Maximizer CRM Sales Activity Report

[reporting]

I am creating an Activities report from a Maximizer CRM database. For those who don't know the application, besides the usual client info that all CRM apps have, Maximizer CRM allows clients to create very powerful UDF's (User-Defined Fields) according to their particular needs.

In this report, I will be printing the following information:

Date (F1)
Name of client (F2)
Type of client (F3)
Potential (F4)
Sales Activities (F5)
Marketing Activities (F6)
Industry (F7)

Type of Client, Potential and Industry are easy: there can only be one value. However, the Sales Activities & Marketing Activities fields can have multiple choices. Some examples from Sales Activities are "Client Visit", "Needs Analysis", "Demonstration", "Follow-up on call", Follow-up on visit", Follow-up on demo", etc.

In the past, I have grouped the activities to ensure that I can collect the info requires, tested the UDF's for values and populated variables based on the values in each UDF. Using the filelds listed above, I would group on F1 + F2 + a unique value for each activity (obviously, GH1 as well as the detail lines are hidden, and the variables are reset in GH1):

GH1
2009.04.21 / Client 1 / "Client Visit"
2009.04.21 / Client 1 / "Needs Analysis"
GF1 2009.04.21 / Client 1 / "Client Visit", "Needs Analysis"

GH1
2009.04.21 / Client 2 / "Client Visit"
2009.04.21 / Client 2 / "Demonstration"
GF1 2009.04.21 / Client 2 / "Client Visit", "Demonstration"

GH1
2009.04.21 / Client 3 / "Telephone Call"
2009.04.21 / Client 3 / "Follow-up on demo"
GF1 2009.04.21 / Client 3 / "Follow-up on demo", "Telephone Call"

GH1
2009.04.21 / Client 4 / "Telephone Call"
2009.04.21 / Client 4 / "Follow-up on proposal"
GF1 2009.04.21 / Client 4 / "Follow-up on proposal", "Telephone Call"

One of our Maximizer CRM clients is a sales consulting organization. They have started referring their clients to us and we have implemented Maximizer CRM at several . They now want us to replace the manual Activity Reports that the sales reps have been completing with Crystal Reports.

The way I have done these reports in the past means that any time there have been changes in the UDF structure, I have had to manually change the reports. That has been fine up to now as changes have happened occasionally.

For several reason, I need to look at new ways to do this kind of report:

1. I need to create a template report that I can quickly and easily modify based upon different client criteria.

2. The first manual activity report I was shown was easy: only 5 different values in the Sales Activities UDF and choosing multiple values was not permitted. When I asked for others, I found that they were much more complex. As an example, the most complex one has nearly twenty different values for the Sales Activities UDF!, and multiple values can be chosen - some of them have 4 choices!

3. If there are changes to the UDF values, I would like to try to avoid having to modify the reports.

I am looking at using a cross-tab format but need some ideas on a different way to handle this using Crystal Syntax. Any ideas out there in Tek-Tips land on how I can start creating something like this?

Thanks very much,

John


John Marrett
Crystal Reports Trainer & Consultant
Maximizer CRM Trainer & Consultant

http://www.e-reporting.ca

 

[Madawc]

If you need to relate client to UDF and do not have UDF as a table, then create an Excel document that relates the two. Use it as an extra source. (Use SEARCH if you need to find out how to do this.)

Madawc Williams (East Anglia, UK). Using Windows XP & Crystal 10

 

[reporting]

Thanks Madawc, but I cannot allow the Sales Reps to export to Excel... It would make it a lot easier for me as could use Maximizer CRM's Export to Excel function ... and I wouldn't have to do this complex report!!!

The rules of the road are that only partners in the co can export to Excel: if I gave the Sales Reps that right, they could export the database the day before they left for the competition ... or were let go for non-performance!

Regards,

John


John Marrett
Crystal Reports Trainer & Consultant
Maximizer CRM Trainer & Consultant

http://www.e-reporting.ca

 

[Madawc]

Then I've no idea. Can anyone else help?

Madawc Williams (East Anglia, UK). Using Windows XP & Crystal 10