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The 2025 Braze Forge conference made one thing abundantly clear: AI isn’t just the future of marketing, it’s the foundation.  From keynotes to hands-on labs, AI shaped nearly every session, conversation, and product announcement. This year Forge wasn’t about hype – it was about proof of impact. The Big Move: Braze AI Decisioning Studio Until now, industry analysts had questioned Braze’s depth in AI. That changed at Forge. With the acquisition of OfferFit, now rebranded as Braze AI Decisioning Studio , Braze introduced a clear, compelling path toward true 1:1 personalization. At its core, Decisioning Studio brings reinforcement learning into the Braze ecosystem. That means the system continuously adapts and optimizes campaign decisions in real time as customer behaviors shift. Instead of: Static “next best action” logic Over-reliance on segments that expire overnight You get: Dynamic, always-learning engagement tailored to each customer’s real-time context For marketers, this unlocks a new level of agility where the system learns and adjusts faster than your teams can run another A/B test. Two New AI Now Tools in Beta But Braze didn’t stop there. They also introduced two additional AI offerings that are now already in beta: AI Agent Console AI Operator These tools are designed to help teams work smarter, not harder. AI Agent Console Marketers can now build or customize AI agents to manage tasks, automate workflows, or generate campaign assets unique to their organization. Even better, prebuilt templates are on the way – for teams that want value without the technical lift. AI Operator This tool connects Braze directly to the AI model of your choice – whether that’s ChatGPT, Claude, or others. Think of it as giving your marketing platform a real-time brain trust, where data science, campaign strategy, and creative execution converge. For marketing teams balancing speed and scale, this is more than useful – it’s transformative. AI becomes an operational partner, not just an analytical tool. Making AI Practical: The Masterclass and Certification One of the standout moments from Forge was Braze’s exclusive AI Masterclass . It broke down the complex AI concepts into frameworks marketers can actually apply. The session walked through the four primary AI types, and explained how each fit into a holistic marketing strategy: Predictive Pattern Detection Generative Decisioning Of those, Decisioning stood out. Unlike traditional predictive models that rely on historical data, Decisioning AI adapts in real-time. It’s the backbone of “always-on” personalization – something that every modern marketing team should be building toward. Braze also launched a new AI Fundamentals certification, giving marketers a structured way to deepen their AI knowledge and readiness. Proof in the Results Customer stories brought these innovations to life. The consensus? Marketing by pre-determined, static segmentation is so “Basic”  (i.e., 2015). Take Taco Bell, for example. They leveraged Braze’s Decisioning Studio to help them move beyond broad segments and tapped 150+ behavioral signals to drive 200 million personalized interactions. The result? A 2.6x increase in transactions per customer . That’s not a minor efficiency gain…that’s marketing transformed by machine learning. The Covalent Take From our perspective, Forge 2025 marked a turning point for Braze, transitioning from a campaign platform to an adaptive intelligence system. With the integration of OfferFit and the debut of AI Agent and AI Operator, Braze isn’t just keeping up in AI, it’s setting the pace. For marketing leaders, the message is clear: Personalization will no longer be built manually, it will be orchestrated by AI Agility and speed of learning will define competitive advantage Data strategy and AI readiness will separate innovators from laggards At Covalent, we’ve long believed that data and adaptability drive modern marketing. Forge 2025 confirmed that belief – and gave marketers new tools to make it real. Now that the conference is over, the real work begins!

Inbox fatigue is real. Even your most loyal customers can feel overwhelmed when messages miss the mark leading them straight to the unsubscribe button. For brands, that’s a silent churn point. One click, and your connection is cut. The Smarter Way to Prevent Unsubscribes But there’s a better way: preference centers . By giving customers control over what they receive and how often, you reduce opt-outs and build trust that lasts. Not sure what a well-designed preference center looks like? Check out this short video for a walk-through of how to set one up in Braze and start putting customer choice at the center of your strategy. Why Giving Customers Control Matters Real connections start with giving customers control. A preference center puts that choice front and center, showing that you respect your customer’s attention and time. In return, you earn lasting trust and continued engagement. Here’s why it works: Reduces churn: People can adjust how they engage, instead of opting out completely. Improves data quality: Preference insights help refine targeting and compliance. Boosts performance: More relevant messages drive higher engagement and conversion. Builds brand trust: Transparency reinforces your reputation as a thoughtful communicator. The results? Fewer unsubscribes, stronger engagement, and more trust. Making Preference Centers Part of Your Marketing Strategy Beyond improving customer experience, preference centers also strengthen your overall marketing operations. They support compliance, help you manage subscription data more effectively, and give you visibility into what customers actually want to hear about. When combined with segmentation and personalization capabilities, they create a feedback loop that informs smarter targeting and content planning. You’re not just retaining more subscribers, you’re learning from them. The Takeaway Reducing unsubscribes isn’t about sending less, it’s about sending smarter. A well-designed preference center demonstrates respect for your audience’s choices and helps maintain meaningful engagement over time. Because when customers feel in control, they don’t just stay subscribed, they stay loyal. Want to Learn More? If you found this helpful and want more insights on creating smarter, more customer-centric marketing strategies, visit us at covalentmarketing.com or drop us a note here , we’d love to connect.

