Circle – What’s New

 

See also    Circle release notes     |     XES release notes     |     XMPL release notes

Version 9.8 (Nov 17, 2024)

Support for triggered SMS touchpoints

In addition to support of mass SMS touchpoints, Circle now supports triggered SMSs. 

Triggered SMSs are sent in response to an action performed by a recipient. You can define the actions that trigger such SMSs when designing your XMPL website. 

This requires XMPL Server v. 5.1.

Read more

Support for mass external touchpoints

In addition to support of triggered external touchpoints, Circle now supports mass external touchpoints. 

Executing mass external touchpoints transfers data/triggers events to an external system. Data is sent to an external system based on the selected recipient list.

External touchpoints  allow Circle to communicate with external services in order to broaden its customer communication capabilities.

Read more

Version 9.7 (Sep 29, 2024)

Watch a short video overview 

Plan Editor in Circle

You can now modify the plan file directly within Circle’s library, without having to go to uPlan or uCreate Print. The uPlan Editor in Circle allows for basic plan file editing, such as creating and editing content objects, variables, and simple rules.  Read more

For more advanced editing, continue using uPlan.

Note: A prerequisite is PersonalEffect version 12.1 or above and Circle Business Edition.

Version 9.6.7 (Jul 28, 2024)

With XMPL version 5.0, when creating a managed website you can now upload/download website content (up to 1GB) directly from the Circle UI, without having to use FTP.

Every time you upload new website content, a backup of the previous content is created, up to 10 backups.

In addition, the config file is updated and uploaded to the website automatically.  Read more

The Bounced and Unsubscribed email list reports include a new column which details the reason for complaints and bounces.

Version 9.6.5 (Jun 16, 2024)

Support for SMS touchpoints

This version supports SMS touchpoints to be used in uStore’s Campaign on Demand products.

This release includes security improvements and bug fixes.

Version 9.6.4 (Mar 31, 2024)

This is a maintenance release which includes security improvements and bug fixes.

Version 9.6.3 (Mar 03, 2024)

This is a maintenance release which includes security improvements and bug fixes.

Version 9.6.2 (Nov 05, 2023)

This is a maintenance release which includes infrastructure changes and security improvements. 

Version 9.6.1 (July 09, 2023)

Clear Analytics

The new Clear Analytics feature lets you clear the project’s analytics before going live and launching the project. This can be useful for cases when you tested your project prior to launching it, and you wish to clear all test analytics before going live.

Analytics for the current project is cleared in the Circle data warehouse only (cloud). It is not cleared from the uProduce tracking database (on prem) of Marketing Console (which has been deprecated), nor is the project history cleared (e.g., event-based automation history). Read more

Version 9.6.0 (June 04, 2023)

This is a maintenance release which includes infrastructure changes, password policy hardening, and notifications being sent on skipped runs.

Version 9.5.3 (March 12, 2023)

Touchpoint ID for use in API

In the Library, it is now possible to show the touchpoint ID for use in the API. 

This is particularly useful for copying the touchpoint GUID from the screen and pasting it into the API code. 

Brute-force protection

As part of our ongoing commitment to security best practices, we have limited the number of sign-in attempts to 5, after which the user is locked out of the system for a period of time.

As part of our ongoing commitment to data protection and security best practices, we have updated a number of internal APIs to new technologies.

Version 9.5.2 (January 22, 2023)

As part of our ongoing commitment to data protection and security best practices, in version 9.5.2 we updated additional libraries used in our front and back end technology.

Version 9.5.1 (November 14, 2022)

As part of our ongoing commitment to data protection and security best practices, in version 9.5.1 we updated approximately 45 libraries used in our front-end technology.

Version 9.5 (July 31, 2022)

This is a maintenance release including security improvements and bug fixes.

Version 9.4 (June 19, 2022)

Circle Analytics – recipient journey report

We are delighted to bring you the recipient journey report, which details the events of a specific recipient throughout the entire campaign.

You may find this report particularly useful in resolving disputes regarding timing of events and GDPR-related issues. In addition, this report can be used as a source for retargeting purposes. You can analyze the behavior of top-dollar customers in the current campaign, and refine your next marketing campaign accordingly. Read the help in  English      Deutsch     Français

This feature requires PersonalEffect 11.2 or above.

Version 9.3 (May 1, 2022)

Circle Analytics – print reports

We are happy to introduce predefined, out-of-the-box reports available on your print touchpoints.

Print reports provide access to information such as the total number of unique recipients for whom print was produced during a defined time period, and the number of non-unique print events over a period of time. 

Access to print analytics is available from the touchpoint in the diagram, or from the Analyze dashboard.  Read the help in  English    Deutsch     Français 

Circle Analytics – Consolidated view of email touchpoints

In the Analyze dashboard you can now access the analytics of multiple email touchpoints consolidated into a single view.

This can be very useful when using manual A/B testing or manual throttling.

For example, you A/B test two variations of an email invitation (E2, E3), then customize E1 to the best option and send it to the rest of the list. You may then want to see the analytics of E1, E2 and E3  consolidated into a single view to see how well the invitation did in total.  

