Engagement - Email Send via Automation Studio Doesn’t Send to All Subscribers

Automation Studio allows you to set up a one-time or recurring scheduled email. You can also pair an Email Send with other Automation Studio Activities to generate your send audiences, such as Filter Activities and SQL Query activities.

Below are checks you can perform to understand why not all Subscribers received an Email sent via Automation Studio.

Table of Contents:
 

• Email Send Activity
  • Verification Activity
• Audience Segmentation
  • Filter Activity
  • Import Activity
  • SQL Query Activity
  • Script Activity
• Standard Email Troubleshooting

Email Send Activity

Check the Activity tab of the Automation and confirm the Email Activity Completed by performing the following steps.
 

• Navigate into Automation Studio
• On the Overview screen, you can review the list of Automations or search for the name on the left
• Click into the Automation used to send the Email
• Navigate to the Activity tab
• Review the recent instances of the Automation
• Confirm the Activity is green

Confirming the Email Activity was processed by the Automation means a Job was created to send the Email to the Subscribers in the selected audience of the Activity.

Verification Activity

A Verification Activity is used to avoid unintended automation outcomes. The activity lets you select a target data extension in your automation and evaluate the target data extension for conditions you set.

When Verification Activity conditions are met, the activity can stop the automation or send you an email notification or both, depending on the actions you define. If you choose to receive a notification when the conditions are met, you can include a note in the email to provide more context for investigation or troubleshooting.

If you configure the Verification Activity to stop the Automation, it can prevent an Email Send. If the Verification Activity conditions were met, the Activity appears in an orange state in the Activity tab.

Perform the following steps to review the outcome of a Verification Activity.
 

• Navigate into Automation Studio
• On the Overview screen, you can review the list of Automations or search for the name on the left
• Click into the Automation using the Verification Activity (and Email)
• Navigate to the Activity tab
• Review the recent instances of the Automation
• Confirm the Activity is orange
  • If Email Activity didn’t complete, it would remain gray
  • If the Verification Activity is green, the conditions weren’t met to trigger the actions selected

To review the configuration of the Verification Activity, switch to the Workflow tab and Edit/View the Activity.

If you Pause the Schedule of the Automation, remember to set the Schedule back to Active after you've viewed what you need.

If the Email Activity was successfully run in the Automation, confirm a JobID was generated for that particular Email send. The JobID appears within Tracking in Email Studio and is created in the folder specified in the Email Activity in the Automation.

To confirm where the Tracking information will be stored, perform the following steps.
 

• Navigate into Automation Studio
• Select the Activities tab across the top menu
• Find your Email with your folder tree from the left
• Click into your Email Activity used within your Automation
• In the bottom box, on the left, review the Tracking Destination Folder option

 Tip: Add yourself to the Automation Notification Settings to be proactively notified when an Automation Completes, skips, or errors. You can also configure the Verification Activity to send an email with a note explaining the behavior of the activity.

Audience Segmentation

Automation Studio allows you to generate the send audience just before the email is sent and can cause an unexpected audience count or exclude Subscribers intended to receive the email.

If your List or Data Extension is populated via Automation Studio, make sure you know which Automation is making changes to the audience to ensure the resulting audience count is correct.

There’s no easy way to search Automation Studio and see which Automation (and Activity) may update/populate your List or Data Extension. An organized folder structure and naming convention are recommended to make Activities easily identifiable.

To review your Activities in Automation Studio, follow these steps:
 

• Navigate to Automation Studio from the main menu
• Select the Activities option with the top menu
• Use the Drill Tree and folder structure to find your Activity

The following Automation Studio Activities can affect the List or Data Extension and cause unexpected results in the send audience. The following sections provide a brief overview of each of these Activities.
 

• Filter Activity
• Import Activity
• SQL Query Activity
• Script Activity

Filter Activity

A Filter Activity segments subscriber lists or data extensions based on the criteria specified in the activity.

Check the Filter Activity configuration to confirm the audience is filtering your list or data extension and not preventing expected Subscribers from being included in the send audience.

Filter Activities use Data Filters created in Email Studio; you must review the Filter criteria via Email Studio. Perform the following steps to check the Filter Activity; first, you must note the Data Filter used within the Filter Activity
 

• Navigate into Automation Studio
• Move into Activities from the top menu
• Expand the Filter section from the left-hand side
• Find your Filter Activity used within your Automation from your folder structure
• When reviewing your Filter Activity, note the value within Filter Definition

Now you have the name of the Data Filter, perform the following steps to review the Data Filter
 

• Navigate into Email Studio
• Under the Subscribers menu, select Data Filters
• Find your Data Filter used within your folder structure

If the Filter Activity was misconfigured, rerunning the activity overwrites the contents of the target List or Data Extension with a new audience based on the filter criteria.


Import Activity

An Import Activity uses information from an external file to update a subscriber list or data extension. If the source file is incorrect or the activity is misconfigured, it can cause unexpected results in the email send audience.

First, check the source file and ensure it contains the intended Subscribers. If the source file doesn’t have the intended audience, the system completes the Automation but not send the email to the intended audience.

If your automation sends an email with a Data Extension as the audience, consider using a Verification Activity to check the Data Extension before sending an email to an unexpected audience.

After confirming the source file is as expected, review the Import Activity configuration to verify the activities update method. The Data Action method can have unanticipated outcomes when misconfigured leading to unexpected send counts.

A common example is using a Data Action of '“Add & Update,” but the source file is intended to overwrite the contents of the Data Extension, causing unintended Subscribers to be sent the email.

Perform the following steps to verify an Import Activities Data Action.
 

• Navigate into Automation Studio
• Move into the Activities tab from the main menu
• Find the Import that is part of your Automation
• On the Configuration tab of the Import, review the Mapping box on the right
• The Data Action property confirms the type

SQL Query Activity

A SQL Query Activity is an activity that retrieves data extension or data view information matching your criteria, then includes that information in a data extension. The resulting data extension can then be used as a send audience for your Email Send Activity.

If you use a SQL Query Activity to generate the send audience, reviewing the query and its results are recommended to verify it’s creating the expected audience.

SQL queries can be complex and require a developer to review and confirm it’s functioning as expected. Review the following documentation for more information about SQL Query Activities.
 

• SQL Query Activity
• Use the SQL Query Activity
• Data Views
• Optimize the Query Activity
• Use Intermediate Tables to Optimize a Query

Note: When reviewing SQL Queries, the overview screen of your Query Activities does provide a 'Target Data Extension' column that allows you to check multiple Queries at one time to confirm which DE is being updated/populated.


Script Activity

A Script Activity contains Server-Side JavaScript (SSJS) and can be used in an Automation to generate an Email Send Audience.

If you use a Script Activity to generate the send audience, reviewing the script and its results are recommended to verify it creates the expected audience.

SSJS can be complex and may require a developer to review and confirm it’s functioning as expected. Review the following documentation for more information about SQL Query Activities.
 

• Script Activity
• Server-Side JavaScript
• Server-Side JavaScript Syntax Guide