Frequently Asked Questions
Questions Marketers Ask A Lot
- I have a website, why do I need mBLAST?
- I don't want to get on another SPAM list, I'm trying to reduce my email!
- Does everyone on my staff have to register?
- Why would I want to put our information into mBLAST if our competitors can see it too?
- Who else is participating in mBLAST?
- Are all of mBLAST’s interactions in real time?
- I've got content management systems, why do I need mBLAST?
- Why do I have to use the mBLAST interface, why can't I just send you my information?
- How much does mBLAST cost? I have no budget for any big projects this year!
- How do I get started?
Questions Marketing/PR Firms Ask A Lot
- How can I have all the various people involved in the marketing effort get involved in mBLAST?
- If I am a PR firm, how do I respond on behalf of one of my clients?
- How can we get our other clients to use mBLAST?
- Will this put a barrier between the influencers and me? I like it when they call for clarification because I can then talk to them.
- How much does mBLAST cost?
- How do I get started?
Questions Publishers/Reporters/Editors/Analysts Ask A Lot
- How do I know that mBLAST data is correct?
- How can I have a unique offering for my subscribers if other competitors have access to the same tools?
- Do you offer exclusivity on certain areas of coverage?
- What makes your access to information different from other informational Web sites?
- Does a company have to pay to belong to mBLAST to be in my published offering?
- What type of SLA (Service Level Agreement) do you provide?
- How do I get started?
- How do you handle prolonged downtime?
Questions Forums/Associations/Event Organizers Ask A Lot
Questions Asked by Users A Lot
- What is an "Admin" and what do they do?
- I have not received my validation email. Was it sent? What do I do?
- What if I've forgotten my password?
- How do I change my password?
- How can I change my company name?
- I represent multiple companies and would like to enter a process under each one, how can I do that?
- My Company already has a User ID; can you give me the login information?
- I have images I would like to use, but the format I have is not listed in the upload box. Can I still upload them?
- I would like a receipt for my payment; how can I obtain one?
- My company has offices all over the country/world. How do I add all of those addresses?
- My record has an error; can you correct it for me?
Questions Marketers Ask A Lot
- I have a website, why do I need mBLAST?
Your website is not the only place at which information about your company is gathered. You have control over your website and can change it whenever you like. You cannot control websites at which others are reporting information on your company, and that is where mBLAST comes in – to push up-to-date, accurate information out into the public domain. Many Marketers also use mBLAST to power content to their own website, such as articles about their company or analyst reports that cover the product or service types they produce. - I don't want to get on another SPAM list, I'm trying to reduce my email!
mBLAST is essentially a closed user group for Marketers. The information you get via email is going to be essential for your communications with Influencers. We have worked hard to protect the privacy of our users, and to give them options to reduce their email interface to the system. In most instances, you can choose to deal totally within the mBLAST interface – with its notifications and task alerts on the main My mBLAST page when you log in – as opposed to getting emails of the same. But more importantly, we've taken many more steps to protect abuse of our data in the system such that you see that mBLAST is not SPAM, but actually a more efficient process of doing the things you do every day. - Does everyone on my staff have to register?
Often companies are tempted to sign up one person, and then have many people share that account. This is not the way mBLAST was designed and you'll run into all sorts of problems if you do this. Say, for example, that you are participating in a Buyer's Guide offered by an publication and a colleague or your PR firm is collaborating. If you go on vacation and the person collaborating forgot there was an upcoming deadline, all the alerts notifying your firm that the deadline is passing would go to your email box, not both of your email boxes. mBLAST does not sell its list. We have taken steps to discourage any sort of farming for email addresses. We monitor for abnormal behavior. mBLAST is designed to make the marketing process as efficient as possible, mimicking human behavior in the process. But you should not try to 'trick' the system, you'll lose out in the end. You would not call up an editor pretending to be someone else -- you'd say, "I'm filling in for someone else...." mBLAST embraces instances like this, but can only support companies if people register and act like themselves. - Why would I want to put our information into mBLAST if our competitors can see it too?
Your competitors can also see your information by looking at your website or contacting your marketing department. What mBLAST does give you the tools to control the information about your company that is in the public domain. What’s more, mBLAST also provides reporters, editors, analysts, etc., with private areas where they can interact with you on a one-to-one basis – protecting information that may be sensitive. - Who else is participating in mBLAST?
More and more companies join mBLAST every day. mBLAST targets markets by going after the major players from many different angles at once. Admittedly, this is one of those opportunities in life where the more is indeed the merrier. However, the wealth of tools and capabilities that are offered by mBLAST are valuable even if you were to be the first one in. You can always check out who's been on mBLAST lately at: http://www.mblast.com/latest. - Are all of mBLAST’s interactions in real time?
