FAQ

Blink Session sends appointment reminder emails 24 hours before your client's scheduled appointment. Reminder emails are sent to every client login that is linked to the client the appointment is for. For example, if mom and dad both have a login, they will both be an email reminder. If the client login is linked to multiple clients/students with appointments the next day, it will create an agenda of all the appointments for the next day. Appointment times in the reminder emails are based on the timezone you set for the client/student.

If user chooses free plan AFTER signing up for a payed plan, update their plan to free and direct to dashboard. Blink Session's schedule is designed make it easy to set appointments with clients/students in different timezones. When your schedule loads, it will automatically display appointments according to the timezone you are currently located in, or you can select a different timezone.

Also, when you add a new staff user or client/student, you are required to select their timezone. That way, when reminders are sent, they are printed in the notification (email, etc) according to their timezone. If you use the, "Self Schedule" feature, Blink Session also automatically converts your availability according to timezone. Thus, if you add an available slot for 8am Central Time U.S. but one your students is in Eastern Time, they will see it as 9am. Super Easy!

Staff users have access to any appointments on their schedule. Other staff users in your organization which have been granted the "Schedule Admin" permission may view, edit, and add to another staff user's schedule. Client's can view all their appointments (past and future) from their dashboard, or by click "Open Details" within a session.

Yes. Plus, each client/student on the appointment will be notify of the appointment time in their timezone, even if they are in different timezones!

We have made invoices in Blink Session as flexible as possible. The only information required is charge, tax rate (if applicable), what the invoice is for, and due date. Once you create the invoice, we automatically email and notify your client within Blink Session. If you have setup to take card payments in Blink Session, they can pay invoices one or multiple at a time within Blink Session. Once an invoice is paid, we notify you and mark it paid.

No, Blink Session does not charge any fees for credit or debit card transactions. To accept payments, you will need a Stripe account, which is easy to setup. Stripe, as with every credit card processor, does charge fees (Though Stripe's fees are some of the lowest). With Stripe, your payments will be processes through the country you setup your Stripe account in, so no need to worry about currency conversion.

While Blink Session has invoicing and online payments built, it is not an EMR or Billing software. Electronic billing of insurance involves using a "clearing house" which connects with insurance companies plus a lot of features to make it all work. If you need to bill insurance, we recommend utilizing separate billing software.

When your clients join a session, you will see a pop-up and hear a sound. If you are not ready to join them, you can text chat with them. The chat box will also give you a link to move to the session with them. This is great if you have clients/students back-to-back.

If a person joins by your personal Join-by-LINK, you will be notified also and can approve or deny their request. If they join before you login, their request will pop up when you login.

Yes. Once you upload a resource (card set, Word Doc, PDF, PowerPoint, etc.), you can set it to be shared with others in your organization. They can go to the resource store and add the resource to their list with one just a few clicks. This is great if you have resources or documents you use across your organization.

Every document you upload to Blink Session you can download to your computer. Depending on the type, you can add and remove pages/cards, but you cannot edit the actual document as that would require the software you used to create it (Word, PowerPoint, etc.). If you make changes, you can always upload a fresh copy. The resource limit for most plans is 350 resources per staff, but you can always purchase more space.

With Blink Session you can upload PDF, Word, PowerPoint, MusicXML, Flat Scores, Audio (mp3/wav), Google Docs, Sheets & Drawling. You can also upload images (jpeg, png, bit) into card sets or to create a memory game. All files you upload are saved in your resource list and available to use in any session.

Every document you upload to Blink Session you can download to your computer. Depending on the type, you can add and remove pages/cards, but you cannot edit the actual document as that would require the software you used to create it (Word, PowerPoint, etc.). If you make changes, you can always upload a fresh copy.

Yes, any resource you upload to Blink Session, or add from the resource store, can be scored. You can also save the score and add a note. Saved scores are attached to the client/student's record. Also, with on click, you can bring up all past saved scores for the client/student you are a session with. This makes it quick and easy to keep track of how your clients/students are doing on a specific resources (e.g. flash cards).

