Firms are businesses that schedule or pay for services \u2014 such as law firms or insurance agencies.<\/strong> If a client has multiple locations\/branches, you can designate the company\u2019s headquarters as a parent firm for the other branches so they are connected in your RB database.<\/p>\n Maintain a deep database of these client companies in RB in the Firms function. If there is something you want to remember about a firm \u2014 whether it\u2019s contact info, their employees, financial history (including collections), or anything else \u2014 store it in their RB profile.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n You can enter firms from scratch in this function, import them from other applications, or add them on the fly within a case, job, or new contact<\/a> (someone who works at the firm). If you have an existing database of firms in another application, you can import the data into RB from an Excel<\/em> spreadsheet in the Bulk Import function<\/a>.<\/p>\n Before entering a firm into RB check to see if they are already there to avoid duplicate entries. RB does not prevent you from adding multiple instances of the same firm. If there are duplicate entries, you can merge them \u2014 however not all data will carry over from the firm that is being merged. The only information that will be saved from the merged entry is from their jobs and contacts, and the Tags, Collection Notes, Repository, and Notes Log panes.<\/p>\n To find firms in your RB database you can use the search criteria singly or in combination:<\/p>\n Each listing displayed in the results shows all of this info except any tags \u2014 and includes the firm\u2019s main street address, zip code, and any warnings about the firm. With so much information displayed in the results you might find exactly what you need without having to drill down further.<\/p>\n The grid in which you view firm listings is customizable to your individual preference:<\/p>\n You can save your custom grid as your default. Your customizations do not affect other users \u2014 and you can restore the original RB grid layout anytime.<\/p>\n From the Firms results grid you can view and update any listed firm\u2019s details by clicking its hyperlink in the grid, add new firms, and export the grid as an Excel<\/em> spreadsheet or a CSV(comma-separated values) file to save, print, share, or use in other applications.<\/p>\n Whether you are viewing an existing firm listing in your RB database or adding a new firm, the firm\u2019s detail window is broken up into a series of panes that contain related fields. The first pane, General,<\/strong> contains the firm\u2019s contact information, other basic information, and any warnings.<\/p>\n With 20 fields and options in the General information pane alone, it might seem overwhelming to enter firms into RB. However when entering a new firm, the only required information is the firm name.<\/strong> (If creating a new firm within a case, you will also be required to enter at least one contact for the firm.)<\/p>\n If you commonly refer to the firm by another name or an abbreviation, include that alias in the a\/k\/a (Also Known As) field. When looking up the firm, you can search by the alias instead of the firm name.\u00a0In search results, the alias will appear in parentheses after the firm name.<\/p>\n If you are entering the firm\u2019s street address or P.O. box number, skip the other fields and enter the zip code. RB will fill in the city, state, and country for you.<\/p>\n You can enter a second address for billing purposes\u00a0if the firm wants invoices and statements sent to a different address.<\/p>\n If you have entered firm addresses, you can view maps and directions to those addresses in RB. You can also add your own directions to the firm\u2019s listing. Any instructions entered here will appear in the Directions field of a job if the job will be at the firm\u2019s office.<\/p>\n If you have information about a firm that users should know when scheduling or invoicing jobs, enter those notes in the Warning field. This information appears in red under Firm Warning in ordering clients and parties in jobs, cases, and in the Invoice panel in Turn In.<\/p>\n If a\u00a0firm is no longer scheduling jobs with you and you do not need to contact them anymore, you can deactivate their listing instead of deleting it so you retain all of your historical data about the firm but they will no longer appear in searches for active firms anymore. You can also deactivate all their contacts at the same time, if desired.<\/p>\n Store detailed billing information (including payment terms, fees\/charges\/rates, C.O.D status, and tax info), the client\u2019s preferences for invoices (list services or not) and statements (consolidated or not and sending method) in the Additional pane. You can set defaults for some of this information to save time when entering new firms. Then change the settings for individual firms as needed. (When you change a firm\u2019s Late Charge Rate or Finance Charge Rate, RB automatically records the change in the firm\u2019s Notes Log so you have a paper trail.)