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SLATE / ADAPTIVE COMMUNICATION

OCTAVE.

Outreach Communication Template Assembly and Variation Engine

One template.
A more relevant next step.

A reusable Slate Deliver template that assembles color, imagery, contacts, and next steps around the student receiving it.

Explore the student-specific CTA

Designed and built by David Dysart.

An eight-armed brass instrument assembles parchment panels around a central letter on an oxblood folio.

THE PROBLEM BEHIND THE BUILD

Make the next step
easier to find.

The build responds to two institutional challenges: lower website traffic and students struggling to reach their portal throughout the application process.

OCTAVE was designed to put that route inside every message: a prominent application or portal action, plus a relevant reason to explore the institution’s website.

THE SIGNATURE FEATURE

A call to action.
Chosen for this student.

Slate considers distance, event availability, prior registration, academic interest, and aid context before selecting a supporting link.

  1. 01 / ELIGIBILITY

    Is it relevant?

    Check the student’s context and whether the opportunity is available.

  2. 02 / PRIORITY & WEIGHT

    What should surface?

    Ordered rules and weighted thresholds choose among appropriate opportunities.

  3. 03 / CONTROLLED VARIATION

    What appears today?

    The selection value stays consistent for a student that day; the recommendation can vary across later sends.

REQUIRED ACTION / FIXED PRIORITY

A clear route forward.

Apply, complete an application, or check the portal. Essential steps stay prominent and separate from the weighted selection.

Check your application status

SUPPORTING CTA / CONTEXTUAL VARIATION

A relevant invitation.

A nearby student could see an available visit. Another could explore a major, financial aid, research, or student life.

Explore your academic interest

Illustrative actions. Selection happens when the message is prepared; an email already sent does not change.

MANY PARTS / ONE MAINTAINED SHELL

Eight parts.
One Deliver.

Staff focus on the campaign. The surrounding template supplies the context.

  1. 01

    Accent color

    A student-selected accent carries through links, buttons, and details.

  2. 02

    Header imagery

    Major, seasonal, and institutional options share a clear fallback order.

  3. 03

    Journey context

    The message reflects where the student is in the application process.

  4. 04

    Portal action

    Apply, complete an application, or return to the applicant portal.

  5. 05

    Next relevant date

    The deadline or milestone that fits the student’s current stage.

  6. 06

    Counselor contact

    An assigned counselor, with an admissions-team fallback.

  7. 07

    Supporting CTA

    One relevant opportunity selected through weighted rules.

  8. 08

    Campaign message

    Staff write the message inside the same maintained template.

ON THE WORKBENCH

Screenshots from the internal build. Open any image for a closer look.

Build status

Header options are shown as examples in this demonstration. Date and adaptive CTA Content Blocks are still being connected. The screenshots show a demonstration, including sample dates and placeholder content.

Internal email demonstration with an autumn campus header, Apply Now link, sample message and deadline, counselor contact, and supporting academic link.

INTERNAL DEMONSTRATION

A contextual email

A seasonal header, application action, sample deadline, counselor contact, and supporting link in one demonstration.

View full image ↗
Template editor displaying conditional application actions, date fields, assigned counselor fallbacks, and the adaptive CTA placeholder.

INTERNAL DEMONSTRATION

The adaptive footer

Application status, dates, counselor fallbacks, and the CTA slot in the internal template editor.

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Slate formula panels showing distance and academic-interest checks, weighted CTA thresholds, fallback choices, and a student-and-date selection value.

INTERNAL DEMONSTRATION

Behind the weighted CTA

Recipient List logic combines eligibility checks, ordered thresholds, and a student-and-date value to select a supporting action.

View full image ↗

HOW THE PIECES CONNECT

Decide in Slate.
Present in the template.

Configurable Joins and the Recipient List resolve the student context and CTA choice. Merge fields carry those values into the responsive HTML.

Liquid conditions handle application status and counselor fallbacks. Content Blocks will supply the maintained date and CTA content as the internal build is completed.

One shared structure keeps recurring information consistent across campaigns while leaving the message body editable.

PUT IT TO WORK

What could your template
do for your students?

Connect the message, the student’s context, and a useful next step.

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