---
schema_version: "1"
id: 26a1761be4ded09c1ff4ccc4f5d6dacde7413118b9bb7a605c0c7d32380c2217
title: Messages
collection: admin
version: current
locale: en-us
portal_url: https://docs.salesforce.com/admin/current/en-us/mktg/264-0-0/mc_es_messages.md
canonical_url: https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=mktg.mc_es_messages.htm&release=264.0.0&type=5
source_site: help.salesforce.com
content_type: documentation
content_hash: ecef8edb4ad2773e680e5f1b8872a44edc4d70a7cb8652f0ce450816ef260c8d
description: A message is a communication sent to an individual subscriber or a collection of individuals, such as a list, group, or data extension. In Marketing Cloud Engagement, you can send emails and SMS messages.
products:
  - Marketing
  - Marketing Cloud Engagement
release: "264"
---
# Messages

A message is a communication sent to an individual subscriber or a collection of individuals, such as a list, group, or data extension. In Marketing Cloud Engagement, you can send emails and SMS messages.

![Note](https://sf-zdocs-cdn-prod.zoominsoftware.com/tdta-mktg-mc_email-264-0-0-production-enus/a0b807ef-dfbb-412c-b26e-310d91f2d6df/images/icon_note.png)

Note Understanding the Web Service API is required to implement most instances of triggered email messages and SMS messages.

A message has two components: content and interaction. Content controls what appears in the message. An interaction defines information necessary to send the message.

With Automation Studio, messages can perform many recurring processes automatically. A message send can be user-initiated or triggered.

- A user-initiated message send goes to subscribers you identify at a specified time. For example, you can send a monthly newsletter to a list of newsletter subscribers. You can manage the entire process of a user-initiated email message through the application interface. You can associate one or more user-initiated messages sends with activities to make an automation.
- A triggered send responds to a subscriber action. For example, you can send a confirmation message after a customer makes a purchase. After you define the content and interaction for a triggered email message, you can send Welcome email triggered sends and Triggered Sends via Smart Capture pages.

All other events that trigger an interaction are defined using API calls.

![Note](https://sf-zdocs-cdn-prod.zoominsoftware.com/tdta-mktg-mc_email-264-0-0-production-enus/a0b807ef-dfbb-412c-b26e-310d91f2d6df/images/icon_note.png)

Note If your account is integrated with Salesforce and your application user is mapped to a Salesforce user, you can select a Salesforce campaign or report as the audience of your email message interaction.

- **[Triggered Emails in Email Studio](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=mktg.mc_es_triggered_emails.htm&release=264.0.0&type=5)**  
    Use triggered emails in Email Studio to respond to email replies and to send email list opt-in confirmation messages. To use triggered emails for other needs, you must implement the Email Studio app and SOAP API. This guide covers the tools in the application interface.
- **[User-Initiated Email Messages](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=mktg.mc_es_email_messages.htm&release=264.0.0&type=5)**  
    Use Email Studio email message interactions, also referred to as send definitions, to determine how an email send occurs.
- **[Transactional Reconciliation in User-Initiated Sends](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=mktg.mc_es_transactional_reconciliation_user_initiated_sends.htm&release=264.0.0&type=5)**  
    Transactional Reconciliation helps you track the final delivery status of each transactional email sent through a user-initiated send. When enabled, Marketing Cloud Engagement monitors messages and assigns a final disposition (Sent or Not Sent) based on delivery signals during the expiration window.
- **[Messages Example](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=mktg.mc_es_messages_example.htm&release=264.0.0&type=5)**  
    A marketer at Northern Trail Outfitters sends a welcome email message to subscribers who opt in to the newsletter mailing list through their web page. The marketer creates a triggered email message interaction in Email Studio to automate the process.
- **[Email Send Error Codes](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=mktg.mc_es_email_send_error_codes.htm&release=264.0.0&type=5)**  
    Review error codes generated in Email Studio triggered emails.