<\/p>\n You can also enter unlimited notes about the firm here for your calendaring and production\/billing departments. Style the text with different options \u2014 such as bold face, italic, text sizes, and colors \u2014 to enhance the readability of your notes. If this firm is a branch or subsidiary of another firm in your database, you can select that firm here as the parent firm\/headquarters.<\/p>\n Use the Marketing pane to specify what type of firm the entity is for marketing and billing purposes \u2014 including selecting default billing rates<\/a>. You can also designate which resource is the sales representative\/receives commissions (Client Of) on this client\u2019s jobs.<\/p>\n Use the Client Of feature to attract and retain highly talented reporters who can bring clients to your business. By designating resources responsible for clients, you can track the amount of business being generated from those attorneys \u2014 and pay incentive bonuses based on the new business generated in addition to commissions on existing accounts.<\/p>\n When setting up a new firm, you can assign one of your resources to be responsible for your collections efforts with the client \u2014 and designate the firm\u2019s credit status with your company, e.g., In Collection or COD (Cash on Delivery).<\/p>\n Once you save a firm in RB additional panes, fields, and functions become available. You can:<\/p>\n You don\u2019t have to go into the Firms function to update a firm. Most RB functions that include a Firm field allow you to directly access that firm\u2019s listing which you can view and edit.<\/p>\n Also if you have multiple firms that you need to update the same information for \u2014 such as assigning a new sales rep or changing the billing rate \u2014 you can use Bulk Update<\/a> to change them all at once.<\/p>\n Additional panes in saved firm listings include:<\/p>\n If a firm has more than one email address you can designate which one(s) to use for:<\/p>\n If you use tags (keywords or phrases) to monitor and market to firms you add tags to firm listings \u2014 either by keying in tags or selecting them from the tag list you made in Lists<\/a>. Each firm can have an unlimited number of tags and you can delete tags from a firm when they no longer apply. (You can also use the Tag Manager<\/a> to add or remove tags quickly from multiple firms at once.)<\/p>\n Add your clients\u2019 standing orders to their firm profiles. Then you can use Prefill Services<\/a> on a case, job, or invoice to easily select all of the service items a client expects.<\/p>\n When listing which service items are included in a firm\u2019s standing orders, you can also include relevant details like how many units of an item they usually order, how many business days the order is due in (RB will calculate the due date for a specific job excluding weekends and holidays), the delivery method, their preference on rush deliveries, and any additional instructions for the service item.<\/p>\n For clients who have their own turnaround deadlines for specific services provided by your resources \u2014 such as reporting or back orders \u2014 you can enter the number of days for each of those tasks<\/a> in their firm profile. Then when scheduling jobs for contacts at the firm if they order a task that has a firm-defined turnaround, RB will automatically calculate the deadline for that task using the firm\u2019s requirement. Otherwise if there is no firm-defined turnaround requirement, RB will use your assigned business unit\u2019s turnaround specs.<\/p>\n If a firm has resources they prefer assigned to their jobs you can keep a list of those resources in the firm\u2019s listing. When assigning resources to tasks on jobs they scheduled or ordered, preferred resources will appear at the top of the list.<\/p>\n If there are resources a firm does not want assigned to their jobs, you can keep a list of those resources in the firm\u2019s listing. When assigning resources to tasks on jobs the firm scheduled or ordered, RB will alert you and not allow the assignment.<\/p>\n (After saving a new firm its Collections pane expands to allow you to enter more information.)<\/em><\/p>\n If a client is in arrears you can record your collection efforts here \u2014 including when you made an effort, what type of effort (such as Call Made \u2014 you can create your own set of collection actions in Lists), and results or other notes about the effort. If you want to be reminded on a certain date to follow up on the progress of your efforts, you can set a date and time \u2014 plus the staff member to be reminded. (This information is used in Collection Follow-up<\/a>.)<\/p>\n If a client pays you an upfront deposit \u2014 i.e., a retainer \u2014 you can enter and track it in the Collections pane. You can view when retainers were entered in the system along with other details about the retainers \u2014 such as any notes made about a retainer and when retainers were applied to which invoices.<\/p>\n Keep files related to a firm in their RB listing. When viewing the firm\u2019s listing you can see information about uploaded files including their description in the Repository pane without having to click into each file\u2019s details. You can upload, download, or delete files here, and update file information \u2014 such as which groups can access the file (office staff only, office and contacts, or office and resources).