FAQ -- Frequently Asked Questions

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Then how would you describe Smart Notes for ACT!?
Smart Notes for ACT! is a program that:
1/ allows you to create one or more manual notes and 'stick' them to a contact record
2/ will scan your database for pre-defined existing conditions and then create notes when those conditions are met.

What's the purpose of Smart Notes for ACT!?
Smart Notes for ACT! is really about putting customer information quickly at your fingertips when you need it. It's about making sense of a lot of data and information about customers and bringing important facts to your attention.

When would I use it?
Anytime you're using ACT! (and even when not). Let's say you get a call from a customer. Smart Notes for ACT! will quickly bring important facts to your attention without any effort on your part. If you have a VIP customer calling with a sales opportunity closing in the next few weeks, wouldn't you like to know that before picking up the phone? You bet!

Are notes customizable?
Yes. When creating a new note or defining a conditional one, you can choose from various templates or just start simple and change it to your requirements. You have full WYSIWYG editing capability, color choice, texture, size, and position. And Smart Notes for ACT! will remember where the note was last placed. And when viewing them, you can minimize them or make them disappear until the next time you leave and return to this very same record.

Explain how I would user "manual" notes.
You can create and attach one or more manual notes to a contact record, choosing from pre-defined templates, choosing color, size and standard editing capabilities.

You might use it to remind you of something you (or others) need to ask the customer next time you talk to him or add a note just to bring attention to a fact about the caller, such as "technical beginner", "VIP", "Big Sale Pending", etc.

The idea is that you want to get someone's attention quickly. To make sure no-one misses the content of the message, you can make it larger and place it right in the middle of the screen (Smart Notes for ACT! will remember where you placed it last) so that it can't possibly be missed.

Explain how I would use "conditional" notes.
Conditional notes are the real power of Smart Notes for ACT!. You may pre-define as many "conditions" as you would like to check. Examples are "scheduled call is more than one week overdue", "a sales opportunity whose value is greater than $500 and expected to close in next 30 days". "credit hold / cash only", etc. Possibilities are nearly unlimited.

What information in ACT! can I check?
Most any data from the contact record, company record, activity records, and opportunity records.

Are notes always shared with other users?
No. You can add a note to a contact and mark it private. Then only you will see it. Also, records added to "my record" are always private.

That's cool, but if I want, can I use it as my own personal "to do" reminder?
Yes. You can add notes, both to your own "my record" or you can add a manual note to a contact and mark it private.

You said I could use it even when ACT! wasn't loaded.
Feature under development. You can click on an icon in the system tray that will allow you to automatically add a personal note to your "my record" or you can do a lookup of customers and then add a note to their record, just like if you had ACT! open.

How much does it cost?
It is sold "per workstation". Our prices are listed here. We're priced it very low, hoping you'll see value of adding it to every workstation where ACT! is used. Everyone and every department can use its features.

Does Smart Notes for ACT! work with ACT! for the web?
No, not yet, but we're working on it.

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Example usages:

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Manual Notes -- These are notes you manually attach to an ACT! contact record. They can contain any information you think is useful either to yourself or others. It may even contain information not otherwise found in the record, such as "Boss' brother". The formatting of the notes is highly customizable.

Conditional Notes -- These are notes that appear on certain ACT! records based on pre-defined conditions being met for the record showing on the screen. You may define conditions that examine the contact, company, activity, and opportunity records. This is a powerful tool to 'data mine' and quickly bring information to your attention. Every time you land on a record, the information is examined to see if one or more notes need to be displayed.

Manual Note Examples:

• VIP Account ABC
• Hot Lead
• Decision Maker
• Friend of the CEO
• Cranky customer
• Not computer literate
• Talkative
• Cash Only or Credit Hold
• Handle with care because ......
• Deal almost closed
• Upset over recent support issue
• Has open customer service issue
• Don't for get to ask... (fill in)
• Be sure and tell them that ... (fill in)
• Personal info I should know ... (fill in)
• any notes from notepad you wish to highlight

Conditional Note Examples:

• Contract expires in less than 30 days
• Final decision making stage
• Opportunity scheduled to close in less than 10 days
• Customer
• Customer within last 6 months
• No service contract
• Renewal contract due < 30 days. Please ask....
• Outstanding RMA
• VIP account - Level (auto filled)
• Balance Due > $1,000
• Balance due > 500 and > 60 days
• Total sales > $5,000
• Overdue scheduled call
• Call scheduled this week (or today or ... )
• Overdue activity
• Cash Only

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Specs:

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Manual Notes

• Configurable: Size, color, skin, mixed fonts, bold, underline, center, bullets, (standard editing functions).
  
