Managing Communications

Owned by Persia Xenopoulou (Deactivated)
Last updated: Jul 17, 2017 by Former user (Deleted)

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Navigating to Communications

CRM APPLICATION > COMMUNICATIONS > MANAGE COMMUNICATIONS

Using Communications

The Communications module enables its users to transmit information to customers while logging the interaction between agents and customers. Communication can be in the form of SMS, email, letter or face to face interaction, defined by the media. Where the Communication occurs via email or SMS,  CRM.COM can be configured to directly send the email or SMS to the recipient.

Optionally, a Communication Queue External System can be defined on new Communication enabling a third party system to access and send the Communication to the recipients, instead of CRM.COM. For example, users might want to communicate with their customers through their own Portal.

Several CRM.COM WEB APIs are available for accessing and extracting data from CRM.COM.

  • Navigate to Communications and explore existing entries via the Summary page. 
  • Click on the link (Name or Number) of the record of your interest to enter the Data Entry page and see more detail. 
  • Use the Actions Menu to create a NEW Communication, modify (EDIT) or DELETE an existing one. 
  • Use PRINTOUTS (if available) to extract or email information related to Communications to the customer. 
  • Use BACK to return to the Summary page and CANCEL to revert any unwanted changes made to the Communications. 
  • Click on ACTIONS to discover other possibilities available for Communications.
  • Click on the Audit Log button to view a log of changes performed on the displayed Communications. 

View the Attributes Table below for a comprehensive description of the Communications fields.  Check the Validations & Restrictions Table for a list of available Actions when working with Communications including each Action's related restrictions, validations, additional information and a description of its system process.

COMMUNICATIONS DATA ENTRY

Validations & Restrictions

ActionValidationsRestrictionsAdditional InformationSystem Processing
Save
  • Mandatory Fields must be defined.
  • Unrestricted Parameters Values must be defined if Unrestricted Tags are used.
  • Mandatory Configuration Entities must be configured before Communications is used. Refer to Communications - Configuration Requirements.
  1. If Communication Tags are used, 'Referring To' entities must be defined first.

  2. If Unrestricted Tags are used, the values of each unrestricted tag under Unrestricted Parameters must be defined.

Save as 'Draft'

Communication is created and its Life Cycle State set to:

  1. SAVE AS DRAFT

    1. Communication is created and its Life Cycle State set to 'Draft'.

    2. No further processing is done until the Communication Life Cycle State is updated to 'Completed'. 

      A 'Draft' Communication can be further updated.

  2. SAVE
    1. Communication is created and its Life Cycle State set to 'Completed'.

    2. An entry is added to the Communication Queue either as 'Completed', if no further processing is required, or as 'Pending'.

      A 'Completed' Communication cannot be updated further.

Edit
  • Mandatory Fields must be defined.
  • Unrestricted Parameters Values must be defined if Unrestricted Tags are used.
  • Life Cycle State is set to 'Draft'.
  • To add 'Referring To' entities, Life Cycle State must be 'Draft'.
  • Completed Communications cannot be modified.
  • Not Applicable

Save as 'Draft'

Communication is created and its Life Cycle State set to:

  1. SAVE AS DRAFT

    1. Communication is created and its Life Cycle State set to 'Draft'.

    2. No further processing is done until the Communication Life Cycle State is updated to 'Completed'. 

      A 'Draft' Communication can be further updated.

  2. SAVE
    1. Communication is created and its Life Cycle State set to 'Completed'.

    2. An entry is added to the Communication Queue either as 'Completed', if no further processing is required, or as 'Pending'.

      A 'Completed' Communication cannot be updated further.

Delete
  • Not Applicable
  • Life Cycle State is set to 'Draft.'
  • Not Applicable
  • Not Applicable
Follow Up Communication
  • Not Applicable
  • Life Cycle State is set to 'Completed.'
  • Not Applicable

Save as 'Draft'

Communication is created and its Life Cycle State set to:

  1. SAVE AS DRAFT

    1. Communication is created and its Life Cycle State set to 'Draft'.

    2. No further processing is done until the Communication Life Cycle State is updated to 'Completed'. 

      A 'Draft' Communication can be further updated.

  2. SAVE
    1. Communication is created and its Life Cycle State set to 'Completed'.

    2. An entry is added to the Communication Queue either as 'Completed', if no further processing is required, or as 'Pending'.

      A 'Completed' Communication cannot be updated further.

