Personalization token for contacts from specific countries?

[J-Masterson]

I have a send list for an upcoming email marketing compaign that includes contacts from all over the world (NAMER, LATAM, EMEA, APAC, etc.)

• There are a little more than 200 Japanese contacts on the send list
• From my (limited) understanding:
  • In Japan, it's generally considered impolite to call people by their first name unless you know them personally
  • It's also considered rude to not use an honorific at the end

The personalization token we have is set to use the first name of the contact in the email greeting.

For example:

• Contact Name: Kakashi Hatake
• Greeting: 'Hello, Kakashi'

Is it possible to set a custom personalization token specifically for contacts from Japan that uses the last name and includes an honorific?

For example:

• Contact Name: Kakashi Hatake
• Greeting: 'Hello, Hatake-san'

Thanks in advance!

[karstenkoehler · Accepted solution]

Hi @J-Masterson,

This is going to require a separate marketing email just for the Japanese contacts and an assisting workflow and custom property. The regular default value in a marketing email cannot solve for this alone. Here's what you would do:

1. Create a single-line text property "Full formal salutation (jp-en)"
2. Create a workflow that enrolls contacts based on 'When filter criteria is met' > Country is any of Japan
3. Set up an and/or branch to check whether the first name is known or unknown
4. Use the 'Set property value' workflow action in each branch to specify the value of the property from step 1: 'Hello, {{ contact.firstname }}-san' when the first name is known, a more generic version when it is unknown
5. Run the workflow and use the token in your email

Best regards!

[GiantFocal · Accepted solution]

Hi @J-Masterson,

I have never tested this, but rich text supports hubL. 

In this case, you can add an IF condition hubL based on the contact's country. 

{% if contact.country == "Japan" %}
Hello, {{ contact.lastname }}-san
{% else %}
Hello, {{ contact.firstname }}
{% endif %}

[karstenkoehler · Accepted solution]

Hi @J-Masterson,

This is going to require a separate marketing email just for the Japanese contacts and an assisting workflow and custom property. The regular default value in a marketing email cannot solve for this alone. Here's what you would do:

1. Create a single-line text property "Full formal salutation (jp-en)"
2. Create a workflow that enrolls contacts based on 'When filter criteria is met' > Country is any of Japan
3. Set up an and/or branch to check whether the first name is known or unknown
4. Use the 'Set property value' workflow action in each branch to specify the value of the property from step 1: 'Hello, {{ contact.firstname }}-san' when the first name is known, a more generic version when it is unknown
5. Run the workflow and use the token in your email

Best regards!