Read the help in  English    Deutsch     Français 

Version 9.2 (February 27, 2022)

Count number of recipients

It is now possible to count how many recipients will be processed when testing, sending or processing an email, print or SMS touchpoint.

In the List section, click the Count link to see the number of recipients in that list.

Given that the stress level is highest just seconds before sending or processing a touchpoint, seeing the number of recipients at this time provides reassurance and assists in avoiding mistakes.

Add touchpoints from the library

Now, you can add new touchpoints to your project directly from the library, not just from the diagram.

Once added, you can go to the Plan tab and place these new touchpoints in the diagram using the “Library Touchpoints” button.

Read the help in  English    Deutsch     Français 

Duplicate touchpoints

In the library, you can now duplicate existing email touchpoints with all their settings and definitions (i.e. name, header, body, list, settings, schedule).

This speeds up defining similar touchpoints, with slight variations. It is typically used when doing manual A/B testing and manual throttling.

Read the help in  English    Deutsch     Français 

Version 9.1 (January 9, 2022)

Circle Analytics – KPI gauge customization

KPI gauges appear at the top of the Analyze tab for instant data visualization.
You can now add, duplicate, move, edit, and delete KPI gauges to meet your needs in that specific project.

Read the help in  English    Deutsch     Français 

Circle Analytics – Web conversion by call to action (CTA)

The website conversion KPI gauge can now be tailored to measure actions tagged as a CTA (call to action). This KPI allows you to evaluate the success of your campaign in a single gauge.

Be sure to identify the important action/link by appending “:CTA” to the tracking name in your web pages before launching the project (e.g., xmp-tracking-action=”Form Submitted:CTA”). 

Note: Clicks on the action/link before it has “:CTA” appended, will not be included in the CTA count.

You can measure unique web conversion using the KPI gauge, and non-unique CTA metrics by downloading the page performance list report from the web analytics page.

Read the help in  English    Deutsch     Français 

Circle Analytics – Consolidated link performance report

Now, in the Email analytics window, you can download a consolidated link performance report with all link performance events included in a single report. This saves you time if you need to view or analyze all the events together in a single view. 

This is in addition to the ability to download separate reports where each report is focused on a specific link.

Read the help in  English    Deutsch     Français

discontinued

Marketing Console discontinuation announcement

Marketing Console (MC), the PersonalEffect analytics tool, is being replaced by Circle Analytics.
– Jan 1, 2022 is the announcement of MC deprecation.
– Jan1, 2023 is the end of MC support and MC discontinuation.
See Marketing Console Discontinuation FAQ

Version 9 (November 14, 2021)

Circle Analytics – KPI gauges in Analyze tab

KPI Gauges have been added to the top of the Analyze tab for instant data visualization.

KPI Gauges organize and present data in a way you can easily understand and take action on. Using KPI gauges you can quickly assess how well a given metric is performing against a target goal.

The Analyze dashboard is supported in projects created after November 2019. Contact Support if you require the Analyze dashboard in earlier projects.

In uStore version 14.1, Circle analytics will be available in Campaign on Demand products.

 Read the help in English    Deutsch     Français     |     Video training

Version 8.9 (October 24, 2021)

Circle Analytics – Analyze tab

We are happy to introduce the Analyze dashboard, which provides a consolidated high-level view of the analytics of all touchpoints in the campaign.

From the dashboard you can drill in and access the detailed analytics of each touchpoint.

Viewing touchpoint analytics side by side enables you to analyze the performance of the entire campaign at a single glance.  

Read the help in English    Deutsch     Français     |     Video training

XMPL v3.2 supports TLS 1.2

TLS 1.2 (Transport Layer Security protocol) is now fully supported in XMPL version 3.2. 
This requires PersonalEffect version 10.0.2 and higher.

Version 8.8 (August 15, 2021)

Circle Analytics – Web reports

We are delighted to bring you the next phase in a series of deployments to improve and streamline Circle Analytics.

This phase includes predefined, out-of-the-box reports available on your web touchpoints, which can help you test and measure the performance and effectiveness of your website.

Web reports provide access to information such as the number of webpage visitors, the number of visitors who interacted with the page (i.e. clicked a button or a link) and the number of people who visited a page and left without any further interaction (i.e. they didn’t navigate to a second page or click a button or link).

Also included are the new source reports, which show the sources that referred traffic to the website, such as email, print, SMS or social media, helping you assess which media performed best.

Read the help in  English    Deutsch     Français     |    Video training
Read XMPL v.3.2 release notes

Web ADORs

Requires PersonalEffect version 10.2.

Web ADORs are special link ADORs which are created for each of the web touchpoints in the project, and when placed in an email, SMS or other media return a link to the webpage configured in the web touchpoint.  

These special link ADORs automatically include the media and source parameters used for the source web reports. 

Read the help in  English    Deutsch     Français

Version 8.7 (July 11, 2021)

Circle Analytics – SMS reports

We are happy to announce the latest improvement to our SMS offering. Circle Analytics now provides predefined, out-of-the-box SMS reports available on your SMS touchpoints. 

SMS reports provide access to information such as the number of recipients to whom the SMS was sent, the number of SMS messages that were successfully delivered to recipients, and the number of messages that failed to be delivered. In case of failed messages, using the list reports you can determine the reasons for the failure. 

