Redtail CRM: Activity Templates vs. Workflow Templates

person marking things on a board

Share This Post

Templates in Redtail CRM or Wealthbox CRM can save you time, add efficiency, consistency, and save you clicks! Among the most frequently used templates are activity/task templates and workflow templates. While both types of templates are essential, they serve different purposes. It is important to spend some time upfront building out templates so that you can have in-the-moment success. What we find is that, “You don’t know what you don’t know,” and you don’t have time. That’s why at Stephanie Dannebaum Consulting we help offices get it done in less than a total business day of time investment! 

Using Templates in Redtail CRM

Looking for higher efficiency and productivity in your office? Using templates in Redtail CRM can be a game-changer for your team. Templates provide a consistent and streamlined approach to various tasks, eliminating the need to recreate the same steps repeatedly. They can be customized to fit the specific needs of an organization, providing a personalized touch to routine tasks. By using templates, users can save time, reduce errors, and improve the overall quality of work. Additionally, templates ensure that important information is not overlooked or missed, promoting accuracy and compliance.

When Should You Use an Activity Template?

Activities are more individual, short-term, and project-based. You should use activity templates for two main reasons. 
  1. Occupy a time and date on your calendar. Adding activities whenever you’re doing something during the day helps ensure that you don’t get double-booked and that you don’t forget anything important.
  2. Handle a one-off project, such as cutting a check, having a meeting, or making a phone call. The requirement to complete an activity for it to go away helps even the busiest person prioritize. 

Activity Template Example

An activity template that adds a ton of value to an office is a “Money movement,” activity template. When someone calls in and wants a check for $5,000 for a new car for their grandchild, an activity template can already have the category of money movement selected. It can already have the parties responsible selected. That way, later, if you want to pull up all the money movements for the year or for a specific client, you can quickly cast a net over that data. Another reason to use activity templates is to capture essential details. Your team can be guided to collect key information such as the amount, the account or assets being sold, the reason, and the FedEx tracking number for the delivered check or the ACH used. This can be great for compliance purposes and to offer a high level of customer service.

When Should You Use a Workflow Template?

On the other hand, workflows are more collaborative, long-term, and process-based. You should use workflow templates for any step-by-step procedure that you repeat over and over again, such as hosting a review, onboarding a prospect, or hosting an event. A workflow template takes that repeatable process and turns it into a workflow, ensuring that nothing slips through the cracks. This makes sure that no steps get missed, and if Client A were to talk to Client B, they can say they had the same experience.

Workflow Template Examples

The most common example of a workflow template is a client review. However, you would still want to use workflows and activities in conjunction because an activity will occupy the time and date on your calendar that your client is coming in, but the workflow will document all the behind-the-scenes items like confirming the meeting, printing reports, cleaning the conference room, and following up with your client. The idea is when you host an event you’re doing the same thing over and over again: -Book Venue -Send Invitations -Call Catering  So why not take that repeatable process and turn it into workflow so nothing slips through the cracks!  One limitation of workflows is the bottleneck of office staff not completing their part in the process. If you are in charge of a to-do item and you never complete your item, then your teammates won’t get their assignment to complete their part in the process.  Both activity templates and workflow templates are essential for their own purpose. And as mentioned earlier, both will be used in conjunction. The one thing they share in common is that once an activity or workflow is completed, they will get date, time, and user-stamped and saved as a note for history. Stephanie Dannebaum Consulting has worked with many offices to implement best practices in using all the tools for their purpose and training teammates on the ideal process. We have built hundreds of workflow and activity templates and have worked with offices to continue to enhance them as the industry changes and the team changes since they should be treated like a living, breathing process. To summarize, templates can save you a lot of time and hassle. Activity templates are great for occupying a time and date on your calendar and for handling one-off projects, while workflow templates are better suited for repeatable processes. Dedicate some time to build out a template with Stephanie Dannebaum Consulting today

Subscribe To Our Newsletter

Get updates and learn from the best

More To Explore

Do You Want To Boost Your Business?

Book a call to talk to Stephanie

man and woman high five at a desk