Engage Updates
Ubiquity have come up with a number of new updates in release 1.66. The most significant to my mind is the new two factor authentication. Two Factor Authentication provides additional security when it comes to keeping your data safe.
1. Overview of 1.66
Security is always a focus at Ubiquity and with the latest security breaches in the headlines it's timely that we're rolling out a raft of security enhancements in this release. The Two Factor Authentication change will impact all of us so please read further below.
We introduced the Engage TXT module in the December Release and already have enhancements in this release based on feedback. Also included in this release are lots of small tweaks and some performance improvements.
2. Two Factor Authentication
Normally you login to a website with just a username and password. It's easy but it's not very secure since usernames and passwords can be guessed or stolen.
Engage Two Factor Authentication (2FA) eliminates this risk by also requiring a mobile phone (the second factor) in order to login to Engage.
The next time you login to Engage you'll need your mobile phone handy. We'll TXT you a code and you simply need to enter this to login to Engage.
That's it. You won't need your mobile handy again unless you change computers or browsers (or we detect changes to your computer setup).
Existing User Loginback to top
From March 2nd 2013 you'll need your mobile phone the very next time you login to Engage.
First login with your details as usual.
Engage will then ask for your mobile number.
Engage will next send you a code by TXT. Enter the code and you are logged in.
This authenticates a web browser. Engage will ask you to authenticate any other browsers you use by TXT message. So if you use your home PC to login to Engage you'll need your mobile there for the first time too.
Once authenticated you won't need your mobile to login to Engage again unless Engage needs you to re-authenticate.
Engage will ask to re-authenticate if:
- You login to Engage on a different browser
- You change your mobile number in your settings in Engage
- Periodically every few months so we can keep our records straight.
You can change your mobile number anytime you like when you login to Engage under My Settings.
New Usersback to top
Setting up new users in Engage has changed slightly.
You'll need the user's mobile number before you can create the user in Engage. They'll need their mobile to complete the setup process.
You also no longer create a password when you setup a new user.
When you've added the user Engage will send them an email. They'll click the link and can choose a password.
Next they'll receive a TXT with a code. Once entered they are logged in and authenticated.
3. Engage TXTback to top
We released the Engage TXT module in the December Release and already have enhancements in this release based on feedback.
Contact your account manager if you would like a demo of the TXT Module or are interested in getting TXT set up on your account. Not sure who to contact? Fill in this form and we'll contact you.
Automated TXT Outsback to top
Expanding upon TXT Outs that were introduced in the last release, we now have Automated TXT Outs.
These work much like Automated Mailouts where you can set up your TXT Out to run on a scheduled basis.
Examples of use:
- Send a Happy Birthday TXT
- TXT thanking customer for a purchase
- TXT asking a customer to update their details
- TXT prior to subscription ending
- TXT when your customer first joins, another a week later and another a week after that
Delivered/Failed Statusback to top
One of the other updates we've made is adding delivered and failed statuses for TXT messages that get sent so you can now see which TXTs got delivered and which bounced.
If three TXT messages in a row to a specific mobile number fail to deliver this will update the TXT GNA (Gone No Address) field in the database against that contact so you can keep your list clean. Any contacts who have been marked as TXT GNA will automatically be excluded from future TXT Outs.
Inbound TXT Validationback to top
When the TXT module was first released there was some validation on inbound TXT messages (e.g. making sure that the value TXTed in was an email address), however there was no easy way to only allow specific words to be sent in.
Now, when creating a TXT Programme you can easily validate to only allow specific words to be TXTed in, if the value sent in is not one of those words you can reply with a TXT asking the person to try again.
Validation on text fields is not case sensitive.
4. Personalised Attachmentsback to top
In our December Release we introduced personalised attachments to form triggered emails. These have now been rolled out to Mailouts as well.
This means you will be able to send emails to your database contacts with personalised quotes, invoices or statements attached – perfect for those upcoming tax receipts.
Engage doesn't actually create the personalised attachments as most clients already have their documents generated in a separate system. Instead Engage will call the external URL to get the attachment. Variables are passed in to the URL in order to get the correct document for each contact. But if you don't have documents in a different location and want them generated then we can help!
Please contact Ubiquity to have this option enabled for your account.
5. Insight Updatesback to top
We've made some changes to Insight that make it easier to get the reporting you're really after.
For charts, previously you could only choose one value for which all your metrics would be calculated as a percentage of.
For example, you might have both reads and bounces for a mailout graphed on the same chart and the percentages for these would both be calculated out of the total number of emails sent.
However different metrics are often calculated as percentages of different figures so we've added the ability to choose which value each metric is calculated as a percentage of.
You can now also specify the date range to display against an Insight report as well as to individual Insight charts. This allows you to make full use of the historical data you've captured and allows you to spot trends back past the previous 1 year limit.
6. Tweaks and bug fixesback to top
| Tweaks and bug fixes for this release include: |
|---|
| Users no longer require TXT permissions to add fields to the database. |
| Text versions of emails can now be previewed in email templates. |
| Previewing an automated mailout now works the same as regular mailouts so you can easily see the template used without having to deactivate it. |
| Loading default email templates into a mailout will now always swap in the opt out link if an opt out form exists in the account. |
| Links that have merge fields in query strings will no longer strip everything after the merge field off. |
| Checkbox options with commas in on forms would become unchecked if a person failed the validation on the form, these will now remain checked. |
| The character count for default values on form and event fields has been increased to allow for complex ESL. |
| Survey logic and filtering on the main question, when that question has subquestions, will now work correctly. |
| Filters on custom survey reports will no longer be removed when the survey options are changed. |
| When completing a survey and a subquestion for a mandatory question has been missed only that subquestion will now highlight red, rather than the whole question. |
| For Internet Explorer users the text box will now appear correctly when adding an introduction page to a survey. |
| Previewing a survey triggered email will no longer save the changes you may have made. |
| API requests will no longer error when requesting survey responses that have subquestions. |
| Events can now be deleted by users that have the create event permission rather than by event administrators only. |
| You can now preview events that have been set up for credit card, but where there is no cost associated with the registration. |
| Credit card events that had too many characters in the DPS merchant field would not submit properly. We have added a character limit to this field to ensure the events always work correctly. |
| Send TXT Out permission is now required to send TXT Outs. |
| Labels can now be saved on Insight charts. |