In Blink Session every staff user has a personal Resource List. The first time you login this list will be empty. You can add resources to this list by taking from our 'Resource Catalog' or uploading your own. The resource catalog includes some resources we have included, plus others shared by other users. Any resource you upload can be shared with others in and or outside your organization if it meet copyright guidelines.

Yes! Blink Session allows you to upload any file to a client/student's record. You can also view uploaded files in a session. Plus, you can share files with your clients. Never worry about violating HIPAA or other security standards by emailing sensitive files, share them in Blink Session. Lastly, clients can upload files to share with you and all this can be done from the dashboard or during a session.

Check out this video showing how easy it is to upload/share/view files with your clients.

Yes, you and your clients can share your entire screen or choose a particular application to share. When you share you screen with Blink Session, the screen-share video is placed behind the white-board enabling you to annotate on top of it. Plus, when you share your screen, your camera video does not disappear as with other platforms (we do give you and your clients the ability turn off your camera video if you want to). We do not allow clients to remotely control what you have shared because of security risks.

You might be used to utilizing an iPad for in-person services. Thus, it's natural to wonder if the same technology can be used in a tele-session.

First off, there are things you CAN do with Blink Session, or any video conferencing software, but that does not mean we or they necessarily support or advise you do it. We recommend you consider the best way provider your service online, in terms of what will be reliable. Plus, we recommend using tools designed to be used over a live video conference, instead of coming up with complicated ways to use tools you use in person.

Accessing your iPad from your computer is possible with third-party apps like Splash Top, but even Apple does not support this because they design iPads to be used in person on the device it self. Showing your iPad's screen through your computer to a person on a video call is two steps beyond what they were designed for, and requires several things to go right for it to work.

Our goal at Blink Session is for you to not have to rely on screen share and iPad apps. Our "resources" section has many resources you can use right away and you can add your own and share them with your company. You can also play youtube videos and upload your own videos. We have worked with thousands of professionals providing virtual services, and have learned that those who keep it simple, and use with Blink Session has to offer, end up a lot less frustrated.

Blink Session does have a screen-share feature which staff and clients can both use. You can choose which application you want to share, but the other person cannot control what you share.

We do not allow remote control because of the security risks.

Yes, you can use Blink Session to manage all of your clients. They will get an email to create an account so they can see any appointments you've scheduled with them, their invoices, and make payments.

When you add a client/student to Blink Session they are emailed an invitation to create an account which states that "your name" has invited you to join Blink Session. Once they register by adding a password, all they need to do is login to join sessions. If you utilize the schedule, Blink Session automatically sends them appointment reminders 24 hours before their appointment.

Blink Session has the most flexible, yet easy to use, layout of any video conferring software. We don't believe in fixed layouts. Thus, our interface allows users to infinity change the size of the resource/screen share section verses the video section. If you're not using resources or screen share, teachers can completely hide it for both them and their clients. With our design, you have the most control over layout while still keeping everything in one window.

In Blink, the default way to have a session is to add your client into the system first. They get a registration email and login to join all sessions. Because you add them to the system, you can also add appointments, notes, save white boards, recordings and other data about them. Plus, they can login and see content you shared with the. But, sometimes a session "link" is easier when you need to meet with someone for a quick connect.

With our Join-by-Link feature every Blink staff user has a personal meeting link. Need to meet with a non-client? Simply send them your join-by-LINK and you are notified when they request to join a session. Need to meet with multiple people this way? No problem, the same link will work for everyone in your meeting. Need to have a group session with a client and a join-by-Link person? Yes sir, it's all possible with Blink Session.

White Label is part of our Enterprise services. With our white-labeling service, Blink Session will appear 100% as your company’s software. Colors, logo, domain name, emails, and other features all appear with your company branding creating a brand-seamless experience for your clients. This service is way beyond simplying allow your company to have its logo on the dashboard. It provides a truely brand-seamless experience for your clients or students. Contact us for more information about white labeling

See the answer above for "What is White Label".

Blink Session is one of the only platforms to offer custom development service which bolts on seamlessly to our core software. Bolt-On Module development is a Enterprise service of Blink Session. Check out our Enterprise to learn more.

