Applies to: RollMaster (RM) Core
Use this article as a reference for the Lead Processing module, including setup requirements, lead entry and maintenance, duplicate checks, reports, lead conversion, appointment scheduling, and related mobile setup.
Does Not Cover: Retail Lead Management (RLM).
Menu Path: Sales Processing > Lead Processing
For other Sales Processing programs, refer to the Sales Processing module documentation.
Customers with a subscription to this Efficiency Tool module will see a Lead Processing menu option in the Sales Processing Menu for all Users with permission/menus to access this program. It appears just below Quotation/Proposal Maintenance in the menu. This program was initially developed for “Shop-At-Home” operations, but added functionality makes it appealing to any business with retail or property management customers. It’s designed so that sales appointments can be scheduled and tracked without having to add a Customer to the live database prior to creating a Quote or Order. If an appointment results in an estimate or sale, the customer information created in this module will transfer over to the live Customer Maintenance, Quote, and/or Order Entry modules. It also has an integration with MeasureSquare, RM Text Alert, Zillow, and Google Maps. There is an option in Quote Entry, from within a Quote, to Copy Quote to a Lead. This can be found in the Copy menu at the top left of that screen. Additionally, from the RM Mobile App, there is access to a Leads Calendar. Please see the very end of this documentation for Web Dashboard Controls that need to be set for each User with regard to the RM Mobile App.
Please note: there are three User Control options, located in the System Control Maintenance module, that need to be setup prior to using this module. They appear in both the User Control 1 and User Control 5 screens. In the User Control 1 screen, under the control Is This User a Sales Person?, an additional box of controls prompts when you set this control to “Y” for yes. First, look for the following control: Only Allow Leads for This User. If set to “Y” for yes, the User will only be allowed to view their own Leads. Next look for this control: Allow View of Lead Phone and Email. This control determines whether the User can see the Phone and Email data for a Lead.
In the User Control 5 screen, look for the following control toward the bottom of the screen: Lead Options. When the cursor is positioned in this field, the system prompts a Lead Options box as follows:
The first option, Allowed Access to Lead Setup Items, determines which Users will have access to the Functions menu in the Lead Processing module. The Functions menu allows access to six important setup options as follows: Room Maintenance, Material Type Maintenance, Special Maintenance, Time Maintenance, Alert Maintenance, and Zone/Region Maintenance. Please see below for more details on how these options work. If you do not want a User to have access to these options, make sure this control is set to “N” for no. The Allowed to Re-Open Closed Leads option, when enabled, allows a User to open a closed Lead. The Allowed to Cancel Leads option controls whether a User can view and access the Cancelled checkbox in the Lead Maintenance screen. It will be initially disabled for all Users; therefore, it will only need to be enabled for those Users who will be allowed to cancel Leads. The Allowed Access to Lead Scheduling Mtc option should only be enabled for two reasons: a.) your company has activated and is using this feature (see end of Lead Processing section for complete details) and b.) if this User will be allowed access to Lead Scheduling if it is activated in your system.
When you first enter this module, the screen will appear as follows:
This screen works much like the Quote and Order Entry screens in terms of all existing Leads showing in the middle screen for the selected Sales Rep, along with the functionality to sort and filter the displayed data via the options at the top of the screen. In the Br column above, an “O” indicates a Lead has been converted to an Order.
Prior to creating a new Lead, if you are using this module for the first time, you need to complete setup items via the Functions option at the top left of the screen above. Please note: only Users with permission will be able to access the Functions menu. When you click on this option, you will see the several options as follows:
The first six options are setup options that should be completed prior to creating the first Lead. The Room Maintenance option will allow you to add/edit/delete room name descriptions to indicate which areas will be measured and eventually quoted on each lead. Examples include Basement, Kitchen, Den, etc., or you can add items such as 2 Bth, 2 Bdrm, etc. The Material Type Maintenance option is similar to RollMaster’s Product Type Maintenance. These should be Types such as Carpet, Vinyl, Tile, etc. The Special Maintenance option allows you to set up appointment specials such as percentage discounts off purchases or other special offers. Examples include 20% OFF, FREE PAD, etc. The Time Maintenance option allows you to set up pre-determined appointment times for Users to select from when scheduling new appointments. Examples include 10:00 AM, 2:00 PM, etc. Lead Appointment Scheduling will be covered in greater detail below, as it requires a bit more setup, but provides a broader use of this feature.
