Summary / TL:DR: This article will help you understand the customer search screen in Advantage.

This is a review of the Customer Search screen. This is where customer accounts can be searched for and maintained. This screen is accessed through the ribbon icon Customer Search

In general, customer searches are performed at the Customer Search screen. However, any screen with the option to enter a customer number will allow you to perform a search by clicking the drop down arrow. The customer radio button will show results for both the bill-to and receiving customer.

For more on searching for accounts, go here.

Scripts

Scripts are available from the Customer Search screen. By default, you will be set to No script.

From the Customer Search screen, right-click in the list frame search results box and select Customer Scripts
Select the DOMESTIC script
Click OK

Once a script is selected, it will always be defaulted at this screen until you change it.

The DOMESTIC script is the script recommended for US based affiliates. For international groups, consult with APSI Support for details on which script to use.

Recommended Display

Recommended Filter

By default, when performing a search, Advantage displays the current address on file as well as the last previous address. A previous address will display with a * in front of the address code. To streamline your search results, you can set a filter on this screen to not display previous addresses in the search results.

From the Customer Search screen, go to the Search drop down and select Edit Filter
Locate the Address Flag field and set it to 'Not Equals' P
Click OK

To turn this filter off, go to the Search drop down and select No filter.

Search Results

Multiple Customer Numbers - customers may have accounts with different customer numbers. Use the Additional Info on the right of the address information to help decide which account to select.

Multiple Addresses - The customer may have multiple addresses for one customer number on file. If your search comes up with two addresses, look at the ADDR to see which to select.

Additional Info - to the right of the customer’s address, you can see active and inactive subscriptions. If the pub code is in capital letters, it is active. If the pub code is in lowercase letters, it is inactive. Below you can also see the most recent product order date (this sometimes can be a gratis premium package). Under the Product orders are the Agreements. If the Agreement item is in lowercase letters, it is inactive. If the agreement item is in capital letters, it is active. Additional information is available at the bottom of the screen in the Subscriptions for Selected Customer section.

Search Tips

Search using a Pub Code. If a customer is asking about a specific subscription, enter the pub code to limit your search.
Search just by the 9-digit ZIP code for US customers if you cannot find the order or subscription.
Search using Street 1 Contains.
For International Customers: you MUST enter the country code and you are able to shorten the postal code to the first 3 digits/letters.

Add Mode

From the Customer Search, if you select Add, fields will open to add an account. For instructions on adding a new account, go here.

Name [First Last]*	The customer's first and last name. Advantage will automatically adjust the case to all caps.
Company	Used for business addresses.
Street 1*	The first line of the mailing address.
Street 2	The second line of the mailing address. Generally used for apartment, floor, suite information.
Postal Zip Code*	The postal zip code for the mailing address. Once this is entered, this will automatically add the City and State for US addresses.
City*	The city for the mailing address.
State*	The state or province for the mailing address.
Country	The country of the mailing address. For US addresses, this is blank. This is required for customers outside of the US.
Address Code*	This will default to ADDR-01. For new customers, this should always be ADDR-01, this is only applicable when adding new addresses to existing accounts.
Email Address	Advantage will require an e-mail address for new accounts added to the system. If the customer does not have an email address, change the Preferred Communication from E to M for mail. This field is under the Additional Phone field.
Home Phone	The customer's home phone number.
Additional Phone	Optional for customer's wishing to provide multiple contact phone numbers.
Mobile	The customer's mobile cell phone number. Can be used for SMS/text delivered services or notifications.
Fax	The customer's fax number.
Preferred Communication	The preferred method to contact the customer. This will default to E. If the customer does not have an email address, this will be M.
Customer Promotional Settings	Setting for customer promotional marketing. These fields can be used by marketers in selecting customers for promotional marketing. These will default to Y but can be changed to N if the customer does not wish to be added to any promotional lists.
Valid?	Validation flags for the mailing address and email address. These will default to being valid, however if there are problems with delivery - either by mail or email, these flags will be changed.

Change Mode

From the Customer Search, if you select Change, fields will open to change information on an account. For more information about account maintenance, go here. Change mode has 3 phases, or tabs, of information available.

Customer Address Maintenance

Name [First Last]*	The customer's first and last name. Advantage will automatically adjust the case to all caps.
Company	Used for business addresses.
Street 1*	The first line of the mailing address.
Street 2	The second line of the mailing address. Generally used for apartment, floor, suite information.
Postal Zip Code*	The postal zip code for the mailing address. Once this is entered, this will automatically add the City and State for US addresses.
City*	The city for the mailing address.
State*	The state or province for the mailing address.
Country	The country of the mailing address. For US addresses, this is blank. This is required for customers outside of the US.
Address Code	This field is closed and will display the address code selected to make changes to.
Email Address	Advantage will require an e-mail address for new accounts added to the system. If the customer does not have an email address, change the Preferred Communication from E to M for mail. This field is under the Additional Phone field.
Home Phone	The customer's home phone number.
Additional Phone	Optional for customer's wishing to provide multiple contact phone numbers.
Mobile	The customer's mobile cell phone number. Can be used for SMS/text delivered services or notifications.
Fax	The customer's fax number.
Preferred Communication	The preferred method to contact the customer. This will default to E. If the customer does not have an email address, this will be M.
Customer Promotional Settings	Setting for customer promotional marketing. These fields can be used by marketers in selecting customers for promotional marketing. These will default to Y but can be changed to N if the customer does not wish to be added to any promotional lists.
Valid?	Validation flags for the mailing address and email address. These will default to being valid, however if there are problems with delivery - either by mail or email, these flags will be changed.
Exemptions	Account setting for exemptions. Duplicate Exempt - when checked, this account cannot be selected for duplicate account consolidation. Standardize Exempt - when checked, this account address was flagged by a user to ignore address standardization Comp Standztn Exempt - when checked, this account company name cannot be standardized. Used for business to business transactions.
Continue	This button will navigate to the next tab, Customer Maintenance.