• Templates: Pre-configured templates come with the standard version. Additional templates can be added as desired.
  
• Field elements: Includes category, main text area, name and date of who created the note and a privacy check box.
  
• Privacy check box used to make note private or public (most will be public).
  
• Edit permission determines if other may add or make changes.
  
• Expire date: Note will not display after this date.
  
• Inactive: Manually mark a note so that it is no longer visible.
  
• Remembering size and location: Will remember the last size and position on the screen, even if closed or minimized. Make them big and put on the middle of the screen to make sure you get someone's attention Notes are sizable and moveable while on screen.
  

Conditional Notes

• Configurable: Same properties as manual notes except size is fixed and location on the screen is limited to middle and four corners. Standard editing functions apply.
  
• Merge Fields: Notes can be constructed in the designer to include merged data from ACT!. For example, you could have a note that not only says Balance > 90 days but also include the balance information if it exists in ACT!
  
• Templates: Pre-configured templates come with standard version. You can add additional templates as needed via the Template Designer. These determine how the notes appear, including pre-configured with merge fields. This makes adding notes from a pre-defined template easy.
  
• Field elements are: Fields from ACT! category, main text area, name and date of who created note. Also privacy check box (note can be seen by person creating only). Expire date: Note will not display after this date. Conditional notes can only be edited by person creating the note.
  
• Note is sizable and moveable while on screen.
  
• Conditional Notes cannot be edited by viewers. They always come back to their original location once you leave and return to the record.
  
• Minimizing or closing: By clicking on the appropriate icon on the note header, one can easily minimize a note, minimize ALL notes, or close a note(s). In all cases, the note will return once you leave and return to the contact record.
  

Condition Rule Builder

• Build rules describing how the ACT! data is to be examined for the purpose of creating Conditional Notes.
  
• Rules may check fields in the Contact, Company, Activity, and Opportunity Tables.
  
• Rules may be "simple" or "complex" (involving queries of multiple tables and nested conditions.
  

My Record Notes

• You may add personal notes easily to your 'My Record' in ACT! These are private.
  
• You can easily see all notes attached to your My Record in ACT! or all 'private' notes regardless of which contact record they are attached.
  

Working with Conditional Rules

• You can easily look at a list of all defined conditional rules, and sort in various ways.
  
• You may select a rule and then show all contacts that meet that rule. You may then turn that list into an ACT! lookup.
  
• You may edit, delete, or modify conditional rules if you are a supervisor.
  

Working with the Template Designer

• You may design templates and assign skins.
  
• You may choose to include merge fields in the notes.
  
• Basic templates are included with the Smart Notes for ACT! as delivered.
  

Creating Notes from the System Tray, with or without ACT! open

• Ability to easily attach personal notes to your 'My Record' in ACT! even when ACT! is CLOSED.
  
• Ability to do an ACT! lookup and attach a note, even when ACT! is CLOSED.
  

Creating Notes from the System Tray, with or without ACT! open

• Ability to easily attach personal notes to your 'My Record' in ACT! even when ACT! is CLOSED.
  
• Ability to do an ACT! lookup and attach a note, even when ACT! is CLOSED.
  

Reporting

• Conditional Rules Report (active only, with expire date).
  
• List of Contacts meeting a conditional rule
  
• Manual Notes Report - All, with expire date, expired, marked personal, within time period, sorted by date or user
  

Utilities

• Purge manual notes (old or expired notes).
  

Licensing

• SNFA is license to individual workstations. Each workstation must have access to an ACT! database.
  
• Add additional users to workstations when needed.

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