DISCLAIMER
Product Information contained within this document, including technical information and functional specifications, is subject to change without notice. Naviga reserves the right to make any changes to the information in this document at any time without notice. Naviga makes no warranty, representation, or guarantee regarding the suitability of its products and services for any particular purpose.
Following is the Beta version of the Gift Subscription workflow.
Gift Subscription is a unique Subscribe feature that is currently available exclusively to NCS clients. As the name implies, this feature allows an end user to buy a subscription and gift it to a dear one.
The end user who purchases the subscription will be referred to as the Purchaser in the Gift workflow. The one who receives the gift will be referred to as the Recipient in the flow.
The Gift subscription workflow can be divided into two: Purchase flow and Redeeming flow.
Purchase flow - the purchaser purchasing a gift offer from the Subscription Panel and its associated events.
Redeeming flow - the recipient redeeming the gift subscription and its associated events.
The purchaser navigates to the Subscription Panel. Selects a Gift offer.
Enter the details of the purchaser, and recipient in the CUSTOMER INFORMATION tab. Click Continue. Note: If the purchaser is a known user (Email ID already available in the Subscribe database), after entering the purchaser Email ID, a configurable info message will be displayed, ‘This email is already in use’. If the user is a new user (user details not available with Subscribe yet), after entering the Email ID, the user will be prompted to enter a password and then to confirm the password. Refer to the image below.
Select the Payment method (Credit card or Bank Account) in the PAYMENT INFORMATION tab. Enter the payment details accordingly. Click Submit.
4. The entered payment details will be displayed once more for confirmation. If everything is fine, click Continue. If any of the payment details to be edited, click the pen icon to edit the details before continuing with the payment.
Note: It is also possible to edit the already entered Customer Information details by selecting the ‘CUSTOMER INFORMATION’ tab.
5. The ORDER SUMMARY tab gives a summary of the current order. In this tab:
Any information (customer or payment) entered so far can be edited, if required.
If the gift subscription has to be started on a specific date in future, uncheck the box ‘Start the Gift Subscription Immediately’. Click on the Date field and select an available date from the date picker.
Accepting Terms and Conditions checkbox is selected by default. Do not uncheck this option. Unchecking will restrict the user from placing the order.
Click Place your order.
Once the order is placed successfully, the purchaser will be navigated to the Congratulatory page where all the details of the gift order is displayed.
The Purchase flow is complete now.
Note: Although the purchase flow concludes here, Subscribe offers the purchaser an option to manage this subscription. To do so, the purchaser must log in to the Self-Service portal by clicking the final button displayed on the congratulatory page. This button may appear as either 'Log In' or 'Continue' depending on the purchaser's status. If the purchaser is a known user to Subscribe, they will see a 'Log In' button on the congratulatory page. If the purchaser is a first-time user, they will see a 'Continue' button instead.
7. Once the purchase is complete (upon displaying the congratulatory page), an info mail will be triggered to the Purchaser.
8. An additional email will be sent to the recipient, notifying them about the gift subscription they have received. This recipient email will contain a unique link and a gift code to redeem the gift subscription. Note: Regardless of the selected start date for the subscription, both the purchaser and recipient emails will be triggered in real-time upon successful completion of the payment.
The Redeeming flow begins when the recipient clicks the hyperlink in the gift subscription redemption email. This link will direct the user to the Redemption Presentation. The email also includes a Gift code.
The recipient clicks the hyperlink in the email.
The recipient is directed to the Redeeming presentation, where the GIFT CODE tab is automatically opened and displayed. The unique hyperlink automatically populates the gift code. Click on Continue.
The USER INFORMATION tab is displayed. Enter the recipient details. Click Continue. Note: If the recipient is a known user (Email ID already available in the Subscribe database), after entering the Email ID, a configurable info message will be displayed, ‘This email is already in use’. Refer to the image below. If the user is a new user (user details not available with Subscribe yet), after entering the Email ID, the user will be prompted to enter a password and then to confirm the password.
The ORDER SUMMARY tab is displayed. Click Place your order.
The final Congratulatory page is displayed.
Note: Although the redeeming flow concludes here, Subscribe offers an additional feature for the recipient to manage the gifted subscription. To do so, the recipient needs to link the gifted subscription with their Account number and continue the flow by clicking the final button on the page. This button may appear as either 'Log In' or 'Continue' depending on the user's status. If the recipient is a known user to the client publication, they will see a 'Log In' button on the Congratulatory page. If the recipient is a first-time user, they will see a 'Continue' button instead.