The moment you change your mBLAST data, it is automatically pushed out into the public domain. Many of the mBLAST customers who receive that information avail themselves of the automatic formatting options that will push your update information directly through to their site. Others prefer to check the data item by item – possibly even verifying it with you prior to posting – or to batch process the data into their sites and other products. This batch processing could be on an hourly, daily, or other time increment basis. The same is true for mBLAST's own site, where indexes to update listings happen every few minutes. So there can be a short lag between when you put information into the system, and when it appears online. - I've got content management systems, why do I need mBLAST?
Your content management system is great for managing your own content on your own sites, and on sites with your direct partners. But what about all the indirect channels and on-time accesses to your data? How are they going to access your CMS? If you have a new logo and it's in your CMS, that's great, but how do you get it into a publication's library of corporate logos, or have it change on a website that has it displayed next to your company's name? mBLAST can interface with your CMS through leading-edge feeds, so that all the Influencers can make use of your content alongside everyone else's. So think of mBLAST in that context as a CMS aggregator. - Why do I have to use the mBLAST interface, why can't I just send you my information?
We think there are two "market" demands in play here. Marketers demand, "Let me do this any way I want to", as opposed to going through a systematic process. Publishers demand, "I want the system to gather the results...no manual data entry." Demand #1 conflicts with #2. We try to be sensitive to #1, but we have to be careful not to facilitate #1 so well that publishers won't use the system. We've tried to refine the system so that if you follow the process, it saves you the most time. Some companies print out survey forms and pass them around internally, but in the end, someone there has to enter it into the system or it won't get into the process. So essentially they are just making more work for themselves by trying to get out of using the system. mBLAST is multi-user and has all sorts of indicators and notifications to help you minimize your effort. When you go against that grain, it creates more work for you, not less. This is kind of like the old problem with email, where executives would get their assistants to print out the messages for them. They were used to the old way (paper memos), and they thought that printouts were easier than reading the email directly. People always try to use the "old way" to solve new problems. Eventually, most people figured out that using email was simpler, faster, and better. We think as more and more people get their own mBLAST accounts, it will seem easier to use the system than to try to do it offline using an old tool, like a Microsoft Office application, to solve this problem which involves online collaboration between multiple companies. - How much does mBLAST cost? I have no budget for any big projects this year!
mBLAST has pricing levels that fit all types of marketing budgets. To determine what level is best for you, visit http://www.mblast.com/mk/pricing/. - How do I get started?
Go to www.mblast.com and register. After registration you'll be directed to your My mBLAST page where you can watch run your Company Wizard and watch tutorials that will get you started.
Questions Marketing/PR Firms Ask A Lot
- How can I have all the various people involved in the marketing effort get involved in mBLAST?
You start by inviting them to register for mBLAST at www.mBLAST.com. Each firm has an "Administrator" -- a role temporarily assigned to the first person at your company that registers, but which can be transferred to others. While we'd like someone in a senior marketing position to log in first, we realize that often the first person using mBLAST is someone entering an Awards process or Buyer's Guide, and they may not want to become an Administrator. Others in your firm -- or affiliated with the firm, like a PR firm or Investor Relations firm -- are approved and given access rights by the Administrator.
This Administrator has full control over the creation and assignment of access rights to users and groups in the mBLAST system. Your Company Administrator's contact information can be found in the My Account widget on your My mBLAST page. - If I am a PR firm, how do I respond on behalf of one of my clients?
Security and control are top priorities for mBLAST and we take great strides to protect each client’s information. As a PR firm, mBLAST enables you to be an ‘alias’ for your client – basically allowing you to act as if you were an employee of the firm. But first you must have your own senior marketing director register your PR firm in mBLAST. Then, follow the PR validation process that will include a request being sent to each of your clients’ administrators seeking permission to have you maintain or have access to their mBLAST records. Once they approve you, you will have access to those sections they allow you to see. - How can we get our other clients to use mBLAST?
First off, many of them probably already are using mBLAST, as a result of requests from Influencers to use the system for Awards Programs, Buyer's Guides, Directories, etc. If they are not using the system, it's easy. First register yourself/your company in mBLAST. Then go to your My mBLAST page, click on the Suggestions tab, click on 'Invite Someone to Join mBLAST', and enter their name and email address. mBLAST will take it from there. An automatic email will be sent to your clients requesting them to join mBLAST. Then once they are validated by the system, you can request access to their records. For firms with a lot of clients, mBLAST's team will help you -- simply contact customer service at custservice@mblast.com. - Will this put a barrier between the influencers and me? I like it when they call for clarification because I can then talk to them.
