Table of Contents

• Overview
• Accessibility

★ Overview

This feature allows you to set a prohibition window for communications (both email and Sms) sent by Sense. Users have the ability to set blackout windows at 2 levels - the agency default as well as customization on an individual touchpoint level. 

1. You can choose whether or not to apply the default blackout window to all email and SMS messages sent via journeys. For any sending that is triggered during the blackout window, you can choose whether to delay them or cancel them.
2. You can also override these default settings within the scheduling options of any individual email or SMS communication within any journey.

★ Accessibility

To navigate to the default blackout window settings;

1. Log in to Sense.
2. Navigate to Settings > General settings.
3. You can set the start and end time of the Blackout window.  

   Default for SMS messages

   

    

   Default for email messages

   

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▶ Settings in General Settings Page

[1] Blackout start

• By default, it will be set to "No blackout". Then there are 48 additional options, one for every 30 minutes in a 24-hour period, starting at "12:00 AM" and ending at "11:30 PM"
• The 'Time' section showcases the system's timeline, set in a 24-hour time format, and the 'Timezone' (PST) displays the agency's timezone. The blackout window operates based on either the 'Timezone Agency Variable' set by an agency or the 'Default Agency Timezone.'

  ➥ Example: If the candidate is located in India (IST timezone) and the agency has the IST timezone configured in their 'Timezone Agency Variable,' then the blackout window will function according to the candidate's IST time zone. If the candidate's IST timezone is not configured in their 'Timezone Agency Variable,' then the blackout window will follow the 'Default Agency Timezone,' and the respective candidate will be considered for the blackout window according to the agency's default timezone.

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[2]. Blackout end

There are 24 options, one for every 30 minutes in a moving 12 hour period

• Blackout period that is greater than 12 hours is not allowed
• Blackout period of zero hours is not allowed

The order and label of each option is updated when the “Blackout starts” input is blurred

• The 1st option is 30 minutes after the selected start time option (e.g. if start is "11:30 AM", then the 1st option is "12:00 PM")
• After the "11:30 PM" option, any subsequent options are labelled with "+1". (e.g. after 11:30 PM" then next option is "12:00 AM +1", then "12:30 AM +1")
• There's an additional 23 options, one for every 30 minutes in the 12 hours that follow the 1st option (e.g. if the 1st option is "12:00 PM", then the last option is "11:30 AM +1")
• If the selected option of the start time input is "No blackout", then the end time input is disabled and its display value is set to "N/A"

➥ NOTE: The above-mentioned Timezone (PST) serves as a reference for the agency's timezone. However, The blackout window operates based on either the 'Timezone Agency Variable' set by an agency or the 'Default Agency Timezone.'

For Example, If the candidate is located in India (IST timezone) and the agency has the IST timezone configured in their 'Timezone Agency Variable,' then the blackout window will function according to the candidate's IST time zone. If the candidate's IST timezone is not configured in their 'Timezone Agency Variable,' then the blackout window will follow the 'Default Agency Timezone,' and the respective candidate will be considered for the blackout window according to the agency's default timezone.

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[3] Sending during blackout hours

This option is hidden while “blackout start” is set to “no blackout”, and visible while “blackout start” has any other value

You can either set it to 

• Move all sends - to after blackout hours : Will shifts all the triggered touchpoints during this blackout window will move after the blockout window ends.
• Don’t send - if message is triggered during blackout : It will stop sending messages.

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▶ Settings in Touchpoint Scheduling Page

➥ Important: You can override the default blackout window settings, which are configured in 'Settings > General Settings,' from the scheduling options available in individual email or SMS communication touchpoints within any journey.

The 'Blackout Window' settings are only applicable to field change triggers ('On change - When a field's value changes') schedules.

To access the blackout window settings in any touchpoint;

1. Log in to Sense.
2. Navigate to Journeys.
3. Open any Journey and go to any SMS or Email Touchpoint.
4. Inside the touchpoint, navigate to the 'Scheduling' section.
5. You can either use the 'Default Blackout' settings or you can enter 'Custom Blackout' settings to override the default blackout settings.
6. You can take a look at the steps mentioned above to set up touchpoint specific Blackout window.

➠ Weekend handling

The "During weekends:" setting is available when

trigger = "on change"

trigger = "on a date and finished on that date"

• when date's type = (and of the three "field..." options)

• When "During weekends:" is set to any option except "Send all..."
  • There may be chance to messages to move to new day due to 
  • Any messages that is moved to a new day due to the disallowed weekends may fall during the blackout time on a Friday or a Monday.
  • If that day is a Friday, and if the blackout option is set to “Move send — until the next day, after blackout hours”, then the message is delayed until the following Monday during the non-blackout times.