The Alert Maintenance option is for Managers and Owners to use to create descriptions for problem leads or why a Lead didn’t close. For example, Non-Qualified Lead. Salespeople are not able to see this field in the Lead Processing screen. The Zone/Region Maintenance screen is for setting up locations within a Branch, such as Downtown, North Side, etc. This will be used more for the Lead Appointment Scheduling feature. The Duplicate Check By Phone # can be used after Leads have been entered. It allows for checking Leads that may be redundant or could be combined. The same goes for the Duplicate Check By Address. These options prompt items containing some or all of the same data. The final option, Scheduling Setup, is accessible when the Lead Appointment Scheduling option has been enabled, and is covered in detail at the end of this main documentation.
In addition to the Functions menu, there are two reports available in this screen. The Print Lead Report will generate a text printout of the current lead data displayed in the Lead Maintenance screen at the time the report is printed. You can also export this data to Excel. The Print Lead Report option is also available from the Lead Processing screen. This option will produce a printout of exactly what you see displayed in the box in the middle of the screen. If you have used any Sort or Filter criteria to alter the items in that list, the Print Lead Report option will only print the data currently displayed. The Print All Leads Report will generate both a listing of what is displayed in the screen along with the detail for each of the leads displaying. You will also see a Batch Email Rep button, which requires you to first Filter by Appointment Date or Sales Rep, and then allows you to send Batch Emails to the Sales Rep addresses on file.
If you right-click on a Lead in the main screen, you will see an option to Copy Lead. If you select the Copy Lead option, the system will prompt the following:
Use the drop-down menu to select another Branch. The Cancel Old Lead option will default to checked. If you wish to leave the original Lead open in the current Branch, uncheck this box and then click the Continue button. The system will then prompt the following:
The Copied Lead can then be accessed in Branch 2. When a Lead is highlighted in the main screen, the Sales Rep and Job Status fields at the bottom will display any existing data for that Lead and you can access and change these fields as shown below. The Notes icon at the bottom right is for Lead Notes and will attach to the Lead that is currently highlighted when this button is selected. Be sure to click the Save button to keep any changes.
To create a new lead, click the New Lead button at the top left of the main screen or click on the Create New Lead option next to the Exit option. The system will prompt a Lead Maintenance screen as follows:
Begin by first selecting the applicable Branch, and then completing the phone, address, and data fields with as much detail as you have at the time of creation. Please Note: all the fields with a green asterisk “*” must be completed prior to clicking the Save button. Within the address section, a field has been added for Cross Streets to help locate the residence. The Zone/Region drop-down field requires advance setup, but allows for setting up Zones and/or Regions for which you can assign your Sales Reps. Also, the system forces the State field to be two characters, and the Zip to be five, if it is set to US. The Budget field can be used to record an amount the Lead has previously mentioned as the amount they are looking to spend.
When entering Phone and Address data, the system will search for duplicates. Where it finds duplicates, it will prompt a Duplicate box as follows:
To continue with the Lead creation, click the Continue Creation of Lead button at the bottom right of the screen. Otherwise, you can click on an existing item, and if no dollar amount is listed in the column to the far right, you can select that Lead from the list and then click on the Cancel Creation of Lead Go Into Selected Lead button. When this option is selected, the system will reset the Job Status and Appt. Day/Time fields. The same process will occur for any Address data duplications.
In the far-right upper corner, the Cancelled and Duplicate check boxes can be used by Owners/Managers to update the status of a Lead that falls under one of these criteria. These boxes are not visible to reps. Below that is a cluster of four interactive icons. The Notes icon will become active once you save the initial lead data in this screen. Thereafter, you can double-click to enter notes pertaining to this specific Lead appointment. If Notes exist for a Lead, the icon will display a bright green box around the image. Next to the Notes icon is for RM MeasureSquare, if activated in your system. The data from this module will export to your MeasureSquare application. Below the Notes icon is a Google Maps button to use for making sure the address is valid. The button next to it is to access Zillow to review home appearance and value. Another integration feature with a RollMaster Efficiency Tool is the Text Msg check boxes next to the phone # fields that sends data to the RM Text Alert integration. If checked, it allows for texting with the Lead from that application. The Alert Codes checkbox is also only visible to non-sales reps. Users set up as a “Salesperson” in RollMaster will not even see the Alert Codes option. Also, as mentioned above, these Codes must first be setup in the Alert Code Maintenance option in the Functions menu.
