---
schema_version: "1"
id: f800cca3c9d7830b8d7caa5ab63d41cbc4d6e8b17bd207c351a1ed873716ecd3
title: Dynamic Content
collection: admin
version: current
locale: en-us
portal_url: https://docs.salesforce.com/admin/current/en-us/mktg/264-0-0/mc_ceb_dynamic_content.md
canonical_url: https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=mktg.mc_ceb_dynamic_content.htm&release=264.0.0&type=5
source_site: help.salesforce.com
content_type: documentation
content_hash: 83af5f8756790176564316a2f558af26929653a7ad5bb4ba93dfffe0fc2f9a6d
description: Use Marketing Cloud Engagement Content Builder to create dynamic content to deliver a targeted message to an audience. Dynamic content lets you define attributes to content, making the information your subscribers receive more relevant.
products:
  - Marketing
  - Marketing Cloud Engagement
release: "264"
---
# Dynamic Content

Use Marketing Cloud Engagement Content Builder to create dynamic content to deliver a targeted message to an audience. Dynamic content lets you define attributes to content, making the information your subscribers receive more relevant.

If you include dynamic content in your email that is based on data in a data extension, ensure that you send the email to the same data extension that you based the rules on or to a data extension that contains fields with the exact same names as the data extension fields use in the dynamic content rules.

Always upload the content you want to use before you create dynamic content. If you choose to make local copies of content blocks, update the dynamic content block in emails and saved dynamic content when you edit content already used in dynamic content.

Dynamic content is content that displays in a content area according to the rules that you define based on the subscriber's attributes or data extension column values. By using dynamic content, you can ensure that a more-tailored message is reaching your targeted audience.

For example, as a clothing advertiser, you can display women's clothing information in the content area for all the females on your subscriber list and men's clothing for all the males on your subscriber list; however, dynamic content can be much more specific.

Dynamic content can be used in any type of email other than text-based email messages. The dynamic content area uses the formatting (for example, background color and border design) defined for whichever selected content being used.

In addition, default content is the content you specify in the Default Content field. This content displays when a subscriber does not meet a rule you created.

If you create dynamic content based on subscriber attributes, ensure that you create rules. Define the four elements of the rule in the order shown in this table:

<table class="slds-table slds-table_bordered slds-max-medium-table_stacked slds-m-bottom_small " summary="Define the Four Elements of a Rule">
      <caption>Define the Four Elements of a Rule</caption>
      <colgroup>
        <col style="width:33.33333333333333%">
        <col style="width:33.33333333333333%">
        <col style="width:33.33333333333333%">
      </colgroup>
      <thead class="slds-text-title_caps ">
        <tr class="">
          <th scope="col" class="slds-cell-wrap" style="vertical-align:top;" id="d3361e63">Element</th>
          <th scope="col" class="slds-cell-wrap" style="vertical-align:top;" id="d3361e66">What It Is</th>
          <th scope="col" class="slds-cell-wrap" style="vertical-align:top;" id="d3361e69">How to Define It</th>
        </tr>
      </thead>
      <tbody>
        <tr class="">
          <td data-label="Element" class="slds-cell-wrap" style="vertical-align:top;" headers="d3361e63 ">Attribute</td>

          <td data-label="What It Is" class="slds-cell-wrap" style="vertical-align:top;" headers="d3361e66 ">
            <p>The profile on which you want to base which subscribers see this content.</p>
            <p style="margin-bottom:0;">If you send
              to a data extension with a column name that is the same as the profile attribute, the data
              extension overrides the profile attribute.</p>
          </td>

          <td data-label="How to Define It" class="slds-cell-wrap" style="vertical-align:top;" headers="d3361e69 ">
            <p>Click Profile Attributes as the source to build the rule from. This displays all attribute
              in your account. Choose an attribute. </p>
            <p style="margin-bottom:0;">If you want multiple attributes to control the content for this rule, add a second
              expression to make the rule complex.</p>
          </td>

        </tr>
        <tr class="">
          <td data-label="Element" class="slds-cell-wrap" style="vertical-align:top;" headers="d3361e63 ">Value</td>

          <td data-label="What It Is" class="slds-cell-wrap" style="vertical-align:top;" headers="d3361e66 ">The attribute values to be used in determining which subscribers see this content. If
            there is a default value for the attribute, the subscriber is evaluated with that value.
            Empty subscriber attribute vales are evaluated as containing a zero (0) value.</td>