When it comes to reaching the right users in Braze, two tools often come up: segments and segment extensions . They sound similar, but they’re built for very different types of targeting. Knowing when to use each can take your campaigns from “pretty good” to truly strategic. Let’s break it down with a few real-world use cases. 🎥 Watch the Video Before we dive in, check out this video that walks you through segments and segment extensions in action: What Segments Do Best At their core, segments let you group users based on recent attributes, behaviors, or events. Think of them as your go-to for quick, real-time targeting. Purchase behavior (last 30 days): Need to reach everyone who bought a specific product recently? A segment has you covered. Message interaction : Want to retarget users who opened an email or clicked an SMS? Segments make this easy. Always up to date: As soon as a user meets the criteria, they’re added to the segment automatically. Best for: Recent behaviors, fast updates, common channels like email and SMS. When Segment Extensions Step In Sometimes, you need more than just the last 30 days of activity. That’s where segment extensions shine. They’re built fo r co mplex queries, historical depth, and external data sources. Deeper purchase analysis: Instead of “purchased once in the last month,” you might want “purchased twice in the last two years.” Extensions let you look back up to 730 days. Richer engagement insights: Need to see who engaged with a specific in-app message, content card, or promo across channels? Extensions give you that extra precision. External data power: By connecting to sources like your CRM or Snowflake, extensions let you combine Braze data with the rest of your customer view. Scheduled updates: Unlike segments, which refresh instantly, extensions update on a set schedule -making them ideal for strategic campaigns where timing isn’t down-to-the-minute. Best for: Historical lookbacks, cross-channel engagement, external data integrations, advanced filtering. Quick Recap Segments → Quick, real-time targeting. Perfect for recent purchases, message opens, and time-sensitive campaigns. Segment Extensions → Advanced, scheduled queries. Ideal for longer timeframes, multi-channel behavior, and blending Braze with outside data. When you know which tool to use - and when - you can create smarter, sharper campaigns that meet your audience right where they are.

In a world of fleeting attention spans, Braze gives marketers the tools to actually make moments matter. Traditional marketing channels like email, SMS, push notifications, and in-app messages offer marketers speed and agility – especially within the Braze dashboard. But they’re also fleeting: pushes disappear, emails sink down inboxes, and in-app messages vanish after engagement. Some of the more savvy Braze users may have also explored Content Cards that leverage a more persistent, embedded messaging experience – but they often require heavy backend integration and resourcing, slowing time to market. Braze Banners bridge the gap between quick-hit channels and persistent in-product messaging – without the heavy dev lift. Braze Banners bring persistence of Content Cards without the technical complexity. They bring banner messages into your app or site with the ease and speed markets expect. The Value Proposition in a Nutshell To better understand why Braze Banners are such a game changer, here are four key benefits that they bring to your marketing team: Always-on, Real-Time Relevance Braze Banners deliver always-on, personalized messaging right within your digital product experience where users engage most. They dynamically update each session, allowing marketers to instantly showcase relevant content like live pricing, inventory alerts, and personalized promotions without repeated backend intervention. Design Freedom Without Dev Overhead With Braze Banners, marketers enjoy complete control, leveraging intuitive drag-and-drop components (or custom HTML/CSS if you’d prefer) right from within the Braze interface. This frees your marketing team from dependency on technical resources, thus allowing for faster launches and agile campaign optimization. Granular Targeting & Priority Logic Braze Banners empower you to granularly segment your audience, targeting VIP customers, new users, or whatever group makes sense for your organization. Additionally, you control campaign priorities to ensure the right banner message surfaces at the perfect moment, maximizing impact and relevance. Omni Channel Marketing Braze Banners seamlessly connect your external marketing efforts (email, push, SMS) to critical in-product interactions (i.e. omni-channel marketing), converting customer intent into action. By smartly sequencing banners alongside other Braze channels such as Content Cards and In-App Messages, marketers deliver cohesive, high-impact experiences, driving stronger conversions and deeper user engagement. How Braze Banners Simplify Common Marketing Challenges Here are a few common marketing challenges and how Braze Banners offer a simpler, more scalable solution compared to traditional approaches. Challenge Traditional Solution How Braze Banners Solve it Slow launches due to developer bottlenecks Wait for IT bandwidth availability to code and deploy changes Immediate, marketing controlled deployments, independent of dev teams Intrusive, potentially disruptive messaging Pop-ups or modal interruptions Non-intrusive, persistent inline banners that blend naturally into user experiences Promotions that quickly lose visibility Repetitive pushes or extended card lifespans Banners stay visible in the user journey, keeping offers front and center Aligning your web/app marketing with other messaging channels to make