Learn to quickly build GoldMine filters that isolate and target certain sections of your database.
GoldMine filters is a powerful functionality that allows you to isolate certain sections of your database, improving your productivity while helping you market/communicate with a target group of people efficiently. The filter you create can be based on a single field or multiple fields depending on how targeted you need your database to be.
For example, you can setup a single-field filter that targets customers in a specific city. Refine the view of your data by setting up a filter with multiple fields that targets, let’s say, customers within a certain city, industry and company size. Now, the only contacts and data you’ll see are the ones that match the filter! Check the end of this post for simple instructions on releasing the filter so you can see your entire database once again.
Tip: GoldMine filter types are only limited by the amount of data fields you populate about your contacts; gather more data and your filters can become laser targeted!
Ok! Now that you know what a filter can do, lets build one…
Creating A New Filter
1) The first step to setting up a filter is to click “Tools” in the main menu, mouse down and click “Filters and Groups”. Once clicked, the “Filters and Groups” window will appear.
On this window, click the “New” button to create a new filter. As the “New Filter” dialog box pops up, you’ll want to name the filter and assign it to an owner.
Tip: be specific when naming your filters!
Instead of “filter 1” or “filter A”, name them “Main Office Employees” or “Customers in Florida”. Be specific enough so you can come back in 6 months and locate/utilize the filter without questioning it’s specific parameters.
You can choose to assign this filter to yourself, public or another user. By assigning filters to specific owners, GoldMine will group those filters together for quick access by you or whomever you assign the the filter to. If it’s public, everyone can access it quickly! You can also prohibit certain users from accessing a filter if you want GoldMine to control who is able to see certain accounts, as useful tool in sales environments.
2) Now click the “Build” tab to set the field or fields that the filter will be based on. Simply click the down arrow on the “Field Name” drop down box to select the desired field, following the same process with the “Operator” and “Value” sections.
During the process of defining the “Value” field, you need to match the “Value” field entry with the entry style you use on individual contact records. For example, if you’re looking to target customers in the state of Florida, but the state field within each contact record is entered as “FL”, your “Value” here in the filter creation tool must also be written as “FL” not “Florida”. Once your value is set, click the “Insert Condition” button.
3) Click “OK” to complete the setup process. Your new filter will appear alphabetically with the other filters you’ve created and your done! The filter is now created and auto-activated. If you want to release it, read below.
Tip: Now that you’ve created this filter, it will automatically limit the records you see based on the filter parameters. If you want to see your entire “un-filtered” database again, release the filter by:
- Clicking the “Filters” icon from the Toolbar
- Clicking the “Release” button on the “Filters and Groups” window
