How to Create Workflow Process in CRM for CRM Alerts

CRM Alerts allows you to automatically send alerts and approval requests based on triggers that occur in your CRM system. These triggers, and what should happen when they occur, are defined by using the standard workflow process functionality of Dynamics CRM. We have developed custom workflow activities that can be integrated with any other workflow logic. To set up a new workflow and deliver push notifications within minutes, follow these few easy steps. 1. Create a new processNavigate to Settings -> Processes and click on New. 

 In the dialog that appears, provide a name of the workflow that describes what the alert is for. Choose Workflow in Category dropdown and in the Entity dropdown, select which entity you want to create logic for. You can choose both standard and custom entities. Keep the checkbox to run process in background checked. This is preferrable for performance and mandatory to allow logic based on responses to the alerts and approvals provided by your users. Confirm your selections by clicking OK. 

  2. Set options for your new workflowIn the window that appears after you click OK, change the settings to trigger the logic appropriately based on your requirements.Set Scope to Organization to have the workflow trigger for all users in your organization.Check the checkboxes corresponding to when you want the workflow to be fired, such as when a record is created or when a record is assigned. It is also possible to specify that the workflow should fire when a field changes value. 

 

3. Add steps to your workflowNow that you have defined when the workflow should trigger, the next step is to define what should happen once that occurs.If you want to send out alerts only in some cases, start by adding a Check condition. This can be used in cases where you want to send an approval request only if a discount level is above a certain limit or if you want to send out alerts only under certain conditions.

 In the workflow we are setting up, we are sending an alert whenever a lead is created or assigned. The alert will go to the new owner of the lead to inform the user that they should take appropriate measures to follow up on the lead. As we don’t want the alert to be sent to users when they create leads for themselves, we start by adding a check condition that the user creating the lead is different than the new owner of the lead.  

 Next step is to add the sending of the alert. There are three types of alerts supported by CRM Alerts. AlertAlert is a simple message sent to the user’s device. This alert does not provide means of replying and there are no records saved in CRM that the alert was sent. This is useful when you just want to inform users of something and you don’t need to keep track of a response. Alert with ActionThese are Alerts that have an action to be performed by the user. The user can include a comment and follow-up date with the completion response which will be sent back to CRM. This response can be used as part of your workflow to create follow-up activities etc. ApprovalApprovals have the same functionality as Alerts with Actions with the added benefit of providing the user the options of either approving or rejecting the approval request. This is fed back to CRM and can be used in your workflow to take appropriate measures. In this example we are adding an action with alert. When the lead is assigned to the user, the alert will let the user know to contact the lead and set up a follow-up meeting. 

 Click Add Step -> CRM Alerts by Nemely -> Alert with Action. Click Set Properties. 

Fill in the details of the Alert. Recipient e-mail is the e-mail address of the CRM Alerts user that should receive the alert. This can be taken from the e-mail address of the user in CRM. Header is a short summary of what the notification is for. Type in “Lead assigned to you”. Message is the actual messages shown on the alert notification. This should describe what the alert is for and what actions to take.Dynamics CRM displays the message as a single line but you can press enter to add multiple lines to the message field. Use Dynamic values to provide details of the lead in the alert. The Url or Record Url field provides a way for the user to quickly access a relevant link from the alert itself. This can be a link to the lead record in the Dynamics CRM app or it can be any other URL that is relevant such as the website of a newly registered lead. To provide a link to the record in Dynamics CRM app, use the Record URL (Dynamic) value in the Dynamic values selector. 

Translate URL to Mobile App Link is used to convert the Dynamic Record URL provided above to a mobile link that will open in the Dynamics App instead of in the browser. Allow Followup determines if the user should have the possibility to provide a followup date and time from the alert by using the CRM Alerts built in calendar. This will send back the selected followup to CRM which you can use in your workflow logic. 

Click Save and Close to confirm the settings. After setting the values for the alert, you should now add a waiting condition that will wait until the alert has been responded to. This is not needed when you use the Alert message type as there is no response coming back from those alerts. Click Add Step and Select Wait Condition. Click on hyperlink <condition> (click to configure) to configure the wait. 

 The wait condition should always be set up in the same way. Select the Alert from the dropdown, choose Alert Status as field, choose Equals and add Completed and Failed. Adding Failed will make sure that the workflow will not keep on running in case there is some issue with sending the alert. Click Save and Close.

The last step is to add the steps that should happen after the alert has been responded to. In this example we will add a note to the lead with the comments from the user and we will create an appointment at the follow up time selected by the user.

Click Add Step and select Create Record. Choose Note in the dropdown list. Click Set Properties.Fill the note with the details you want to add to the note. We will set a Title and add the comment to the note text. Regarding is automatically filled with the related lead. The field containing the comment provided by the user is Alert Comment. Click Save and Close. 

 Click Add Step and select Create Record. Choose Appointment in the dropdown list. Click Set Properties.Fill the details of the appointment. Start time should be filled with the followup date from the alert. Field is called Date Follow-Up.Set Required attendees and add a description and subject to the appointment. Click Save and Close. 

 Confirm your workflow has all the steps and looks the same way as below. 

 4. Activate and test the new workflowNow you have created the workflow to send out an alert whenever a new lead is created or a lead is assigned to a new user. Once the user responds to the alert with a comment and followup date, CRM will add a note with the comments to the lead and create a followup appointment with the lead. 

 To start using the workflow, click on Activate in the toolbar. Try the workflow out by creating a new lead. Remember that we put a condition to not send leads to the user creating the leads so make sure to use two different users for testing. Good luck with your alerts and don’t hesitate to reach out to us if you have any questions or if you need help taking full advantage of CRM Alerts!