Read the help in  English    Deutsch     Français     |     Video training

Version 8.6 (May 30, 2021)

Circle Analytics – Date filter

New filtering options have been added to the date filter. In addition to the All sends and Last send filters,  you can now filter according to specific time periods: last week, last month, last quarter, or a custom date  range.

Date filtering is especially useful when the email touchpoint has been sent more than once (e.g. an email with recurrence). This enables you to focus on the relevant period. For example, if you send a daily email, at the end of the month you may want to look at last month’s performance. 

Read the help in  English    Deutsch     Français 

Version 8.5 (April 11, 2021)

List reports and Performance over time report in triggered emails

In new projects, triggered email analytics now supports List reports, and shows the entire period (from the first send to today) in Performance over time reports.

Read about List reports in  English    Deutsch     Français 
Read about Performance over time report in  English    Deutsch     Français

Version 8.4 (February 21, 2021)

Add project parameters

It is now possible to add up to 20 custom project parameters in the Project Parameters window, giving you more flexibility in parameterized scheduling. Read more in  English    Deutsch    Français

Version 8.3 (January 24, 2021)

Sharing the Analytics dashboard

It is now possible to share the analytics of an email touchpoint with people outside the scope of Circle. For example, with the campaign’s marketing manager, or with your own manager.

Your customers no longer need to log into Circle in order to view analytics of their campaign. You can simply provide them a direct link to analytics by placing the link in any correspondence or third-party dashboard, to make it easily accessible. When your customer clicks the link, it opens the analytics in a browser window (desktop or mobile), independent of Circle. 

Read the help in  English    Deutsch    Français 

Version 8.2 (November 22, 2020)

Improved report performance

Circle Analytics infrastructure was modified, and now all reports run significantly faster.

Version 8.1 (November 15, 2020)

Standalone email editor

The Circle email editor is now available as a standalone application. 

This is a major improvement for customers wishing to integrate with the Circle email editor from an external application.

This feature is available for customers who hold a Cloud API license. Read more

Version 8.0 (November 1, 2020)

SMS touchpoints

We are delighted to bring you the first in a series of deployments of the new SMS touchpoint.

SMS (text message) provides an easy method of adding mass or bulk SMS messaging to your cross media campaigns.
The SMS feature has built-in integration with Vonage (formerly Nexmo), but can also be integrated with other 3rd party SMS providers.
In this first release, Circle supports transactional mass SMS messages only. These are SMS messages that are distributed to your recipient list.
Typical use cases for transactional mass SMS are sending a reminder SMS to those who have already opted in (i.e. a doctor’s appointment, conference participation), or invitation RSVPs.
PersonalEffect 9.7 or higher is required.
Read the help in  English    Deutsch    Français     |    Video training

New monthly recurrence rule

The monthly recurrence rule has been made to be more flexible, and allows you to schedule not only on a  specific day of each month, but also, for example, on the 3rd Tuesday of every month.  Read more

Read the help in  English    Deutsch    Français 

Version 7.9 (October 11, 2020)

Maintenance release

This is a maintenance release that fixes several issues with the XES service.

Version 7.8 (June 28, 2020)

New and improved XES store

We are proud to bring you the new XES store, where you can easily manage your XES subscription.

The new XES store is visually appealing, and emphasizes design and ease of navigation. You can access the store directly from Circle, with no need for additional sign-on.

The XES store is available 24/7. All processes, such as purchasing credit and changing the plan, are fully automatic. This means that you can make prompt changes to your subscription, without having to wait for our representatives to finalize your request.

Subscription plans are flexible, can be easily changed, and are renewed automatically every month. You can specify the exact number of emails that you need in your plan.

The XES store will be available starting from July 1, 2020.


Version 7.7 (May 31, 2020)

Automatic link naming

Now, in addition to auto-naming dynamic email links, Circle also automatically names and tracks static links in the email. There is no longer a need to invest the effort in naming email links. Tracking according to link name enables you to achieve precise and informative tracking results for important links. 

Link names can be seen in the Link Performance report. 

This feature requires XES version 3.5 and above. 

Read the help in  English    Deutsch    Français 

Version 7.6 (March 15, 2020)

List reports

Circle Analytics now offers list reports, which provide a drill-down into the details of recipients corresponding to a certain event (opened, clicked, unsubscribed, etc.).

List reports provide access to information such as the number of times a specific recipient clicked in an email, the reason for bounced and failed emails, and recipients who clicked the “Register now” link and completed the registration.

List reports are available for each key metric and each link in the Link performance report.

PersonalEffect 9.7 is a prerequisite for list reports.

Read the help in  English    Deutsch     Français     |     Video training 

Date filter

The newly added date filter impacts the data displayed in the Analytics window. You can see data for all sends of the email touchpoint or just data from the last send of the touchpoint.

Date filtering is especially useful when the email touchpoint has been sent more than once (e.g. an email with recurrence). This enables you to focus on the relevant send. For example, if you send a monthly newsletter, you can look at last month’s performance.