sure they aren’t in conflict Careful and arduous planning of resources to ensure cross-channel campaigns are in sync Once a placement ID has been defined by tech resources, up to 10 different banners can be defined to match what other channels are conveying to customers How to Launch Your First Banner in Seven Steps Ready to nudge free-tier users toward Premium subscriptions the instant they hit your paywall? Or maybe you want to deploy fresh custom creative for a flash sale. With Braze Banners you can swap the legacy banner out with your new one – and there are no IT Agile sprints necessary! Here’s how to make a well-placed banner ready to serve the perfect message at exactly the right moment. Prerequisite: Once your dev team defines a few simple placement containers, your marketing team can take it from there – no further coding required. Create Placements in Settings → Banner Placements , give each a clear name and ID (e.g., poc-banner, Homepage_Hero). Ensure that Placement defined in the Braze UI references the placement div name you and your tech team collaborated on. Create a Banner Campaign via Messaging → Campaigns → Create Campaign → Banner . Remember to tag it for easy reporting. Select the Placement for your Braze Banner using the Placement dropdown values created in step #1. Compose & Design the Banner with drag-and-drop blocks or custom code; define click behavior (deep link, URL, or event logging). Set the Duration to be indefinite or schedule start/end dates for time-boxed promos. Set the Priority where if you have multiple banners you can drag-and-drop them so the most important message displays. Pro-Tip: Click on the Set exact priority button and Apply Sort once you have defined the priority of the Banner(s) to lock it in. Test & Launch: preview, send a test to QA devices, then hit Launch . Boom! Your banner is live without an app-store release. Launching is just the beginning. To drive results over time, your team should follow a few tried-and-true best practices that boost banner impact across every campaign. Banner Best Practices: From Good to Great Launching your first Braze Banner is a major step – but the real impact comes from how well you optimize over time. From messaging clarity to testing and targeting, these best practices help ensure your banners don’t just get seen –they drive results. Short and Sweet Messaging: Make your point in under five seconds. Clarity beats cleverness, especially on mobile. Design for Mobile-First: Use responsive units, safe zones, and high contrast CTAs. Small screens demand precision. Personalize Everything: Use Liquid logic to dynamically swap names, product SKUs, or loyalty tiers. Personalized banners consistently outperform generic ones. Test, Learn, Repeat: Regularly A/B test banner designs, placements, and copy for constant improvement. Small tweaks = big wins! Measure What Matters: Go beyond click-through rates. Tie banners to conversion events (purchases, subscription upgrades) to prove incremental revenue, not just engagement. Wrapping Up Braze Banners remove technical roadblocks and give marketers the freedom to experiment, optimize, and move faster — all within your existing strategy. If you're already leveraging traditional channels and Content Cards, adding Braze Banners into your strategy will enhance your ability to deliver consistent and compelling messaging. Ready to get started? . Curious how Braze Banners can drive measurable lifts in engagement and conversions? Reach out today or watch our Braze Bites video series or reach out for a custom walkthrough.

Email isn’t just about sending messages—it’s about inspiring action. But how do you know if your campaigns are actually working? With every campaign generating a flood of metrics, it can be hard to tell which numbers actually matter. Whether you're launching from a new IP or scaling a seasoned program, success ultimately boils down to just five core indicators. The rest? Mostly noise. As we’ve shared in previous pieces on email deliverability, staying ahead of shifting standards from inbox providers like Gmail and Yahoo is part of our DNA. What hasn’t changed is this: there are five key metrics that truly determine your sender reputation and long-term email performance: Bounce rates Open rates Click rates Complaint rates Unsubscribe rates Each tells a different story about how inbox providers—and subscribers—perceive your emails. Let’s break them down. Bounce Rate: Your Check Engine Light A high bounce rate is an early warning sign. It signals to Email Service Providers (ESPs) that something’s off, which can hurt your sender reputation before your message even hits an inbox. Hard bounces are permanent (ex. invalid or non-existent addresses). Action: Remove these immediately. Repeated hard bounces damage your IP reputation and signal poor list hygiene. Soft bounces are temporary (ex. full inboxes, server issues, oversized messages). Action: Monitor closely. If soft bounces remain high, slow down your sending cadence, reduce email size, or adjust timing. Try to keep your bounce rates below 0.5%. Anything higher means your list hygiene needs work, and, if left unchecked, it can drag down your deliverability. Make a habit of reviewing list quality and cleaning out invalid or inactive addresses on a regular basis. Total and Unique Open Rate: Useful, With Context Open rates used to be the go-to metric for measuring subscriber engagement, but not all opens are created equal. While they’re still helpful, they’ve become a bit trickier thanks to privacy features like Apple’s Mail Privacy Protection (MPP). MPP pre-loads emails and images—making it look like your email was opened, even if it wasn’t. That’s why you’ll want to track: Total open rate includes multiple opens by