No, what mBLAST seeks to do is to make the flow of information and contact more efficient and more controlled, not replace your relationships with the Influencers. In fact, it should actually improve your relationship with the Influencer. With mBLAST, we are seeking to take the rote, time-consuming aspects of your work and wrap a process around them. (You don't get paid better if you can place 47 phone calls to reporters and leaving voice mails, for instance.) mBLAST seeks to take the 'background noise' out of marketing so people can focus on the topics and interests directly in their area. This means less time spent correcting facts and placing calls, and more time focusing on doing the work that has an end impact on your work. mBLAST will focus your energies on providing true differentiation in the marketplace, and that will make your interaction more valuable to your firm in the long run. - How much does mBLAST cost?
mBLAST has pricing levels that fit all types of marketing budgets. To determine what level is best for you, visit http://www.mblast.com/mk/pricing/. - How do I get started?
Go to www.mblast.com and register. Once registered, you'll run through a Company Wizard and a PR Wizard, which will step you through the processes of setting up your company and contacts in the system.
Questions Publishers/Reporters/Editors/Analysts Ask A Lot
- How do I know that mBLAST data is correct?
mBLAST is not in the business of maintaining databases; it is in the business of enabling companies to control their own data. While mBLAST has prepopulated the system with information from publicly available databases, much of this information needs to be updated and maintained by the companies themselves. This is why many Influencers are asking companies they interface with to log in and update their information. From there on, mBLAST will contact them on a regular basis to make sure their information stays current. Ultimately, we are a process, not a database. This means the person responsible for the integrity of the data works for the company or is the PR firm representing the company. With so many players using the data, everyone has a greater vested interest in the integrity of the data, and therefore it is more likely to be kept updated and accurate. At the end of the day, mBLAST is providing Influencers with a tool similar to a phone, a fax, or an overnight delivery system. What gets put in packages or on the fax is up to the companies to defend and support. - How can I have a unique offering for my subscribers if other competitors have access to the same tools?
The amazing thing about facts is that if they are, well, factual; they are all the same. The issue is how you use that fact, view it, and present/analyze it. If you have the facts about companies and their products, you can merge, select, delete, transpose, etc., these facts to reflect your view and your priorities. The facts are still the facts. If you think about any press release or new product introduction, the facts usually are provided to all reporters at the same time. What differentiates articles are the analysts interviewed, users talked to, graphics presented, etc., and the perspective taken. Another way to look at mBLAST is at an application level. We are a Word, Excel, or Powerpoint level tool. How you use and exploit those tools is up to you. - Do you offer exclusivity on certain areas of coverage?
No, how could we? How do you define boundaries of areas? And even if you could, it goes against the goals of the system at large, to create a marketing community of interest that drives efficiencies by participation. - What makes your access to information different from other informational Web sites?
With mBLAST, we're a process, not just a database. With us, you can link to information such that if it changes in the future, you can be told of those changes. You can create limitless numbers of charts, comparison matrices, and graphics. What makes the data unique to your company is the analysis you provide, and the data you format to complement that analysis. mBLAST has tools to make the data closely match your company’s style and color scheme, so customization of a matrix or comparison chart is fast and simple. Hosting options allow for the data to change in real time, or if you choose to post the information to your own site, a variety of update options are available to you. We support XML, Excel, Tab-Delimited, and other file formats. mBLAST will notify you if the data in your chart changes. The difficult part of researching a matrix or comparison chart is taken care of -- leaving more time to create the in-depth analysis that will be the real differentiator of your information. We've reduced the effort for creating a Buyer's Guide from 3-6 months to a matter of hours, for instance. One Buyer's Guide was done with more than 130 companies involved -- something you could never even think of doing manually! - Does a company have to pay to belong to mBLAST to be in my published offering?
Many mBLAST users see tremendous benefit in subscribing to one of mBLAST's packages, while others may use mBLAST at a free level. An overwhelming majority of users see the fees they pay to participate in a product or process powered by mBLAST as small potatoes compared to the time savings mBLAST enables in their day-to-day activities. - What type of SLA (Service Level Agreement) do you provide?
mBLAST does not offer an SLA. None of our clients will hold us to an SLA that is more intense than the standards we have for ourselves in operating our business. Our entire business -- all of it -- relies on being "up." We have implemented redundant drives, services, bandwidth, code repositories, backup processes, alerting systems, remote management, etc. -- all with the intent of ensuring as close to 100% uptime as possible.