Read the help in  English    Deutsch     Français 

 

Performance over time

The performance over time graph now shows the number of opened and clicked emails for all sends or for the last send (as set in the date filter).

You can use the scroll bar below the graph to scroll and zoom to different time frames. You can also drag over an area of interest within the graph, such as a peak, to zoom into it.

Read the help in  English    Deutsch     Français

 

 

 

Version 7.4.4 (Sep 22, 2019)

Maintenance release

Maintenance release and preparations for future Circle Analytics reports.

Version 7.4 (Aug 4, 2019)

Circle Analytics – device report

Circle Analytics now offers the device out-of-the-box report available on your email touchpoints. This report identifies the most popular devices used by your recipients. With this information, you can test your emails in the most commonly used email clients.

XES client 3.5 is a prerequisite for the collection of device data.

Read the help in  English    Deutsch     Français    |     Video Training

Note: To speed up the rate at which events are visible in Circle Analytics and Marketing Console, upgrade to PersonalEffect version 9.5 or later.

Version 7.2 (June 30, 2019)

Circle Analytics – geolocation report

Circle Analytics now offers the geolocation out-of-the-box report available on your email touchpoints. The geolocation approximates where your recipients were located when they opened the email, so you can target recipients in specific regions.

XES client 3.5 is a prerequisite for the collection of geolocation data.

Read the help in  English    Deutsch     Français

 

Version 7.0 (May 19, 2019)

Triggered external touchpoint

External touchpoints allow Circle to communicate with external services in order to broaden its customer communication capabilities.

This communication is triggered from an XMPL webpage, by clicking a button or upon a page load.
For example, when submitting a form, a lead can be created in Salesforce, a recipient can be added to an event management service, or a coupon can be sent to a recipient’s wallet, using an external service.

The external touchpoint defines the service with which to communicate (via REST API) and the recipient data to be sent (via JSON). XMPL  3.1 or higher is a prerequisite.

Connecting an external touchpoint to zapier.com provides easy integration with over 1000 services.

External Touchpoint is not supported in Template-Instance and Campaign-on-Demand (uStore).

Read the help in  English    Deutsch     Français    |     Video Training

Version 6.0 (March 31, 2019)

Circle Analytics – email reports

We are delighted to bring you the first in a series of deployments to improve and streamline Circle Analytics.

This phase includes predefined, out-of-the-box email reports available on your email touchpoints. You no longer need to define the basic email reports using Marketing Console (MC) since all email touchpoints automatically include the predefined reports. Circle continues to give access to MC reports just as before.

New reports include key metrics such as delivered/opened/clicked, email performance, 24 hour performance over time, and link performance.

Together with the auto-naming feature of XES Cloud 3.5.1, important links such as XMPieRURL, Unsubscribe, View in browser, and PDF on demand are automatically tracked by name to identify the specific link performance (for mass email only).

If you have XES Client 3.5, you will benefit from the auto-naming link feature and you can also name other links in your email to enhance link tracking.

Read the help in  English    Deutsch     Français   |     Video Training

Version 4.7.1 (February 10, 2019)

Maintenance release

Maintenance release including security improvements.

 

Version 4.7 (December 9, 2018)

User authentication in websites (SecURL)

SecURL, now supported in Circle, offers user authentication in personalized URLs.  When the recipient attempts to access a PURL, he/she is prompted to sign in and provide user authentication. This protects unauthorized users from accessing private recipient information which is stored in ADORs. 

SecURL is implemented on a project level, and affects both managed and custom websites.

SecURL is not supported in Template-Instance and Campaign-on-Demand (uStore).

XMPL  3.0 or higher is a prerequisite.

Read the help in  English    Deutsch     Français   |   User Authentication    |   Video Training

TLS 1.2

TLS 1.2 (Transport Layer Security protocol) is now supported, offering more security in Circle, the Agent, and also XMPL. 
 
 
 

Version 4.6.7 released November 18, 2018

XES subscription status

Now, in order to see the status of your XES subscription, you no longer need to leave your familiar Circle environment. Circle has added the Email Service – XES page, where you can view the status of your subscription and generate a detailed usage report for a specific time range. 

Read the help in English     Deutsch     Français 

PDF on Demand copy for auditing

You may now save a copy of a PDF on Demand document at the time the document is requested by the recipient, e.g. when the PDF on Demand link is clicked. This is very useful in the world of VDP for keeping an exact copy of what the recipient initially viewed. The copy is saved to a target destination which you define in the uProduce Dashboard. 

Read the help in English    Deutsch     Français

Version 4.6.5 released October 28, 2018

Maintenance release

This is a maintenance release.