the same recipient, capturing return engagement. Unique open rate shows how many individuals opened your email, regardless of how many times. Lower open rates might signal issues with your subject line or timing. Strong open rates generally fall between 17–28%, depending on your industry. Use A/B testing to optimize subject lines and send times, but always pair open data with other engagement metrics. Click Rate: The Engagement Truth Teller Clicks are a clear signal of user intent, they reveal who engaged with your email. A click is an intentional action, your reader saw something they liked and took the next step. That said, not all emails are designed to drive clicks – think transactional messages (like receipts or confirmations). For campaigns meant to drive action use this metric to: Gauge content relevance Identify your most compelling CTAs Compare performance between across message types If click rates are falling flat on emails meant to drive action, try tweaking CTA position, tightening the offer, and making the path to click as clear as possible. Complaint Rate: A Silent Reputation Killer Spam complaints are bad news and one of the fastest ways to hurt your sender reputation. Just a handful can tank your deliverability across your whole list—not just for the complainers. A high complaint rate signals to ESPs that your emails may be unwanted or irrelevant, which can lead to serious deliverability issues and chips away at your credibility. As those negative complaints add up, ESPs like Gmail and Yahoo! may begin filtering or outright blocking your emails, resulting in: Lower inbox placement Long-term reputation damage and blacklisting Reduced marketing ROI Keep your spam complaint rate under 0.1%. If it climbs, you will start seeing deliverability issues. The only defense is prevention. One sure strategy is to suppress complainers to prevent repeat offenders. Unsubscribe Rate: Feedback in Disguise While unsubscribes are less harmful than spam complaints, they still offer valuable insight into how your audience is engaging (or not) with your content. An opt out often means your emails aren’t meeting expectations or needs of the subscriber. High unsubscribe rates can reveal: Content fatigue - recipients are overwhelmed or no longer finding value Misaligned targeting - the content doesn’t reflect their interests or stage in their journey List quality issues - contacts may not have genuinely opted in or aren’t the right audience Sometimes an unsubscribe is actually good—it means you're refining your list to those who are truly interested. . However, patterns of disengagement are worth digging deeper. It may be time to evaluate your messaging content, relevance, and frequency to meet the needs of your audience. Final Thoughts: Play the Long Game Forget vanity metrics. Real email success is built on trust, relevance, and consistency . The most effective email strategies use meaningful data to improve engagement, refine deliverability, and build long-term audience trust. Want to make every email count? Check out our other article, Send with Purpose: Email Tactics That Convert , and to learn how to turn emails into results—not just notifications.

Email marketing remains one of the most effective channels for engaging customers and driving meaningful business results. But imagine crafting the perfect email campaign, only to have a significant portion of your messages never reach inboxes. Frustrating, right? The culprit could be poor list hygiene, which can harm your sender reputation, lower deliverability rates, and negatively impact campaign performance. A critical aspect of list hygiene is understanding and managing email bounces effectively. While most email service providers handle hard bounces automatically, soft bounces present a unique challenge that requires a more nuanced approach. To tackle this, Braze has introduced new soft bounce filtering capabilities, providing marketers with powerful tools to identify, track, and resolve temporary delivery failures. By implementing a strategic soft bounce management strategy within Braze, you can boost deliverability rates, protect your sender reputation, and ensure your messages reach the right audience. Understanding Bounces: Hard vs. Soft Bounces occur when emails cannot be delivered to the intended recipient, but not all bounces are the same. There are two types of bounces: Hard bounces occur when an email cannot be delivered due to permanent issues such as invalid email addresses or domains. Industry best practice suggests keeping hard bounce rates below 0.5%. Soft bounces are temporary delivery failures caused by issues like full mailboxes, temporarily unavailable email servers, or temporary mail blocking. A healthy soft bounce rate typically stays below 2%. Braze automatically manages hard bounces by suppressing these addresses after a single failed deliverability attempt, which aligns with industry best practices. However, soft bounce management requires a more nuanced approach, and Braze has recently enhanced its platform capabilities in this area. Measuring Your Soft Bounce Rate in Braze Understanding your soft bounce rate is essential for optimizing email deliverability. While Braze's Email Performance Dashboard (Analytics > Email Performance) provides key deliverability metrics, it primarily displays the Delivery Rate and Hard Bounce Rate. To calculate the Soft Bounce Rate, use the following formula: Soft Bounce Rate = 100% - (Delivery Rate + Hard Bounce Rate) To further analyze bounce trends, check the Braze Message Log (Settings > Message Log) where you can review detailed bounce reasons returned by mailbox providers. Identifying patterns in soft bounces helps to refine your segmentation strategy and improve inbox