Using the SendTransactionalEmail API method

JangoMail provides a robust mechanism for sending single-recipient transactional emails. Examples of transactional emails are order confirmations, appointment reminders, "be my friend" requests on social networking sites, and other single-recipient email messages that result to facilitate a transaction between the sending organization and the recipient.

Transactional emails are sent via the API/Web Service Method, SendTransactionalEmail. There is a test form for this method that can be used to send test transactional emails.

JangoMail's transactional messaging reporting allows a user to view reporting data, such as Opens, Clicks, Unsubscribes, Bounces, and Complaints organized by groups of transactional emails.  The reporting data can be retrieved in the JangoMail web interface or with the Web Service's reporting methods. 

How do I use this feature?

To send transactional emails through JangoMail, you must have some programming experience since you must know how to use a Web Service based API.  Here is a tutorial on how to use the JangoMail API.  Calling the SendTransactionalEmail API method is similar to calling the SendMassEmail API method.  While SendMassEmail is meant for sending email campaigns to multiple recipients (from two recipients to millions of recipients), the SendTransactionalEmail method is designed for sending single recipient email messages. Only one ToEmailAddress may be specified.

Benefits of sending trasactional emails through JangoMail:

Typically, organizations send transactional emails either manually, using a desktop or web-based email program or programmatically through server-side scripting on a web page.  The email message is routed through an SMTP server to the recipient.

There are many advantages to using JangoMail's SendTransactionalEmail method instead:

1. Authentication: The transactional emails are signed with DomainKeys and DomainKeys Identified Mail (DKIM).
2. Reporting: The transactional emails are tagged such that Open Tracking and Click Tracking data is available on the email messages.
3. Compliance: The transactional emails are checked against your account's unsubscribe and bounce lists, ensuring that emails are not sent to recipients that do not want emails from your organization.
4. Deliverability: The email messages can be routed through our high-reputation sending IP addresses.  Additionally, if your account qualifies, your email messages may be routed through servers whitelisted with the Return Path Program.

Calling the SendTransactionalEmail method:

The following are the required input parameters for the method:

Username
Password
FromEmail
FromName
ToEmailAddress
Subject
MessagePlain
MessageHTML
Options

The “Options” parameter allows the user to set tracking and other details of the email message, such as
Open Tracking, Click Tracking, a CC address, a BCC address, a custom ReplyTo address,
Attachments, a Transactional Group in which to categorize this email message, and other
details.

Return Value: When successfully called, the method will return a string such as:

“0
SUCCESS
90293283”

The return value is a 0 followed by a newline character followed by the word “SUCCESS”
followed by another newline character followed by a unique ID number representing this
transactional email message.

The SendTransactionalEmail method can be called via an HTTP Form Post, an HTTP GET, or
via a SOAP call. A test form is available that calls the method via an HTTP Form Post.

Screenshot of Test Form

Creating Transactional Email Groups:

Different kinds of transactional emails may be organized into Transactional Groups. A
particular Transactional Group can then be assigned to the email message upon each call of
the SendTransactionalEmail method. The Reporting interface will then show reporting data
organized by Transactional Group.

 Transactional Email Groups can be created and managed in your account under Settings → Transactional Emails → Transactional Groups.

In this account, four Transactional Groups have been created. All accounts come with a “Default Transactional Group” that cannot be modified or deleted. Next to each Transactional Group is its unique numeric identifier. This numeric identifier can be specified when calling the SendTransactionalEmail method to assign that particular email message to the TransactionalGroup. Specifically, within the Options input parameter, specify the parameter “TransactionalGroupID”. For example, the Options input parameter may be:

“OpenTrack=True, ClickTrack=True, TransactionalGroupID=23434”

for a transactional email message that is an order confirmation for the sending organization.

If a TransactionalGroupID is not specified in the Options input parameter, the email message is grouped into the “Default Transactional Group”.

Additional API Methods for Reporting:

Reporting data is accessible from the JangoMail web interface under Reporting >> Transactional Emails.  Reporting data is also accessible through the following API methods:

Reports_Trasactional_GetRecipients_DataSet
Reports_Trasactional_GetRecipietns_XML
Reports_Trasactional_GetRecipients_String

Reports_Trasactional_GetOpens_DataSet
Reports_Trasactional_GetOpens_XML
Reports_Trasactional_GetOpens_String

Reports_Trasactional_GetClicks_DataSet
Reports_Trasactional_GetClicks_XML
Reports_Trasactional_GetClicks_String

Each method is available in three return types, a .Net DataSet, an XML document, and a String.

All information on these methods is available on the API home page, along with links to our older documentation.

An Event API is also available for transactional emails.  For more information on how to instantly sync transactional email data (opens, clicks, sends, unsubscribes, bounces and complaints) with your database or CRM system, read JangoMail's blog entry on the Event API for transactional emails.