 

Version 4.6.4 released August 5, 2018

Auto-generated secure ID

For PersonalEffect version 9.3 and above, the recipient key can either be an existing field in your data source (such as CRM-ID), or you can use the auto-generated secure ID option to generate a unique, non- guessable and secure recipient key. The Secure ID option is also useful when conforming to GDPR regulations, as the key does not include PII, it cannot be guessed, and no machine can brute force into the site.
Read the help in English     Deutsch      Français
 

Link tracking name

You can assign each email link a tracking name, making it easy to identify specific links in your email. This enables you to track according to link name and thus achieve precise and informative tracking results for important links. Personalized links can now be tracked and measured based on their name. Tracking data can be retrieved from the Tracking database. This feature requires XES version 3.5 and above. Read more
 

Interactive PDF

For PersonalEffect version 9.3 and above, PDF on Demand documents may now include interactive elements. Whereas a static PDF usually marks the end of a conversation, since there is no digital way to continue the flow, the power of the interactive PDF is that it has digital elements such as links, which can drive the recipient to a PURL or GURL thus prolonging the conversation.
In Circle, in the PDF preview page, interactive elements are now active.
Read the help in English   Deutsch    Français
 
 

Replace static images with image ADORs

In the Email Editor, static images can be easily replaced with graphic ADORs using the Graphic ADOR option in the context menu. Read the help in English     Deutsch      Français
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Circle 1G discontinuation. June 6, 2018

Circle 1G discontinuation

The Circle 1G client is no longer accessible. As a result, 1G scheduled automation will not run and 1G event filters will not function. Nevertheless, the 1G campaign can be run manually from uProduce.

See 1G XM Discontinuation FAQ.

 

Version 4.6.2 released May 27, 2018

Maintenance release

This is a maintenance release which focuses on the GDPR solution.

 

 

Version 4.6 released April 29, 2018

GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation) solution

Circle works in conjunction with uProduce to provide tools for GDPR compliance. 
Read the help in English     Deutsch      Français
 

HTTPS protocol

HTTPS protocol is now supported in websites. This ensures that communication between your browser and the website are encrypted. HTTPS is implemented on a project level, and affects both managed and custom websites. XMPL 2.1 is  a prerequisite for HTTPS. 
Read the help in English  Deutsch      Français
 

Export/Delete recipient data

Circle provides the ability to export or delete personal identifiable information (PII) of a specific recipient. PII can be found in data source recipient list tables, tracking data, and more. This operation can be performed for all projects within a single uProduce account, or on a project by project basis. 
Read the help in English     Deutsch      Français 
 

Circle API training

Circle API training is now available. Download Circle API Training
Note that the use of the Circle API is restricted to customers who purchased the Circle API license or uProduce API license.

 

 

  

Version 4.4 released February 25, 2018

See also Circle Release Notes

Maintenance Release

Maintenance release to resolve some issues.

 

Version 4.3.2 released January 21, 2018

Maintenance Release

Maintenance release to resolve some issues.

Version 4.3.1 released January 14, 2018

See also Circle Release Notes   |   Watch the What’s New video

Duplicate Project

Duplicate project allows you to copy the production elements (i.e., uProduce campaign) in addition to the Circle diagram. You can copy to a different uProduce account making it easy to reuse a successful projects for a different customer. Note that report tracking data, the website and its friendly URLs are not duplicated, and sensitive information such as the master list data sources and project-level users are copied on request.
To duplicate the current project, select File>Save As. Alternatively, in the File>Open page, select the Duplicate option in the row menu.
This capability is available with PersonalEffect version 9.0.2 or above in all Circle editions.

Read the help in English      Deutsch      Français    |   Watch the video

New Email Editor

The new Email Editor includes a responsive base layout and responsive building blocks making it easy to create responsive emails. The Preview feature offers a convenient mobile simulation in addition to the desktop view and limits the preview to the sample recipients (GDPR-ready). Using the editor, ADOR types such as Table, Style, and Visibility can easily be inserted in the Code view and image sizing and resizing can be done via the interface. The editor also keeps the code HTML5-compliant. The editor is supported in Chrome and Firefox only.

Read the help in English     Deutsch      Français     |   Watch the video

 

Version 4.2.6 released October 22, 2017

Maintenance Release

Maintenance release to support uStore version 9.1 (to be released next month).

In addition, this release provides fixes for various diagram issues and Audience ADORs.

 

Version 4.2.5 released August 27, 2017

Maintenance Release

Maintenance release to support XMPL 2.0. Circle continues to work with previous versions of XMPL as well.

When adding/removing a Circle account in the Agent, the change is automatically applied to XMPL without reinstalling XMPL each time (as was required before XMPL 2.0).

 

Version 4.2.0 released July 9, 2017

XES verification

Verification of From email address for XMPie Email Service (XES) delivery provider

From email address verification is now available the Circle interface. Email verification can be requested and email/domain verification status can be checked in Circle email touchpoints using the XES delivery provider. To make sure that your Circle Account is synchronized with your uProduce, be sure to open the Library in any project in the Circle Account. This one-time action and the latest version of XES (3.0.4 and above)  are prerequisites for enabling this feature.

Read the help in English   Deutsch   Français

 

Version 4.1.0 released May 28, 2017

Project-Template

Project-Template capabilities (GA)

Project-Template is now available with PersonalEffect version 9.0.2 or above and it requires Circle Business Edition.  A template is a model project which is intended for duplication e.g., for each branch.  Using templates, you can create an off-the-shelf project for the brand and each branch can purchase an instance of the template.  Each instance is a duplication of the template and is a fully-functional independent project that can be fine-tuned for the specific branch needs.  Note that the website and its friendly URLs are not duplicated, but are shared between the template and all its instances.

