Testing messages before they're sent and testing campaigns before they're activated is a best practice. Test Groups simplify the process for both: Rather than manually entering email addresses again and again for the people you want to test a message or campaign, you can alternatively select a Test Group to auto-populate up to 100 email addresses with the click of a button.

If your organization tests a lot of messages and/or campaigns, especially via specific groups of people, spending a little time up front creating Test Groups results in greater efficiency. You can create as many Test Groups as you need, based on your various types of messages and campaigns. This is a great way to get feedback from subject matter experts before publishing your messages and activating your campaigns.

NOTE: Keep in mind that only one Test Group can be used with a message or campaign at a time. So, if you want to test via multiple groups, you'll have to perform them separately.

NOTE: Test Groups don't receive voting, invoicing, or event-confirmation messages.

Access your Test Groups

To view your Test Groups:

1. Access the Admin interface.
2. Navigate to Contacts > Test Groups.

TIP: On list pages, click a column header to sort on that column. Click the columns count below the list to add and remove columns in the current view.

Create a Test Group

1. Click the plus sign to the right of the page title.

2. In the dialog:

1. Specify a name for the Test Group (required).
2. Add at least one email address, but no more than 100 (required). You can do so one per line or as a comma-delimited list.
3. Check the All Sent Messages box to have ALL sent messages go to this Test Group (optional).

3. Click Save.

Use a Test Group

Let's take a look at how to use your Test Groups for messages and campaigns.

Messages

1. While creating or editing a message, click the Review & Send tab.

2. Scroll down toward the bottom of the page, to the Get feedback on your content before publishing section. Click the Send Test button.

3. Select Choose a Test Group from the first menu.
4. Select a Test Group from the menu below.
5. Enter what to prepend to the message subject, as well as the email address test replies should be sent to.
6. Click Send Mail Test to send your message to all recipients in the Test Group.

Campaigns

1. In the Admin interface, navigate to Campaigns.

2. On the In Progress tab (you can only test in progress campaigns), hover over the menu icon to the left of the campaign you want to test and select Edit.
3. Navigate to the Test tab.

4. Add testers by selecting a Test Group on the left to populate the field to the right.

5. Click the Begin Test button at the bottom of the page (if you have a lot of Test Groups, you'll need to scroll to the bottom of the page to see it).

Edit a Test Group

1. Select a Test Group and click Edit.

2. In the dialog, you can:

1. Rename the Test Group (optional).
2. Add and/or remove email addresses, ensuring that there is at least one but no more than 100 (optional).
3. Check or uncheck the All Sent Messages box to control whether this Test Group should receive ALL sent messages (optional).

3. Click Save.

Delete a Test Group

1. Select a Test Group and click Delete.

2. In the dialog, click Yes to confirm the deletion.

WARNING: This action is irreversible.