FAQs

Financial

  • Is there a minimum order value?

    No. We can print and post or digitally deliver just one document, and response handle a single document for you too.

  • Is there a contract?

    Yes, but designed to your needs. The complexity of your project often defines the type and length of contract. For example a customer using Aceni to automate the printing of a hundred documents a month might opt for a ‘pay-as-you-go’ arrangement. But an Enterprise transmitting data for print and digital communications across many departments, might like the security of a 3 year contract.

  • What about license fees for using Aceni?

    There are no license fees, Aceni is Software-as-a-Service and you pay for each document you upload/print not per user or document viewed.

  • What are the costs for Aceni?

    We tailor Aceni pricing to your needs. Some customers spend just a few hundred pounds each year, others hundreds of thousands. A typical cost breakdown consists of:

    • A set-up and implementation fee
    • A monthly service charge: for data/documents hosted online, which covers hosting, maintenance and standard system upgrades
    • A document charge for every one we print and mail, response handle or that is uploaded online.

    There is no software to buy, consultancy fees to pay or hardware to purchase so the cost of set-up and ownership is very competitive.

General

Operational

  • Can you provide documents in other formats?

    Yes we produce large format documents and offer braille versions.

  • What level of visibility can you provide during production and when posted or online?

    Aceni offers options to track documents during the production and delivery processes and audit reports to help you with controls and compliance.

  • What levels of personalisation do you offer to improve engagement?

    Lots. Beyond standard contact details we can create dynamic documents in print and online that use different images, different blocks of content, varying enclosures. Our implementation experts can guide you through the options.

  • Can you mail my documents overseas?

    Yes. No problem.

    Overseas organisations sending mail to the UK can also benefit. Documents can be uploaded anywhere in the world for printing and mailing locally in the UK: saving time and money.

  • Can I send reports or long documents for you to print and post?

    Yes. We recommend;

    • Documents under 15 pages mail in C5 envelopes.
    • Documents of 16-79 pages mail in C4 envelopes.

    Documents 80 pages and over are packed as needed and sent by next day packet post or courier.

  • Can I supply letter head paper and envelopes for printed documents?

    Yes you can. We do however recommend our ‘white-paper’ solution. We print your letterhead and document content at the same time, so you no longer need expensive letter headed paper. This cuts your stationery expenditure and the cost to ship and store letterhead paper.

    You can supply envelopes with your return address on or we can use ours and manage the returns for you.

  • What documents can I send through Aceni?

    Our strength is delivering communications that are expected by your employees, customers or suppliers. These are documents, usually A4 in size, but not exclusively, that need to arrive by a given time. They contain personal, sensitive or transactional information so you need to entrust them to a supplier that is focused on data security and can deliver them quickly: online and by print and post. That’s us.

  • What support is available with Aceni?

    Lots. We’re very personable and at the end of the phone or email should you need us. Support is tailored to your project. We have dedicated account managers and experienced implementation teams to guide you at every stage. Features like live chat are also very popular with 98% of people getting answers to their questions and back to work in under 5 minutes.

  • How quickly can this be up and running?

    Days or weeks. If you have a simple print project and call today, you could be sending and saving with Aceni tomorrow. For projects that need a secure branded web portal and/or complex print projects with different configurations and enclosures, that needs longer to scope and deliver. In these cases we will always take time to understand your needs and provide an accurate timescale.

  • What is Aceni?

    Aceni is a secure, complete multichannel communications platform and document automation service for your outbound and inbound customer communications. It enables you to automate, control and manage the production, distribution and processing of time-critical customer and employee letters and information, via one or many channels of your choice: print and online.

    You gain powerful document automation options through Aceni’s cloud-based software and remove manual tasks, as our high-speed, GDPR compliant UK production centre processes your outbound and inbound communications.

    The simplicity of this multichannel communication system means that, whether you’re communicating via web, print, hybrid mail, email or text, you can control everything through Aceni.

Pricing

  • Do you charge licence fees?

    No. You only pay for the documents you upload and print: not the number of people using Epay.

  • How much does Epay cost?

    Epay is not an out-of-the-box solution, it’s configured for your needs and budget, so we don’t have fixed prices. But to give you an idea of the costs and the savings that can be achieved we’ve provided real examples of Epay projects on our Epay Pricing page.

