Every email marketer understands Pardot email personalization is important – but it can be hard to figure out how, especially when deciding between the options (dynamic content, HML, and good ol’ template duplication) and factoring in feature limitations.
We’ll show you these possible Pardot features, when to use them, and the pros and cons of each, so you can create a customized experience for your email recipients.
Option 1: Duplicating Email Templates
The most simple way to achieve personalization is to create different emails for different audiences. This involves adapting your Email Preference Center so that it reflects the options you want to offer.
Each of those options corresponds to a list within Pardot. Then, create separate emails that correspond with each option, and match the list with the correct email.
For example, you might break down your subscribers based on their interests in your different services. If you were a law office, you might categorize subscribers by the legal issue they were researching on your site: family law, criminal defense, bankruptcy, etc.
Then you would create a separate email specifically towards those interested in family law, a separate one for criminal defense, a third about bankruptcy, etc.
While there is nothing wrong with this method, it does create some serious challenges: [table “302” not found /]
Again, this method works if you are an organization with a small number of content categories. If you are spending way too much time creating emails, you should consider one of the methods that follows.
Option 2: Pardot Dynamic Content
Dynamic content allows you to change which content your prospects see on emails, depending on their data in a specific field (which you define).
To set this up, you would set up your Email Preference Center and corresponding lists. Then you would create an automation rule so that everyone on your “Family Law” list had a corresponding “Family Law” custom field filled in.
Then you would create a dynamic content rule so that everyone with “Family Law” in the custom field would see a specific version. If “Family Law” is not filled in, they would see the default content (which could be blank).
Finally, set up your email so that it contains the dynamic content code, test the email, then send it to everyone. You can see how this might save you some time when compared to creating multiple emails.
Dynamic Content Cons
1. Platform limitations
For each dynamic content, you are only able to base it off of one field; for example, you can’t use a ‘category’ field and an ‘email frequency’ field together. If you plan to keep your preferences fairly simple this may not be an issue.
“Is empty” or “is blank” is not an option you can use when setting up dynamic content, so if a prospect has no value in the specified field, they will always see the default content.
Finally, you can “officially” only have 25 variations on each dynamic content. While that sounds sizable, larger organizations with complex needs have found this frustrating. Having said this, you can extend the number of variations, with dynamic content and HML combined.
2. Time intensive
Aside from the time it takes to set up the custom fields and automation, each email is time-intensive, requiring you to edit the dynamic content each time you want to update the content.
Once you’ve practiced this, it probably won’t take as long as it would have to create a separate email, but it is still something to be mindful of.
3. Error-prone
This method is also difficult to test and therefore can be prone to errors. You also have to keep track of which dynamic content is the correct one (as you insert it with its numeric code, not as an actual block of content).
As with method #1, dynamic content works and maybe a great solution for your business, however, many of the clients I’ve worked with have found it too limiting from the start, or have it grow out of control. There are other ways to achieve personalization that are less time-intensive and more automated.
Solution #3: Handlebars Merge Language (HML)
HML for Pardot was introduced in 2019; if you are a newer Pardot customer, it is enabled in your account by default.
HML means that Pardot switched to using Salesforce variable tags instead of unique Pardot ones; instead of using %% variable tags, now we use {{ merge fields.
But that isn’t the only change. You can use HML’s conditional logic statements in emails and email templates to change the content a user sees in an email based on fields.
The advantages to this method, over Dynamic Content, are that you can write the condition you need directly in the email itself, based on your field information; you can change details within a block of content, instead of creating a new block of content for each category.
Here is a simple example of a conditional HML email. Sections of the email will show and hide based on the field value used in the IF statement.
The fact that everything is coded allows for unlimited design and style setups. Obviously you need the coding know-how during setup but you no longer are limited by what you can paste into Pardot’s Dynamic Content boxes.
HML Cons
1. Technical coding and setup required
Email templates that use HML conditional statements are technical in nature, and the IF statements require careful coding. Unlike Dynamic Content, the Pardot email builder does not have a simple way to insert conditional statements; everything must be written in HTML & HML code.
2. Temperamental
If you are updating content directly in the Pardot email builder, it is easy to accidentally break the IF conditions or underlying code. Conditional emails, whether they’re using Dynamic Content or HML, are very very difficult to test before release.
3. Limited logic
HML logic is not as robust as Dynamic Content. It is limited to “field = true” logic only. Most use cases will require you to create new custom fields and workflows that map preferences to custom fields, which can then be used in HML.
Pardot HML vs Dynamic Content
These two options take a lot of the “leg work” from your day-to-day work. Here are some key things to bear in mind when working with them:
| HML | Dynamic Content |
|---|---|
| IF/ELSE logic can extend to many variations (the limit? I can’t say for sure!) | 25 is the “official” number of variations within one dynamic content. Having said that, combining dynamic content with HML means you can increase the variations significantly. |
| Can be inserted and edited from any of the Pardot builders. | Can be inserted while using the Classic (legacy) Pardot builders, not the Lightning builders. To edit dynamic content, you must navigate to the dynamic content area in Pardot. |
| Write the condition you need directly in the email itself, based on your field information. | Prone to error, as it’s inserted using its numeric code, not as an actual block of content. |
| You can change details within a block of content, instead of creating a new block of content for each variation. | Create a new block of content for each variation. |
| Conditional statements are technical in nature, and the IF statements require careful coding (using HTML & HML code). | The dynamic content edit page, split into boxes, outlines which variation will show for which field value. |
Complex conditional statements are harder to test before the email is sent. | With variations based on one field, testing is simpler. |
The State of Personalized Content in Pardot Emails
So where does that leave us? Here are the key facts so far:
- It’s possible to send personalized content emails via Pardot.
- There are tradeoffs for every approach.
- The time it takes to create and test many email variations can be a significant obstacle for many teams.
- We have seen successful organizations use 3rd party tools to automate the email creation process.
Summary
The state of personalized content in Pardot is not yet perfect, but through using the three methods (or a combination of methods), as well as potentially including third-party tools, you can still achieve a level of personalization that can dramatically set you apart from your competitors.