DocumentationJourney OptimizerJourney Optimizer Guide

Get started with journeys & campaigns approval send-proofs

Last update: Thu Mar 05 2026 00:00:00 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

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Get started with approval policies gs

Journey Optimizer allows you to set up an approval process that enables marketing teams to ensure campaigns and journeys are reviewed and signed off by the appropriate stakeholders before they go live.

Approval policies introduce a structured workflow directly within the user interface, eliminating the need for external mediums such as email or task management tools, and ensuring all approvals are centrally managed and tracked.

In addition, this feature provides enhanced control on the publication of your journeys and campaigns: With the approval process embedded within Journey Optimizer, campaigns and journeys remain in a “locked” state during review, ensuring that no changes or unintended activations occur before all necessary approvals are in place.

Prerequisites prerequisites

Before starting, make sure the permissions below have been configured.

To approve and publish journeys and campaigns, users need to be granted the Approve & publish Campaigns and Approve & publish Journeys permissions. Learn more

Learn how to assign approval-related permissions

  1. In the Permissions product, go to the Roles tab and select the desired Role.

  2. Click Edit to modify the permissions.

  3. Add the Campaigns resource, then select Approve & publish Campaigns from the drop-down menu.

    Assign approve and publish Campaigns permission {modal="regular"}

  4. Add the Journeys resource, then select Approve & publish Journeys from the drop-down menu.

    Assign approve and publish Journeys permission {modal="regular"}

  5. Click Save to apply changes.

Any users already assigned to this role will have their permissions automatically updated.

  1. To assign this role to new users, navigate to the Users tab within the Roles dashboard and click Add User.

  2. Enter the user’s name, email address, or choose from the list, then click Save.

  3. If the user was not previously created, refer to this documentation.

The user will receive an email with instructions to access your instance.

Approval process overview process

The global approval process is as follows:

Approval process flow {modal="regular"}

  1. Approval policies setup

    An admin user creates an approval policy, defining conditions under which the policy should apply to journeys or campaigns. For example, you can create an approval policy that requires all scheduled campaigns created by a given user to be approved before activation. Learn how to create approval policies

  2. Campaign/journey submission for approval

    The campaign/journey creators build a journey or campaign and submit it for approval. The campaign/journey enters an “In Review” state, during which no edits can be made unless the request is canceled. Learn how to request approval

    note note
    NOTE
    Campaigns and journeys only need to be submitted for approval if an approval policy is in place. If no such policy applies, the creator can directly publish the campaign or journey without requiring approval.

  3. Review and approval

    The approver(s) defined in the approval policy that applies to the journey or campaign receive(s) a notification. They can review the journey or campaign content, audience, and settings. If changes are needed, the approver requests them, returning the campaign to “Draft” for revisions. If ready, they can activate and launch the journey or campaign. Learn how to review and approve a request

Monitor approval requests monitor

You can monitor all the approval and change requests that have been submitted for a given journey or campaign. To do this, click the Show Audit Trail icon located in the upper-right section of the journey canvas or the campaign review screen.

Approval requests audit trail

Frequently asked questions faq

Do I need to create an approval policy for every campaign or journey?
No. Approval policies are conditional. You only need to create a policy if you want to enforce review for a specific set of campaigns or journeys (e.g., all scheduled campaigns created by a specific team). If no policy applies to a campaign or journey, the creator can publish directly without requesting approval.
What happens if the approver is unavailable?
The request stays “In Review” until an approver acts on it. You can cancel the request (returning the item to “Draft”) and resubmit once the right approver is available. Admins can also update the approval policy to add additional approvers.
Can I edit a campaign or journey while it is pending approval?
No. Once submitted for approval, the campaign or journey is in a locked “In Review” state. To make changes, the creator or an approver must cancel the request first. The item returns to “Draft” and can be edited before resubmitting.
I don't see the Approve & publish permission in the drop-down — what should I check?
Ensure you are adding the correct resource first. The Approve & publish Campaigns permission requires the Campaigns resource to be added to the role, and Approve & publish Journeys requires the Journeys resource. Both must be added separately. Learn how to assign approval-related permissions

Additional resources

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