Creating an ACT Link to a Client Folder

dog tricks
As most of you know, I’m probably one of the biggest ACT! cheerleaders around.  However, sometimes I run across an ACT! feature that makes me slap my head and wonder “what were they thinking??”  A case in point is the Documents tab.  I love the ability to create shortcuts to my documents so that I can easily access them from the contact’s Document tab rather than grappling around searching...

Procrastinators of the World Unite!

I’m fairly good about getting ready for the holiday season.  In fact, I have a pretty set schedule:  decorations go up the weekend after Thanksgiving and come down the weekend after New Years.  Most gifts are purchased via the Internet on Black Friday.  I even stock up on little “stocking stuffers” just in case I left someone off my list.  But, like everyone else, I find myself at the mall...

Market Unto Others as You Would Have Them Market Unto You

act emarketing
Absolutely the best part of being an ACT! consultant is that I work with a wide variety of industries. “Out of the box” ACT! is suitable for just about any business you can think of; with a bit of customizing you can create your own unique database at a fraction of the cost of buying an industry specific solution. This week alone I worked with the manufacturer of medical supplies, a commercial...

ACT! 2011 COOKBOOKS GO “R.A.W.”

act 2011
I am thrilled to announce that my two latest books have been selected by Packt  Publishing for inclusion in their R.A.W. (Read As We Write) program.  The two books, ACT! by Sage 2011 Cookbook and ACT! by Sage Reports and Dashboards Cookbook, are designed to provide step-by-step instructions so that you can master ACT as quickly and efficiently as possible. The RAW program is an innovative publishing...

Using the Web Info Tab to Link ACT! to Your Social Networking Sites

act web info tab
If you have ACT! 2010 or 2011 and you’re not using the Web Info tab you are missing the banana boat as we say in Florida. And, if you haven’t figured out how to use the Web Info tab in conjunction with your favorite social networking sites, then you’re in for a treat. You’ll find the Web Info tab in both the Contact and Company Detail views. The Web Info tab is actually a browser that displays...

ACT! Goes R.A.W.

ACT 2011 Books
The publishing industry, like so many other industries these days, has undergone radical changes.  I’ve written for a traditional publisher since 2002; I recently made the switch to a newer, less traditional one. In traditional publishing, it takes at least 9 months for a new book to arrive on the shelves of your local book store.  The writing process takes less than half the time; editing, typesetting,...

Upgrading to ACT 2011 Will Actually Save You Money

ACT 2011
I had a prospective client call me recently.  He made it clear from the start that he had absolutely no desire to upgrade to the newest version of ACT.  Not a problem as we support any and all versions of ACT.  He then proceeded to send me his wish list for ACT which included finding updated information for his 4500 contacts, integrating with Outlook 2007 and bulk e-mailing. He was using ACT 5/2000,...

ACT Training Courses on lynda.com

act training courses
As many of you know I spent two lovely weeks in Central California last May recording training videos on Outlook 2010.  I want to let you know that they are now available on the lynda.com website– and that you can watch yours truly on You Tube  talking about the courses. For those of you who might not be familiar with lynda.com I’d describe it as an online software school.  You can take out...

Closing Up Those Database Cracks

act database repair
I see it all the time. The typical CRM user fires up his software and is greeted by numerous alarms.  At that point he deftly hits the “Select All” and “Snooze” button.  Drip.  Drip.  I can almost hear important information dripping through the cracks of the database! Oh, alarms – how do I hate thee?  Let me count the ways.  First of all, too many of you routinely snooze your alarms. ...

E-Faxing and ACT

act fax
Sometimes the things that seem so obvious to me aren’t quite as obvious to the typical ACT user.  A case in point is sending a fax directly from within ACT. Ten years ago one of the first things I showed new ACT users was how to modify the existing ACT fax coversheet.  Back then most of my clients were using WinFax to link ACT to their fax machine, or printing out a coversheet and feeding it into...