A one-time message is a manually sent email or SMS notification that lets you reach specific clients with promotions, updates, or personalized content. Unlike automated campaigns, which send a series of messages based on job triggers, a one-time message is a single notification you send on demand. This article covers how to create and send an email one-time message.
For SMS, see SMS one-time message guide. If messages aren’t reaching all intended recipients, see guide on why messages may not reach all recipients.
Creating a message
There are two ways to send one-time messages:
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- A. From the Communication tab within a Photo Job: Sends to customers from that specific job.
- B. From the One-Time Message tab on the Communication page: Sends to all applicable customers across jobs.
- Name: Provide a meaningful internal name for tracking purposes.
- Channel: For an email newsletter, select the Email format.
- Audiences: Use filters to select recipients by job, album/group, customer status, year (job created or customer created), or photo job type.
After you select the audience, press the button Apply selection.
- Sending condition: Select the sending condition (all customers, with photos available, customers with no photos available).
- Message content & Design: Write your message using the HTML editor, or select a pre-loaded template from the Templates drop-down menu.
- Email Subject: Enter a meaningful email subject. Be clear, short, and specific. Avoid vague, misleading, ALL CAPS, spammy words, or overly long subjects.
- Scheduling: Choose to send immediately or check the box to schedule the email for a later date and time. Large batches may stagger delivery to avoid spam classification.
⚠ Important: After scheduling, click Preview and Send, then click Send newsletter on the next screen to activate the schedule. The confirmation says "The newsletter is being sent." — but nothing is sent yet. This only activates the schedule.
To keep your recipient list up to date, see "Should I schedule the newsletter now or close to the send date?" in the FAQs below.
Adding images to a message
You can add images using the File Manager:
- Go to the File Manager on the Communication or Settings page. Upload your image and copy its URL.
- In your message, click the Image icon in the editor toolbar.
- Paste the image URL and add an alt description.
Finalizing and sending your message
After completing your message, click Preview and Send. Preview it with all data populated and make final edits before sending.
From this review page, you can either:
- Edit the newsletter
- Send a test email to your account email
- Send the newsletter (if you selected to schedule it, it is now scheduled to go out on the selected day / at the selected time).
FAQs
Can I schedule the newsletter in advance?
Yes. Under Schedule message to send later, check Send the message on a specific date and time. You can schedule a one-time message as far in advance as you like, but keep in mind that login links in the email expire after a set period for security reasons. To ensure links remain active when your newsletter is delivered, schedule it no more than a 6 months out, and ideally 1 to 2 days before the intended send date, as described below.
How can I create a newsletter that includes access codes within it?
Because of data protection and compliance requirements, GotPhoto does not offer an automated placeholder to include individual access codes in newsletters. Automatically inserting personalized access codes into mass emails could expose sensitive login information and does not meet our security standards. However, there are alternative methods available to share login access efficiently with your clients.
US/CA Customers: We recommend using the placeholder "Customer's Login Information". This is your customer's personal link to automatically log in with the following placeholder text: " [[Customer.login]] ". This is the "quick login" link as seen on the access code preview page. Clicking the hyperlink will automatically log the end customer into the shop without having to input their access code manually.
UK Customers: Please use the placeholder "Customer's email address" [[Customer.email]], which aligns with applicable data protection requirements.
Should I schedule the newsletter now or close to the send date?
Prepare it now, but schedule it 1 to 2 days before it goes out. The recipient list is fixed when you click Send newsletter. Unlike automated campaigns, the system doesn't check the recipient conditions again before sending. For example, customers who order after you schedule a newsletter to "Potential buyers" still receive it as potential buyers.
To keep the recipient list up to date:
- Create the newsletter now, so the content is ready. Review it, but don't click Send newsletter yet. Clicking it activates the schedule.
- Open the newsletter again 1 to 2 days before it goes out.
- Reset the recipient filter and apply it again to update the recipient list.
- Under Schedule message to send later, set the send date and time. Then, in the preview, click Send newsletter to activate the schedule. The confirmation says "The newsletter is being sent."
You can ignore this. It only means the newsletter is activated. You can still cancel it at any time on the One-time message overview page.
Customers who unsubscribe in the meantime are excluded automatically.
Are one-time email newsletters only sent between 9 am and 9 pm, similar to notifications in automated campaigns?
Unlike automated campaigns, email newsletters can be sent immediately or scheduled for any time during the day. Once started, they are sent as quickly as possible within legal limits until all messages are delivered; no specific timeframe can be defined. Our system uses a staggering method to send messages in batches. Depending on the number of recipients, delivery may take some time. To avoid late-night deliveries, schedule one-time emails earlier in the day to ensure the final batches are delivered before quiet hours begin.
Can I create a one-time email and SMS at the same time?
You need to create the one-time email and SMS separately, one after the other.
The takeaway
Whether you're targeting a single job or your entire customer base, one-time messages give you a flexible way to engage your audience with important updates, promotions, and personalized content.
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