Watch the project-template video  |  Read the help in English    Deutsch    Français

Parameterized scheduling

Parameterized scheduling allows you to define flexible automation based on project parameters  (Deutsch    Français).  Now, touchpoints can be scheduled relative to a user defined date and time parameter, whereas in the past scheduling was in absolute time. In the case of a template and its instances, each instance can be customized and scheduled to run at its own time.  A prerequisite is PersonalEffect version 8.0 or above and Circle Business Edition.  You can schedule touchpoints to run in relation to customizable parameters, (e.g., send email reminder 1 day before the Wedding Date).  You can schedule touchpoints to run as soon as the project is set to Live (using the Project Start Date & Time parameter).  The power of parameterized scheduling is best experienced by scheduling your drip campaigns in relation to project parameters.

Watch the parameterized scheduling video  |  Read the help in English   Deutsch    Français

View next scheduled runs

You can view the next few scheduled runs from the Schedule area of Email and Print touchpoints.  This feature is very useful when scheduling includes recurrence or project parameters.

Direct access to Marketing Console

Direct access to the relevant Marketing Console campaign is available by clicking the Marketing Console link in the Reports popup of a project.  The link appears when connected to PersonalEffect version 9.0.2 or above and running Marketing Console version 2.8.1 or above.  Access is via single sign-on, making it easy and efficient to access the associated Marketing Console campaign.

Video training in campus

More Circle training videos are available in the newly-branded XMPie campus.

 

Circle 1G discontinuation announcement

Circle 1G will be discontinued in May 2018. Thereafter, the Circle 1G website and service will no longer be available.  All existing 1G automation will be stopped and the projects will not be accessible.  Customers are advised to take action to migrate projects to Circle 2G.

Version 4.0.0 released April 2, 2017

Search

Search capabilities

It is now easy to find your project using the search and filter features in the File>Open page.

Project parameters

Project parameters

The Project Parameter page in the Library allows you to view and customize project-specific parameters such as Project Time Zone and Project Start Date & Time. It is a central place for customizing parameters and setting values.

The Project Time Zone parameter is used in all touchpoint scheduling, but is set in the project parameters page. The other project parameters are relevant when they are used in parameterized scheduling.

Master list

The Master List page in the Library offers you a clear view of your current data source and recipient table. The master list represents all recipients and is used as the default list in all touchpoints. This page was previously called Data Source.

Data Source

Delete data source

Delete data source is available from the Data Sources page in the Library.

Time-saving improvements

These improvements will save you time:

  • Checking the Don’t ask me again checkbox in the ‘Save is required’ message suppresses the message and saves automatically. This allows you to work efficiently, without interruption.
  • On sign in, your last-used project automatically opens. This speeds up your work by providing direct access to your last project.
 

Circle 1G – only Internet Explorer on Windows

Circle 1G is only available in IE on Windows. All other browsers are no longer supported since the browser support of Silverlight has stopped.

 

Version 3.0.2 released Jan 22, 2017

Circle Agent Enhancements

The Circle agent was enhanced to ensure agent configuration persistence, even after uninstalling and reinstalling the agent. Each uProduce system now has a one-to-one connection with the Circle agent. This requires a new agent to be installed locally on the uProduce server. In addition, the agent now supports a fault-tolerant configuration in PersonalEffect Cross Media version 8.0 or above. An agent is installed on each uProduce server in the fault-tolerant configuration, so that the load is distributed, and if one agent fails, the remaining agents are available to replace the failed agent.

 

Version 3.0.1 released Dec 4, 2016

Project Template Ready

The Project Template capability allows you to easily duplicate projects. Each instance can then be further customized and launched at its own time. Prerequisites are PersonalEffect version 9.0.1 or above (to be released in 2017) and Circle Business Edition.

 

 

Version 3.0 released Sep 4, 2016

HTML Client (free of Silverlight)

The Circle client technology was migrated to use HTML and is now free of Silverlight.  Circle no longer requires installation of Silverlight and now runs on a variety of browsers including Chrome. It is quicker too. Although the current version of Circle does not formally support tablets, it allows sketching and reviewing on large display tablets in an adequate level using the mobile Chrome browser. In addition to migration of the technology, it offers a few new features such as node grouping, mini-map diagram navigation, and multilingual help (English, German, and French). For more information, see PersonalEffect Release Notes.

 

 Version 2.1 released Apr 3, 2016

Multiple Data Sources in 2G Projects

2G Circle projects can work with multiple data sources. For more information, see Working with Additional Data Sources in the Circle Help. uCreate Print-Circle Connectivity fully supports single Data Sources only. You can work with multiple Data Sources but it is not possible to preview the data. As a workaround, you can connect to a project with a single Data Source containing multiple tables. For more information, see PersonalEffect Release Notes.

Generate Proof Set

it is now possible to generate a proof set from Circle. This is useful for validating your plan and using the proof set file in the Proof Set Viewer or uCreate Print, as needed. For more information, see Generating a Proof Set in the Circle Help. To assist in troubleshooting issues, one may choose to generate a proof set only for the failed recipients in a touchpoint (this requires event-based filtering that is available in the Business Edition only).