          <td data-label="How to Define It" class="slds-cell-wrap" style="vertical-align:top;" headers="d3361e69 ">
            <p>Your options in this field depend on the attribute and operator you selected. </p>
            <p>If the attribute has defined values, the dialog box features a dropdown list consisting of
              those defined values. </p>
            <p>If the attribute is a free-form field with no defined values, you see a text box in which
              you type the value. Type it exactly as it's been entered in subscriber records. For the most
              consistent results, use attributes with defined values for dynamic subject lines. </p>
            <p>If you chose <strong class="uicontrol">exists in</strong>, <strong class="uicontrol">exists in word</strong>, or
              <strong class="uicontrol">does not exist in</strong> as the operator, enter all the possible values in
              the text box separated by commas with no spaces between values.
            </p>
            <p style="margin-bottom:0;">Use the<strong class="uicontrol"> is empty</strong> or <strong class="uicontrol">is not empty</strong> as the
              operator to create rules for empty conditions.</p>
          </td>

        </tr>
        <tr class="">
          <td data-label="Element" class="slds-cell-wrap" style="vertical-align:top;" headers="d3361e63 ">Operator</td>

          <td data-label="What It Is" class="slds-cell-wrap" style="vertical-align:top;" headers="d3361e66 ">The relationship between the attribute and the value that you select.</td>

          <td data-label="How to Define It" class="slds-cell-wrap" style="vertical-align:top;" headers="d3361e69 ">The list of available operators varies based on the properties of the attribute you
            selected. Be sure to choose an operator that makes sense with the type of attribute you
            chose. For example, don't use the 'less than' operator with a text attribute.</td>

        </tr>
        <tr class="">
          <td data-label="Element" class="slds-cell-wrap" style="vertical-align:top;" headers="d3361e63 ">Content</td>

          <td data-label="What It Is" class="slds-cell-wrap" style="vertical-align:top;" headers="d3361e66 ">The content to be displayed for a subscriber who meets the attribute requirement you
            defined.</td>

          <td data-label="How to Define It" class="slds-cell-wrap" style="vertical-align:top;" headers="d3361e69 ">
            <p>Click <strong class="uicontrol">Content</strong> to show all stored static content. You cannot choose
              stored dynamic content. </p>
            <p>Navigate to the folder that contains the content you to display for this expression. </p>
            <p>Click and drag the name of the desired content area to <strong class="uicontrol">Select
                Content</strong>. A preview of the selected content is shown. </p>
            <p style="margin-bottom:0;">When you have selected the desired content, click the <strong class="uicontrol">Save</strong>.</p>
          </td>

        </tr>
      </tbody>
    </table>

![Example](https://sf-zdocs-cdn-prod.zoominsoftware.com/tdta-mktg-mc_content_creation-264-0-0-production-enus/453b15fc-ab47-40df-8f11-8a7b92c8d0cd/images/icon_example.png)

Example

Northern Trail Outfitters has an email newsletter to send out, but they want to include dynamic content. To create the content, the marketer clicks Content Builder, and then clicks Create. The marketer creates several pieces of content in Content Builder that they want to create the dynamic content.

They are now ready to create the dynamic content. They click Create and select Dynamic Content.

Northern Trail Outfitters select default content and create a rule. All subscribers that have their gender designated as female receive the same content.

After Northern Trail Outfitters has created all the rules, they click Save. They have now created dynamic content. Now they can include the dynamic content in email and send it, all female subscriber receive an email with the content designated for females. All other subscribers receive the default content.

- **[Create Dynamic Content](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=mktg.mc_ceb_create_dynamic_content.htm&release=264.0.0&type=5)**  
    Use dynamic content in email messages. Dynamic content appears according to the rules that you define, based on the subscriber's attributes, data extension values, or audiences. If a subscriber matches more than one rule, they receive the content for the first rule that applies.
- **[Modify Dynamic Content](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=mktg.mc_ceb_modify_dynamic_content.htm&release=264.0.0&type=5)**  
    Use Marketing Cloud Engagement Content Builder to modify a Dynamic Content block.
- **[Create a Dynamic Subject Line and Preheader](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=mktg.mc_ceb_create_dynamic_subjectline_preheader.htm&release=264.0.0&type=5)**  
    Use Content Builder to create a dynamic subject line and preheader. An email with a dynamic subject line or dynamic preheader has the content that a subscriber sees based on the subscriber's attributes according to the rules that you define. For example, you can define one subject line to appear for all the males in your list and another for all the females. These attributes can be taken from a subscriber list or a sendable data extension.