The Product Type section in the middle of the screen allows the User to select all the types of products that will be considered during the appointment. The items displayed in the drop-down box are pulling from the Product Type Maintenance module. Please review that section to complete applicable setup prior to going live with the Lead System. You will then make a Material Type selection, select a Room by double-clicking on an item in the list, add a Note pertaining to this item, and then click Add to have it display in the box to the right as follows:
If you highlight and right-click on the description line you created, you have the option to Edit or Delete the line. Add as many lines as apply to this Lead. Below this box, are additional items to consider. In order to schedule an appointment, you must click the box next to Appt.Day/Time and then use the drop-down calendar menu to first select a day, and then use the drop-down menu to the right of that field to select a time (times should previously be set up via the Time Maintenance option under the Functions option in the main screen). The Sales Rep and Sales Territory fields pull directly from the main system—use the drop-down arrows to select applicable data. The Special field is tied to the Special Maintenance function explained above. The Job Status field will display only items that have been pre-setup to display in this module. Please be sure to access the Job Status Maintenance module to complete setup prior to using this module. The Sub-Territory field is new and will be a part of future programming. The Email address field is not required but you can add one in this screen if you have one for the Lead. The Note field can be used to add information such as “Gate Code is xxx,” “Call First,” or “Customer has dogs,” etc. The PO# field is not required, but will carry over to Quote or Order, just as most of the fields described above will. Click the Save button to keep your changes.
The system will then populate the Created By and Date Created fields at the very bottom of the screen with the current User Id and Date. These fields are currently only updated during the initial Save and will not be updated when changes are made. When a Lead is converted to a Quote or Job, the system will display the Quote and/or Order # in a field to the right of the Date Created field. Additionally, the system will default the Customer to Credit Status of “Y”, making them C.O.D. A User with permission will need to update that field if applicable. Also, the system will ask if the User would like to leave the Lead Open when converting to a Quote or Order. An example of a completed Lead Maintenance screen appears as follows:
The Office Notes at the bottom right are only visible to non-sales reps. These can be used for internal Leads Notes. The Dispo button above the Office Notes should be used as a mechanism for Salespeople to store notes on Leads they weren’t able to close. By adding detailed notes, it’s then possible for another Salesperson to access them to follow up and try again to close the sale. When you click on the Dispo button, a Sales Notes screen appears as follows:
In the Style and Color (1) fields, make note of material quoted during the Lead Appointment. The Qty and Total (2) fields can be used to record quantity and total price data that was presented at the Lead Appointment. These fields are all freehand text and do not integrate with or update any other fields in the system. However, if you export the Print Lead Report from the main screen to Excel, the data will include any values in the first two fields of the Total column in sequential columns titled Dispo 1 and Dispo 2. The Rehash (3) checkbox should be checked after a Salesperson has tried to “re-hash” the lead and turn into a sale. Use the Drop-down (4) menu to record the Salesperson attempting to Rehash the lead—only Users set up via the Initials Maintenance module will appear here based on set up in each Branch. This drop-down menu does not pull from the Salesperson Maintenance list. The large note field is used for additional freehand notes regarding the Lead Appointment and/or the “rehash” phone call. Be sure to click the Save button each time changes are made and after the initial entry of Notes.
The Functions menu in the Lead Processing screen contains different options than the one in the main screen. When you click on this menu, the options will appear as follows:
The Copy Lead option, if enabled, works the same as described in the main screen above. It allows for copying a Lead to another Branch. The Close Lead option, if enabled, allows the User to Close the Lead. The Re-Open Lead, if enabled, allows for opening a Closed Lead. The Edit Order Number and Edit Quote Number options, if enabled, allow for editing the Lead to reflect an existing Order or Quote Number where a Lead was not converted, but an Order or Quote added directly, thereby tying them together. The MeasureSquare Export, if enabled, sends the Lead data to the RM MeasureSquare app, and requires activation of that Efficiency Tool. Separate video and documentation is available for that process.
