Contact Filter Wizard

View - Contact Filter Wizard

Through the wizard for contact selection, you are able to set up and store fixed contact selections that you can run regularly. These can be re-used at a later time to perform different tasks, for instance to create activities or documents related to contacts or send e-mail. The contact wizard can thereby save you a lot of time and effort.

If your contacts are organised by, for example, Group or Category, the wizard can be used as a powerful contact management tool. Read more in Organising and Managing Contacts.

You can select between dynamic or static filter. The dynamic filter is further specified in a window, and is most suitable in cases where you can easily specify the selection criteria, such as a selection of a specific group of contacts. The static filter can be much more precise by manually adding or removing contacts/contact persons.

The wizard can be launched from View - Contact Filter Wizard.

Step 1: Simple or advanced filter

First, you select whether you want to use a simple or advanced filter:

Simple Selection leads you straight to a filter screen where you select your filter criteria.
Advanced Selection lets you adjust a Selection, open a previously saved Selection and to save a Selection for later use.

Step 2: For advanced selections only: Static or dynamic filter

There are two ways of setting queries in this module:

Dynamic retrieves all contacts/contact persons that fulfill the criteria for the filter.
Static filter gives you the option of adjusting the list of hits, by removing or adding contacts/contact persons. This is done in step 4 of the wizard, which is only available for static queries.

Open saved filter: In step 4 of the wizard you can save your queries. These queries can be selected from the list below, and can be run again. Please note that you will still go through the wizard if you created a new field, or adjust the pre-completed fields. When you select a filter you get an overview on:

Number of hits last time the filter was used: By marking the queries in the list, you can see how many contacts were covered by the filter.
Dynamic/Static: You also receive information about whether the chosen filter is dynamic or static.
Click Next.

Step 3: Define Filter

In the Default tabs Selection form drop-down list, you can choose between several sets of criteria. You are free to define criteria in several selection forms. All the criteria you define will be included.

Depending on the selection form you choose, you can also manage the selection in relation to contact persons:

You can specify the number of Contact persons from each contact to be included. If you select several contact persons for each contact, the selection will make two copies of the contact in question.

If you define filter criteria for Contact persons, you can choose that the filter shall Only include contacts which have contact persons included in the filter criteria. Contacts without contact persons that fulfill these criteria will be excluded from the selection, even if the contact fulfills the other criteria.

Define the criteria for the filter you are going to work with in the usual way. Read more about The Fields in Search and Filterand Advanced Selection.

Tip! Use Advanced Filter to prevent the filter from including customers marked "No dispatches". Define the advanced selection under the Advanced tab.

Click Next.

Step 4: Add contacts/contact persons

This step is only shows if you are running a static queries, and displays a list of all contacts and contact persons that the filter covers. The list can be adjusted in the following ways:

Add contact: Click this button and select a new contact from the list. Please note that contact persons will not be included in the selection, even you selected this in step 2. If you want contact persons for each contact you must select Add contact person.

Add contact person: Click this button and select a new contact person from the list. The contact person and associated contact will now be included in the selection.

Remove from selection: Mark the check box to the left of the contacts you wish to delete and click Delete.

Click Next.

Step 5: Save Filter

This step is only shown through Advanced Filter in step 1. If you are going to run this filter regularly it is worth saving the filter. If you have adjusted a previously saved filter, but still want to run the old filter, you can Save as new.

Select Save or Save as new if you have adjusted a previously saved filter.
Give the filter a Name and a Description to help you to find it if you later want to run it from step 1.
The selection is only be to be used by me is relevant if there are several users of the program. The saved selection will now not be available in the list for other users than yourself.
Click Next.

Step 6: What to do with the selection

In the last step of the wizard you select what you want to do with the selection.

Make a selection and click Complete to execute one of the action
- or -
Click Next if you have chosen Change status field):
- Activity: This is an alternative to creating a group activity. Click Complete and select whether you want to create one activity for all contacts, or several activities, one for each contact. Read more about creating activities in The Activity List.
- E-mail: This selection creates an e-mail, which includes all contacts in the selection that is included in the To field. Complete the contents of the e-mail or Select template, if you have defined this in View - E-mail and E-mail templates.
- Document: Create a document for all contacts in the selection. You can also select the address to be included in the document before clicking Complete. Read more in Documents.
- Export: Select from the drop-down list whether you want to export the contacts to Microsoft Excel or to the contact list in Microsoft Outlook.
- Change status fields/other contact information: Here you can change information for several contacts at the same time. This procedure can also be found in Change values for a selection of contacts, step 6.

Note! If you click Cancel, the filter will not be saved, even if you chose this in step 5.

Click Complete to complete the filter.