Eventscribe’s Email Service (SOP)

Eventscribe products use the email service SendGrid to send emails. This service will provides visibility into domain authentication and sent email data.  

By default, customers can send emails from within our products from the address: noreply@gocadmium.com. If customers want to send emails from our products using their own email address, they must authenticate their domain with our SendGrid account. This article outlines the steps required to authenticate a domain within the Eventscribe product line.  

Background 

This document outlines the different processes associated with the SendGrid service. Before we migrated Eventscribe products to AWS, customers had to add our SPF record to the DNS to send emails from our domain. With the transition of this service to SendGrid, customers and Cadmium staff now have greater flexibility in managing and assisting with email communications.  

Accessing SendGrid  

Understanding our SendGrid Account  

SendGrid is setup with a parent account and a sub account. In the Eventscribe product line, Registration is the parent account and the subaccount includes all other Eventscribe products.  

Cadmium team members must be part of the Active Directories for Eventscribe Operations teams to be an SSO team member in SendGrid. Each SSO team member in SendGrid should have Sender Authentication permission to ensure full access to the necessary tools outlined in this SOP. 

Logging Into SendGrid 

To access the Eventscribe SendGrid account, go to the My Apps  section of Microsoft Apps. 

NOTE

Only employees in the Active Directories for Eventscribe Operations teams will see this option.  

Customer Inquiry   

Onboarding a new customer  

When customers are onboarded, the Operations team member will inform the customer that they can send emails within our products from their domain by verifying it in our SendGrid account.  

The Operations team member will send the customer the template Boomerang SendGrid Authentication Needed for Sending Emails to collect the necessary information for adding a customer’s domain. A Cadmium team member will then receive this information and follow the steps outlined in the next section.  

Customer reaches out to Cadmium Team  

Eventscribe products are designed to prevent customers from sending emails from an unverified domain. If a customer attempts to do so, they will be directed to contact the Cadmium team for assistance.

If a customer reaches out to Cadmium tech support or an Operations team member, the Cadmium team member should first check if the customer's domain exists in the Eventscribe SendGrid account by following the steps outlined in the Checking if a Domain Exists in SendGrid (ANCHOR) section.

• If the domain does exist, the Cadmium team member should refer to the Troubleshooting Email Service (ANCHOR) section to assist the customer.  
• If the domain does not exist, the Cadmium team member should continue to the Domain Authentication (ANCHOR) section to assist the customer. Additionally, if the customer’s organization has an SPF record, recommend that they include spf.gocadmium.com. 

Domain Authentication  

Adding a New Domain  

The following steps should be taken a team member to add a domain to the Eventscribe SendGrid account. These steps should be followed only after confirming that the domain does not already exist in the SendGrid account.

1. The Cadmium team member should confirm the domain does not exist in the SendGrid account. 
2. The Cadmium team member will submit a SendGrid Domain Authentication Request to the Cadmium IT Service Desk.  
3. A member of the IT Teamwill add the domain to our SendGrid Account  
   1. The team is working on making this an automatic process.  
   2. Until work is done to make this automatic, someone on the IT team must manually complete the submitted ticket.  
   3. The expected turnaround time for IT is 48-hours  
4. Once the IT team completes the request, the customer will receive an email from SendGrid.
   1. This email will contain the instructions for the customer’s IT team to verify their domain with theEventscribe account.  
   2. For security reasons, the customer must complete verification within 48 hours, as the link in the email will expire after that time.
5. The customer will follow instructions sent by SendGrid to verify their domain. 
6. Once verified, the customer can send emails from Eventscribe products. 

If a customer needs to send an email and does not have a verified domain, they can use noreply@gocadmium.com.  

Resending SendGrid Instructions to Customers  

SendGrid allows domain authentication instructions to be accessed only for 48 hours after the email is sent. If a customer needs the email resent, a Cadmium team member should follow these steps:

1. Access Eventscribe’s SendGrid account via the My Apps section of Microsoft Apps.  
2. In SendGrid, go to Settings -> Sender Authentication. 

3. Under the Sender Identity section, go to Domain Authentication  
4. Select View More to see all domains.
5. Find the customer's domain in the list and open it.
6. Go to the Send to a Coworker tab.
7. Enter the customer’s email address  
8. Include customer instructions in the message to the recipient  

SUGGESTED EMAIL TEXT

Subject: Action Required: Domain Authentication for Cadmium Products

Cadmium Customer,

You are receiving this email as your organization’s main point of contact to authorize your domain to send emails from Cadmium products. 

Important: You have 48 hours to click the button below, which will open a web page with instructions.

We strongly recommend that you immediately copy or take a screenshot of the instructions and forward them to your IT team before the link expires.

If you are unable to complete this step within 48 hours, please reach out to Cadmium staff, and we will resend this email.

Troubleshooting Email Service   

Common Steps for Troubleshooting   

Cadmium team members can help troubleshoot customer email issues before reaching out to the Cadmium infrastructure team. If a customer reports that their emails are not being delivered to end users or they are experiencing a high number of bounce backs, follow the the steps below to help troubleshoot the issue.  

