3.6 Smart Lists: Dynamic Groups (e.g., Hot Buyers, Past Clients)

What is a Smart List?

A Smart List is essentially a saved set of filters. Instead of manually applying the same filter combination every time you want to see a specific segment of your contacts, you save those filter criteria as a named Smart List. The beauty is that these lists are dynamic – they automatically update in real-time. Contacts will automatically appear in (or disappear from) a Smart List whenever their data changes to match (or no longer match) the saved filter criteria.

Benefits of Using Smart Lists:

  • Efficiency: Provides instant, one-click access to your key contact segments (e.g., "Hot Leads Needing Follow-Up," "Past Clients for Newsletter," "Seller Leads in Anytown") without needing to rebuild the filters each time.
  • Targeted Actions: Makes it easy to perform Bulk Actions (like sending targeted SMS or Email blasts, adding to specific Workflows) on precisely defined groups.
  • Consistent Segmentation: Ensures you and your team are consistently working with the same defined segments.
  • Workflow Triggers (Advanced): Can sometimes be used in relation to workflow triggers or conditions (depending on specific features).

Creating a Smart List:

  1. Apply Your Filters: First, go to the main Contacts screen. Use the More Filters panel (see 3.4) to define the exact criteria for the segment you want to save (e.g., Tags includes Hot Lead AND Last Activity is before [7 days ago]). Click Apply to see the contacts matching your filters.
  2. Save the Filtered View: Once the list displays the contacts you want in your Smart List, look for a button or icon to + Save as smart list (often appears near the active filter display or the tabs area). Click this button.
  3. Name Your Smart List: A popup will ask you to enter a clear, descriptive name for this saved view (e.g., "Hot Leads - No Activity > 7 Days", "Past Clients - Anniversary This Month", "Seller Leads - Valuation Requested - Anytown"). Choose a name that makes its purpose obvious.
  4. Save: Click Save.

Using and Managing Smart Lists:

  • Accessing: Your newly saved Smart List will now appear as a clickable tab at the top of the Contacts screen, alongside the default All tab. Click the tab name to instantly view the dynamic list of contacts currently matching those criteria.
  • Performing Actions: Once viewing a Smart List, you can select contacts (using checkboxes or "Select all") and perform Bulk Actions just like you would from the All contacts view.
  • Editing Criteria: If you need to modify the filters for an existing Smart List:
    1. Click the Smart List tab to view it.
    2. Click More Filters to open the filter panel (it should show the currently saved filters).
    3. Modify the filter conditions as needed (add, remove, or change criteria).
    4. Click Apply.
    5. Click the Save icon (often looks like a floppy disk) that appears next to the Smart List tab name to update the saved criteria for that Smart List.
  • Managing Your Smart List Tabs: Look for a Manage Smart Lists button or similar option (sometimes accessible via a dropdown near the tabs). This typically allows you to:
    • Rename existing Smart Lists.
    • Reorder the display sequence of the tabs.
    • Duplicate an existing Smart List (useful for creating variations).
    • Delete a Smart List (this only removes the saved filter view/tab; it does not delete the actual contacts).