Nodes
Nodes allow you to add, split, and store data in different containers. This is particularly useful when you want to separate data based on different criteria, such as countries, individual brands, sales channels, etc., while still accessing the same workspace information simultaneously.
Types of Nodes
There are two types of nodes:
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Entry Nodes: Where customer and event data are written into individual profiles. For example, you might have one node for online purchases and another for in-store activities. At least one Entry Node is required for the platform to function. Entry Nodes cannot be deleted.
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Aggregate Nodes: These create new customer profiles by combining demographic data and events from two or more Entry Nodes within the same workspace. For example, data from online and in-store purchases, contained in separate nodes, can be combined to create comprehensive customer purchase profiles.
Each entry or aggregate node corresponds to a database in Send.
Managing Nodes
In the Settings > Customers > Nodes area, you can view and manage nodes. You can view, create, or modify all types of nodes.
Entry Nodes and Aggregate Nodes cannot be deleted.
Customer uniqueness criteria are defined in the Entry Node pages. These allow you to select property fields to determine if data that appears to belong to two different customers actually pertains to the same customer.
The defined criterion is applied in conjunction with the customer uniqueness setting defined in the related workspace.
Aggregate Nodes include matching properties that define the field or fields used to determine if profiles should be aggregated.
Entry Nodes
By clicking on the name of an existing Entry Node, you can access a card highlighting some characteristics, including:
- Basic information such as Name and any Mandatory Fields that must always be available.
- The Customer Uniqueness Criterion, i.e., the field or fields used to determine if two or more profiles belong to the same customer.
- The list of customer uniqueness fields.
Creating an Entry Node
To create a new Entry Node, go to Settings > Customers > Nodes > Create.
- Choose the Name of the node so that it is easily recognizable later.
- Among the Mandatory Fields, select the properties that a customer must have. No properties are mandatory.
Modifying an Entry Node
To modify an Entry Node, go to Settings > Customers > Nodes and select the node to modify.
- The ID of the node can only be copied and cannot be modified as it is a unique identifier.
- Modify the Name of the node.
- Modify the Mandatory Fields or properties that a database customer must have. No properties are mandatory.
To edit unique customer policy:
- Select Case sensitive, if necessary.
- In Fields, select the fields to use to determine if the profiles are of the same customer. Each selected field is added to the area below the dropdown list.
- If necessary, remove unwanted fields by clicking the X icon located to the right of the item in the list.
- When finished, click Save to update the policy.
The unique customer policy can only be modified if the node is empty, i.e., without customers or events.
Aggregate Nodes
To view available Aggregate Nodes, go to Settings > Customers > Nodes.
Aggregate Nodes allow you to create new, but still individual, customer profiles by combining demographic data and events from two or more Entry Nodes within the same workspace. To do this, a matching criterion is required, which can consist of one or more basic or extended workspace properties. For example, an email address and a customer name.
When customer profiles in each of the selected Entry Nodes have fields with values that match the defined criterion properties, they are combined to create a new unified profile in the Aggregate Node.
Aggregate profiles inherit properties and all recorded events from the source profiles through a merging algorithm.
Properties and events cannot be created, modified, or deleted directly in the Aggregate Node. Changes can only be made if they have been executed in the relevant Entry Node profile. Digital events, such as sends, opens, and clicks, recorded in the database associated with the Aggregate Node, are the only ones that can be directly linked to an aggregate profile.
Profiles and events in Aggregate Nodes have their own ID within the platform, which is not related to the IDs of the source Entry Nodes.
Merging Algorithm
In addition to being executed when an Aggregate Node is created, the merging algorithm is also applied to profiles in the Entry Nodes that make up the Aggregate Node when:
- A new customer profile is created, or an existing profile is modified or deleted.
- A new event occurs, or an existing event is modified or deleted.
- Aggregate profiles include the same information and event dates as the profiles in the Entry Nodes.
Subscriptions
An Aggregate Node includes all subscriptions from the relevant Entry Nodes without applying deduplication to those with the same identifier. Changes to subscriptions must be managed at the Entry Node level. In the case of subscriptions linked to the Aggregate Node, you can request a change at the Entry Node level, which will then be reflected in the Aggregate Node once applied.
Subscriptions in an Aggregate Node, including newsletters sent directly from the Aggregate Node itself, cannot be synchronized directly with Send databases.
Limitations
Aggregate Nodes cannot be used to:
- Create, modify, or delete profiles or events. The only native events are digital ones resulting from sends to contacts in the profiles of the Aggregate Nodes.
- Manage native subscriptions of Aggregate Nodes and synchronize them with Send.
- Manage GDPR rights. These are always managed at the Entry Node level.
GDPR Consents and Updates
All GDPR contact operations are executed on Entry Nodes. Consequently, details displayed in the profile of an Aggregate Node do not include:
- The timeline of consent changes for a customer.
- The link to download all data related to the displayed customer.
- The link to delete all data related to the displayed customer.