The "Write field" action element

What is it for?

The Write field action element automatically stores a value in a field of your contacts. Every contact that reaches the element in the campaign gets the value written into the selected field.

Typical use cases:

• Record a status or a source, e.g. "Webinar March" in a text field "Lead source"
• Store the current date, e.g. "Registration date" or "Last purchase"
• Count something up, e.g. participations or points
• Set, add or remove values in selection fields
• Add a note to the contact, e.g. to record the contact's state at registration
• Clear the content of a field, e.g. when data is no longer needed after a promotion has ended

You can then use the stored field in conditions, filters, segments and emails.

Add the element and select the field

1. Open your campaign and drag the Write field element onto the canvas.
2. Connect it to your flow at the desired position.
3. Open the element with a double click.
4. Under Field, select the field the value should be written to.

The list contains your custom fields, grouped by field type: text fields, URL fields, selection fields, date fields, number fields and consent fields. At the very bottom, under Notes, you will find the entry Add note to contact.

Default fields such as name, email address or address cannot be written with this element.

Depending on the field type, the element then shows the matching settings below. They are described in the following sections.

Overwrite existing values

For most field types you will find the option Overwrite existing field value.

• Enabled: The value is always written, even if the field already has a value.
• Disabled: The value is only written if the field of the contact is still empty. Existing values stay as they are.

Notes, multiple selection fields and increasing or decreasing numbers don't have this option. There, the selected action decides what happens with existing values.

Text fields, long text fields and URL fields

Under Field value, enter the text to be stored. You can combine fixed text and placeholders. The placeholders are replaced with each contact's own values.

Example: Webinar participant since {{contact.field_registration_date}}

The { } / Insert placeholder button opens the placeholder list. See the section "Using placeholders" for details.

Good to know:

• Empty result: If the text is empty after the placeholders have been replaced, e.g. because the source field of the contact is empty, the field is not changed. A field is therefore never cleared by accident.
• Maximum length: If the final text is longer than the field allows, it is cut off at the end.
• Long text fields keep line breaks. In single-line text fields, line breaks coming from placeholders are replaced with spaces.
• URL fields:
  • Values you insert after ? or # are automatically encoded for the URL, so spaces or special characters there are not a problem.
  • A URL is never shortened, because it would no longer work. If the final URL is too long or invalid, the field of this contact is not changed.

Example for a URL field: https://www.example.com/offer?name={{contact.first_name}}&mail={{contact.mail}}

Selection fields

Single selection (e.g. select list or radio buttons): Select the option to be set.

Multiple selection (e.g. checkboxes): Select one or more options and decide what should happen:

If an option is deleted from the field settings later, the element ignores it when it runs.

Date fields

You can either enter a fixed date (with time for fields that have one) or use the current date or current time. The element then stores the moment the contact reaches it.

Number fields (integer and decimal)

• Fixed value: The entered value is stored.
• Change value: The existing value is increased by the given number or, for a negative number, decreased. If the field is empty, the calculation starts at 0. This lets you count participations or points, for example.

Consent fields

Consents cannot be given automatically, the contact has to give them personally. For consent fields the element can therefore only do one thing: remove the consent, with the option Clear field content (see below).

Add note to contact

In the field list, select Add note to contact under Notes. Then enter the text of the note. Every contact that reaches the element gets this note. You will find it as usual in the notes of the contact view.

All placeholders are available in notes, including those of the default contact fields such as salutation, name, address or phone number. This lets you record a contact's state at registration, for example:

Webinar registration: {{contact.title}} {{contact.first_name}} {{contact.family_name}}, {{contact.ba_city}}

Interest: {{contact.field_interest}}

Good to know:

• The owner of the campaign is entered as the author of the note.
• A note can be up to 5,000 characters long. HTML is removed.
• Notes are always added. Existing notes are not changed.

Using placeholders

You can use placeholders in text fields, long text fields, URL fields and notes. Click { } / Insert placeholder. A searchable list opens. Clicking an entry inserts the placeholder at the cursor position.

The list is divided into groups:

Not offered as placeholders: greeting phrases (e.g. "Dear Ms …"), the full name, multiple selection fields and system values such as the contact ID or the contact owner. If you type an unavailable placeholder by hand, the element tells you when you save.

Creating custom system placeholders: You create them in the system profile under Custom fields. They are then available in emails, templates and in this element.

If a field of the contact is empty, nothing is inserted at that position.

Clear field content

With the option Clear field content you empty the selected field of every contact that reaches the element. This works for all field types.

Attention: Cleared field contents cannot be restored. The deletion happens automatically for every contact that reaches the element, even for a very large number of contacts.

To protect you from deleting data by accident, you have to confirm the option:

1. Check Clear field content.
2. A dialog opens. Read the warning.
3. To confirm, type the text Clear field content into the input field.
4. Click Clear field content. Only then is the checkbox checked.

Cancel closes the dialog without changing anything.

Good to know:

• If you select another field afterwards, the option is unchecked automatically. You have to confirm it again for the new field.
• Saving this setting is logged in the system, so it can be traced later who set up the deletion.

Sharing and importing campaigns

When you share a campaign or import it into another Quentn system, the settings of the element are only kept if a custom field with the same name and the same type exists there. Otherwise the element is empty after the import and has to be set up again.

In addition:

• Clear field content is never transferred. The deletion has to be set up and confirmed deliberately in the target system.
• For selection fields the settings are only kept if the selected options have the same labels in the target system.

Frequently asked questions

Why was the field of a contact not changed? Possible reasons:

• The option "Overwrite existing field value" is disabled and the field already had a value.
• The text was empty after the placeholders had been replaced.
• For URL fields, the final URL was too long or invalid.

Can I write default fields such as the first name? No, the element only writes custom fields and notes. You can, however, take over the values of default fields with placeholders. All default fields are available in notes, the email address in text and URL fields.

Can I give a consent automatically? No. Contacts have to give consents personally. The element can only remove a consent.