Recipient (known user) clicking on Log In button:
Recipient (first-time user) clicking on Continue button:
For the first-time user, the account linking is not required. Upon clicking the Continue button, the recipient will be directly navigated to the Dashboard page of the Self-Service portal.
Upon reaching the congratulatory page, a congratulatory email will be sent to the recipient on redeeming the gift subscription. From V3.17.0, a notification email will also be sent to the Purchaser.
Subscribe supports Digital-only gifts. This avoids potential issues with purchasing a print gift subscription that could not be delivered to the giftee's actual address.
Subscribe transactional mails (the info mail sent to the purchaser, the notification to the recipient, etc.) will be sent to purchaser and/or recipient in real time after the successful completion of payment. However, if you want to notify the recipient on a specific date, then it is recommended to use Discover OR client-preferred EMS to schedule the recipient email.
The hyperlink that navigates the user to the Redeem presentation and the coupon code with which gift subscription can be redeemed will be incorporated in the transactional emails sent both to the purchaser and the recipient.
The validity period for redeeming a gift subscription can be defined by the MG2Control App setting CountOfDaysBeforeCouponSubscriptionStartDate. If required, this value can be overridden by the date entered in the Scheduled Start V3 component in the gift offer purchase presentation.
If the gift is not redeemed by the recipient during the predefined period, then it will start automatically and will be assigned to the purchaser. This allows for handling timely revenue recognition. If the recipient redeems the gift after the start of the subscription for the purchaser, then the ownership of the subscription will change from the Purchaser to the Recipient.
To achieve a successful Gift flow as depicted above, certain settings need to be configured in:
SolCon
CMS
SubCon Admin (transactional emails)
NCS Circ
Implementation Settings
Minimum Subscribe Version: 3.16.3
Minimum NCS Circ Version: 2020.2 plus SP1
In Solcon, a Gift offer must be created.
Open SolCon. Navigate to Offer Groups. Click the '+' button to create a new Offer Group.
Add Publications, and Product. The Product should be ‘digital only’. Set the desired price.
Make sure that the product selected in the offer is ‘digital only’.
In the Marketplaces section, select ‘Subscription Panel’ as the Sales Platform. Configure the SP url without fail.
Configure Terms & Conditions only if you want Terms & Conditions to be displayed on the offer. Hence it is optional.
Configure the Marketing Text if you want to appear it on the offer. It is optional.
In the Coding section, do the following setups: 1. Under Household levels, select the Publication and the Household level from the corresponding drop-downs. 2. Under Custom Codes, select value for the Source field. The Campaign code must not be set up for Gift offer. 3. Under Billing System Codes, select the Rate Code. Depending on the value of the Rate code, Term and Term Length fields will be auto-populated from the Circ system. Select Reason Code, Billing Method fields. Keep Delivery Method as ‘Online’.
In the Additional Options section, do the following setups: 1. Check and select the Sales Platforms options, as applicable. 2.Check and select the Payment method options, as applicable. Please note that the options that are selected here can only be displayed on the Purchase presentation. 3.Make sure that the Address Requirements options are unchecked and not selected. This enables users to purchase subscriptions without entering any address since they are intended to be gifted to other people.
Click Publish to save the new offer group that is created.
In CMS application, two Presentations must be configured.
Purchase presentation which will be displayed to the Purchaser in the Subscription Panel during Purchase Flow
Redeeming presentation which will be presented to the Recipient while claiming the gift subscription during Redeeming Flow
You may configure Presentations from scratch in the CMS. However, it is highly recommended to reuse any existing Presentation by exporting and importing them. This approach ensures ease of use and convenience. Reusing an existing Presentation eliminates the risk of errors and proves to be a significant time-saver, sparing you from the need to identify and resolve issues.
It's crucial to note that the appearance and functionality of the Purchase and Redeeming presentations on the Subscription Panel depend entirely on the way you customize and configure them in the CMS.
Be it Purchase Presentation or Redeeming Presentation, the initial steps of configuring them are pretty the same.
Step 1: Navigate to CMS > Subscription Panel > Presentations.
Step 2: You may create a new Presentation, Export and import an existing Presentation, or Copy an existing Presentation and create a new one.
To Create a new Presentation: Click +Add New Presentation > Blank Presentation
To Copy an existing Presentation and then create a new one: Select a Presentation from the drop-down. Click +Add New Presentation > Duplicate Selection > Give a name and unique URL for the selected Presentation > OK
To Export an existing Presentation: Click Options > Export > Check the box to select a Presentation from the list > Export Content. To Import an exported Presentation: Click Options >Import > Select file > Import.
Step 3: Make sure that the Presentation has the main parent component Presentation P followed by a Header V3 component.
