Serial letters (Windows Client)

Basics

A serial letter is a Word document created from CURSOR-CRM. A certain amount of addressees are transferred to the serial letter function of Word.

Unlike a single letter, a serial letter is not created from an activity. For documentation purposes and for follow ups on returns you can have activities created.

Creating a serial letter

This is how you create a serial letter:

1. Select the menu Marketing / Serial letter. The serial letter assistant starts.

2. Step 1 in the wizard. Choose a document template for the serial letter and click Next.

3. Step 2 in the wizard. Define the recipients for the serial letter. To do this, click
   

   

   
   Change recipient. Enter the search criteria in the search window and start the search with
   

   

   
   Search and edit. In the Allocation window the selected datasets are shown. You can remove individual datasets from the selected addressees. Close the Allocation window with OK.

Additional recipients can be added with additional searches and from SER or ZIP files. This can create duplicates. Perform a check for duplicates after all recipients are defined. (Duplicate check recipients)

A ser-file contains data of recipients for follow-ups or other serial letter activities. After the definition of recipients with one or more searches and the import of already existent ser-files, create the ser-file with save recipients. To create a serial letter, import the data from the ser or zip file with

Additional recipients can be added with additional searches and from SER or ZIP files. This can create duplicates. Perform a check for duplicates after all recipients are defined. (Duplicate check recipients)

With show addressee you open the allocation window with all selected Addressees.
Once you have collected all addressees you proceed with next.

4. Step 3 in the wizard. Serial letter must be set. If you choose the option Test run the following steps are omitted and the serial letter is created. Click Next.

5. Step 4 in the wizard. Enter a subject to the serial letter. Click Next.

6. Step 5 in the wizard. You can add documents as attachments to the serial letter. Select the files with the browser. Click Next.

7. Step 6 in the wizard. Please select if a logging activity for the serial letter and/or a reminder activity e.g. for a return date should be created. If Accumulative activity is set, an activity to the serial letter is created, which all addressees are assigned to. Otherwise an activity will be created for each addressee.

8. Step 7 in the assistant. (only if logging activity and/or reminder activity was selected) Fill out the fields to the activity. Other employees can be assigned the activity with assign employees. If both activities have been selected, a separate editing window will be opened for each activity.

9. Word opens and the serial letter is created. You can edit and print the letter in Word.

Once you have filled the reminder and protocol activity in the wizard with values and have returned to the wizard side Create activity, both activity sides in the wizard keep the entries (field values and employee allocation) when both checkboxes 'Protocol activity' and 'Reminder activity' are deactivated and activated again.

Generating control file for serial letters

The control file contains data of the addressees and can be used independently from CURSOR-CRM to create a serial letter in a third program. Just like directly creating the serial letter, you can create activities to this action.

In case the salutation in CURSOR-CRM consists of several lines, please use the file format EXCEL for the control file. CSV files cause faulty outputs in Word.

1. Select Marketing / Serial letter from the menu.

2. Select a document template.

Which data are provided to a serial letter depends on the document template. The selected template therefore affects the data the control file receives.

Per search you can collect a range of addressees for the serial letter. Except for the missing results list, the handling is identical to the search in a main window. The result of the search is displayed in the next step. Please note the setting Send serial letter in the search criteria to the contact. Continue the process with

3. In the Allocation window the selected datasets are shown. Edit the results to have them correspond to the range of addressees. Continue with OK.

4. Select the option Datasource for serial letter. If you additionally select the option Test run, the following steps are obsolete and the control file is generated.

5. Enter a subject to the serial letter.

6. Please select if a logging activity for the serial letter and/or a reminder activity e.g. for a return date should be created. If Accumulative activity is set, an activity to the serial letter is created, which all addressees are assigned to. Otherwise an activity will be created for each addressee.

7. Only if an activity to protocol and/or an activity as a reminder is/are created:
   Enter the data to the Activity. Other employees can be assigned the activity with assign employees. If both activities have been selected, a separate editing window will be opened for each activity.

8. Excel starts and a file containing the addressee data is created. The control file is saved as a document in CURSOR-CRM and linked to the above mentioned activities.

Feature 'Send serial letter'

With the field Send serial letter (main window Contact, flap Info), you determine, whether a contact is to generally be recipient of serial letters. In serial letter actions, you can limit the recipient range to this feature.

Saving and loading search results

Notes on the procedure:

• Output format
  A zip file is created instead of a ser file. This contains one or more smaller ser files.

• Release security
  Both the ZIP files of the new variant and the SER files of the old variant can be loaded.

• Behavior during loading
  When files were loaded, the assignment dialog for displaying and selecting the data just loaded was always opened so that you can make a selection of the data to be transferred. Since this can lead to longer waiting times for large amounts of data, you can decide for each load process whether the assignment dialog is still displayed or the loaded datasets are added directly. This reduces the waiting time.