Apex knowledge base

Records

Every company you work with has a record. Apex has access to all of it: it tells you what happened, notes down what you say, adds tasks, drafts letters, and adds companies to a campaign or takes them out. This page shows what you can ask it, and who can ask.

One question, one update. Apex opens the record, notes down the call, and adds the call-back.

Who can ask what?

Apex only does what the person asking is authorised to do. Which companies you see is decided by your group.

Click your own role, and only the example prompts you can ask Apex for stay on the page. The filter only rearranges this page; it changes nothing in your account or your permissions.

Several requests at once

You can put as many requests into one sentence as you like. Apex works through them in order and reports back once, at the end. Where approval is needed, it shows that step on a card.

What happens
Apex notes down the call, adds the call-back for Tuesday 10:00, and sets the level of interest. Then it tells you in one message what it's done.
Where it shows
On the record's Touches and Summary tabs.
Who can askSalespersonGroup leaderCompany leadAccount manager
What happens
Apex sets the owner, adds the tag, and adds the task for Anna Clarke for Friday.
Where it shows
On the record's Summary tab and among Anna Clarke's daily tasks.
Who can askSalespersonGroup leaderCompany leadAccount manager
What happens
Apex closes the task and adds the next step. It notes down what you said about the contact against them, drafts the thank-you letter, and puts it up for approval.
Where it shows
On the record's Summary tab and on the letter card in the chat.
Who can askSalespersonGroup leaderCompany leadAccount managerWith approval in some cases
What happens
Apex adds the new contact, deletes the old one, swaps the recipient, and puts the company back into the campaign. It shows the deletion and the swap on an approval card.
Where it shows
On the record's Summary tab, after the approvals.
Who can askSalespersonGroup leaderCompany leadAccount managerWith approval in some cases
What happens
Apex puts together the briefing, then runs through the company's open tasks by deadline.
Where it shows
In the chat.
Who can askSalespersonGroup leaderCompany leadAccount manager

One company's status

Ask about any company, or scan through all of yours.

Open sampleltd.co.uk.
What happens
Apex opens the record and tells you who the owner is, what the level of interest is, what tags and contacts it has, and whether the company is in a campaign.
Where it shows
On the record's Summary tab, next to the chat.
Who can askSalespersonGroup leaderCompany leadAccount manager
In detail: Company record
What have we written to Sample Ltd about in the past month?
What happens
Apex summarises the letters and touches in chronological order. It only tells you what's in the correspondence and the record.
Where it shows
In the chat. You can read the full text of the letters on the record's Touches tab.
Who can askSalespersonGroup leaderCompany leadAccount manager
What haven't we dealt with in a while?
Is there a company with no owner?
Who have we won this year?
What happens
Apex scans through the companies you can see, and picks out what you asked for.
Where it shows
In the chat, with the companies' names. You can open any of them with one sentence.

A salesperson sees their own companies, a group leader their group's, a company lead the whole company's.

Who can askSalespersonGroup leaderCompany leadAccount manager
What happens
Apex opens a record for a person who has no company, for instance a sole trader. You become the owner.
Where it shows
On the new record, after approval.
Who can askSalespersonGroup leaderCompany leadAccount managerWith approval

Touches

A call, a meeting, a letter from your own inbox: tell Apex, and it notes it down.

I was at their office, went through the deadlines with the production manager. Note it down.
What happens
Apex notes the touch down on the company's record: it records the type, the time and the gist.
Where it shows
On the record's Touches tab.
Who can askSalespersonGroup leaderCompany leadAccount manager
What price did we quote them in last week's call?
What happens
Apex reads the company's touches and answers from those.
Where it shows
In the chat.
Who can askSalespersonGroup leaderCompany leadAccount manager
Delete yesterday's entry, I noted it against the wrong company.
What happens
Apex updates the touch. Before deleting, it asks for approval.
Where it shows
On the record's Touches tab.
Who can askSalespersonGroup leaderCompany leadAccount managerWith approval in some cases

Level of interest and closing

Where the company stands, and how the deal closed.

