BotSense

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Introducing BotSense

Introduction

With the increasing sophistication of bots mimicking human behavior, email engagement data has become more difficult to evaluate accurately. Enter **BotSense** — a powerful new feature in ActiveCampaign that helps distinguish real user interaction from automated bot activity by filtering out false opens and clicks in your email report metrics.

Launched as part of the ActiveCampaign 2024 Release Notes, **BotSense** empowers marketers and sales teams by improving the accuracy of analytics across campaign and automation reporting. By automatically excluding bot-generated interactions, marketers get a more reliable picture of actual customer behavior, enabling better personalization and conversion strategies.

Available to all customers on **Pro** and **Enterprise** plans as of September 30, 2024, **BotSense** represents a significant upgrade to the platform’s email reporting infrastructure.

How to Access BotSense

• • BotSense** is integrated into the Reporting system of ActiveCampaign and is available to all eligible plan holders. You do not need to install or enable any separate tools to access it.

To use **BotSense**, make sure your ActiveCampaign account is on either a **Pro** or **Enterprise** plan. The feature is applied within the **Reports** section of your dashboard and includes a simple configuration to enable or disable the filtering.

Step-by-Step Instructions

Step 1: Navigate to Reporting

1. Log into your ActiveCampaign account. 2. From the left-hand navigation menu, go to **Reports**. 3. Choose any report that includes email open or click data, such as campaign performance, automation reports, or individual message analytics.

Step 2: Enable BotSense

1. Locate the **Bot Detection** setting within your chosen report. 2. Select the dropdown labeled **Bot Detection**. 3. Choose the option to **Enable** or **Disable** bot filtering. By default, the setting may be **Disabled**, depending on your account history. 4. Once you enable filtering, your metrics will automatically recalculate to exclude suspected bot data.

Step 3: Review Filtered Metrics

Once enabled, the reports you view will automatically exclude the following: - Bot-generated **email opens** - Bot-generated **link clicks**

You’re now seeing cleaner, more accurate results reflecting authentic human engagement.

Configuration Options and Settings

The primary configuration UI for **BotSense** is streamlined and accessible directly from the **Reports** interface. Options available:

• Bot Detection — A dropdown menu with two values:

 - **Enabled** – Activates bot filtering across all reporting views.
 - **Disabled** – Maintains all recorded activity, including bot clicks/opens.

Changes made to this configuration are applied **immediately** across all metrics and related reporting.

There are no additional fields or advanced bot rule customizations at this time, ensuring simplicity in implementation and use.

Best Practices and Tips

To get the most out of **BotSense**, consider the following best practices:

• **Always enable Bot Detection for high-volume campaigns**: When sending emails to large lists, even a small percentage of false interactions can distort metrics. Enabling **Bot Detection** ensures clean, meaningful data.
• **Use with automation triggers wisely**: If you rely on **email opens** or **link clicks** to enter contacts into automations, enabling **BotSense** helps ensure only real user behavior triggers those flows.
• **Monitor performance fluctuations**: Expect lower total counts in reports once **Bot Detection** is enabled. This is a good thing — it means your observations are closer to reality.
• **Align with your sales funnel**: For businesses with long or complex sales cycles, filtering out bots allows teams to focus on authentic leads and optimize conversion strategies.
• **Refine segmentation strategies**: Reliable engagement data is key to accurate segmentation. With bot activity removed, your criteria for engagement-based segments will be significantly more precise.

Common Use Cases and Examples

Example 1: Email Campaign Performance Tracking

A SaaS company sends weekly product updates and relies on metrics to refine its messaging. Previously, inflated **click-through rates** were misleading. With **BotSense**, marketers can now confidently assess which messages resonate, leading to better email copy and improved A/B test fidelity.

Example 2: Lead Qualification for Long Sales Cycles

A B2B company with a 6-month sales funnel was manually qualifying leads based on link engagement. By enabling **Bot Detection**, they could filter out non-human interaction, helping sales teams focus on leads with genuine interest.

Example 3: Re-engagement Campaigns

A retail brand launched a win-back campaign based on user inactivity. Without **BotSense**, a recipient's open tracked by a spam filter could have removed them from the follow-up sequence. With bot filtering turned on, the sequence continued uninterrupted, guided only by authentic user engagement.

Troubleshooting

While **BotSense** is designed to work seamlessly, here are a few potential challenges and how to address them:

My report metrics dropped after enabling Bot Detection

This is expected behavior. Bots often artificially inflate engagement metrics. A drop in numbers typically indicates that your data is now more reflective of actual customer behavior.

I can’t find the Bot Detection setting

Ensure your account is on the **Pro** or **Enterprise** plan. This feature is not available on **Starter** or **Plus** plans. If you're eligible but still don't see the setting, try refreshing your Reports view or contacting ActiveCampaign Support.

My automation isn’t triggering as expected

If your automation relies on **email opens** or **click events**, enabling **Bot Detection** might prevent bots from triggering those flows. Review your trigger criteria and determine if a behavior-based or time-based trigger may be more appropriate.

Related Features

• • BotSense** works directly within ActiveCampaign’s reporting infrastructure. While it filters out data, it does not change automation behavior unless your automation is dependent upon click/open metrics.

To extend your understanding and effectiveness with **BotSense**, refer to the following help articles:

• 2024 Release Notes
• ActiveCampaign Release Notes
• Filter out bot clicks with ActiveCampaign’s BotSense
• Filter suspected bot clicks within reports
• Why does my campaign have so many link clicks?
• 5 Effective Strategies to Handle Bot Clicks in Email Marketing

FAQ

1. What is BotSense in ActiveCampaign?

• • BotSense** is a reporting filter feature that removes bot-generated open and click data from your email campaign reports, enabling a more accurate reflection of real user engagement.

2. Who has access to BotSense?

All customers on **Pro** and **Enterprise** plans as of September 30, 2024, have access to **BotSense**.

3. How do I enable or disable BotSense?

Navigate to any relevant report in your ActiveCampaign dashboard. In the **Bot Detection** dropdown, select **Enabled** to filter out bot interactions or **Disabled** to include all data.

4. Will enabling Bot Detection affect automation behavior?

Only if your automation is triggered by **email opens** or **link clicks**. BotSense may prevent bots from triggering those activities, potentially reducing false leads entering your flows.

5. Why did my email opens and clicks decrease after enabling BotSense?

This is a sign that your reporting is now filtering out inauthentic traffic. Lower numbers indicate more accurate measurement, not reduced engagement.

6. Can I customize what BotSense considers a bot?

Currently, **BotSense** is a toggle feature that applies standardized detection criteria managed by ActiveCampaign. Custom bot rules are not available at this time.

7. Is BotSense retroactive on historical data?

No, **Bot Detection** only affects reporting metrics from the point it is enabled onward. Historical data will reflect the settings active at the time those metrics were generated.

Summary

• • BotSense** is a major advancement for marketers seeking clarity in their performance data. By intelligently filtering out bot activity from engagement metrics, teams can execute smarter strategies based on reliable insights. Whether refining segmentation, improving lead qualification, or simply reporting success with confidence, **BotSense** enhances every data-driven decision within ActiveCampaign.