Mautic Best Practice Recommendations?

Product Support Mautic 5 Install/Upgrade Support
1

Your software
My Mautic version is: 5.2.3
My PHP version is: 8.3.15
My Database type and version is: Mariadb

Your problem
Hello,

I’ve recently installed Mautic 5.2.3 and I can send test emails. The next step is to import our company contacts.

With the large Mautic user base I’m asking the community for some recommendation on how to use Mautic to achieve the best results ? I’ve read everything I can but wanted some help from active users. There is always the right way and wrong way to use software and am asking for help on the right way to use Mautic.

I have a list of company contacts which I want to import into Mautic.

Do you need to import company records first and then import contact records after linking to companies ?

Or instead of using companies would you create custom fields in contacts for company info and import only into contacts records. ?

What are the pros and cons of each method ? And which is the best method ?

What can and cant you do with the company records? Or is it better to do all campaigns based on contacts with custom field for company information ?

I would really appreciate some help from active Mautic users so I don’t make a big mistake waiting time and resources using Mautic the wrong way and have to correct the mistake further down the line.

Thanks.

2

Hello @andrew_c3,

I normally don’t use the Companies section in Mautic, and neither do most of my clients - they completely ignore this feature. However, I have seen instances where organizations really benefit from it, especially those in the public sector. There’s no right or wrong approach, if it helps you streamline your marketing campaigns and you find it beneficial, go ahead!

Regarding custom fields, I’d suggest caution. Try to use Mautic’s native tools whenever possible and avoid custom fields if you can. If you do implement them, keep in mind that too many custom fields may lead to longer loading times. It’s a useful tool, but don’t go overboard with it.

My overall recommendations:

For starters:

  • If you’re using Mautic for the first time, there are helpful videos on YouTube from individual creators or companies. I recommend watching them or testing each tool individually to gain a deeper understanding of each one.
  • You may encounter unusual problems without obvious solutions. Check the forum for similar issues and always remember to check your Error Log under configurations.

Campaigns:

  • If you’re handling everything yourself, research the Loyalty Ladder concept and different segmentation approaches. Segmentation is key.
  • Read about or watch videos on email marketing strategies that could benefit your company.
  • Test, test, test.

Emails:

  • Don’t spam your leads or you risk losing them. Be transparent about your monthly email frequency.
  • Send personalized emails rather than generic ones with no personalization. This makes your leads feel important and recognized. Provide real value.
  • Impactful emails are crucial for conversion. Get quality email templates - you can find them here.
  • Good emails require good copy. You can write it yourself, use AI to assist, or hire a professional copywriter.
  • The same applies to design/graphics. I recommend hiring a graphic designer or email designer.

Management:

  • Utilize user roles - don’t give admin access to everyone, especially freelancers. Remember you’re handling sensitive lead data like emails, phone numbers, addresses, and more.
  • Avoid installing suspicious or unnecessary plugins. Less is more, especially regarding security.
  • Don’t modify settings or Mautic files unless you’re confident. Check the forums, ask the community, or hire a specialist. You could lose your entire instance otherwise.

Community:

  • Help others when you’re sure of the solution or if you’ve faced and resolved the same issue. Being an active community member helps us all grow.
  • If you find a solution to a problem, even one that seems trivial, share it on the forums. Your problem might be someone elses too!
  • Don’t hesitate to report bugs on GitHub, even if you’re not a programmer.
  • Use Mautic ethically, not for scamming.

These are just some points that come to mind. Hope this helps with your Mautic journey! :slight_smile:

Best regards, Ricardo

3

Hello @ricfreire,

Thank you for your general Mautic recommendations.

I have a further question about the logic of how to use Mautic with respect to the company and contacts records.

We mainly market to company contacts and some individuals.

Therefore we can use both the company and contact record. However would you duplicate the company address into the contact record in that case ?

Alternatively you could use the contact record only and store company information in custom field in the contacts record. This may be simpler but restrictive in future expansion.

Having said that what I’m asking the community about is what are the pros of each of the above strategies ? And which works best in a large scale deployment ? If you could give some reasoning that would be great

Thanks.

4

Hi @andrew_c3,

In your case, when considering scalability, it makes perfect sense to utilize companies rather than complicating things with custom fields or duplicating company information within each contact record. Mautic provides a built-in structure for managing companies, which is designed to handle exactly this kind of situation.

Using Company Records Directly

:white_check_mark: Avoids redundancy - By creating a company record for each company, you can store company details (like address, industry, etc) once and associate multiple contacts to that company. This eliminates duplication of company information across individual contact records.

:white_check_mark: Scalability - As your business grows, the company structure in Mautic will allow you to scale efficiently. When various contacts are associated with a company, you can easily update their details by changing just one company record, instead of manually editing hundreds of contacts.

:white_check_mark: Better data management - For segmentation, reporting, and campaigns, it’s extremely easy to work with companies directly, especially when you need to target them or analyze company-level data.

:rescue_worker_s_helmet: Potential drawbacks? - I don’t find any significant cons, just a slightly more complex initial setup. The long-term benefits far outweigh this small extra effort.

Hope this helps!
Best regards,
Ricardo