HowToSFMC

For those who are reading the below on a date that is not April 1st 2021 - This was our 2021 April Fools joke.

Everyone knows the Salesforce Mantra of ‘Clicks, not code’ and for a long time that has been challenging to deliver in the Marketing Cloud. The nuances and business specific requirements have historically introduced such complexity that Salesforce have had no choice but to allow end users to directly implement code. But, that may all change in April 2022 with the launch of Automation Studio Lightning.

Automation Studio Lightning is a large-scale overhaul of the Automation Studio we know and love and allows users to interact with the Marketing Cloud back end with clicks as opposed to code. Think of it like Journey Builder, but for everything you do in the Marketing Cloud. If you need to import a file from the FTP server, you’ll get to configure an “Entry Event” and either schedule it or have it respond to a file being placed on the server.

This new tool will bring the power of Automation Studio to non-developers who need to create complex workflows of data and campaigns. Using the drag and drop interface to create Automated PRocessing of Information fLows, FOr Other Less Specific use diagrams. With these you can drag activities into a running order rather than in steps. If you require parallelisation, each cluster of activities can be attached to another cluster of activities to run next to make sure you make the most efficient processes possible in the Marketing Cloud.

But, what about coding needs? This final push to eliminate end user coding requirements means that anything that currently requires code to work can be delivered using multiple steps in the Information Flows. It may not always be as elegant or efficient, but it will be far more accessible to those who are new to the platform or who don’t know and don’t wish to learn SSJS or AMPscript.

And Codey? Luckily for Codey, this push puts an end to a huge amount of the code based work for the Marketing Cloud. As a result, they will get an early retirement after handing over the reins to a new mascot to be announced later on in the year.

Do you have any questions about Automation Studio Lightning? Get in touch, we’d love to hear what your biggest queries are about the new platform due in the next year or so.