1. Confirm the domain exists in the Eventscribe SendGrid account. Follow the steps outlined in the Checking if a Domain Exists in SendGrid (ANCHOR) section.  
   1. If the domain does not exist, follow the steps to add the customer's domain (ANCHOR). 
   2. If the domain does exist, proceed to the next troubleshooting step. 
2. Confirm the domain has been verified. Follow the steps outlined in the Checking if a Domain is Verified in SendGrid (ANCHOR) section.  
   1. If the domain is not verified, follow the Resending SendGrid Instructions to Customers (ANCHOR) steps so the customer can verify their domain. 
   2. If the domain is verified, proceed to the next troubleshooting step.  
3. Look up the email activity related to the reported issue. Follow the steps outlined in the Email Activity Feed (ANCHOR) section.  
   1. If the email activity does not help resolve the issue, proceed to the next troubleshooting step.  
4. If troubleshooting steps do not resolve the issue, submit a Cadmium IT Service Desk ticket for further investigation.

Checking if a Domain Exists in SendGrid  

To check if a domain exists in SendGrid, you must have Sender Authentication access in SendGrid. If you do not have Sender Authentication access, please submit an Account Issue Jira ticket to the Cadmium IT Service Desk before proceeding. 

1. Access Eventscribe’s SendGrid account via the My Apps section of Microsoft Apps.  
2. In SendGrid, go to Settings -> Sender Authentication.
3. Under the Sender Identity section, locate Domain Authentication
4. Select the View All Domains to access the full list. 
5. Search for the customer’s domain  
   1. If the customer’s domain shows in this list, it exists in the Eventscribe SendGrid account.
   2. If the customer’s domain does not show in the list, it does not exist in SendGrid, and you should proceed with the Adding a Domain (ANCHOR) steps.

Checking if a Domain is Verified in SendGrid  

To check if a domain exists in SendGrid, you must have Sender Authentication access in SendGrid. If you do not have Sender Authentication access, please submit an Account Issue Jira ticket to the Cadmium IT Service Desk before proceeding. 

1. Access Eventscribe’s SendGrid account via the My Apps section of Microsoft Apps.
2. In SendGrid, go to Settings -> Sender Authentication.
3. Under the Sender Identity section, locate Domain Authentication.
4. Select the View All Domains to access the full list.
5. Search for the customer’s domain.
6. The domain's status will be displayed next to it in the list.
7. Click on the domain to see more details about its authentication and verification status.

Email Activity Feed  

The Email Activity Feed in SendGrid displays all emails sent in the account. For a detailed explanation of this feature, refer to SendGrid’s documentation on the Email Activity Feed.

Finding a Specific Email

1. Access Eventscribe’s SendGrid account via the My Apps section of Microsoft Apps. 
2. Navigate to the Email Activity Feed of SendGrid.
3. Enter the relevant email address or details in the search bar to locate the email in question.

Please reference SendGrid’s documentation for guidance on interpreting email activity data. The email activity data will provide information needed to help troubleshoot any email delivery issues.  

Two most common email activities for undelivered emails:  

• Blocks: https://docs.sendgrid.com/ui/sending-email/blocks  
• Bounces: https://docs.sendgrid.com/ui/sending-email/bounces  

Frequently Asked Customer Questions 

Below are questions that customers may ask Cadmium staff during this process. Please use the answers to each of these questions to assist customers.   

What if I [the customer] don’t receive the email from SendGrid with the instructions?  

First, follow the steps to resend the email in SendGrid.

• If the customer still does not receive it, send the email to yourself and forward it to the customer.
• Alternatively, you can copy the instructions and send them directly to the customer.

What if I [the customer] have already authenticated my domain with another Cadmium product lines, do I have to authenticate it again?  

Please copy & paste this response and send it to the customer:

"We currently have separate SendGrid accounts for EthosCE, Registration, and Eventscribe (excluding Registration). Because of this, you must verify your domain separately for each product you use. EthosCE, Registration, and Eventscribe (excluding Registration) all require their own authentication.” 

What happens if I [the customer] miss the 48-hour window?  

Please copy & paste this response and send it to the customer:

"We recommend immediately forwarding the SendGrid instructions email to your IT team upon receipt.

• If the 48-hour window expires, you can still complete the task using the copied instructions.
• The link expires in 48 hours, but the actual verification process does not."

I [The customer] don’t have an IT team. Can you help me [the customer] with verifying my domain?  

Please copy & paste this response and send it to the customer:

“Unfortunately, we cannot help verify your domain since we do not have access to your DNS host. If you do not know who your DNS host is, you can use this online tool to find your hosting provider. Your hosting provider will be able to help you complete this request. If you do not feel comfortable completing this request, you can still send emails from our products using noreply@gocadmium.com.” 

My organization still requires an SPF record. What do I [the customer] do?  

Please copy & paste this response and send it to the customer:

“You still need to authenticate your domain in our SendGrid account. If your organization has an SPF record, please ensure it includes spf.gocadmium.com. While an SPF record is not required, it is recommended. Please consult your IT department to determine the best approach for your organization.”