<\/p>\n If you have RB Connect<\/a>, you can give contacts who work at the firm access to specific files in their repository. You can also view the download history of each file in the repository \u2014 including when it was downloaded and by which contact at the firm.<\/p>\n The system enters some notes about firms automatically in their individual Notes Logs and you can also enter notes yourself about a firm in their Notes Log for internal purposes. Some examples of automatic Notes Log entries are notes recording when a sales rep has been assigned, when statements are sent to the client, and if the client information was updated using the Bulk Update tool.<\/p>\n When you add a note to the Notes Log you can include what type of note it is, how you communicated with the firm, details about what occurred, and if needed designate who should follow up and set a date and time for a reminder to be sent to them via RB\u2019s message system.<\/p>\n In these additional panes and the Collections pane, you can export the information as an Excel<\/em> spreadsheet or a CSV(comma-separated values) file to save, print, share, or use in other applications.<\/p>\n In a firm\u2019s Account Overview, highlights of their financial and job activity history, future projections, and trends are displayed visually. A table displays the firm\u2019s total receivables since they became your client and upcoming scheduled jobs. One line graph displays revenue generated, a second line graph displays\u00a0jobs scheduled\/canceled, and a third line graph displays jobs that have occurred.<\/p>\n The line graphs are interactive. Hovering over a point in a line on a graph displays that month\u2019s total $ amount or number. The line graphs default to the firm\u2019s trends over the last six months. You can also view the firm\u2019s trends over a year or 2 years.<\/p>\n From the firm\u2019s profile you can view the contacts who work for the firm (including inactive contacts if desired), update any contact\u2019s details, add new contacts, and add or delete notification email addresses for individual contacts at the firm.<\/p>\n TL;DR: Maintain a deep database of client companies in RB including contact, billing, and marketing information, collections history, files related to the firm, notes about the firm, and more. View interactive graphs of their financial and job activity trends.<\/strong><\/p>\n Business Unit (BU):<\/strong> One of your company\u2019s revenue centers or any entity in your business that you want to track separately \u2014 such as branch offices, other companies you own, affiliates, and profit-sharing operations.<\/p>\n Client Of:<\/strong>\u00a0Resource that receives a commission for jobs their clients scheduled or that are part of a case the resource was designated as the Client Of resource. You can also give reporters right of first refusal on their clients\/cases\u2019 jobs by displaying unassigned jobs from their clients\/cases in Resource-side online calendars in RB Connect.<\/p>\n Contact:<\/strong> Person who works for a firm you do business with \u2014 such as attorneys, paralegals, secretaries, legal assistants, claim adjusters, and court clerks.<\/p>\n Job:<\/strong> Usually the reporting of a deposition. More ><\/a><\/p>\n Notes Logs:<\/strong> Un-editable internal-use only notes entered either by a user or automatically by RB appear in chronological logs in the database record where they occurred \u2014 such as a case, job, invoice, or entity. More ><\/a><\/p>\n Parent Firm:<\/strong>\u00a0Headquarters of a multi-branch corporation.<\/p>\n RB Connect:<\/b> Online repository, calendar, and access to your office for clients and resources \u2014 including interactive transcripts, downloadable invoices and e-commerce for clients, and online turn-in, one-touch job acknowledgements, and downloadable pay statements for resources. More ><\/a><\/p>\n Resource:<\/strong> Person or thing that provides your business with a service.<\/p>\n Service items:\u00a0<\/strong>Regular charges that you bill to your clients.<\/p>\n Task:<\/b> Service requested with a job \u2014 such as reporting, interpreting, or video \u2014 that require a separate resource (person, company, conference room, etc.) to accomplish. More ><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Add firms to your database<\/h2>\n
Search for firms<\/h2>\n
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Customize how you view firm listings<\/h2>\n
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Basic firm information<\/h2>\n
Other General information tips<\/h3>\n
Additional\u00a0information<\/h3>\n
Marketing<\/h3>\n
Collections<\/h3>\n
After initial setup, add more information<\/h2>\n
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Notification Email<\/h3>\n
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Tags<\/h3>\n
Preferred Services<\/h3>\n
Task Due Days<\/h3>\n
Preferred Resources<\/h3>\n
Blocked Resources<\/h3>\n
Collections<\/h3>\n
Repository<\/h3>\n
Notes Log<\/h3>\n
Export firm data for other uses<\/h2>\n
View financial\/job trends<\/h2>\n
Manage firm\u2019s contacts<\/h2>\n
RB concepts in this lesson<\/h4>\n