 

Version 2.0.2 released Jan 24, 2016

Maintenance Release

Maintenance release that fixes several UI and error message issues in Circle. For more information, see PersonalEffect Release Notes.

 

Version 2.0.1 released Dec 28, 2015

Maintenance Release

Maintenance release that fixes several issues in Circle. For more information, see PersonalEffect Release Notes.

 

Version 2.0 released Nov 29, 2015

2G is Now Available

The new generation of XMPie cross-media is now available with PersonalEffect Cross Media version 8.0 or above. For more information, see PersonalEffect Release Notes.

 

Version 2.17.4899 released Nov 22, 2015

2G_Ready2

2G Ready

XMPie has completely revised its cross media offering in a new generation of cross media, code-named 2G. In 2G, the production work is done through the Circle user interface, providing consistency, ease of use and modern UI. This version of Circle supports both the previous generation (1G) and the new generation (2G) of cross media. A prerequisite to 2G is PersonalEffect Cross Media version 8.0 or above.

 

 Version 1.17  released Sep 21, 2014

Modified Pricing Model

Charging per Active Project has been removed.  Only a monthly subscription and Principal User fee is charged, so that you can easily predict and budget your expenses.  In addition, the new pricing model allows you to use Circle for lower budget projects.

A new, Business Edition is now available.  It provides event-based automation, more Principal Users, and unlimited number of Collaborators on top of the Team Edition functionality.

Scheduling of Touchpoint production is now available as part of the Team Edition.  This edition is now limited to 15 Collaborators. 

 

Version 1.16  released on Jun 29, 2014

run_center

Run Center

Automated and Manual production can be executed from Circle.  With the new version it is possible to monitor the progress of Touchpoint Runs (executions) without leaving Circle.  Information includes the status of the Touchpoint Run as well as the uProduce Job ID/s.

Automation Notification

It is not enough to have the system execute automatically because sometimes humans need to interact with the process.  If the production fails, the builders need to take action.  If print production completes successfully, an operator might need to manually feed it to printer.  Circle now supports email notification upon relevant production events.

 

Version 1.15  released on Jan 19, 2014

Planning and Buildings Sample Projects

It is now possible to view Sample Projects not only in the Review tab but also in the Plan and Build tabs. This allows users to experience the planning and building functionalities and, even, to modify these Samples, if necessary.

End Date

It is now possible to set an end date for a recurring automation task. Users can either let the task recur indefinitely (until it is manually stopped) or set an end date at which the system will automatically stop the task.

 

Version 1.14  released on Nov 17, 2013

Campaign Automation

The new Automation features open the door to new business opportunities and more efficient operation. Automation supports use cases such as drip campaigns, conditional reminders, recurrent and frequent production, such as daily happy birthday campaigns, off-hours lights-off production, scheduled execution, and much more. uProduce 6.6.1 is a pre-requisite.

Schedule Emails and Prints

It is possible to schedule Emails to be sent out or Print documents to be produced at a given time and date. This is useful for campaigns that need to be triggered at specific times, at non-working hours, or simply as a means to off- load the production.

Recurrent Execution

Scheduling can be set to recur hourly, daily, weekly, or monthly. This is useful for happy birthday campaigns, monthly statements, reminders, drip campaigns and so on. It is also means to achieve automation. The system wakes up at the designated time, evaluates the recipients that match the filters, and sends the corresponding recipient records for production.

Filters based on Profile and Behavior

When a scheduled Action is due, the system runs filters to select recipients for production. A combination of Profile filter and Behavioral filters can be used. A Profile filter is a Plan-based filter. Behavior filters, or Event Filters, retrieve recipients based on Tracking Events, such as Email Opened, Website Visited, and Button Clicked, to take a decision based on the recipient or uProduce behavior.

Send Now and Process Now

Sending email or processing prints can now be done without leaving Circle. Instead of switching to uProduce just to manually execute the production, operators can now do this directly from Circle. In addition, Circle adds the behavior filtering ability, which is not available when running production through uProduce.

Version 1.13  released on Sep 29, 2013

Extended Branding

Circle can be rebranded not to show the XMPie logos and documentation. Customers can upload their own custom Powered By logo, and default Project logo. Customers can choose to change the help link, video tour link, feedback link, or decide to hide them. The XMPie Samples can also be hidden. Extended Branding is available at an extra charge. Contact us for pricing.

Version 1.12  released on July 7, 2013

Active Projects and Principal Users Billing

Starting from August 2013, XMPie starts billing for Active Projects and Principal Users (Power Users or Administrators). Failure to make payment freezes the account until payment is made. Owners and administrators receive notification when the subscription or credits are about to expire.

 

Credits

The usage of Active Projects and Principal Users is pre-paid. Since the project and user quantity might vary, the pre-payment method consists in purchasing credits and then having the system deduct from those credits according to the actual daily use. A friendly calculator helps assess the amount of credits needed. The price per credit is $1. The credits expire after 12 months

Store

Circle’s online store allows customers to quickly subscribe, renew, and buy credits. A quick checkout process allows customers to pay with any of the major credit cards, PayPal, or coupon. Immediately following the transaction, the proper Circle Account is created, and invitation to the Account is sent to the subscriber.

