CORE MODULE

Add External Links and Contact Actions

What you'll learn in this guide

How to turn any text or button in your template into a clickable link, whether that's a website, an email address, a phone number, a digital form or one of the built-in shortcuts like unsubscribe.

Overview

Links are how recipients act on your communications. They might click through to your website, tap to call a support number, jump to a form, or fire off an email to your team. In CX Platform, all of these are added the same way, through a single Link control in the editor.

The Link control isn't just for web addresses. The same dropdown also lets you set up contact actions (phone, SMS, email), insert template-specific links like unsubscribe and attachments, drop in a form link, add social share buttons, and even jump to anchors within the email itself.

Once you know where to find it, adding any kind of link takes seconds.

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Find the Link control

The Link control lives inside the editor when you've got a text or button block selected.

  1. In the editor, switch to the Content tab in the right-hand panel.
  2. Select the text, button or image you want to make clickable.
  3. Scroll down in the Content panel until you see the Link heading. You'll find a dropdown (set to Site by default) with a field next to it.
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That's the control you'll use for every link type below. The dropdown sets what kind of link it is, and the field next to it is where the address, number, or value goes.

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Add an external website link

This is the most common one. Use it any time you want to send recipients to a web page, whether that's your homepage, a help article, a landing page, or a third-party site.

  1. Select the text or button you want to link.
  2. In the Link control, leave the dropdown set to Site.
  3. Paste your full URL into the field, including https://.

That's it. The link is live as soon as you paste it in. We do recommend clicking Save at key moments of your build process.

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Always include the protocol
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Stick to full URLs like https://example.com rather than just example.com. Some email clients won't render a bare domain as a clickable link, and you'll end up with recipients copying and pasting instead of clicking.

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Add a contact action

Contact actions turn a link into something that opens the recipient's phone, messaging, or email app. Pick the right type from the dropdown and CX Platform handles the protocol for you, so you don't need to type mailto: or tel: yourself.

  1. Select the text or button you want to make actionable.
  2. In the Link control, click the Site dropdown to open the full list of options.
  3. Under General links, choose the action type, for example Mail, Tel, or SMS.
  4. Enter the address or number in the field next to it. Just the value, no protocol prefix needed.

So for an email link, you'd pick Mail and type support@yourcompany.com. For a phone link, pick Tel and type the number. Easy.

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All link types at a glance

The dropdown groups link types into five sections. Here's what each one is for and when you'd reach for it.

Link type What it does Example
Site Standard web link using http or https. The default option and the one you'll use most. https://yourcompany.com/help
Mail Opens the recipient's email app with a new message pre-addressed. Great for "contact us" or "reply to support" links. support@yourcompany.com
File Links to a file on an FTP or FTPS server. Useful when you're pointing to a document hosted outside the web. ftp://files.yourcompany.com
Skype Starts a Skype call or chat when tapped, handy for support teams that use Skype as a contact channel. Your Skype username
Tel Triggers a phone call on the recipient's device. Tap-to-call is especially valuable on mobile. +61 7 1234 5678
Sms Opens a new text message pre-addressed to your number. A friendly option for fast follow-ups. +61 400 000 000
Viber Opens a Viber chat with your account. Worth using if your audience is in a region where Viber's the go-to messaging app. Your Viber number or ID
Other For any custom protocol that isn't in the list. You'll define the protocol type yourself. Custom protocol string
View this template online Inserts the placeholder for the hosted version of your message, so recipients can view it in a browser if their email client has trouble. %%VIEW_ONLINE_URL%%
Unsubscribe Drops in the unsubscribe link for this Application. Essential for marketing communications and good practice everywhere. %%UNSUBSCRIBE_URL%%
Link to attachment Links to a file attached to the send, so recipients can download a statement, invoice, or PDF without it being embedded. %%ATTACHMENT_URL%%
Forms Inserts a direct link to one of your published CX Platform forms. You'll see your forms listed by code and name in the dropdown. %%LINK_TO_FORM_123%%
Share Adds a one-click share button. Pick your platform and CX Platform takes care of the rest. Options include:
  • on Facebook
  • on X
  • on LinkedIn
  • on Pinterest
  • by Email
Auto-generated share URL
Anchor Links Jumps to a specific section within the same email. Handy for long messages where you want a table of contents up top. #section-name