In the parent Presentation P, the property ‘isGiftSale’ should be set to ‘ON’.
The rest of the configuration varies between Purchase and Redeeming Presentations.
Followed by the Presentation P and the Header V3 components, configure a Page V3 component (Landing page)
Configure a child component Landing - Tiles. Under this component configure the next level child component Promotion Digital V3.
Configure the next Page V3 component with the following child components one after the other in the order mentioned in the following table.
Offer Selector
Step Indicator
Sticky Note V3
Step V3 (to capture User information)
Gift Recipient V3 (Captures recipient Email, First name, Lastname, gift message to the recipient, etc.)
User Information V3 (Captures the purchaser's email, displays a message if the email already exists, collects password along with its confirmation if the user is new).
Independent Address V3 (Captures purchaser first name, last name, phone number, zip code, etc.)
Step V3 (capture Payment step details.)
Payment Methods V3 (Ensure to configure the appropriate child component for each payment method you need.)
NavigaPay Payway V3
Bank Account V3
Step V3
Order Summary V3
Scheduled Start V3
Note: If this component is not configured, purchasers won't have the option to select a start date for the subscription. In such cases, the gift subscription will automatically begin with the current date.
Terms and Conditions V3 Note: The Terms and Conditions V3 component picks T&C set up in the SolCon Gift offer.
Configure the next Page V3 component.
a. Configure a Confirmation child component. Configure as many Social Media V3 child components one after the other for each social media handles such as Facebook, Instagram, Twitter (now 'X'), Google PlayStore, LinkedIn, etc. you require.
Configure finally a Footer V3 component.
Click Save to save the Presentation.
Clear app’s cache by clicking the Manage Cache button, then click Refresh CMS+Panel.
Followed by the Presentation P and the Header V3 components, configure a Page V3 component. a. Configure a child Step V3 component. Under this component configure a Input Gift Code V3 child component.
Configure the next Page V3 component with the following child components one after the other. a. Configure the Step Indicator component. b.Configure the Offer Selector component. c. Configure the Gift Details V3 component. d. Configure a Step V3 component. i. Configure the User Information V3 child component. ii. Configure the Independent Address V3 child component.
e. Configure the next Step V3 component. i. Configure the Order Summary V3 child component.
Note: If you wish to display the Terms & Conditions (set up in the SolCon gift offer) to the recipient, you can add the Terms and Conditions V3 child component either under this Step V3 component or the one above.
Currently, it's not feasible to present distinct Terms & Conditions for the purchaser and the recipient within the gift subscription flow. While it's possible to display Terms & Conditions in both the purchase and recipient flows by configuring Terms and Conditions V3 component, in both scenarios, the Terms & Conditions are sourced from the same T&C configured in the SolCon gift offer. Consequently, displaying separate Terms & Conditions to the purchaser and recipient within the gift subscription flow is not supported.
3. Configure the next Page V3 component.
a. Configure the Confirmation child component.
Under the Confirmation child comp, configure as many Social Media V3 child components one after the other for each social media handles such as Facebook, Instagram, Twitter (now 'X'), Google PlayStore, LinkedIn, etc.
Configure the final Footer V3 component.
Click Save to save the Presentation.
Clear app’s cache by clicking the Manage Cache button, then click Refresh CMS+Panel.
The transactional emails sent to purchaser and recipient during the Gift flow must be configured in the SubCon Admin. These transactional mails can be called as Event Type Emails because they get triggered and are sent to addressees at the completion of Purchase event and Redeeming event.
The emails configured in SA will be sent to the addressees in real-time. If you need to trigger the email to a recipient on a future date, then it is recommended to use Discover OR client-preferred EMS to schedule the recipient email.
In the Gift flow, the following transactional emails are typically involved:
Mails sent after Purchasing the gift subscription:
Purchaser mail: Contains recipient details, gift code, gift message, order details, etc.
Recipient mail: Notifies the recipient about the gift, provides purchaser details, includes a hyperlink to the Redeeming presentation, gift code, etc. Note: These emails should be configured to be triggered after a successful PURCHASE event (Event type 1100).
Mails sent after Redeeming the gift subscription:
Congratulatory mail: Sent to the recipient for redeeming the gift subscription.
Notification mail: Sent to the Purchaser after the recipient redeems the subscription. (This mail is available only from Subscribe V 3.17.0). Note: These emails should be configured to be triggered after a successful REDEEMING event (Event type 1101).
In both events (Purchase & Redeeming) two emails are to be triggered - one to the Purchaser and the other to the Recipient.