placement. Implementing Soft Bounce Management in Braze The new Braze soft bounce filter in the segmentation area provides a starting point for managing soft bounces. You can create audience filters based on the number of soft bounces within the last 30 days and then use these filters to exclude recipients from campaigns or trigger re-engagement efforts. Campaign-Level Approach Want to see immediate improvements? Add a filter to your campaigns to target users who "has not soft bounced" or "has soft bounced less than X times in 30 days." This one simple step alone can significantly improve your campaign performance! Strategic Long-Term Approach For more advanced soft bounce management, leverage Braze Canvas to create a longer-term approach. This approach is particularly helpful for high-volume senders or those with longer sales cycles. Create a segment: Define a rule such as "has soft bounces more than 2 times in 30 days". Build a Canvas: Use the segment as the target audience and run the Canvas daily. Update user profiles: Include a User Update step to either: Mark the user as "unsubscribed" from email. Create a custom attribute to track bounces or flag the user as "undeliverable". Filter messaging: Use the “unsubscribed” status or custom attribute to filter recipients from future campaigns. This more sophisticated approach offers several advantages: Extends management beyond the standard 30-day window. Provides value for less frequent senders or those with longer sales cycles (such as B2B businesses) Creates opportunities for A/B testing to measure the impact of soft bounce management. Maximizing Braze's Capabilities By leveraging Braze's segmentation filters for soft bounce management alongside the platform's automatic hard bounce handling, you can: Obtain more accurate and valuable metrics Focus email efforts on users who can actually receive your messages Improve overall channel performance Protect your sender reputation Enhance inbox placement rates Email deliverability isn’t just a technical issue—it’s the key to a successful email marketing strategy. As we’ve shown, implementing a strategic soft bounce management strategy offers several advantages. In the short term, it improves delivery rates and provides more accurate campaign metrics. And over the long term, it enhances sender reputation, ensures better inbox placement, and increases engagement rates. By leveraging Braze’s expanded capabilities along with some advanced soft bounce management strategies, you can ensure your messages reach the right audience and drive meaningful engagement. For more insights on email deliverability, check out: What You Need to Know About BIMI and Email Authentication Boosting Your Email Game: A Guide to IP Warming and Reputation Management

Migrating to a new email platform is no small feat, and ensuring your emails land in the inbox—not the spam folder—is critical. With over 15 years of email marketing experience, we’ve seen it all. That’s why we’re sharing our top 10 IP warming tips to make your transition smoother. Follow these best practices to maintain high deliverability rates and set your email program up for long-term success. Top 10 IP Warming Tips Plan Like a Pro: Before hitting send, create a detailed IP warming plan. This means segmenting your audience, determining your starting volume, and setting up a gradual sending schedule. A solid plan ensures a smooth and controlled warm-up process. Start with Your VIPs: Your most engaged subscribers are your secret weapon. They’re more likely to open, click, and interact with your emails, which signals positive engagement to ISPs. Begin with them, then slowly expand to less engaged segments as your IP reputation grows. Keep It Clean: A pristine email list is essential for good deliverability. Remove inactive subscribers, bounced email addresses, and spam traps. A clean list strengthens your sender reputation and minimizes the risk of landing in spam. Content is King: During the warming phase, your content needs to shine. Focus on crafting emails that drive opens, clicks, and engagement—ISPs take notice of these signals. Slow and Steady Wins the Race: Start small and scale gradually. For example, Covalent Marketing recommends beginning with no more than 100 emails and increasing your volume by up to 75% daily until you reach your usual sending levels. If your goal is 1,000,000 emails per day, give yourself a few weeks to ramp up. A steady approach tells ISPs you’re a legitimate sender. Consistency is Key: Establish a regular sending cadence and stick to it. Sudden spikes or drops in volume can raise red flags with ISPs, so keep it steady. Keep an Eye on Metrics: Monitor open rates, click-through rates, bounce rates, and spam complaints. If something looks off, adjust your strategy before issues escalate. Authenticate Everything: Implement email authentication protocols like SPF, DKIM, and DMARC. These verify your emails’ legitimacy, prevent spoofing, and boost trust with ISPs. Leverage Tracking Tools: Use tools like Google Postmaster, MXToolbox, 250ok, and Return Path Sender Score to monitor your sender reputation and spot potential issues before they become big problems. Patience is a Virtue: IP warming isn’t an overnight process. It takes time to build a solid sender reputation, so trust the process and stay consistent—the results will come. Keep Your Momentum Going Successfully warming your IP address is just the beginning. Maintaining your sender reputation requires ongoing monitoring and adjustments to your strategy - it's not a "one and done" activity. Keep an eye on deliverability metrics and be ready to pivot as needed. Looking for more insights? Check out our guide on BIMI and Email Authentication to take your email marketing to the next level.

