Working with Emails in the Staff Application
Lots of emails can be sent by Clio. There are different types of emails, different sorts of recipients.
Email Setup
In the Email-General preference item, you can add your standard email footer (optional), the library's own email address (this will be placed in the 'reply to' part of the message), the prefix for the 'from' address (something short and simple is best, such as ill or lib).
If you have multiple branches and want the email signature and reply-to information to be different for each branch, you can tell Clio which branch belongs to the settings. Be sure to leave one setting as 'Default' so that any requests which lack a matching BranchID still have something to use for emails.
If you have multiple branches and want the email signature and reply-to information to be different for each branch, you can tell Clio which branch belongs to the settings. Be sure to leave one setting as 'Default' so that any requests which lack a matching BranchID still have something to use for emails.
Email Recipient
On the Outgoing Email preference page, you can control the text of emails sent by Clio, and for some emails you can tell Clio whether they should be sent by default.
There are several drop-down boxes used to identify a particular email. The first one is the recipient of the email. The different types are:
Patron - for a Borrowing request this is the person in the patron details.
BranchPatron - for a Borrowing request this is the person identified in the BranchPatron and BranchPatronAdd fields. Typically the person who really wants the requested item, when the request was submitted by someone else - a reference librarian or research assistant.
Supervisor - for a Borrowing request this is the person listed in the patron record's Supervisor field. Typically an academic supervisor or departmental admin who might provide approval for ILL usage or provide a budget code.
Lender - for a Borrowing request this is the library listed in the Lender field and will use the email address in the library record.
Borrower - for a Lending request this is the library listed in the Borrower field and will use the email address in the Lending request if possible, and otherwise will use the email address in the library record.
Local List - for any request this is a list of people you want to email about requests, but they aren't connected to a specific patron or library or request records. Typically reference librarians or purchasing departments.
Dept Contact - for a Borrowing request this is the person listed in the Department List (see your preferences menu) for the department in the request.
There are several drop-down boxes used to identify a particular email. The first one is the recipient of the email. The different types are:
Patron - for a Borrowing request this is the person in the patron details.
BranchPatron - for a Borrowing request this is the person identified in the BranchPatron and BranchPatronAdd fields. Typically the person who really wants the requested item, when the request was submitted by someone else - a reference librarian or research assistant.
Supervisor - for a Borrowing request this is the person listed in the patron record's Supervisor field. Typically an academic supervisor or departmental admin who might provide approval for ILL usage or provide a budget code.
Lender - for a Borrowing request this is the library listed in the Lender field and will use the email address in the library record.
Borrower - for a Lending request this is the library listed in the Borrower field and will use the email address in the Lending request if possible, and otherwise will use the email address in the library record.
Local List - for any request this is a list of people you want to email about requests, but they aren't connected to a specific patron or library or request records. Typically reference librarians or purchasing departments.
Dept Contact - for a Borrowing request this is the person listed in the Department List (see your preferences menu) for the department in the request.
Message vs Notice
The next drop-down lets you, where appropriate, select either 'Message' or 'Notice'.
Notices are email that are connected to specific events in a request's life - the moment that a loan is received, the moment an item is returned, the moment an item is recalled by the lending library. Once you've set the content for the notice email it won't be changed 'in the moment' - it's a form letter. The list of possible notices is fixed, since it's connected to 'events' in Clio's workflow.
Messages are emails that staff send when needed - the sort of emails you send frequently but aren't connected to a specific status change for the request and might require a bit of detail for the specific situation - questions about citations, personal follow-up on a seriously overdue item, letting someone know why a request has been cancelled, sending requests to another library via email. You can have as many messages as you like.
Once you've selected the Recipient and Email-Type you can choose from the list of emails or create a new one. For each email there are some optional features - described next.
Notices are email that are connected to specific events in a request's life - the moment that a loan is received, the moment an item is returned, the moment an item is recalled by the lending library. Once you've set the content for the notice email it won't be changed 'in the moment' - it's a form letter. The list of possible notices is fixed, since it's connected to 'events' in Clio's workflow.
Messages are emails that staff send when needed - the sort of emails you send frequently but aren't connected to a specific status change for the request and might require a bit of detail for the specific situation - questions about citations, personal follow-up on a seriously overdue item, letting someone know why a request has been cancelled, sending requests to another library via email. You can have as many messages as you like.