In SA, you can configure two categories of Event type emails: Internal and Customer. The only restriction is that, at a time, only one email can be triggered from one category for a particular event. Since Purchase event requires two emails to be triggered, for ease and convenience, it is recommended to configure recipient email in Internal category and purchaser email in customer category.
Navigate to SubCon Admin > Event Management > Event Types Emails > Add New.
The Add New Transaction Mail tabs will open. Please refer to the image below. Note: For first-time users, the ‘Internal Emails’ tab is auto-selected and without saving this tab, the other tabs will not be accessible.
Select the Publication Group. Choose the Event Type as ‘(1100) PURCHASEGIFT’. Complete the mandatory fields. You can draft the recipient mail using the Template Mail Editor. Click the Edit button to enter the mail content in the Editor. Click the Save button to save the recipient notification email template.
Ensure that the redeem flow link is included in the Recipient email template. You can incorporate the Redeem presentation URL as a hyperlink by copying and pasting it into the email message wherever its needed.
In the provided sample email template above, the link has been added to the "this link to redeem your gift" text in the email body.
Click Save Transaction to save the transaction and unlock the other tabs.
Once any email template is successfully saved, it will be listed in the Search result grid. For example, the recipient mail created above will be listed as shown below. To edit an already saved email template, click the Edit button displayed with the listed email template in the search result grid.
The Purchaser email has to be configured under Customer Emails section.
Navigate to Customer Emails Tab. Click +Add New Template.
You can either create an email template from the scratch or copy from an existing template in the Customer Emails tab.
Enter the new Template name. Click Continue.
Enter the new Template name.
Check the box 'Copy From Another Template”.
Newly created Acknowledgement Email Template
Enter values in the Mandatory fields. Click Save. Note: Uncheck Validate Email before saving the template.
3. After creating the Acknowledgment Email template, click Save Transaction to save the Email configurations.
After setting up purchaser and recipient emails to be triggered on the PURCHASEGIFT event, you should also configure separate purchaser and recipient emails to be triggered on the REDEEMGIFT event.
Navigate to Event Management > Event Type Emails.
Select Event ID in the Filter By drop-down. Enter 1101 in the Contains field. Choose the Publication Group from the corresponding drop-down. Click +Add New.
Set up the Congratulatory Recipient Email in the Internal Emails tab on redeeming the gift subscription.
Set up the Purchaser notification mail that should be triggered when the recipient redeems the gift subscription.
The Purchaser notification mail on redeeming gift is available only from V3.17.0.
Note: While setting up the emails, make sure to select the Event Type as (1101) REDEEMGIFT. This will link the emails with the REDEEMGIFT event.
This feature is highly beneficial for SubCon Admins/CSRs as it allows them to verify the reception of configured emails. How to verify the emails sent and received? You can verify the emails sent and received after configuring internal and/or customer emails for a specific event.
All emails (internal and customer) configured for a specific event will be listed under the View All Emails tab. You can navigate to the View All Emails tab in two ways:
From the homepage: a. Navigate to Event Management > Event Types Emails. b. Filter By > Event Type ID, Contains > Enter event ID, Choose Publication Group > Search. c. Select the email from the search result grid. Navigate to the View All Emails tab. OR
View All Emails tab
All emails configured for the selected event type will be listed here. Click Send Sample button along any mail.
This process ensures the sending and reception of the configured emails.
The Send Sample feature is currently unavailable for emails configured for the Redeeming event (1101). This will be accessible from V3.17.2.
Email attributes in Subscribe are dynamic placeholders that allow you to personalize and customize your email content. These attributes act as tokens or markers within the email templates. When the created mail is sent, these placeholders are replaced with real values retrieved from the database. This dynamic substitution ensures that each email sent through the application is tailored to the recipient and contains up-to-date information.
Email attributes are commonly used to insert recipient-specific data, such as names, addresses, account details, etc. into email templates.
You can easily include these attributes within the email content by enclosing the attribute within double curly brackets while setting up the email on Editor.
For example, if you include the attribute {{CouponDetails.GiftteeName}} in an email template, when the email is sent, this placeholder will be replaced with the actual name of the gift recipient.
Subscribe supports a range of predefined email attributes, and users can also create custom attributes to suit their specific needs. These attributes provide a powerful way to deliver personalized and engaging email communications to recipients. Below is a list of email attributes that you can use while configuring your email content.
Coupons.RedeemCode
Gift redemption code with which recipient can redeem the gift
CouponDetails.GifttorName
Gift purchaser first name
CouponDetails.GifttorLastName
Gift purchaser last name
CouponDetails.GiftteeName
Gift recipient first name
CouponDetails.GiftteeLastName
Gift recipient last name
CouponDetails.GiftteeEmail
Gift recipient email ID
CouponDetails.GiftteeMessage
Gift message sent to the recipient
AccountNumber
Account Number of the Subscription
CMSAttributes.CSEmail
Email of the Publisher
Have NCS Circ 2020.2 plus SP1 or above.
