How to Use the Triggers System

This article describes the process of using the Triggers System within the FORTH CRM. If you have not migrated to the new triggers system, please start at the "Activating the New Triggers System" section of this article. Otherwise, skip that section.

This article includes the following topics:

• Overview
• Activating the New Triggers System
• Triggers Page
• Adding a Trigger Group
• Creating a Trigger
• Editing or Duplicating a Trigger
• Fixing a Faulty Trigger
• Viewing the Trigger Activity Log

Overview

FORTH’s trigger system allows you to fire multiple automatic actions, based on detected system events and qualifying conditions. For example, you can have the FORTH CRM automatically fire an e-mail to a consumer if their scheduled payment failed to process, or perhaps create an assigned task to remind your users to call a lead who is placed in a “follow up” status.

Activating the New Triggers System

SUGGESTION: Take a screenshot of your existing triggers and then copy and paste them to a new document before performing the steps below so that you can compare them with the triggers that get copied over, just in case there is a problem.

1. Click the Admin tab and then click on Settings on the Navigation Bar. 
   
2. Click Triggers, and the Migrate Triggers page opens.
3. Click Migrate Triggers. 
   
4. After the migration, the System Settings page loads. PLEASE DISREGARD THIS PAGE.
5. Return to "Settings" from the Admin tab and click "Triggers" from the Navigation Bar.

Triggers Page

The Triggers page provides an at-a-glance view of all existing triggers (active and inactive), the groups they belong to, and the ability to search and filter by trigger name, description, group, etc.

To manage your triggers, navigate to Admin Tab > Setting > Triggers.

On the Triggers page, the table displayed contains all triggers that currently live in your system and is broken down into several columns of data.

To the left, you’ll find your customizable trigger groups for handy organization. Upon clicking a specific group, only applicable triggers will appear on the table to the right. You can create additional groups by selecting New Trigger Group at the bottom of the list. 

• The small circle to the far left of each row represents if the trigger is active or not. If it is green, the trigger is active and ready to fire. A grey circle means the trigger is inactive and will not fire if its associated event is detected. Think of it like a little On or Off light.
• ID is the unique numerical identifier for the trigger which is useful if you need to reach the Forth Support team, or if you are harnessing API.
• Title is the named identifier for your trigger. You can name this anything you want, however we recommend using something unique and identifiable.
• Event Name is what the CRM is monitoring for. If the listed event is detected, the trigger will attempt to fire.
• The Status column contains a toggle button directly associated with the little circle on the left of the table. Clicking on it will cause the slider to shift between Green and Grey. When in the green position, the trigger is set to Active, and grey to In-Active.
• Last Run lets us know the last time the triggering event was detected.

You can expand the details by clicking the right arrow icon next to the trigger's name (under the heading "Title").

Description is an optional field allowing you to store more information about your trigger. 

Last Run Date echoes the same information as “Last Run.”

Activity Log is where you can view the firing history of your trigger. From this window, any item showing a green check mark means the trigger successfully fired, whereas a red X indicates that the trigger stopped itself due to a missing qualification.

To the far right of the table, clicking on the pencil icon will allow you to edit a specific trigger, while clicking the red icon allows you to delete a trigger. 

IMPORTANT: deleting a trigger is a permanent action and cannot be undone!

Additionally, deleting a trigger will also delete its associated Activity Log. If you wish to retain this information, but are no longer in need of a certain trigger, we recommend setting it to Inactive on the Status toggle.

Above the table listing your triggers, there are three (3) dropdown menus containing the following information based on the triggers that have been created for advanced filtering:

• All Events - list of all the trigger events 
• All Actions - list of all the trigger actions
• Active / Inactive - select whether to include Active, Inactive, or both types of triggers.

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Adding a Trigger Group

NOTE: Trigger Groups are optional.

1. Go to the Admin tab, click Settings from the Navigation Bar, and then click Triggers.
2. In the left panel, click New Trigger Group.
3. Type a name for the Trigger Group in the Enter New Trigger Group Name window > click OK. The new group name should appear in the Group Name panel.

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Creating a Trigger

1. Go to the Calendar tab, click Tasks, scroll down the bottom left of the page, and click Task Triggers. Continue to step #3 below.
   OR
2. Go to the Admin tab > click Settings > click Triggers.
3. Click Create a New Trigger and the following page will display.
   

IMPORTANT: Values you specify on this page are dependent on the kind of trigger you want to create. Additionally, you can only automate things that exist in the CRM. For example, to automate sending an e-mail to a consumer, an email template must already exist in your account. 

4. It’s a good idea to make sure you have all your required pieces set up in the CRM before you begin building your trigger.
5. Type a unique and identifiable name for the trigger in the Trigger Name field.
6. Type a description for the trigger in the Trigger Description field. This field is optional.
7. Assign the trigger to a group using the Trigger Group dropdown menu.
8. Select an option from the Event Name dropdown menu to activate the trigger. 