Blink's Health platform is 100% HIPAA compliant. We will sign a Business Associates Agreement (BAA) with organizations using our health version. Please note: The standards you have in place for how your organization uses Blink Session must also follow HIPAA standards. We recommend consulting qualified legal counsel or compliance experts.

Bink Session is committed to you and your client's security and privacy. We utilize many security measures to protect confidential information including at-rest encryption and 256-bit in-transit data encryption. We also follow all HIPAA polices including those related to personal identifiable information. For specific security questions, contact us. Please understand, in order to protect against phishing, we might request you complete a short background check before we discuss specific security measures with you.

Yes! The General Data Protection Regulation is a regulation enacted in 2018 for the data protection and privacy for all individuals within the European Union (EU) and the European Economic Area (EEA). It also addresses the export of personal data outside the EU and EEA area. Blink Session is both internally compliant with GDRP and has developed security and user permission features to help your organization stay compliant with this regulation. Please note: The standards you have in place for how your organization uses Blink Session must also follow GDRP standards. We recommend consulting qualified legal counsel or compliance experts.

The Family Education Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 (FERPA) is a U.S. federal laws that protects the privacy of student education records. FERPA applies to all schools that receive funds under an applicable program of the U.S. Department of Education. The Blink Session platform providers security and data protection measure that go beyond FERPA requirements, but we also help you stay compliant with user-permission and other features. Please note: The standards you have in place for how your organization uses Blink Session must also follow FERPA standards. We recommend consulting qualified legal counsel or compliance experts.

Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) is a U.S. regulation/law related to websites that allow persons under 13 years old to sign up and use their service. Blink Session does not allow persons under the age of 18 to sign up for a subscription. If your company serves persons in the U.S. under 13 years old, you could be obligated to abide by COPPA. For further information on this, please contact qualified legal counsel.

With Blink Session your clients/students will never have to install software as it runs 100% in the browser. Most other video-conferencing products, such as Zoom, Webx, GoToMeetng, and Skype, require everyone on the call to download their specific software. Plus, when it's time to join a session with those products, your client needs a specific meeting-room link you have to create every time.

With Blink Session, your clients/students simply login and click one button to begin! And Blink Session is compatible with multi web browsers including: Chrome, Firefox, or Safari on any computer with a mic and camera, iPad (with iOS 11 or later), or other tablet.

Yes, the white board is fully touch screen capable and works well on any touch screens including iPads or other tablets.

Blink Session VIDEO works peer-to-peer which means it will find the shortest distance between you and your client (does not route through the U.S.). You and your client will need a good and reliable Internet connection and, of course, the further away your client is the more likely you might experience video hiccups, but that is the case with any video-conference software you choose.

Blink Session will work in any country world-wide except, due to U.S. embargo laws, we cannot serve users in Cuba, Iran, North Korea, Sudan, or Syria.

No, Blink Session does not require any plugins including Adobe Flash. Flash was one of the first ways websites were able to include animation, but because of security and reliability concerns, is has become obsolete. It was never supported by iPhones, iPads, or natively by Android. For those reasons, we have always been committed to making Blink Session 100% flash and plugin free.

The Blink Session platform does not support languages other than English. That said, the amount of English your clients need to know to navigate their dashboard and sessions is minimal. We have several companies using Blink Session with non-English speaking clients. You will need to determine if you believe your clients will be able to navigate the platform without any knowledge of English. Your staff users should have a command of English.

At Blink, we recognize how important support is to the delivery of your virtual services. We are often asked: "What level of support do you provide?" We like to respond with: "What do you mean by support?"

There are many tech components involved in virtual service operations, including:

1) Computer/tablet/phone hardware (battery,screen, processor, keyboard, mouse, etc.)
2) Internet connection
3) Local network, including WiFi
4) Operating system (Windows,OSX, iOS, Android)
5) Potential viruses, malware, or poor configurations
6) The software, or in the case of Blink Session, the browser you are using to access the service (Chrome, Firefox, etc.)
7) The cloud software itself
8) The user's knowledge of how to use the software

Each of these require a different type of "support". At Blink, the main focus of our support is keeping the platform up and running. We guarantee 99% up time, but usually reach 99.9% or higher each year.