They're really keen right now, make it hot.
What happens
Apex sets the level of interest. There are five stages: cold, lukewarm, medium, warm, hot.
Where it shows
On the record's Summary tab.

For a won or lost company, the level of interest no longer changes.

Who can askSalespersonGroup leaderCompany leadAccount manager
This one's gone, we were too expensive for them. Close it as lost.
They're negotiating with us after all, reopen Sample Ltd.
What happens
Apex closes the deal as won or lost, together with the reason. If you don't give a reason, it asks.
Where it shows
On the record's Summary tab, after approval.
Who can askSalespersonGroup leaderCompany leadAccount managerWith approval

Owner, watchers, tags

Who's handling the company, who gets notified about it, and where it belongs.

Take this company off me, leave it without an owner for now.
What happens
Apex sets or clears the owner. If the name fits more than one colleague, it asks who you mean.
Where it shows
On the record's Summary tab.
Who can askSalespersonGroup leaderCompany leadAccount manager
Take me off the watchers.
What happens
Apex adds or removes the watcher. A watcher gets notified about the company's events.
Where it shows
On the record's Summary tab, after approval.
Who can askSalespersonGroup leaderCompany leadAccount managerWith approval
Take the 'old partner' tag off them.
What happens
Apex adds or removes an existing tag on the company.
Where it shows
On the record's Summary tab.
Who can askSalespersonGroup leaderCompany leadAccount manager
What happens
Apex renames the tag. The new name appears on every company, so it states what will change and waits for your confirmation.
Where it shows
On every record that carries the tag.

The tag belongs to the whole company, so only the company lead and the account manager can rename it.

Who can askCompany leadAccount manager

Contacts and links

Who you talk to at the company, and what's worth knowing about them.

They have a new head of procurement, Peter Walsh, 06 30 123 4567. Add him.
What happens
Apex reads the name, role and contact details from the letter's signature, or from what you say, and adds the contact.
Where it shows
On the record's Summary tab, among the contacts.
Who can askSalespersonGroup leaderCompany leadAccount manager
Peter has no say in the decision, the owner decides.
Peter and I use first names.
What happens
Apex notes down what you say about them against the contact: how keen they are, what's holding them back, and whether you're on first-name terms with them. It writes the next letter in a first-name or a formal tone to match.
Where it shows
On the record's Summary tab, at the contact.
Who can askSalespersonGroup leaderCompany leadAccount manager
Delete Peter Walsh, he doesn't work there anymore.
What happens
Apex adds or updates the link and the contact. Before deleting, it asks for approval.
Where it shows
On the record's Summary tab.
Who can askSalespersonGroup leaderCompany leadAccount managerWith approval in some cases

Tasks

Who's doing what with the company, and by when.

Anna should send them a quote by Friday, give her a task for it.
What happens
Apex adds the task to the company, with a deadline and an owner. If there's no deadline, it asks.
Where it shows
On the record's Summary tab and among the owner's daily tasks.
Who can askSalespersonGroup leaderCompany leadAccount manager
In detail: Tasks and deadlines
Note on the task that this will be a product demo.
What happens
Apex updates the task's deadline, description or owner.
Where it shows
On the record's Summary tab and among the owner's daily tasks.

The task can be updated by whoever created it, and by the company lead and the account manager.

Who can askSalespersonGroup leaderCompany leadAccount manager
They don't need anything from us, close the task.
What happens
Apex can close a task five ways: with a next step, as a won deal, as a lost deal, meant for a campaign, or with nothing further to do. If it's not clear which, it asks. For a won, a lost or a campaign-bound closure, it asks for approval.
Where it shows
On the record's Summary tab. The next step appears as a new task.

The task can be closed by its owner, and by the company lead and the account manager.

Who can askSalespersonGroup leaderCompany leadAccount managerWith approval in some cases
In detail: No lost prospect
What am I behind on?
What happens
Apex sorts your tasks by deadline: overdue, due today, due this week.
Where it shows
In the chat.
Who can askSalespersonGroup leaderCompany leadAccount manager
In detail: Tasks and deadlines

Letters

A reply or a new letter, in the recipient's language, with your approval.

