs — from a drag-and-drop visual editor to full access to the HTML and Velocity code that powers your email templates.

2. Core Elements at a Glance

✏️ Templates vs. Messages:

Templates define structure and style. Changes to a template affect all future messages created from it. Messages, on the other hand, can be individually customized without impacting the underlying template.

3. Typical Workflow

1. Set up the foundation (optional for developers)
   If you want to create custom templates from scratch, you first need an HTML email design that reflects your brand’s layout. This can either be:

   • Created manually by your developers using email HTML, or

   • Purchased from Mapp or an external agency

   This HTML serves as the basis for your frameworks and blocks, which you define in the next step.
   If your organization already provides templates, you can skip this step and start directly with template-based message creation.
   

2. Create Framework & Blocks
   Define the layout and reusable content elements based on your HTML. When you update a framework or block, those changes automatically apply to all templates that use them — no manual updates required.
   

3. Build Email Templates
   Combine frameworks and blocks to create standardized templates.
   

4. Create and Customize Messages
   Use templates to create individual messages in the visual editor. With drag-and-drop blocks, you can customize content easily — no HTML knowledge required. You can preview your message for desktop, tablet, and mobile directly in the visual editor.

4. Practical Examples

These examples show how different CMS elements (Framework, Block, Template) work together in real-life scenarios:

Framework
Your design team updates the color scheme for all outgoing emails. Instead of changing every template individually, your developer updates the HTML framework. All templates using that framework will automatically reflect the new design in future messages.

Block
Your company’s legal imprint changes. The imprint is included in a locked block that appears in every email template. Your developer updates the block’s HTML once – and the new content is automatically used in all templates and messages that include this block.

Email Template
Your marketing team sends out a weekly newsletter with a consistent layout. You create one email template that includes your preferred structure and blocks. Each week, the team uses this template to create a new message with updated content – layout and branding remain consistent.