Support request related to how to use features or potential platform problems are answered within 24 business hours. We recommend that our customers retain qualified IT employees (or outsourced) to help with day-to-day issues, including troubleshooting computer or internet issues.

The aim of Blink Session's documentation feature is to increases your productivity by enabling you to view previous and write new notes while you are in a session (or outside a session). Also, with Blink Session you can securely share notes with your clients/students so they appear for them on their dashboard. Further, if a new teacher/staff/etc takes over a client/student they have access to all previous notes. Because Blink Session is committed to flexibility, there are not templates or goal tracking tools specific to any discipline.

Keeping track of goals is important. With our new Goal Tracking feature, add, update, and share goals with your clients from your dashboard or during a session. This is a great way to encourage your clients toward progress.

Yes, group sessions are available in Blink Session and they are super easy to setup and connect.

Group Sessions can technically conducted with up to 100 clients/students, though we recommend not more than 10. Over 10 can be difficult to manage with everyone having the ability to talk. If you need to connect a session that is more of a presentation/class, we recommend looking at webinar solutions.

Blink Session video dynamically adjusts based on the strength of a your's and your client's/student's Internet connection. The faster and more stable the connection the better the video quality will be.

When planning for all the tech requirements of virtual services, it is important to understand bandwidth is only one factor that will influence video call quality.

All regular Blink Session plans are month-to-month, cancel at any time. You will be able to use Blink Session through the end of the month you cancel in. The only plans that might not have the option to cancel anytime would be custom pricing where your organization has agreed to a specific price for a predetermined amount of time.

We can accept payment for your Blink Session subscription by check, with or without a purchase order.

To access Blink Session help, login to your account and click " Help" at the top

check platform status here.

NOTE: Sometimes this error is due to a internet content filter blocking login.blinksession.com. Often, a router's parental control filter will display this message instead of one explaining that it blocked the site.

If the issue is not an internet content filter AND you are on a Mac, iPhone, or iPad: the issue is likely related to your device's handling of the "SSL Certificate". Certificates ensures your connection to a website is secure. Certificates can expire, but at Blink Session we take extra steps to ensure that ours do not. Unfortunately, some Macs, iPhones, and iPads store invalid expiration data in their "Keychain". This invalid "Keychain" data can be propagated among a user's other Apple devices.

How You Might Fix This on Your Mac

1) Clear your browser cache: First try clearing the cache (browsing data) of the browser you are using.

2) If #1 does not work, check your date and time: Certificate authentication requires your Mac’s time be in sync with the server you are connecting to. Open System Preferences on your Mac and go to "Date & Time". Ensure the option to "Set date and time automatically" is checked (click the lock to make changes). Make sure to select the timezone location you are.

3) If #2 does not work, manually "trust" the expired certificate:

4) If a certificate for Blink Session does not exist in your Mac Keychain: You will need to download the certificate, manually add it to your keychain, and set it as trusted. To do so, you can follow the guide here.

You can find the current service agreemen, including privacy policy and support agreement here.

If there is a content/website filter on your network or computer, or anti-virus software on your computer, you must enable (whitelist) the following domains and sub domains:

• blinksession.com
• opentok.com
• tokbox.com
• blinkmedia.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com
 

If you have a firewall rule(s) to block certain network traffic you must allow the following:

• ws://ws.pusherapp.com on port 80
• wss://ws.pusherapp.com on port 443

If you or a client are not receiving email from the system, including registration invitation, even after checking spam/junk, the email provider is blocking it. Email from blinksession.com and login.blinksession.com needs to be white listed, which will tell the email provider to stop blocking it.

Whitelist email from blinksession.com and login.blinksession.com For Personal Email:
Gmail
Yahoo
Hotmail/Outlook

Whitelist email from blinksession.com and login.blinksession.com For Company Email Admins
Google Suite Gmail
Office 365