Welcome to the API Newsletter!
We're excited to bring you the charter edition of the VerticalResponse API newsletter. We'll use it to inform you of changes & improvements to the API, customer feedback about their API experiences and tips & tricks we think you'll find helpful.
Please contact us with any suggestions or feedback about how we can make this more useful for you!
Breaking News
- new documentation now featuring: PHP sample code!
- code examples - confused about the structure of a method now you can look at some samples.
SSL Certificates
If you have a standard account, you will no longer need an SSL certificate to access the API. You can still request one if you would like, but it's no longer required to connect with our API. If you have a partner account, you will still need to have an SSL certificate.
Code Examples
If you have not visited our website recently, you might have missed our new code examples. We have Java and C#, along with our new PHP and Perl Life-cycle examples.
Documentation
We have created a more intuitive and reader friendly version of our API method documentation. We've improved our method descriptions, added information about data types, and added sample code inline for quick reference. You no longer need to use an SSL certificate to access the most up-to-date WSDL. Click here to check it out.
Methods
Here is a list of all the new methods that we have added to the API since we rolled out the API, view each method for more information.
- compileCampaignRecipientResults()
- compileCampaignRecipientResultsBackground()
- deleteCampaign()
- downloadCompanyUnsubscribesAndBounces()
- fetchAppendFileToListBackgroundResult()
- fetchCompileCampaignRecipientResultsBackgroundResult()
- fetchDownloadCampaignRecipientResultsBackgroundResult()
- fetchDownloadListBackgroundResult()
- getBackgroundTaskStatus()
- undeleteCampaign()
-
undeleteList()
Syncing up your DBs
Always store the most up to date information on one single DB. This
helps prevent data mismanagement and prevents confusion. For example,
if you were to use VR as your primary data storage, you can use the
opt-in form to have your users submit the information directly into
your lists. Then after your campaign is sent, you can then update your
DB with the most up to date information. You won't have to worry about
storing junk on your DB, such as users who unsubscribed or users whose
email addresses bounced.
You can sync up your DBs in three easy steps.
- Send a list of all your new members via a addListMember(), appendFileToList() or appendFileToListBackground() methods. Preferably through appendFileToListBackground().
- Update your members via a editListMember(). You will need to have the email address' hash code in order for you to do edit the list member via a getListMemberByEmailAddress(). (Note: You should store the email address hash in your DB for future reference.)
- Update your DB with all the unsubscribe and bounces with downloadCompanyUnsubscribesAndBounces()
That's all! It's pretty easy to sync up the DBs with VR API.
- Knowledge Base
- User Forums
If you have any questions, concerns or suggestions, send them to api-inquiry@verticalresponse.com
In This Issue
Monthly Question
Q: I have php4 and php5 installed on my system. Why isn't my script using php5 and instead outputting an error?
A: Depending on your set up, the
path might be pointing to php4, you can either hard code the path in
the first line of code or by changing its path. To verify which version
the path is using type in php --version in the
command line.
Enhancements
We are continually adding new features to our
system. The most recent enhancement has been our polling mechanism.
Which allows your script to check with the API server to determine if
the job results are completed. You no longer have to keep a session
active, you can login, make the call, and a couple of minutes later you
can poll the API to determine if the job has been completed.
Did you know?
If you use the Partner API, you only need one certificate to log into all your sub-accounts. The Partner API requires that you use an SSL certificate, but you can 'masquerade' into a sub-account when you login. To login through as a partner in order to masquerade, you will need to pass in as a parameter, the partner username and password, along with the certificate and the username for the account that you want to log into.