Could pardot send the automated operational email or only marketing email?

Hi Chloe Lai

    Are you trying to send something to opted out prospects in Pardot, and wondering if operational emails could be a fit? This article breaks down everything you need to know.

Operational emails allow you to send critical information to a prospect even if they have previously unsubscribed.

This feature is great if you send legal notices, invoices, shipping confirmations, or internal company emails out of Pardot, but can greatly impact your sending reputation if it used for Marketing emails.

Operational emails fall into two categories:

Transactional, meaning the prospect has initiated the transaction.

A few examples would be things like:

• Shipping notices
• Event registration confirmations
• Order confirmations
• Invoices

Relational, meaning the email contains critical information on how you do business with the prospect.

Examples of relational emails include:

• Critical system changes that require prospect action
• Terms of Service notices
• Legally required notices
• System outage notifications

With great power comes great responsibility. Use operational emails in Pardot wisely.

Remember, sending Marketing emails to unsubscribed prospects violates most SPAM laws and goes against Pardot’s Permission Based Marketing Policy.

If you’re going to send something out as an operational email, it should contain no — as in ZERO — marketing content.

Any email containing promotional, non-critical, or non-transactional information is considered “Marketing” and should not be included in an operational email.

Examples of marketing content include:

• Product announcements
• Event and webinar invites
• Permission Passes
• Surveys
• Company newsletters and announcements

This feature has to be enabled by a Pardot Admin. Once it is, it will be available for use in list emails. To enable this feature:

Step 1: Select the Action wheel in the top right-hand corner of your screen, then select Settings.

Step 2: Select Enable Operational Emails.

Step 3: Review the Operational email restrictions notice and click Enable. It will look something like this:

Only Pardot Admins and custom user roles can send Operational emails.

If you have access to send Operational emails, you will see this option under Basic Info when setting up a List Email.

There are a few quirks to keep in mind about how this can be used in other areas of Pardot:

• Autoresponders sent from a Form or Form Handler will send to unsubscribed prospects.
• Autoresponders sent from an Automation Rule will not send to unsubscribed prospects.

Thanks,

Nouman khan