Attributes

An * indicates a field is mandatory.

Name

Description

NumberAn auto-generated number that uniquely identifies each Communication.
CodeAn auto-generated code which is used to uniquely group follow-up Communications.
This information is hidden.
Main Information
Contact*

The person or company for which the Communication is created. Only existing Contact Information can be used.
Contact affects the filtering of available Communication Templates. 

Direction*

Determines if the direction of the Communication is:

  • Incoming
  • Outgoing (the default)

The availability of Communication media depends on the selected Communication Direction.

CategoryThe category of the Communication.
Life Cycle State

The Life Cycle State of the Communication which can be:

  • Draft
  • Completed

Processed by System

AVAILABLE FROM CRM.COM R10.0.0

The Communication Queue External System that will be used to process the Communication. The displayed Communication Queue External Systems are filtered based on the specified media provided the Direction is set to 'Outgoing'.

  • In Releases up until CRM.COM R10, this information is not available through the UI.
  • The External System may be set on a Communication either by using WEB APIs or via Notification Runs (if the External System is set on the Notification Type through the Communication Template).
Communication TemplateThe Communication Template of the Communication that generates the Content.

Templates will be filtered in the following way:

  • The Communication's Contact Information and Referred Entities will be compared against the Communication Template's Entities.
  • A Communication Template will become available for selection if:
    • All of the Communication Template's Entities also exist in the Communication as Contact Information or as Referred Entities
      OR 

    • The Communication Template includes only Date Tags or no Communication Tags.

      If a valid (based on the current Communication information) Template is selected and additional information (such as a Referred entity) is added on the Communication, then the available Communication Templates will be refreshed.
      If for any reason the selected Template ceases to be valid, then the Communication's Content will be removed and another Template will have to be selected.

Media*

The media used to send or receive the Communication. The supported Media are the following:

The Media associated with the selected Direction is loaded. 

NoMediaSupported by Direction
1EmailOutgoing
2SMSOutgoing
3PhoneIncoming & Outgoing
4LetterIncoming & Outgoing
5Face to FaceIncoming & Outgoing
From*

The sender of the Communication, which is set automatically to the default Email address or SMS sender Name, as specified in 'Active' Communication Definition.

Available only if the Media is set to Email or SMS and the Direction is set to ' Outgoing'.

To*

The receiver of the Communication. An Email address or phone number is required which can (optionally) be selected from the existing Contact Information Emails or Phones.

  • This information is available and mandatory only if the Media is set to 'Email' or 'SMS' and the Direction is set to 'Outgoing'.
  • This is a free text field. Any mobile phone number or Email address can be added manually; it is possible to view and choose from already registered Emails and Phones of the contact.
  • If SMS is used, the phone number must always start with the country code. e.g. 0031 for The Netherlands.
Subject*

The subject of the Communication.
Communication Tags can be used to generate the Subject based on data kept on the associated Contact Information or the Referred Entities.

  • The Tags get replaced with actual values while there are typed.
  • A "#" must precede the Communication tags. As soon as a "#" symbol is typed, the System automatically populates the list of Tags that are available for use. The list gets filtered as more text is entered. 
    Subject and Content are also automatically filled when the Template is selected.
  • Available only if Media is set to 'Email'.
Content*

The Content of the Communication. Communication Tags can be used to generate the Content based on associated data kept on the related Contact Information or the Referred Entities.

  • The Tags get replaced with actual values while there are typed.
  • A "#" must precede the Communication tags. As soon as a "#" symbol is typed, the System automatically populates the list of Tags that are available for use. The list gets filtered as more text is entered. 
    Subject and Content are also automatically filled when the Template is selected.

  • A WYSIWYG tool is available only for 'Email' and 'Letter' Media Communications. A plain text area is used to capture the Content of other Media.

  • The WYSIWYG tool's editing area is used to capture the Content and enables editing and styling. 

  • Links to external websites such as http://www.google.com can be added to your Communications, either through the Templates or directly in the Content.

  • In order to be able to track the links (e.g. check whether they have been added and viewed), it is mandatory to add the "http://" or the "https://" prefix.
    View  Understanding Communications for more information on tracking links and emails.