Trigger Event Filtering

When you access the trigger creation or editing screen, the system checks your account’s file type configuration. The Event Name dropdown is dynamically filtered:

• If your account is configured for FORTH CRM (not Centrex), only trigger events relevant to debt settlement, debt validation, student loans, debt resolution, and general file types are shown.

• Trigger events with names beginning with “Loan” or “Advance” are excluded for FORTH CRM users. Examples of these are shown below. If your account is configured for Centrex (file type: Business Loans), all trigger events-including business loan events-are displayed.
  

• Select the appropriate event for your workflow from the filtered dropdown.

Examples of Trigger Events

Document Generated allows Users to trigger automatic workflow actions in the FORTH CRM when a document is created to save time and avoid doing things manually. 

1. Package Generated allows Users to trigger automatic workflow actions in the FORTH CRM when a document package is created to save time and avoid doing things manually. 
2. Bank Account Saved provides real-time notifications to agents as an option in the event list dropdown menu in the FORTH CRM. Notifications to agents are now delivered whenever a consumer’s bank account information is added or updated.
3. Gateway Authorization Upload for when files are uploaded under the "Signed Contact/Gateway Authorization" section within a client's Docs tab. This event automatically notifies enrollment team whenever a contract has been uploaded, ensuring timely processing and efficient workflow management.
4. Loans Submitted automatically initiates follow-up processes when a loan is submitted that securely captures client information, loan amount, submission time, and more. This event also supports multiple platforms, such as Supermoney, NCA, Mobilend, and Credologi DSL, with a dropdown menu list for easy selection.
5. Advance Created to automatically send notifications or create tasks the moment an advance is initiated. This helps your team process advances more efficiently and ensures timely action.

Examples of Trigger Conditions

If you select "Calls Logged", this allows CRM users to configure workflows that automatically update a contact’s status when call logged events occur.

By providing greater flexibility through trigger driven workflows, users can configure conditions based on the call dispositions on their account and automate the appropriate status change without manual intervention.
 

1. NOTE
   Options selected from the Event and Contact menus changes options in menus that follow.

Defining Trigger Conditions

Define Conditions is an optional section which allows you to set up criteria for your trigger. In other words, do you want your trigger to fire every time the event is detected? Or only under certain circumstances?

1. Select All or Any of the following conditions from the Meets dropdown menu.

2. Select the appropriate options from the menus that appear based on event and contact selections already selected.

   NOTE
   Click HERE to view recommended triggers and specific instructions on setting trigger condition details.

3. Do either of the following:

   • To add another condition to this group, click add another condition group. An example of how this would work is if this event meets any of the conditions in the first, second, or third group, move along to the action.
   • To add another condition separate from this group, click add another condition. An example of how this would work is if this event meets any of the following conditions move along to the action.

   Setup Actions section

   When you finish setting conditions, go to the Setup Action(s) section. This is where you define what the trigger is doing. By default, the action is set to “Send Email,” however this can be changed. Please be aware that some actions are restricted by the triggering event. Once you select your chosen action, the FORTH CRM displays follow-up prompts to clarify what you’d like the trigger to do. These are dependent on the action. 

   NOTE: The option selected from the Setup Action menu changes the options that follow.

   You can see the most current options in the "Setup Action(s) dropdown menu by clicking here: https://client.forthcrm.com/index.php?module=administration&page=triggers-details

   

   If you are establishing a trigger for SMS, here are options available via the "Setup Action(s)" dropdown menu:
   

   You can have as many actions on your trigger as you like. Just remember that all of them will be initiated, in order, upon the trigger being successfully fired. If desired, click "add another action" at the bottom of the Setup Action section.

4. Click Save & Create Trigger found at the bottom right of the page.

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Editing or Duplicating a Trigger

1. Go to the Admin tab,  click Settings, and then click Triggers.
2. Click the small pencil icon for the trigger you want to edit.
3. Adjust the settings as needed (for more detail, view Creating a Trigger above). If you not wish to create a duplicate trigger, continue to step #5 below.
4. To duplicate and then save an existing trigger, click "Save as New" found in the Navigation Bar.
    
   The new trigger will have "-copy" appended to the end of its name for easy recognition. This new trigger is disabled by default.
5. Click Save Trigger found at the bottom right of the page.

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Fixing a Faulty Trigger

NOTE: When a trigger isn't working, we recommend that you inactivate it and recreate it.

1. Locate the trigger that isn't working and then change the toggle to inactive.
   
2. Recreate the trigger. See the Creating a Trigger section of this article found above for directions.

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Viewing the Trigger Activity Log

Viewing a trigger's activity log helps you identify when and why a trigger isn't working properly.

1. Go to Admin > click Settings.
2. Click Triggers, and the Triggers page will be displayed.
3. Click the name of the trigger you want to view the activity for.
   
4. Click View History found at the end of the trigger's description (see the purple arrow shown below)..
   
5. The Activity Log will now open, showing whether or not the trigger was fired via the "Trigger Status" column. Green checkmarks indicate that a trigger successfully fired, while a Red "X" signifies that the trigger did not fire because the required conditions were not met.

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