Frequently Asked Questions
Our Frequently Asked Questions list answers to some basic questions about this site. Click on a question to see the answer, or scroll down to read them all.
Word and term definitions can be found on our Glossary page!
What is the Advertising Customer Service Center (CSC)?
What are the benefits of using the CSC?
I registered, but can’t remember my login or password.
Why do you need my phone number?
Why should I submit PDF files?
What kind of Internet Connection do I need?
Is there a question missing from this list that you would like to have answered? Contact us using the "Contact Information" link on the left or at the bottom of this page.
What is the Advertising Customer Service Center (CSC)?
The Portland Press Herald/ Maine Sunday Telegram Advertising CSC is designed to fill two roles:
- To give convenient online access, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, to all of the advertising information we publish for our customers. Rates, deadlines, special sections, printing specs and much more can be viewed, or downloaded, from our site.
- To provide a handy and secure conduit for registered advertisers to interact with the Portland Press Herald/ Maine Sunday Telegram. This feature includes uploading ads for publication, and viewing ad proofs online.
What are the benefits of using the CSC?
- The CSC is available 24x7. Whether you’re a night owl or an early bird, you can send ads, view proofs, or get advertising information, on your schedule.
- Visit our extensive public information pages, no registration required! Research rates & deadlines. View upcoming promotions. Download How-to’s on creating high quality PDF’s. Then contact your sales rep using our Contact page.
- Communication. You’ll receive a receipt, via email, when you first register, when an ad is uploaded, when we post an ad for you to proof, or when you update your account. In addition your sales rep gets a copy of the email so they always know the status of your ad.
- Every uploaded ad automatically gets preflighted, a process that checks the ad for any problems that might keep it from printing properly. Within minutes of uploading the file you will be notified by email if there are any problems.
- Online Proofs. If we are building an ad for you, and you are a registered customer, we will make available to you a PDF proof of your ad that can be viewed online, saved to your computer, and/or printed to your printer. You will receive an email confirming the proof’s availability as soon as we post it, and of course a PDF will be a lot clearer than a faxed proof.
- File History. We will keep any uploaded ad and all ad proofs for 60 days, or more. Just click on the “My Page” link to see a list of all these files, sorted chronologically. View them online, or save them to your computer.
- No more guessing “Who sent us the ad?” This is a big benefit for us. When a customer sends us an ad by email we have to rely on that customer to provide enough information to match the ad with a run schedule. Most of the time it’s not a problem, occasionally it is. The CSC eliminates any guesswork, so we can spend more time on quality and customer service. That’s a big benefit for you.
Do I need to register?
Anyone who visits the CSC can access the pages and pages of information we provide regarding Retail and Classified Advertising, Products and Services, Market Research and Technical Information.
But if you have an advertising account with us, and wish to submit ads online, you are required to register. Registered customers can upload ads for publication, view ads they have uploaded in the past, view proofs of ads we built for them, and update their account information. The registration process insures that the information in their ads and proofs is secure, and can only be viewed by registered members from their company and the employees of the Portland Press Herald/ Maine Sunday Telegram.
I registered, but can’t remember my login or password.
Don't you hate that? Luckily there's an easy fix.
For all registered members their email address is their login.
If you have forgotten your password click on the “Forgot Password” link in the navigator bar that runs down the left side of the page. The “Forgot Password” page asks you to enter your email address/login. Your password will be emailed to you within moments.
Why do you need my phone number?
During the registration process we require that you supply your phone number. We do this as part of our verification process. Submitting the registration form is the first step in creating your account. Once we receive the form data we verify it and link the request to an active account. Any questions or problems may require a phone call from us to clarify the issue. We do this to protect your account, and insures that the information in your ads and proofs is secure.
What is "My Page"?
For those users who have registered the “My Page” link takes you to your account’s home page. When this page opens you will see a list of all the ads you have uploaded recently, as well as a list of all recent proofs. From this page you can upload ads, view your proofs or update your account information.
In addition you will have access to all the public information pages.
Why should I submit PDF files?
PDF (Portable Document Format) files are the industry standard for preserving the integrity of electronic documents. It’s ability to embed graphics and fonts into a single compact file that can be used regardless of computer platform makes it ideal for sending files across the internet.
What is "Preflight"?
Preflight is an operation that automatically checks a PDF file to be sure it meets the requirements for publication. Every PDF that is uploaded to the CSC gets preflighted upon submission. It is checked against a set of criteria known as a “profile”.
There are three possible outcomes of the preflight:
Pass: Each criteria in the profile is met.
Corrected: The preflight software detects an error, and is able to correct it.
Example: a color ad may have a RGB color element embedded (RGB cannot be used for a CMYK printing process). Preflight detects the error and converts the RGB element to CMYK color.
Failure: The preflight software detects errors, but is unable to correct them.
Example: Fonts are not embedded in the PDF (without the fonts the ad will not print as designed). The advertiser is contacted and advised of the error.
What kind of Internet Connection do I need?
The CSC will work with either a Dial-Up or a Broadband connection. The difference between the two is speed. Uploading an ad or downloading a proof using Dial-Up may take some time. Performance will be much better with a Broadband connection.