Set up a new Demographic, 'GiftCode,' with the Demographic Type set to "Subscription" and the Answer Type set to "Character." This will be used to store the Redemption Code. In addition, a Demographic Valid should be defined for each publication that will offer gift subscriptions. Refer to the Circulation Setup Manual for setting up a Demographic and a Demographic Valid. Note: Do not set up any records for the Demographic Value since the Answer for the Demographic, GiftCode, will be a unique value used to store the Redemption Code, and this value will be generated by Subscribe in real-time at the time of the Gift Subscription Purchase.
Configuration Setup (CircAPI Business Rules) Make sure that valid values have been defined in the Business Rules listed below. Section: CM Application → Setup → Rules → Business Rules → Sections → CircAPI
What is the default reason code for Delivery Address Change from Circ API? Enter the default reason code that should be used when creating Delivery Address Change through the CircAPI.
What is the default reason code for Billing Address Change from Circ API? Enter the default reason code that should be used when creating Permanent Stop through the CircAPI.
What is the default source code for transactions Created from Circ API? Enter the default source code that should be used for transactions created through the CircAPI.
Define a new Source Code and Reason Code, Gift, for Move-In and Move-Out transaction types. To set up a Reason Code and a Source Code, refer to the Circulation Setup Manual.
CM Application → Setup → Subscription → Address → Digital Properties In Digital Address Properties, make sure that value for all the properties have been set as Optional.
MG2 Control (Support Viewer Settings)
The below-listed MG2 Control API settings should be in place.
The MG2 Control flow setting, "Flow.CreateSubscriber," should be set to "Realtime."
The MG2 Control flow setting, "Flow.Gifting," should be set to "Realtime."
The MG2 Control internal setting, "CountOfDaysBeforeCouponSubscriptionStartDate," should have a valid number.
Subsvc Settings
Set the configuration for the event type, REDEEMEXTERNALGIFT, to have active = 1 (true) and triggers_post = 1 (true). It also should be associated with NCS in NewspaperEventProcessorAssignments.
Set the configuration for the event type, UPDATEBILLTOOCCUPANT, to have active = 1 (true) and triggers_post = 1 (true). It also should be associated with NCS in NewspaperEventProcessorAssignments.
Enter values in the mandatory fields, draft the mail content on the template editor. Click Save. Refer to the example below.
Choose the Publication Group, Select the Event Type as ‘(1100) PURCHASE GIFT’, choose the template from which you want the copy to be made, Preview of the selected Template will be displayed. Click Continue.
After configuring any internal or customer email(s), before closing the transaction, simply select the View All Emails tab.
Click the Send Sample button. Enter the trial Email ID and select the most recent event from the list of events. The events are populated in the drop-down in descending order based on the time of occurrence, with the latest event listed at the top.
Click Send. The email will be sent to the selected email ID.
Purchaser (known user) clicking on the Log In button:
Upon clicking the Log In button, an Auth0 login modal will appear, prompting the user to enter their credentials. The purchaser should input their email ID and the password used during the purchase flow. After entering the credentials, click the Login button on the Auth0 modal. Subsequently, the Log In button on the Congratulatory page will transform into a Continue button. Click on Continue. The purchaser will then be redirected to the Dashboard page of the Self-Service portal, where they can manage the purchased subscription.
Purchaser (first-time user) clicking on Continue button:
Upon clicking the Continue button, an Auth0 login modal will appear, prompting the user to enter their credentials. The purchaser should input their email ID and the password used during the purchase flow. After entering the credentials, click the Login button on the Auth0 modal.
The purchaser will then be redirected to the Dashboard page of the Self-Service portal, where they can manage the purchased subscription.
Upon clicking the Log In button, an Auth0 login modal will appear, prompting the user to enter their credentials. Enter the recipient's email ID and password, click Login.
Pictorial Flow of Account linking:
Subsequently, the Log In button on the Congratulatory page will transform into a Continue button. Click Continue.
The recipient will then be directed to the ‘Verify Your Subscription’ page.
On this page, they can verify the subscription using the options for Last Name and Account Number.
Use the Account number that was received in the gift notification mail.
Finally, the user will be redirected to the homepage of the Self-Service portal where they can manage the subscription.
Note: Currently Subscribe does not support the account linking of gift subscriptions with the lookup options Zipcode+Phone Number and Zipcode+House Number.