We do have scheduled downtime -- sometimes to do something involving the system, you have to take the servers down, such as changing racks, loading new functionality, etc. We will usually do these types of changes during non-peak hours (late night or over a weekend) and we always let our clients know about them in advance.
Unscheduled outages can happen on occasion and are short in duration. Most of the time, we catch potential issues before they affect customers. We have threshold alerts, monitoring systems, etc., that tell us when something is being stressed. Our systems are front-ended with a set of anti-hacking, anti-virus systems that, like all servers on the Internet, occasionally come under attack from some outside system trying to find a hole to gain entry. And like everyone else, if such a thing happens, it can slow performance to some degree on the system. - How do I get started?
Start by going to www.mblast.com and register. You'll then go to your My mBLAST page, where you will be directed to complete Wizards that establish both your Company as a company, and your individual publication as a publication. There are then tutorials to get you off and running! - How do you handle prolonged downtime?
We have not had what the industry would consider a prolonged downtime. Our hosting facility has five Tier 1 redundant bandwidth providers and they guarantee 100 percent uptime. We've never been down due to bandwidth. We have not had a prolonged outage where we were down for days. It's something you try to plan around in advance so it does not happen. If it does, then something pretty bad happened that probably is largely out of our control.
Questions Forums/Associations/Event Organizers Ask A Lot
- Why would I not just do this myself?
mBLAST will add efficiency to your membership and information distribution process. If you currently have a sophisticated database and membership system, mBLAST works in partnership with that - we merely would like to send you data as it changes in your membership organizations, such as changes of address, new CEOs, etc. If you are currently maintaining your membership data by hand -- in a spreadsheet, for example -- you are depending on a person at your organization to gather all the correct data and enter it into your Website, your online directories, reports to the press, and in other outlets. In general, this is a passive data collection system. The only way you generally find out about changes or corrections is when there is a problem or complaint. The value-added service of hyperlinks, information pop-ups, and instant email to a company representative are all done automatically through the mBLAST system. Your members can take an active role in maintaining their own records and updating staff changes, positioning statements, email addresses, and phone numbers. This should greatly reduce the time it takes to maintain your Web site. mBLAST will also let you generate the membership directories from your current data, and this means fewer hard copy changes if you plan on producing printed materials.
Questions Asked by Users A Lot
- What is an "Admin" and what do they do?
As your company begins to bring multiple users into the mBLAST system, you'll find that your mBLAST administrator plays an essential role in your company's use of the system. This is the person who has complete access to your firm's mBLAST content and who controls which people - both within and outside your company - can access and manipulate that content.
While this role is important, it's not difficult to perform. mBLAST makes it easy with Wizards and simple Web interfaces and a lot of well thought out automation. For example, when you delete someone from your company (or from a particular role in your company), mBLAST will automatically prompt your admin to fill that role, even to the point of offering up a list of employees to choose from.
There's nothing scary about being a company administrator in mBLAST. The person you choose need not be tech savvy IT geek. Like everything else in mBLAST, there's a clear and easily accessible interface for the admin to use. The only real requirement is that the person you choose as an admin can access the Web and can follow instructions. You don't need to assign your CTO to the job!By default, the first person in a company who signs up for an mBLAST account will be the company's mBLAST administrator. This isn't done just for convenience, or because mBLAST is too lazy to do it some other way, but rather because (after years of experience) mBLAST has found that the first person to register usually has a stake in the company's use of mBLAST and is in a position to fulfill this role.
For example, many times the first person into mBLAST is going to be your company's PR manager or a marketing communications professional. These are exactly the people who are in a position to be your mBLAST administrator. They know your products and services, they have access to your marketing content and strategy, and they know the people within your company and what they do. It's already their job to know about these things and to facilitate the flow of information within and without the company based on this knowledge.
Remember that you aren't stuck with the first person into mBLAST as your company administrator. If your CEO was the first person in the mBLAST door (and she/he doesn't want to be an admin), it's easy to swap admins, as we discuss below.The major responsibilities of your mBLAST admin are to:
- Assign other admins as necessary or desired. The admin might want to share the duties with someone else in case he/she is on vacation, or (gasp) goes on maternity or paternity leave.
- Control access to company content within mBLAST. The admin can determine who can see and change what content in mBLAST. Some content, like company profiles, you may want to have close control over.
- Control which mBLAST modules individuals (or groups of individuals) can access within mBLAST. Not everyone needs to see all of your subscribed modules in mBLAST. A product manager, for instance, might only need to see products in the Content section. The admin can grant access to selected people within the company on an as needed basis to any module or group of modules.