Contrary to the rumors on Page Six, email is not dead. It is still one of the most powerful tools in a marketer’s toolkit. So how do you keep your email from being just another unread notification? Competition is fierce and plentiful, and cutting through the noise now demands a smarter, more thoughtful approach. Today’s customers have lofty expectations of the brands they choose and rightfully expect messaging that feels personal, relevant, and data driven. The brands that deliver this real value are the ones winning (and keeping) their loyalty. While much of this may seem obvious, it’s the small, thoughtful details that drive results. Check out our best practices below to take your email strategy from good to great! Subject Lines That Get Opened—And Actually Deliver The subject line is your first (and sometimes only) shot to grab a reader’s attention. It should be short, clear, and purposeful. The best-performing subject lines don’t rely on tricks or gimmicks; they offer real value or pique curiosity. For example, instead of a vague " Don’t Miss This ," try " Your 20% Off Code Ends Tonight " or " 3 Tips to Improve Onboarding Today ." Use urgency sparingly and strategically; while a well-placed deadline or exclusive offer can boost opens, overuse can lead to fatigue. And always aim to stay under 30 characters when you can, especially considering 42% of users open email on mobile . Guide the Scroll: Subheaders That Keep Readers Hooked Congratulations! You’ve written an awesome subject line, and your customer opened your email. But you can’t claim success just yet; the next challenge is keeping them engaged. Enter the value of subheaders. Strong subheaders help scan-ability and structure, making it easy for the reader to find what matters most. Maybe a little something like this. Think of them as signposts, each one should clearly guide the reader to a piece of content or action. This is your chance to be creative and specific. Overly generic headers like “Our Latest News” are obvious and boring. Instead, be specific and give them a reason to read on: “ 3 New Features to Try This Week ” or “ Here’s How to Get Started .” Make Every Pixel Count: Pairing Visuals with Smart Copy Design matters. And chances are, there’s someone on your team who knows how to make visuals shine. Don’t take these people for granted, both design and layout play a critical role in the success of your email. A common rule of thumb is a 60/40 text-to-image ratio, but ultimately, it depends on the message content. No one wants to read an email novel, but remember, visuals should support the content , not replace it. Use product imagery, illustrations, or simple infographics to highlight key points, but avoid overly complex designs that slow download times or break on mobile. For email backgrounds and color palettes, accessibility should be a priority. High-contrast combinations like dark text on a light background are typically best for readability. Be sure to always stay aligned with your brand standards, as well as avoid overwhelming color schemes to keep the readers coming back. To get those clicks, keep your “call to action” (CTA) buttons bold, clear, and consistent in placement so users can easily take action. Curious if you’re on the right track with your design? The Braze Inbox Vision tool can help you check formatting, test your layout across devices (even dark mode!), and make sure nothing breaks before you hit send. Write Like You Talk—And Your Customers Will Listen Email may sometimes come across a bit tone-deaf, but tone always matters. Today’s audiences know what they want and aren’t falling for the old “bait and switch.” They respond better to conversational, helpful messaging rather than overly formal or sales-y copy. Think about who’s receiving the email. What would be useful or interesting to them? For example, instead of saying, “ Maximize your operational efficiency with our integrated platform ,” try “ Need a faster way to get things done? We’ve got you. ” Along those lines, avoid jargon, keep paragraphs short, and use sentence structure that mimics natural speech patterns. Also, keep in mind that users often skim, so bold key phrases, break up long sections, and make CTAs easy to spot. Experiment Often. Improve Always. Even ‘best practices’ need to be revisited regularly, strategies that once worked can quickly become outdated. Test different subject lines, layouts, and CTA placements to see what resonates with your audience. What works in one campaign or industry might flop in another. Make testing part of your process, not an afterthought, and use those insights to continuously refine your strategy. At the end of the day, the most effective emails may not be the flashiest, but they’re the clearest and personally relevant to the reader. They understand the customer, offer something of value, and make the next step easy and obvious. Whether you're nurturing leads, onboarding new customers, or re-engaging lapsed users, thoughtful content and intentional design will take your email strategy further. Need help translating these best practices into action within Braze? Read our article “ From Emails to Experiences ” to learn how to best utilize email in your customer journeys. And remember, Covalent Marketing is always here to support your team in building smart, effective email campaigns that resonate, so reach out at BrazeHelp@covalentmarketing.com .