Referring To
Referring To

The entity that the Communication is referring to, which should be owned by the selected Contact Information. The supported entities are the following:

  • Subscriptions
  • Activities
  • Jobs
  • Communications
  • Accounts Receivable
  • Bill
  • Notifications
  • Rewards Participant
  • Award Reward Transaction
  • Spend Reward Transaction
  • Service Request 
  • Payment Gateway Cards
  • Payment Gateway Requests
  • Leads 
  • Payments
  • Buy in Advance

  • Access Tokens (Not available when creating a new Communication from the User Interface. Access Tokens will be displayed in View mode when a Communication is created and sent automatically when a new Rewards Participant or Accounts Receivable is created. A new Access Token can be added when creating a new Communication from the WEB API).
     

  • The Contact Information must be selected first so that only entities related to the contact are loaded. If a contact is not selected then no results will be returned.
  • 'Referring To' affects the filtering of available Communication Templates.


Unrestricted Parameters

Unrestricted Parameters

The Unrestricted Tags and their associated values which will replace the Unrestricted Tags whenever provided.

This section is available only if the Communication is in a 'Draft' or 'Completed' State and at least one Unrestricted Parameter exists in one of the following:

  • Communication Template
  • Content
  • Subject

  1. Click ADD MISSING UNRESTRICTED PARAMETERS to add any Tags that were not added automatically.

  2. Specify the Value for each Tag.

Communication Queue 
Communication Queue

Provides the entry added to the Communication Queue for the specific Communication, with information on the status of the Communication Queue External System, on the Media and on any errors that may have occurred while processing the Communication.

Follow Up Communications
Follow Up CommunicationsA list of Communications that were created as a Follow Up of the Communication.
Attachments
Attachments

The attachments related to the specific Communication.

If files exist in the Communication's Attachments section, its Direction is 'Outgoing' and the Media is 'Email', then they will be sent as attachments once the Communication is sent.

Tracking Details

This section is visible only if the Communication Media is set to Email and the Direction is Outgoing.

Email Tracking Enabled

Indicates if the Email Communication was enabled for Email Tracking.

Enabled via the Configuring Communication Definitions.

Viewed

Indicates if the customer viewed the email.

Visible only if Email Tracking is enabled. 

Viewed On

Displays the date on which the customer viewed the email.

Visible only if Email Tracking is enabled. 

Link Tracking Enabled

Indicates if the email Communication was enabled for Link Tracking.

Enabled via the Configuring Communication Definitions 

Tracked Links

A list of all the links that were sent through this Communication.

Provides the date on which the customer viewed each link. The following information is displayed for each tracked link:

  • URL: The address of the link that was sent
  • Viewed: Indicates whether the customer viewed the link
  • Viewed On: The date on which the customer viewed the link

 

  • Visible only if Link Tracking is enabled. 
LOG INFORMATION
Owned by Group*The Group that owns the Communication, which will automatically default to the Group of the signed-in User or will be automatically set based on the geographical location of the Contact, as defined in Groups.
Shared NotesNotes regarding the record. Each time the Notes are amended, the User and the date are logged.
Privacy levelThe Privacy Level of the Communication, which is always 'Read-only' and can be changed through a dedicated action or is automatically set by the Privacy Level Assignment Rules (PLAR).
Log DetailsThe standard set of Log Details information available in all entities.

 

Additional Actions for Communications

Updating Referring To Section

In order to add more entities to the Referring To section, click the "ADD REFERRING TO ENTITIES" button found in the Main Information tab.

Creating an entry in the Communication Queue

If a Communication has a  'Completed' Life Cycle State, its Media set to 'Email' or 'SMS' and an 'Outgoing' Direction then a record is also created in the Communication Queue. The Communication Queue record is available in both the Data Entry and Summary page of the Communication but cannot be edited.

Creating Follow Up Communications

Communication Follow Up is a utility that enables the creation of a follow-up to the existing 'Completed' Communication, in order to group Communications referring to the same issue together. 

If a Communication is followed-up, then the existing Communication Number will be associated to the Follow Up Communication via the Referring To Communication field.

 

  1. Navigate to Manage Communications. 
  2. Search for the Communication to Follow Up and click on its Number to go to the Data Entry page.
  3. From the Actions Menu click on Actions > Follow Up.
  4. The Communication Data Entry page will open in a modal window.
  5. The following information is carried over from the existing Communication:
    • Contact information 
    • Referring To Communication
    • Communication Code (not available via the UI)
    • The remaining (editable) information
  6. Provide all the required information as defined in the Attributes Table.
  7. Click on SAVE.
     

View Understanding Communications for business examples related to UsingCommunications.

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