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Is ACT! 2008 Software Right for You? While I don't advocate updating software purely for the sake of updating, you should give this version a look...to see if it has some of the features you have been waiting for. The three biggest changes are: Dashboard View (giving you a visual view into your key performance indicators-see the graphic below), Field editing in Contact List view (similar to version 6 where you can edit the record in Contact List view), and Vista and Office 2007 Compatible. But there are a few more interesting features as well. And of course there is still a direct link to Outlook (YEAH!!) and Field-Level Security by user. Take a look below at my picks for the top 10 reasons to upgrade from your older ACT! software to this new release. Sincerely, President P.S. Since we are one of the largest resellers of ACT! in the nation, we can offer you great pricing (even better than what ACT! is currently offering in their current mailings). Top 10 Reasons to Upgrade from ACT! 2007 Dashboard - The all-new ACT! Dashboard gives you a visual (and customizable) overview of key performance activity and opportunity indicators of your business. Multiple Contacts/Opportunity - You can associate multiple Contacts per Opportunity (for those committee decisions). Customizable Opportunity Fields - If you own the Premium version of ACT!, you can define the Opportunity 1-8 fields as Date-type fields, if you like. Editing in List View - You can enter and edit data in the Contact List, Group List, or Company List views (similar to the way that you could edit in versions 6 and earlier). Groups and Companies Security - If you own the Premium version, you can assign Limited Access for Groups or Companies (my favorite). Now your users don't have to see all the Groups or Companies that others have created, you can limit what each user sees. Advanced Queries for Groups and Companies - You can create Advanced Queries for Companies and Groups that allow you to do lookups based on company or group field data. Easier lookups for subgroups and divisions - Now you see a tree-view display in the Group/Company selection dialogs, making lookups of subgroups (or divisions) a lot faster. Ability to Create Duplicate Group or Company Names - Now if you want a "Sales" group under Joe and a "Sales" group under Jane, it's no problem. Duplicate Checking - By First and Last Name and also dup checking for Groups and Companies Attach shortcut - You can attach a shortcut to a file on the network instead of attaching the actual file and copying it to the \Attachments folder.

Overview: You have several options to choose from when selecting which ACT! is right for you. ACT! by Sage ACT! by Sage Premium ACT! by Sage Premium for Web If you choose one of the Premium versions (Web or desktop), you can choose to upgrade your database platform to Microsoft® SQL ServerTM Standard. How do you know which to choose? Well, it's all about scalability. I've created several comparison charts below to help you decide which ACT! is the right one for you and your company. You can view the minimum system requirements for all 2008 versions. OR, try using our Select Your ACT! Version Wizard to help you decide what you need. Because we are one of the largest resellers in North America, we can offer you a better deal than the one ACT! is currently offering.
ACT! by Sage	ACT! by Sage Premium
or call 877-661-5200 for more details. ACT! 2008 vs. ACT! Premium 2008 Key Differentiating Features This abbreviated chart helps you decide among the options. Instead of focusing on all of the amazing features that you will find in ACT (see that chart next), this chart lists only the major differentiating factors to help you understand the differences when making your selection. First see if any features are missing from the version you are considering and then check for scalability.

Differences from 2006

1. Direct Link to Microsoft Outlook® e-mail. No more ACT Email Window interface.
2. New menu command (Write, Email from template) to quickly send a form e-mail (with graphics if you like) without going through the e-mail feature.
3. Notes, History, Opportunities, Secondary Contacts and Documents now inherit the Contact Access security of the Contact Record. For example, if the Contact is Limited Access, then all their Opportunites will have the same Limited Access. If you don't have rights to see the contact, you won't see their opportunities in Opportunity List view or on the Company record.
4. Field Security by user with Full access, Read-Only access, and No Access (Hidden).
5. Regulate password usage through a global password policy. You can require employees to change passwords every set number of days, define the compexity required of passwords, and set password re-use limitations to ensure your data is secure
6. Define which fields are linked between the Company and the Contact records.
7. Last E-mail System field keeps track of your email correspondence
8. View multiple notes at once and preview the critical ones using the new split-panel notes feature
9. Enhanced query and lookup capabilities (better keyword searches, current lookup indicator displays in the status bar and ability to edit existing queries)
10. Scheduled database maintenance (Check and Repair)
11. Scheduled syncing of Outook calendars with ACT!
12. Speed...I promise...it is so much faster, you can't believe it. Testing shows over 60% faster than 7.0. Calendar views now open faster than version 6.0

Differences from 2005

1. Enhanced Feature Sets
   • Tree View for Groups and Companies - (The tree view is back!)
   • View all Group and Company Associations - You can now view the contacts membership in Groups or Companies on the Groups tab, whether they were manually added or dynamically added using a query.
   • Add or Remove Groups/Companies from the Contact's record - Add or remove one or many contacts with ease.
   • Change the Activity Organizer - Easily update or change who an activity is scheduled for, even after the activity has been scheduled.
2. Increased Compatibility
   • Lotus Notes Support - Attach inbound emails to contacts, create new contacts and activities from e-mail sender, create contact histories on the contact record when sending emails, while still using Lotus Notes.
   • Citrix/Terminal Services Support - Multiple users from different offices can access the same ACT! database, without the need for VPN access.
   • Accounting link to QuickBooks, Business Works and Simply Accounting.
3. Improved Data Security
   
   • Field-level security by user.
   • Database expiration has now been extended from 90 to 365 days with one last chance to do a one-way sync even after the remote database has expired.
   • Custom user permissions allow the administrator the ability to provide some administrative functions to remote users to back-up, restore, and perform database maintenance. They can also restrict user's ability to delete contacts or export to Excel.
   • Only attachments related to the sync set will sync.

Differences from ACT! 6 and Earlier Versions

1. Groups
   • Easy creation and maintenance - save lookups as groups; groups can be based upon a query or static membership. Because queries can be based on fields, you may never have to manually update (add or remove) groups again.
   • Increased levels - 15 levels of subgroups.
2. Companies
   • Similar to groups - same properties; easily convert a group to a company.
   • Company record - updates to certain company fields can be pushed to contacts; automatic association.
   • Easy creation - create a company from a contact; create a contact from a company.
3. Opportunities
   • Complete view - opportunity list view; opportunity lookups.
   • Consistent entry of data - product list; multiple sales processes.
   • Track more information - multiple products and user fields; automatic histories as opportunities move thru stages.
   • Easier reporting - export to Excel; create quotes; more report templates.
4. Calendars and Scheduling
   • Fully customizable - custom activity and priority types; database events.
   • Activity security - calendar delegates so only authorized users can schedule on your behalf.
   • Direct Link to Microsoft Outlook e-mail (no more ACT E-mail window).
   • Automatic synchronization of Outlook calendars with the Premium version.
5. Synchronization
   • Easy to set up - reusable queries to establish what contacts sync to what users; inductive user interface "walks you thru".
   • Reliable - recover from broken syncs; schedule your syncs.
   • Consistent - security is enforced; true parent to child relationship.
6. Security
   • Record Level Security by users or teams for Premium versions
   • Field Level Security - by field for basic ACT! and by field by user in ACT! Premum
   • Password Management - ability to create rules for password length, complexity, re-use, etc.

or call
877-661-5200 for more details,
or try our Select Your ACT! Version Wizard to help you decide what you need.

Don't Forget ACT! 2008 Training Manuals