This article begins with the premise that you already know what GoldMine Automated Processes (AP) are. What you may not recognize is that one of most important GoldMine Automated Process may be the one that decides which other Automated Processes should be assigned to a record(s). Automated Processes (AP) can do a whole host of functions. But one of the coolest things they can do is attach another Automated Process (Track).
This allows a marketing or sales department to design an AP that can determined, based on a wide variety of “triggers,” such as field entries (dbase conditions), completed or pending activity, elapsed days or other criteria, which AP(s) need to be assigned in order to perform other functions. The possibilities are so vast, that one can always find new ways to take advantage of this capability. Here are but few examples to illustrate the idea:
Example #1: If a new prospect record is added to the database with important information missing, the AP could attach a different “missing information” AP that is specifically designed to identify which fields are missing and send an email to the contact requesting that information, or schedule a follow-up action for someone inside the organization to get that information.
Example #2: In the event of a sale, the same AP that decided to attach the “missing information” AP, could also have attached a “new customer”AP. This AP might automatically send out a thank you note to the customer and alert customer service of a new account.
Example #3: Leads entered into GoldMine using the Web-import capabilities can automatically have a “web import” process attached. This process can look at the information your customer requested, based on a field they checked off, and automatically attach the appropriate “product or service AP,” specifically designed to send the prospect suitable information and schedule a follow-up activity for that assigned sales representative.
The hardest part about Automated Processes is thinking them through and designing them to be constructive, rather than counterproductive. Anticipating and accounting for all potential scenarios requires a lot of thought. By the same token, given all the time AP’s can save an organization, as well as how they can improve sales and service for prospects and customers, Automated Processes are well worth the effort.