One of the reasons we’re such big fans of Braze is their constant push to innovate and improve how marketers engage with customers. Braze is back with new tools to help you personalize smarter and connect deeper. As part of their City x City: London showcase, they’ve unveiled two exciting updates— Canvas Context Variables and two new messaging channels ( RCS & Banners )—that give marketers more ways to deliver relevant, real-time experiences. Let’s take a look at what’s new. Feature Set 1: Canvas Context (Early Access) Marketers, get ready to enable your customer personalization with even greater value. Context Variables —exclusive to the Canvas workflow—let you flexibly use temporary data attributes like flight times or purchase totals for real-time personalization. This is perfect for scenarios where the timing or content is dynamic and short-lived, and you don’t need to add it to the user’s profile. These Context Variables can be created when the Canvas is first initialized by an API or data event, or later in the Canvas by adding a Context step. To give you perspective, here’s an example of where you could benefit from a Context Variable. Imagine you’re a retailer having a “ Splash into Summer Sale .” If a customer buys $50 of merchandise, they get free shipping. Here's how it could work: Trigger a Canvas to initiate when they add an item to their cart. Create a Context Variable called ‘Gap to Free Shipping.’ Use a simple Liquid code to generate the dollar amount they need to add to their cart to be eligible for free shipping. And now you can now send a personalized message to your shopper letting them know how much more they need to spend to qualify for free shipping! Remember, this feature is currently in Early Access , but we’re already excited for all the use cases it will unlock. Feature Set 2: New Marketing Channels: RCS & Banners Braze is expanding your reach with two powerful new messaging channels designed to meet users in the moments that matter: Rich Communication Services (RCS) and Banners. Whether you're looking to elevate mobile engagement with rich, interactive messaging or deliver persistent in-app prompts that feel seamless and personalized, these channels offer new ways to enhance your customer journeys across platforms. RCS: A Smarter Take on SMS Think of RCS as SMS’s smarter, more expressive sibling. This modern messaging format supports: Typing indicators Verified senders Read receipts Suggested reply buttons High-resolution images and video Better yet, RCS creates a more natural back-and-forth chatter with users making it feel less like an automated call center interaction, and more like a real conversation. Never fear, if a user’s device doesn’t support RCS, your message will default to SMS/MMS. Just like SMS, RCS availability varies by country, so check your coverage before you think about texting across the globe. Banners: Always-On, Always-Personal Banners are a new in-product messaging option for your web or mobile apps. They are designed to deliver persistent, personalized messages that adapt to each user for every new session they start. Some valuable use cases to consider include always-on promotions or an encouragement to upgrade their account to the next subscription level. You can build these new Banners using Braze’s drag-and-drop editor or your own custom HTML. You might think of banners like content cards—but there are some key differences as outlined below: Feature Content Cards Banners Lifespan Expire in 30 days Persistent unless you set an end date Integration Built-in Requires a new Integration Layout Usually Requires the help of your IT team Marketers can build with drag and drop or HTML Use Case Time-sensitive Always-on, contextual Want to dig deeper into these features or explore how they can enhance your customer journeys? Let us know—we’d love to walk you through the possibilities. Drop us a line at brazehelp@covalentmarketing.com .

As a Braze technologist, there’s a lot riding on your shoulders. Marketers are often looking to you to implement the cool Braze features they were sold. From Content Cards to Push Notifications, getting everything right on the first try is a tall order—even for seasoned pros. What’s even more frustrating is not having any troubleshooting resources. You know the feeling—that maddening, hair-pulling moment when you’re trying to find the needle in the haystack. But here’s the good news: you’re not alone, and it’s not always your fault. Even top-tier Braze SDKs sometimes throw unexpected curveballs. The trick isn’t avoiding these issues entirely—it’s knowing how to tackle them swiftly and effectively. In this article, we’ll equip you with actionable troubleshooting tips to help you move from stuck to solutions—fast. Using powerful tools like Chrome DevTools, Android Studio Logcat, Xcode, and savvy diagnostics, this cheat sheet is your lifeline to solving Braze SDK anomalies and getting your campaigns back on track. Debugging Tools of the Trade Troubleshooting efficiently and effectively requires the right tools for the job. Below are the core debugging platforms we recommend adding to your toolkit. We’ll refer to these frequently throughout the article. Learn more about the tools here: Web: Chrome DevTools  – https://developer.chrome.com/docs/devtools Mobile: iOS Xcode – https://developer.apple.com/xcode/ Android Studio – https://developer.android.com/studio Braze SDK Troubleshooting Cheat Sheet 1. Fixing Missing Content Cards Content Cards are powerful for delivering persistent, personalized experiences. But sometimes, they just don’t show up. Here's how to track down the issue. A. Check If the SDK Is Initialized Correctly First things first, confirm that the Braze SDK is loading properly. Web: In a web browser open DevTools → Console , then in the prompt area type: window.braze It should look something like the following. If it returns undefined , the SDK isn’t initialized. Ensure the correct SDK script is included in your site: Mobile : verify initialization in Logcat (Android Studio) or the Xcode console. Look for the below statement in the logs: [Braze] SDK Initialized This message confirms the SDK has successfully started. PRO TIP: SDK versions update frequently. Always confirm you're using the latest version compatible with your setup. B. Confirm the User Is Identified Braze often associates Content Cards with specific users. If the user isn’t properly identified, the cards won’t show. To