 

Susbcription Page

The Subscription page displays subscription information, and is accessible through the Circle main menu. This information includes the subscription edition, subscription expiration date, credit balance, and credit burn rate. Renewing the subscription and buying additional credits is done by clicking dedicated buttons on that page. This directs the user to the appropriate store page.

Free Trial

A 30 day free trial can also be started from the Subscription page. At the end of the trial, the Account is automatically reverted to a Personal Edition, unless the customer requests to upgrade to a Team Edition.

Owner

The subscribing person is the person that signed the agreement and also owns the Account. The owner, typically a finance person or the company owner, does not necessarily need to be an Account Administrator. For this purpose, a new Owner role has been created. An Owner can sign-in, renew the subscription, and buy credits. However an Owner is not considered a Principal User, and hence does not bare fee.

Version 1.10  released on Apr 7, 2013

Power User Role

Users need permissions to create a new Project and to invite other users to Projects. Yet, granting them administrative power is too permissive. That is why we’ve added the Power User Role which gives users just the right amount of power. The Power User and the Administrator are both Principal Users, and hence billable beyond the free amount defined in your edition.

 

Archiving

Active Projects are billable. Archived Projects are free of charge. If an Active Project is no longer in use, you can now archive it for future use. When a Project is needed again, it can be un-archived. Archiving is also a great way to tidy-up your My Project list – archive all Projects that are no longer in use.

Local Email View in Browser

Email preview in a browser has been available for ICP-based emails since the first versions of Circle. In the current version, the View in Browser option is also available for Local Emails that can now be previewed with no need to send the email. This feature is supported by uProduce version 6.0.2 or above.

 

Grab and Drag / Multi-Selection

Users may sometimes need to reposition their view of the Flow diagram, or to select multiple Nodes. Now they can do both by simply clicking on the Canvas and dragging. To reposition the Flow view, select the Grab and Drag mode, click on the Canvas and drag the diagram to the desired position. To select multiple Nodes, select the Multi-Select mode, click on the Canvas and drag the mouse cursor to indicate the area around the Nodes you wish to select.

Version 1.09  released on Feb 17, 2013

Send a Copy to another Account

Account administrators can send a copy of a Project to another Account. The target Account administrator can accept and import the copy to his Account. The target Account must be a Team Edition Account.

Publish to Samples

You may share your Projects with the community. The Sample copy of your project is ripped from the collaboration threads and from the connection to uProduce. Copies of the Samples are first sent for approval by XMPie, and are then published to the community at XMPie’s sole discretion. We encourage customers to share their work. This functionality existed in the previous versions, but in this version its user experience has been improved.

Version 1.07  released on Jan 13, 2013

 

Subscription Website

A new, simple and fun way to subscribe to Circle.
Go to https://www.xmpie.com/Circle and click Subscribe. This takes you to the Sign Up page where you select the edition and fill in your information. An Account and a user are created for you instantly, and are emailed to your supplied email address.

  

New Circle Agent

The Agent was completely re-designed to support simplified installation, better automatic updates and management. It simplifies the installation by no longer requiring a license key to install. The Agent runs as a service with a user interface that completely replaces the Circle uProduce System dialog. Customers using the existing Agent are required to install the new Agent instead.

Improved Agent Connectivity

The new Agent improves the responsiveness of retrieval of uProduce Campaigns, reports, and proofs. The Agent allows working with proxies, including those that require user name and password. Customers with multiple uProduce systems can connect to all of the uProduce machines, by installing multiple Agents without any back office work from XMPie.

User Experience Improvements

To make the Sample Projects more easily accessible, they were moved to a separate tab. The Closebuttons were added to the Node bubble popups. The File menu buttons are accessible even when collapsed. Various user interface bugs were resolved.

 

 

User Removal from Account

It is now possible to remove a user from the Account.

 

Unbinding Nodes from the Custom Integration Node Bubble

It is now possible to unbind the Node from the Node itself. Click the Custom Integration button, and then select Unbind.

Version 1.03    July 29, 2012

 The Piece of Cake Sample Project has been added to Circle. This Project demonstrates many of the Cross-Media and Circle capabilities and is available for all Circle editions.
Images in the Mockup dialog can now be assigned a name by hovering over the image and entering free text in the Name field. Image names make it easier to distinguish and reference images as well as understand when they are in use.
 When more than one image is added to the Mockupdialog, it is possible to select the image that will be displayed in the In-Node view. Whereas in the previous versions the most recently added image was automatically displayed in the Node, now you can control the In-Node image display. All you need to do is click the Eye button. The Blue Eye indicates the currently selected image.
 

On small computer displays the application banner consumes too much real estate. To increate the work space, an option has been added to collapse the banner by clicking the Hide button. Once the banner is hidden, the Hide button is replaced by the Showbutton that allows displaying the application banner again.

It is now possible to include Project or User information as parameters in the Custom Preview URL. This functionality is useful to understand the full feature set of Circle and to demonstrate cross-media capabilities to customers.

For security reasons, the application signs out automatically if it is idle for two hours. User must make sure to save the Project regularly.