Creating a communication with an attached report

Using a communication template, you can send either a static SSRS report (same report to each recipient), or an SSRS report that is personalized for each recipient to contain only data relevant to them.

Warning! The SSRS report (RDL file) you choose must be a standalone SSRS report. IQA-based reports are not supported in communication templates or process automation. See Creating standalone SSRS reports for more information.

To send a personalized report, ensure that your report has a parameter that can be used to filter the results for each recipient. To filter by the recipient’s ID, include a parameter in your report for ContactId, CustomerId, ID, iMISId, PartyId, or StudentId. The communication template will then automatically pass the ID for each recipient to the report parameter.

For other parameters such as Order Number or Invoice Number, you can include a column in the recipient IQA query with a matching name or alias. The value for that column will then be passed to the report for each recipient. For personalized reports using a parameter other than the recipient’s ID, the Pass query values to matching report parameters option should be selected after attaching the report to the communication template.

To create a communication with an attached report, do the following:

  1. Identify the SSRS report to be attached to the communication. If you want to personalize the attachment for each recipient, ensure the report has the correct parameter.
  2. Create an IQA query to identify the recipients of the communication. Include a column that identifies the recipient’s ID. If your report requires a parameter other than an ID, include a column that matches the name of the report parameter. For more information on creating these queries, see Creating a list of contacts to email.
  3. From the Staff site, go to Marketing > Communication templates.
  4. Select New > Communication.
  5. (Header tab) Enter the From email address and the Subject of the communication.
  6. (Body tab) Compose the email message, then do the following:
    1. Select Add attachment and select the SSRS report (RDL file) that you want to send the recipients.
    2. Note: When opened as an attachment, reports containing subreports are not displayed properly in a PDF viewer. It is recommended that you do not send reports containing subreports as attachments.

    3. If your report requires a parameter other than an ID, select Pass query values to matching report parameters. After selecting this option, the template will display which IQA columns from the recipient query will be passed to which report parameter.
  7. (Recipients tab) From the Query field, select the recipients.
  8. Note: The recipient data source can be overwritten if you send the communication from a query menu or through Process automation.

For more information about creating a communication, see Creating email communication templates.

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