test this, you can perform the following commands via your web browser. Web: In your Chrome DevTools , type: window.braze.getUser().getUserId(); If it returns null or undefined, make sure you’re identifying users correctly: window.braze.changeUser("your_user_id"); Mobile : Ensure your user is being set by assigning an external_id: braze.getInstance(context).changeUser("external_id"); C. Force a Sync If the above commands return a legitimate user ID (external_ID) and the content cards are still not displaying, it could be due to many outside factors. Performance issues—like poor connectivity, browser caching, or device lag—can affect how quickly the Braze SDK syncs with your content – think Content Cards. In cases like this, we can perform a manual synchronization. Web : Execute this command via the console: window.braze.requestContentCardsRefresh(); Mobile : Execute the following command: braze.getInstance(context).requestContentCardsRefresh(); D. Check Braze Dashboard Campaigns If nothing’s working, it's time to validate the Campaign or Canvas associated with the Content Card in the Braze dashboard. Double-check your settings at Braze Dashboard  → Campaigns → Content Cards , and answer these questions: Campaign Targeting Rules – Are you targeting the correct user? Campaign Status – Is the campaign active and not expired? Triggering Events – Does the campaign require a specific event to fire? 2. Troubleshooting In-App Message Delivery You launched a sleek In-App Message (IAM) campaign—and nothing shows up. The creative is on point, the timing is perfect, ready to engage your customers. You start the campaign then there are no messages, no delivery, just crickets—no messages, no activity. Just like content cards, IAMs can sometimes be stubborn. Here are the troubleshooting steps to track them down and make sure they’re delivering as expected. A. Check IAM Display Triggers In-App Messages rely on campaign rules and will only appear when a campaign rule is met. Here are some common scenarios to look out for. Confirm your app is logging the trigger event. Web: Open DevTools → Console , then type: window.braze.logCustomEvent("purchase_complete"); Mobile: Type this command in Logcat  (Android Studio): braze.getInstance(context).logCustomEvent("purchase_complete"); A custom event should be created by the Mobile SDK in Braze. PRO TIP: Custom events like purchase_complete are often used to trigger In-App Messages. This command helps verify that your event is being correctly logged and recognized by Braze. If it’s a session-triggered IAM, the session may have expired or become invalid. As a test, try restarting the session using the following command: window.braze.openSession(); This allows the SDK to track a new session and trigger the In-App message. B. Check IAM Frequency Controls Braze has systems in place to prevent IAM spam. If a user has dismissed an IAM, it won’t show again unless refreshed. To check these controls, you can: Web: Try resetting IAM display in Web DevTools using this command. window.braze.requestImmediateDataFlush(); Mobile : Make sure IAMs aren't paused by executing the command below. braze.getInstance(context).setInAppMessageSuppressed(false); C. Inspect Console Errors Still stuck? Check for errors in: Chrome DevTools Console – Look JavaScript errors and those related to CORS issues, ad blockers, or tracking protection. Logcat (Android) or Xcode Console (iOS) – Look for SDK warnings or errors in Braze-related logs. 3. Troubleshooting Push Notification Delivery Your app just launched a big sale, and you’ve queued up a Push Notification to spread the word. You’re picturing users rushing in, snagging deals, and boosting conversions. But instead of a surge in traffic, you’re met with stagnant results. If notifications don’t reach users, engagement stalls before it even starts. From device OS-level permissions to expired tokens, there are a few common culprits that could be blocking delivery. Let’s break down the troubleshooting steps to make sure your messages are reaching the right audience, right on time. A. Confirm the User Is Opted In Web: Execute this command via the DevTools: window.braze.isPushSupported() && window.braze.isPushPermissionGranted(); If this returns a false value, you will need to prompt users to enable push by incorporating this code in your Web app: window.braze.registerPush(); Mobile: Use this code to confirm that the device’s APNS token is being captured. If this returns null, the device isn’t registered to receive push notifications. Take note of the platform and verify these. Android : Confirm the app has the required POST_NOTIFICATIONS permission. iOS : Confirm APNS tokens are properly registered via the following command: braze.sharedInstance()?.pushToken B. Verify Device Push Token Registration Braze needs the correct push token to send notifications. Execute the following to check the logs via the platform specific logging tools. Web: window.braze.getDeviceId(); This returns the current session’s device ID and confirms that it's successfully registered for push. If it’s missing, the SDK likely hasn’t registered the device. Mobile: braze.getInstance(context).getDeviceId(); If this is empty, confirm push registration occurs at app startup. C. Send a Test Push Always test push manually. It's best practice and low-hanging fruit. To perform a test, follow these steps. Go to Braze Dashboard → Messaging → Push Notifications Select Test Push Notification Campaign → Test Users D. Check for Silent Failures If nothing is received and the push never arrives, debug Firebase Cloud Messaging (FCM) for Android or Apple Push Notification Service (APNS) for iOS using the following steps. iOS: In Xcode Console, look for errors like, No valid “aps” entitlement string to determine the root cause. Android: In Android Studio’s Terminal, use the following command to check for delivery errors. This command filters logs specifically for Firebase push activity. adb logcat -s FirebaseMessaging Check for silent delivery failures or misconfigurations. Wrapping Up Troubleshooting Braze SDK issues doesn’t have to be frustrating. With the right tools and know-how, you can quickly resolve common problems with Content Cards, In-App Messages, and Push Notifications. Want to dive deeper? Check out our YouTube channel for hands-on demos or connect with us on LinkedIn for real-time support. We’re here to help you get the most out of Braze—every step of the way.