Once you've selected the Recipient and Email-Type you can choose from the list of emails or create a new one. For each email there are some optional features - described next.
Include a Footer?
For each email you can tell Clio if you should include the footer from your Email-General preference settings. This is usually a good idea, reducing the extra typing of your contact details, and reducing the number of places you need to make changes in the future.
If this box is checked Clio will append the footer text to the end of the message body.
If this box is checked Clio will append the footer text to the end of the message body.
Auto-Send?
For some notices, Clio can send the email automatically when an event happens in the request's life. If that event is one of the times that library staff are updating the item (updating an item to ReceivedLoan for example), staff will have the opportunity to overrule the 'auto-send' (un-check the Send Notice box on the update panel) but in other cases (when OCLC or BL or Rapid notify Clio that an item has been renewed for example) choosing 'auto-send' will mean the email is always sent when that event occurs.
For notices where auto-send is available, Clio will describe the situations that can trigger the notice, but if you have more specific questions about the notice, please contact Clio.
If you're unsure, the most commonly-used 'auto-send' notices are RenewOK, NoRenewal, and Recall. That's a typical choice as a place to start.
If auto-send isn't available for a notice, it can only be sent from the Send Notices page (available in the Tasks menu). These are generally situations where library staff prefer to glance over the list before the notices are sent, as there are often some exceptions to the rule.
For notices where auto-send is available, Clio will describe the situations that can trigger the notice, but if you have more specific questions about the notice, please contact Clio.
If you're unsure, the most commonly-used 'auto-send' notices are RenewOK, NoRenewal, and Recall. That's a typical choice as a place to start.
If auto-send isn't available for a notice, it can only be sent from the Send Notices page (available in the Tasks menu). These are generally situations where library staff prefer to glance over the list before the notices are sent, as there are often some exceptions to the rule.
Include Buttons?
On some emails, you can include buttons at the bottom of the text. Those buttons give the recipient an opportunity to respond to your question directly in Clio - that way you don't have to read their emailed response and copy/paste information into Clio.
For emails to patrons you can include a button that allows them to add information to the Patron Notes field. This is useful in situations where you've asked them a question - for more information about a citation or why it is that they've submitted 73 requests in one day.
For requests sent to potential lending libraries via email, you can include yes/no/I-have-a-question buttons. This allows the library to indicate whether they will be filling the request (indicating things like due date if it's being filled) or ask a question about the request (about a citation or charges perhaps).
For renewal requests which are being sent to the lending library via email you can include yes/no buttons to let the library indicate whether they item has been renewed, and provide a new due date if appropriate.
In all cases, Clio will process their response, updating the request in Clio (for patron responses the Action of the request will be set to PatronResponse), and then will send you an email - to the library email address in your Email-General preference - letting you know that the request has been updated, providing a link to the request so you can open it directly.
For emails to patrons you can include a button that allows them to add information to the Patron Notes field. This is useful in situations where you've asked them a question - for more information about a citation or why it is that they've submitted 73 requests in one day.
For requests sent to potential lending libraries via email, you can include yes/no/I-have-a-question buttons. This allows the library to indicate whether they will be filling the request (indicating things like due date if it's being filled) or ask a question about the request (about a citation or charges perhaps).
For renewal requests which are being sent to the lending library via email you can include yes/no buttons to let the library indicate whether they item has been renewed, and provide a new due date if appropriate.
In all cases, Clio will process their response, updating the request in Clio (for patron responses the Action of the request will be set to PatronResponse), and then will send you an email - to the library email address in your Email-General preference - letting you know that the request has been updated, providing a link to the request so you can open it directly.
Using Tags
In the Body of the email, you can use tags to include bits of information from the request details. The list of available tags is below the large text area. You can type in the tags by hand if you like, but if you place the cursor in the spot in the message where you want the tag, and then click on the tag, Clio will put the tag in place for you (reducing the chance of typos).
A couple of the tags may also be used in the email subject line, and those are indicated in the tag description.
A couple of the tags may also be used in the email subject line, and those are indicated in the tag description.
Once you've finished editing your message, be sure to click Save.