What is a custom table?

A custom table is a data structure that organizes information into rows and columns. A table can be used to both store and display data in a structured format. In terms of your Delivra account, your Contact records and their associated data is stored to a table within our database. 

Beyond the default table available in your account, some customers need additional tables (a.k.a custom tables) to serve as extended storage for Contact information, to store multiple records of information per email address, or to connect relational data not stored on a contact record.

When in use, custom tables are utilized for advanced segmentation, automations and campaigns. 

Where is a custom table used in the system?

When a custom table exists, the table and it's data will be available:

Contact records
Open a single contact to view their table data:

Contact Views and Contact Export
Choose to include data from tables when creating a custom email contacts view or exporting your list of contacts. A "choose Fields" pop-up menu will display:

Segments
All table data is available to create advanced segmentation. When using the segment builder, find your table fields in the "Select field" drop-down menu:

Merge values into Campaigns or Templates
Personalize your email by merging data from tables into your emails and designs:



Automation
Trigger an Automation to begin based on dates stored in a custom table:

How are tables created?

Most custom tables can be created by an administrator with table permissions. You can configure a new custom table in the Contacts dashboard of your account under Configuration. Before you build a table in your account, you first need to have a solid understanding of how the table and it's data will be used. Contact your Client Success Manager for questions and guidance if you are thinking about using custom tables in your account. Below are descriptions of the types of custom tables available:

1. In a one-to-one relationship, one record in a table is associated with one and only one record in another table. For example, in a school database, each student has only one student ID, and each student ID is assigned to only one person. 
   
   
2. In a one-to-many relationship, one record in a table can be associated with one or more records in another table. For example, a customer can have many orders. And vice-versa, in a many-to-one relationship, multiple orders have one customer. 
   
   
3. A many-to-many relationship occurs when multiple records in a table are associated with multiple records in another table. For example, a many-to-many relationship exists between customers and products: customers can purchase various products, and products can be purchased by many customers. 

Notes

1. Once you create the table and hit Save you cannot edit the table elements (Table name, saved field names, primary key(s) but only add more columns.
   
   
2. Apply the table configuration to other accounts by selecting those accounts on the right-hand side.
   
   
3. Availability of table functionality is based on your license. For more information, please visit  https://www.delivra.com/pricing or email our Client Success team.

Resources

1. Please see this help article for instructions to create a custom table in your account: How do I create a custom table?
   
   
2. Please visit this article to learn more about table relationships.