- Deal with employee turnovers. As employees come and go the admin will need to deal with re-assigning various responsibilities and access rights to accommodate such changes.
As an mBLAST administrator, you'll get a lot of help from the mBLAST system in performing your tasks. What we mean by "help" is that mBLAST will provide you with ongoing notices and reminders when it's time to perform a specific task - such as updating company profiles, reviewing company contacts and roles, etc. - I have not received my validation email. Was it sent? What do I do?
Validation is an important step. Almost all of our users rely on email as their main means of communication for their mBLAST processes. The validation process ensures that you can receive a valid email from mBLAST.
Usually the validation emails are held up by your spam filter in your email client or your company’s email server. Some servers might see this email as spam because it is an automated message that contains a link. You can fix this by checking your spam folder settings. If that does not work, contact your IT department and ask that they look into it. Many firms resolve this problem by adding custservice@mblast.com to any whitelist/safelist they may have in their systems. If you continue to have issues, either you or your IT person can contact customer service and we will work with you to resolve this. If you'd like a copy of your validation email sent to you again, please follow these instructions:
1) Login to mBLAST at http://www.mblast.com/workspace/login.asp
2) Your only option will be to resend the email to the address listed. - What if I've forgotten my password?
There is a button on the login page that says "Forgot Password?" When you click there, your password will be emailed you. - How do I change my password?
You'll need to use the main mBLAST interface.
1) Login at http://www.mblast.com/workspace/login.asp
2) Click on "Setup" in the extreme upper-right of your screen (to the left of Help, Suggestions, and Logout)
3) Click on the "User Name/Password" sub-tab - How can I change my company name?
There are two possible answers here:
I. If you are listed under an incorrect company, you can use our Change Company feature located in your Public Profile here http://www.mblast.com/workspace/profile/overview.asp
II. Alternate Steps:
1) Login to mBLAST at http://www.mblast.com/workspace/login.asp
2) Go to the "Preferences" tab
3) Make sure "My Public Profile" is highlighted, and click on the link "Profile" - I represent multiple companies and would like to enter a process under each one, how can I do that?
We now support the ability for PR firms (or other third party firms) to choose their own clients when entering a process.
When you are entering a response process, use your PR/third party firm email, and as long as your firm is correctly classified as a PR/third party Firm you will see an option that reads as follows on entry to a response process:
"I am employed by [PR Firm] as a Public Relations Firm (or other third-party firm) representing a different client/customer in this process"
You will be prompted to search for (and enter, if not found) the firm you are representing. On each subsequent visit (and also in the tabbed area, under "Clients") you will be prompted to choose which company you'd like to use to enter the process. - My Company already has a User ID; can you give me the login information?
mBLAST requires each user to have their own account. When you register you will be able to associate your user account with your company’s record in mBLAST. This is so that you are able to work alongside your peers when working in mBLAST. Because mBLAST accounts are setup on a user by user basis, using one account for ‘sharing’ across employees is not only unnecessary, but it will cause problems in mBLAST. You are not charged on a per account basis, so there’s no downside to setting up your own account. Tip: We also do not recommend using a shared email address, like Press@company.com or Info@company.com. This will impact the degree to which mBLAST can personalize your user experience. - I have images I would like to use, but the format I have is not listed in the upload box. Can I still upload them?
mBLAST itself supports a vast range of formats, but the individual formats shown in your upload area are set by the administrator of the process – they choose what file formats they wish to work with. These requirements, therefore, will vary from process to process in mBLAST. You will need to modify your images to meet these upload requirements including file-size and format. - I would like a receipt for my payment; how can I obtain one?
mBLAST operates a lot like any web-based shopping cart such as at Amazon or eBay. When you pay for your submission you will be given the option to print a copy of your receipt. You will also be emailed a copy for your records. If you did not receive the email copy, please check your “spam folder” or junk/bulk mail folder as it may have filtered to there as spam. - My company has offices all over the country/world. How do I add all of those addresses?
Most mBLAST clients choose to allow only a single main address or “headquarters” to be used in their process. mBLAST does give the option to add multiple locations in the form of “Profiles.” However, most processes are setup by our clients to allow only one main address, and they usually want the headquarters address (not a branch office location). - My record has an error; can you correct it for me?
The mBLAST concept is to allow you, the user, to control your own data. For this reason mBLAST does not maintain a database, mBLAST allows you to take control of that maintenance yourself by giving you access to your own live data. No more waiting for a response from a customer service person or a Webmaster. If you are not registered and want to know who in your firm is, contact the customer service department and they will be happy to put you in touch. It's easy to login or register and update your data yourself.