Write it more casually instead.
What happens
Apex drafts the reply and puts it on an editable letter card. If the recipient writes in another language, the letter is drafted in their language, with a mirror translation in yours alongside it.
Where it shows
On the letter card in the chat. After approval, the letter goes out during working hours from your company's mailbox.
Who can askSalespersonGroup leaderCompany leadAccount managerWith approval
In detail: Letters and replies
What happens
Apex drafts a new letter to the contact and puts it up for approval.
Where it shows
On the letter card in the chat, and after sending, on the record's Touches tab.
Who can askSalespersonGroup leaderCompany leadAccount managerWith approval

Campaign and exclusion

Whether the company gets letters, and from which campaign.

Which campaign is Sample Ltd in?
What happens
Apex checks the company's campaign and tells you why it does or doesn't get letters.
Where it shows
In the chat.
Who can askSalespersonGroup leaderCompany leadAccount manager
What happens
Apex moves the company to the other campaign. The letter sequence there starts from the beginning.
Where it shows
On the record's Summary tab, after approval.
Who can askSalespersonGroup leaderCompany leadAccount managerWith approval
Let's write to them after all, put them back into the campaign.
What happens
Apex takes the company out of every campaign with the reason given, or puts it back into the one it dropped out of.
Where it shows
On the record's Summary tab, after approval.

The exclusion applies to every campaign. If the company should only stay out of one campaign, move it to a switched-off campaign instead.

Who can askSalespersonGroup leaderCompany leadAccount managerWith approval
The letter bounced. Let's write to their info address instead, and put them back in.
What happens
Apex shows the company's other known addresses, and if you ask, swaps the recipient and puts the company back into the campaign.
Where it shows
In the chat and on the record's Summary tab, after approval.

If a person's decision excluded the company, for instance they asked us not to write to them, it won't come back even with a new address.

Who can askSalespersonGroup leaderCompany leadAccount managerWith approval in some cases

Preparing for a meeting

Everything worth knowing before the call or the meeting.

What should I watch out for in the call?
What happens
Apex puts together the briefing from the company's record, the correspondence, the touches and the open tasks. It only includes what's in these.
Where it shows
In the chat, as one connected briefing.
Who can askSalespersonGroup leaderCompany leadAccount manager
In detail: Negotiation prep

Searching among your companies

When only a name, a number or a detail comes to mind.

He left this number: 06 20 987 6543. Whose is it?
Which company did we talk to online on Tuesday about the packaging machine?
What happens
Apex searches among names, addresses, phone numbers, touches and tasks, and shows you the most likely companies. If more than one fits, it narrows it down with a question.
Where it shows
In the chat and among the results on the right.
Who can askSalespersonGroup leaderCompany leadAccount manager
In detail: Find anyone

Many companies at once, handover

Bulk actions and handovers between colleagues, with a single approval.

Close all the overdue call-backs in the Spring campaign.
What happens
Apex picks out the companies, and shows what it would do with them on a single approval card. After approval, it does the work and reports back.
Where it shows
On the approval card in the chat.

You can tag, add tasks and close tasks in bulk. A won or lost deal is closed one at a time.

Who can askSalespersonGroup leaderCompany leadAccount managerWith approval
James has left, Anna should take over his companies and tasks.
What happens
Apex counts up the tasks and companies, and shows the handover on one approval card.
Where it shows
On the approval card, then among the new owner's tasks.

Anyone can hand over their own work. Another colleague's work can be handed over by the company lead and the account manager.

Who can askSalespersonGroup leaderCompany leadAccount managerWith approval
In detail: Joiners and leavers

Good to know

The decision is always yours

Wherever approval is needed, Apex shows the card, and only carries it out after you click.

It only works from what it has

Apex tells you what's on the record and in the correspondence. If there's no data on something, it says so.

Another team's company

If another team within your company is working with a company, Apex flags it as taken, and doesn't say who's handling it.

In your own words

You can write to Apex in your own words. The example prompts work verbatim too, but it understands your own phrasing just as well.

A closed system.

Access by invitation. Request it from your company email address, and our expert colleague will be in touch.

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