To the right of the Functions menu is a Print menu containing a single item as follows: Availability Report. This report will export to Excel and works in conjunction with the Lead Appointment Scheduling feature. The data on this report can be sorted by Date, Branch and Zone/Region. It will display applicable Sales Reps, Time Slots, and who is Available for each, provided proper setup has been completed. Next to the Print menu, you will see a View Lead Audit option. This works similarly to the View Audit option in Quote and Order Entry, but has Audit Types specific to the Lead Processing module. When you click on this option, a Lead Audit screen will appear as follows:
A list of Audit Types appears in the screenshot above. Once activity begins on a new Lead, the system will start tracking these Types by User and Date. The Audit Type selection box allows for sorting the display screen by a specific action.
When a Lead is ready to be converted to a Quote or Order, select the Lead from the main screen and pull up the Lead Maintenance screen. At the top left of this screen you will see Convert as an option. When you click on this option, the system will display two options as follows: Convert to Job and Convert to Quote. Either selection will prompt a Customer Selection box. As you begin typing an ID, the system will search the existing database for markers to determine if the Customer already exists. It will search the Customer Name, Phone Number, and Email fields for matches. You can select an existing Customer ID if you find a match, or continue to add a new ID. Once the new ID is added, the system will transfer all existing customer data from the Lead Maintenance screen into the Customer Maintenance screen. Enter through to complete all other pertinent data and save the new Customer. The system will return the cursor to the Customer Selection box. Click the Select button to continue. The system will then prompt an Edit Ship To Address box. Update any pertinent Ship To data and click the Save button to continue. The system will then open a new Job or Quote based on the Convert option you selected. The cursor will be positioned at the Job Status field in the Order or Quote Detail box. Make your selection at this required field to continue processing as you normally would.
When a Lead is converted to a Quote or Order, the system will automatically close the Lead in the Lead Processing module. If you ever need to utilize that data again, you can locate the closed Lead and use the Copy Lead function to re-use the information. Please note: a Quote or Job Number Note will be written with the Lead number when converted from a Lead. Upon exiting the Quote or Order generated from the Lead System module, the system will return the cursor to the Lead Processing module and prompt the following:
Click OK at this prompt. You will then need to exit the closed Lead to return to the Lead Processing main screen. From here you can create or edit another Lead or exit the module.
Lead Appointment Scheduling:
This functionality requires a bit of additional setup prior to use. With proper setup, this feature allows for scheduling Lead Appointments based on a Salesperson’s schedule and availability, so that a Manager or Scheduler can control the appointments.
In the Branch Control 2 screen of the System Control Maintenance module, you will see the following: Activate Lead Appt Scheduling. With this control set to “Y” for yes, the system will activate Lead Appointment scheduling. Also, please make sure that the User Control 5 Lead Option, Allowed Access to Lead Scheduling Mtc—which is explained at the very beginning of this documentation—has been enabled for each User who will need access to Lead Appointment Scheduling.
Once the system setup is completed, you will need to access the Leads Processing module to perform some additional setup. There is a Zone/Region field for use in assigning names to the various sections of your business service area. These can be preset from the Functions menu under Zone/Region Maintenance. When a Lead is assigned to one of these Zones or Regions, you can schedule your reps based on which of these areas they have been set to operate within. You should also then complete the Time Maintenance option to create Time Slots for scheduling appointments, such as 6:00 AM Early Morning, 10:00 Am Morning, etc. The final setup area can also be found in the Functions menu as follows: Schedule Setup. All other setup should be completed prior to accessing this option. That screen appears as follows:
In the Salesrep Setup option you will Add all Salespeople available for Schedule Setup and determine what their availability is for each Zone/Region. You can also use the screen above for a default availability screen, and once that is set, the system will take into account all available reps for a date/time/zone and display that during the live scheduling process.
When setup is complete, when you save a new Lead, or click in the Appt Day/Time field, a Schedule Lead screen will appear as follows:
In this screen, you can see available appointment slots so you can then Assign Sales Rep, Pick Time Slot, and then View Appointments.
RM Mobile App Setup for Leads Calendar:
If your company is also using the RM Mobile App, in order for a Mobile User to access the Leads Calendar integration with the RM Mobile App, in the User Web Dashboard screen, located in the System Control Maintenance module, the three highlighted areas need to be set for each User: