CRM On Demand Learning Blog

Our mothers taught us to wait our turn. We learned that lesson, but it's much easier said than done. When we do things like import records into CRM On Demand, we expect immediate results. Usually, our imports are processed in 4 minutes or less and we move along happily, but every once in a while there appears to be a delay. That can be frustrating, I know, but just as Mom said, "We must wait our turn."

The first place to check when you don't see your imported records is the Import Queue. To get there:

1. Click the Admin link.
2. In the Data Management Tools section, click the Import and Export Tools link.
3. In the Import and Export Queues section, click the Import Request Queue link.

Rush hour - Yes, you even experience traffic in cyberspace. Most CRM On Demand customers share a multi-tenant pod (a CRM On Demand instance or environment) with other companies. During certain times of day and certain days of the month, there may be more import activity and slower queues. Doing imports during off hours, like non-working times will keep you out of most traffic jams. If you're not sure of the best time for your import, do a test run.

Data Loads - Larger imports take more time. If another person on your pod is trying to import a lot of data, you'll have to wait longer. To maintain your own sanity and the sanity of those behind you in line, make sure you understand the business need behind your import and only import the records you MUST HAVE to meet your business needs.

Work in Progress - Before you get in the import queue, check to be sure that your import won't coincide with planned maintenance or downtime for your pod. To view your maintenance schedule, click the Service Information link at the bottom of any Oracle CRM On Demand page.

If the status of your import is In Progress, you're waiting on your own import. To make sure your import processes as quickly as possible, it's best to prepare in advance. Data preparation and planning are VERY important steps to ensuring a smooth import. We have a few resources to help you:

Free Webinars:
Importing Your Data - Part 1
Importing Your Data - Part 2
Consulting Best Practices for Data Import

Instructor-Led Course:
Data Import Workshop

Solutions and Tools:
Before You Import Data
Data Preparation and Cleanup Guide
Address Mapping Template and Phone Mapping Guide

Help Topics:
Click the Help link on any page in the CRM On Demand application and find the Import and Export Tools topic on the Contents tab under Administering Oracle CRM On Demand > Data Management Tools.

Forum:
CRM On Demand Administration forum

When you have a question about CRM On Demand, there are several places you can go to get an answer. The Training and Support link in the CRM On Demand application is your pathway to information. From there, you can access:

• Training Webinars
• Instructor-Led Training Courses
• Solutions
• Service Requests
• Forums

Forums allow you to search for answers or exchange tips and information with other users that have similar needs...maybe even people in the same industry or related companies. We have a strong community that visits our forums, including Oracle employees, partners, and user experts. In addition, each forum is monitored by a CRM On Demand specialist that can help answer the questions that arise.

We now have four forums to meet your specific information needs:

CRM On Demand Administration Use this forum to get information about application customization, company administration, user management and access controls, data import, workflow, data rules and assignment, or content management.

CRM On Demand Analytics and Reports
Use this forum to get information about reports, dashboards, and Oracle CRM On Demand Answers.

CRM On Demand Integration Development
Use this forum to get information about Web Services, Oracle PIM Sync On Demand, Oracle Offline On Demand, or Oracle Outlook Email Integration On Demand.

Contact On Demand
Use this forum to get information about the use and administration of the Contact On Demand application and integration with CRM On Demand.

You do not need to sign in to search for answers or read forum discussions, but you must be a registered member of the forums to post a question or reply.

To sign in:

1. Click the Training and Support link, and then click Access Forums > Go to Forums to get to the Oracle CRM On Demand Forums page on the Oracle Technology Network (OTN).


2. Click the Sign in link. Sign in using your Oracle Web account credentials. If you do not have an Oracle Web account, you can register for free.

To register:

1. Click the Register link.


2. Enter an email address and password.




To avoid confusion, we recommend using the same password that you use for CRM On Demand.

3. Complete all required details about yourself and your company.


4. In the My Community Memberships section, mark the check boxes that correspond to the communities you wish to join. You must select the Oracle Technology Network check box in order to access the CRM On Demand forums.



5. When finished, click the Confirm button to complete the profile process.


6. After completing the profile process, sign in to OTN Forums. You should see your user ID in the upper-right corner. If you see Guest, you are not signed in.

Some of our most knowledgeable CRM On Demand technical support specialists have just started something new that you might want to know about. They are picking topics that they hear a lot of questions or concerns about from customers and running live (and free) 1-hour Web sessions about them. The idea is to proactively help you avoid common mistakes or pitfalls and to give some advice about resources. The technical support group has the best "in" into what issues customers commonly face because they talk to customers every day. So, these sessions are a great way for you to tap into some of that accumulated knowledge.

In the first of these events, one of the reports specialists ran a Web event about common issues with reports development. It was great...if you missed it, you can view the recording - found in My Oracle Support:

Common Issues in CRM On Demand Analytics
(You will have to sign into My Oracle Support to access the recording.)

The next live session is scheduled for December 3, 2009:
Common Issues with CRM On Demand Web Services.

Jose Valle and Damien Joly from the Customer Care team will present some of the top CRM On Demand Web Services issues that customers face and how you can manage or avoid them. They'll point out good resources that can help and tips for logging Web Services service requests, when all else fails. This session will be recorded, too. But it's great to join the live event if you can - they plan to have some time for questions at the end.

Watch for future sessions on different topics in the News & Announcements section of the Training and Support Center. And, let us know what you think!

Details for the next live event:

Date: December 3, 2009
Time: 1:00 pm (Pacific Standard Time; GMT -8 hours)

How to join:

1. Dial 1-866-682-4770 to access the conference line.
2. Enter the conference code - 4215989 and press #
3. Follow the instructions to record your name and press #
4. Enter the meeting passcode - 4215989 and press #
5. Follow the instructions below to join the web portion of the conference.

The Web Conference

Go to the Oracle Web Conference site: https://conference.oracle.com/imtapp/app/prelogin.uix

Prior to the event:

Click the New User button to check your system compatibility.

To join the event:

1. Enter the conference information In the Join Conference box:
• Conference ID: 164165718
• Your Name
2. Click the Join Conference button.