Technical & Security

  • Is response handling easy to setup?

    Yes definitely. We will work with you to understand your requirements and guide you through the process. During the planning stage, key factors such as inbound mail volumes, document types you receive, what you would like to capture, will be covered to optimise the service you receive. A unique PO Box will be set up as part of the implementation.

  • Can employees access epayslips through single sign-on?

    Yes. In fact we have a number of clients that use Epay this way. Many choose this method to encourage employees to visit the benefit and reward platform, or self-service portal.

  • How long does it take to upload a payroll file?

    Payroll files can be uploaded within minutes. Even large payroll files can be uploaded in less than 15 minutes.

  • Can employees view Epay on a mobile device?

    Yes they can easily create a shortcut on their device home screen, which opens the Epay web link. We have video guides to show employees how to do this.

  • Can we email payslips?

    We don’t believe email is a secure channel of communication. That’s why we use it for notifications and alerts, but will never attach an employee facing document that contains sensitive personal data.

  • How do employees know when there is a new document to view?

    We deliver notification emails or text messages directly to your employees to alert them when a new document is ready to view online.

  • How do you identify which files need to be printed and which are to be presented online?

    We agree with you when implementing Epay how to flag the data for our systems to recognise the correct distribution channel, whether that be print or online.

  • Can you take files from any payroll system?

    Yes. We have worked with countless different payroll systems over the years. For example, SAP, Midland HR, Northgate, Sage Snowdrop KCS, ADP. The list goes on.

  • How long can employee data be stored for?

    As per the GDPR, employee data should only be stored for as long as is needed for processing.

  • Where are your servers located?

    All data we process is hosted securely in the UK.

  • How secure is Epay?

    Very secure. Employee data and documents are uploaded over pre-agreed secure connections. The information is then securely hosted at our UK data centres and/or printed and mailed from our ISO27001 accredited and GDPR compliant UK production centre.

    To access their pay documents, employees have to login through a two-level process. There is also strict access levels for administrators.

  • Is there an app for Aceni?

    Aceni is not available on any app store. But when your customers/employees login to view documents generated online with Aceni, they will see a site optimised for mobile devices and they can easily save a shortcut for the Aceni web portal to their mobile device screen for quicker access.

  • Why don’t you email documents?

    We don’t believe email is a secure channel of communication. That’s why we use it for notifications and alerts, but will never attach a document that contains sensitive personal data.

  • Do my customers/employees need an email address to see online documents?

    No. It helps for alerts when new documents are available to view online, but we can use other data for username and password information.

  • Can those who receive a printed/posted document also view it online?

    Yes. You can select to make the documents we generate available in print and online. Some clients actually send an online version first and set triggers to send a print copy only if the online version isn’t viewed.

  • How do my customers/employees know they have a document to view online?

    We deliver notification emails or text messages directly to your customers/employees to alert them when a new document is ready to view online.

  • Do my documents have to be pre-merged?

    No. We take pre-merged letters and process them every day, but equally we receive lots of data files with templates and lookup tables and provide the document generation as well as production.

  • How do you identify which files to print and which need to be presented online?

    We agree when scoping the project how to flag the data for our systems to recognise the correct distribution channel.

  • Can you take files from any system?

    Virtually yes. We work with XML, CSV, TXT, PDF, DOCX files and more from Payroll, Finance, HR, Marketing and Customer Service systems. You can send a test file without making any commitment to buy and we’ll give you an indication of whether the data is useable.

  • What do I need to use Aceni?

    A computer connected to the internet, with a web browser to be able to access Aceni applications online and for data transfer. That’s it.

    There is no software to download and install: making deploying and maintaining Aceni across teams a breeze.

  • How long can the data be stored for?

    The length of time varies and is driven by the data type and project. We recommend to clients that we only store data for as long as is needed for processing and to comply with any applicable legislation.

  • How do you protect Aceni from cyber-attacks?

    Aceni applications are regularly penetration tested by independent cybercrime experts.

  • Where are you servers located?

    All client data we process is hosted securely in the UK.

  • How secure is Aceni and is it GDPR compliant?

    Very secure. Data and documents are uploaded over pre-agreed secure connections. The information is then securely hosted at our UK data centres and/or printed and mailed from our ISO27001 accredited and GDPR compliant UK production centre.

Datagraphic