To cleanse your data quickly online, please upload it to our Data8Online data cleansing portal and we will quickly return you a full Data Quality Report.

However, if you need to transfer a file to us for more manual processing, you have a number of options of how to get it to us. Whichever option you choose, you must have first registered for an account with us. Your email address will be your username and you will be sent a default password when you register. These same details can be used for each method of sending us your data.

FTP

We support the following protocols:

• SFTP
• FTPS

For both protocols, please connect using the following details:

• Server: ftp.data-8.co.uk
• Username: your email address
• Password: password for your Data8 account

Please upload your files to the /ToData8 folder.

When using FTPS, please note that we support only FTP with explicit security (port 21) and not the deprecated FTP with implicit security (port 990).

FTPS and SFTP are secure data transmission methods and do not require additional encryption.

Website

Go to your Dashboard on our website, open the Cleansing tab and click on the Manual Files tile to go to the Secure File Transfer page.

Click Browse… to select your file and click Upload.

All website traffic is secured using SSL / TLS and additional data encryption is not required.

Compression

If your data file is large you may prefer to compress it before transferring it to us to save time and bandwidth.

We support files in all standard data compression formats:

• zip
• gzip
• 7zip
• rar

PGP Data Encryption

PGP is a method for encrypting and decrypting files. It can be quite technical to set up and use, but there are a number of resources on the web to help.

A good starting point is getting the free GnuPG software which implements PGP. A Windows version is available at www.gpg4win.org. There is also a link on that site to the Gpg4win Compendium which descibes how to use the software in some detail.

Once you’ve got your PGP software installed, you’ll need to import our public key. You’ll encrypt your data using our public key before sending it to us – only we will be able to decrypt this data using our private key.

In order for us to send you data back securely, you’ll need to generate your own key pair and provide us with the public key. We can then encrypt the data with your public key and only you will be able to decrypt it with your private key.

Pre-configured Automated Workflows (PAWS)

A pre-configured automated workflow (PAW) is a workflow that has been agreed between us in advance to serve a specific data processing purpose. This allows you to more easily automate your data processing activities. Almost any data processing task is possible but typical examples include:

• a daily job to trigger TPS status updates
• a monthly job to remove duplicates
• an adhoc job to append telephone numbers

PAWs are activated by us intercepting a file uploaded to us that meets one or both of the following conditions

• the filename matches a specific pattern eg starts with “TPS_Cleanse”, or contains the word “duplicate”, or matches the file pattern “TA_*.csv”; and/or
• has been submitted by a specific user or users

A file that is uploaded to us will activate a relevant PAW if it is uploaded to us via any of the following methods:

• Manual Files link in the Cleanse dashboard
• Submit File link in the Cleanse dashboard, and then choose to submit to the PAW
• FTPS/SFTP to our FTP site

A typical PAW has the following properties:

• The same file format is expected from you every time
• The same file format will be returned every time
• The same data processing will be performed every time
• The PAW will be documented and agreed as an ongoing Order in advance
• It may be chargeable or not; it may be chargeable depending on the number of hits so impossible to predict the cost of the processing. This will all be agreed in advance.

Black Friday

New research published by Acceleration Partners shows that 62% of UK retailers are already planning ahead for Black Friday. November 23^rd may seem a long time away, but Black Friday is becoming one of the biggest days in the retail world and this research finds that three fifths of UK retailers are already planning for it.

Acceleration Partners surveyed 416 online retailers about this annual event. When asked why they are preparing well ahead, 56% said that they wanted to have the best offering on the market, and to ensure that they have plenty of time to market these offers (44%).

Of those who have taken part in Black Friday previously, 92% saw an increase in the number of visitors to their website, and a further 71% saw an increase in sales.

“Once an American tradition, Black Friday has really taken off in the UK over the past few years, particularly in online retail and forward planning is essential to maximise return from the event,” commented Sophie Parry-Billings, EMEA marketing manager at Acceleration Partners.

Is all this preparation being wasted?

Other research, this time from the Baymard Institute, shows that 69% of all eCommerce visitors abandon their shopping cart. While the research identified a number of reasons why online shoppers may abandon their cart, the third most common cause of abandonment (28%) was a “too long / complicated checkout process”.

Enhancing the User Experience

Incorporating Data8’s validation services such as address, phone and bank validation, can help to enhance the user experience, reduce cart abandonment and maximise the return: on Black Friday and every other day.

Whilst preparing for Black Friday, it would also be good to look to clean up your database or CRM. Data8 cleansing services could help increase the effectiveness of your advance marketing including reducing duplicates, screening for TPS and appending new information.