Customer Maintenance

Promotional Settings	Settings on the account to control for customers who should be blocked from transactions. Customer Blocked - when checked, customers cannot place new orders or cancel any services. This is used in extreme situations where a customer is being blocked from all transactions across all business. Credit Status - used for rejecting specific types of order transactions for new orders. Credit Limit - used for purposes of bill-me type transactions. Promote Customer - used by marketers in selecting customers for promotional marketing. Will default to Y but can be changed to N if the customer does not wish to be added to any promotional lists.
Account Preferences	Preferences for the account. Language - will default to EN for English Gender - not generally used Birth - not generally used Time Zone - not generally used Billing Currency - default currency for account, US$ for US based customers
Do Not Call	Used for marking an account to not call for renewal offers.
Include Inserts?	Not used.
Continue	This button will navigate to the next tab, Customer Maintenance.

Additional Customer Maintenance/History

Customer Addresses Tab

Displays all addresses associated with the account.

These are the suggested customized columns from this screen. There are more columns available.

Customer Number	Account number for selected customer.
Attention-to	Customer's first and last name.
Company	Used for business addresses.
Street 1	The first line of the mailing address.
City/St/Postal	The city, state and postal zip code on the account.
Country Code	The code associated with the country of the mailing address. For US addresses, this is blank.
Address Code	The unique code associated with the address.
Date and Time Added	Date and time the address was added to Advantage
Last Updated By	The name of the last user to update the address.
Add New	This button is used to add another address to the account. For instructions on adding a new address to an account, go here.
Add Future	This button is used to add a future address to the account for when an address change it taking place in the future. For example, if the customer is moving in 2 months and calls ahead of time to provide a new address. For instructions on adding a future address to an account, go here.
Add Interim	This button is used to add a temporary address to the account for when the customer wants their address changed for a period of time. For example if they are traveling or a snowbird. For instructions on adding an interim address to an account, go here.
Change	This button is used to change the address selected. For instructions on changing the address on account, go here.
Inquire	This button will provide a full view of the selected account similar to the Inquire Mode detailed below. Click Continue to return to this view after clicking Inquire.
Make Default Address	This button will be available when a non-default address is selected to allow the default address to change. By default, ADDR-01 is the default address on the account.

Customer Authentication tab

This tab is an account level view of the authentication, or usernames and passwords, associated with an account. A view can be seen in Customer Activity by subscription.

These are the suggested customized columns from this screen. There are more columns available.

Authentication ID	Unique identifier of the login.
Auth Group Description	The authentication group associated with the subscription's login. Some affiliates have one auth group for their site, while others have multiple auth groups setup based on their infrastructure of their website.
Auth Type	Displays the field to determine where the username/password will be displayed: The username is listed under the Authentication Value field. The username is listed under the Email Address field.
Auth Type Description	Description field related to the Authentication Type field. Denotes whether it is a customer's email address or a authentication value as the username.
Authentication Value	If the Auth Type is L, this is the username for the website login.
Email Address	If the Auth Type is E, this is the username for the website login.
Status	The status of the login. A = Active I = Inactive
Last Login	Date and time of the last login the customer did on the website.
Last Updated By Description	Name/identity of the last user to update the login record.
Add	This button is used to add a new login to the account. This is rarely used.
Change	This button is used to change details about the login.
Delete	This button is used to delete a login from the account.
Inquire	This button will provide a full view of all of the details of the login selected.
Copy	This button will allow you to copy a login to another auth group.
Search IP	Not used.

Customer Histories tab

This tab is a view of all previous account information. Each time a change is made to an account, the previous information is stored in here for reference.

These are the suggested customized columns from this screen. There are more columns available.

Entered Date	Date the address was entered into the system.
Attention-to	Customer's first and last name.
Company	Used for business addresses.
Street Addr Line 1	The first line of the mailing address.
City/St/Postal	The city, state and postal zip code on the account.
Address Code	The unique code associated with the address.
Updated On	Date and time the address was updated.
Last Updated By	The name of the last user to update the address.
Inquire	This button will provide a full view of the selected account similar to the Inquire Mode detailed below. Click Continue to return to this view after clicking Inquire.

Customer Emails tab

This tab is a view of all of the email addresses associated with the account.

These are the suggested customized columns from this screen. There are more columns available.

Email Address	Email addresses associated with the account.
Email Valid	Displays if the customer's email address is a valid email address. Y = Yes N = No
Promote By Email	Displays the promotional setting for the email address. Y = Yes N = No
Last Updated	Date and time the address was updated.
Last Updated By	The name of the last user to update the address.
Add	This button is used to add a new emaill address to the account. For instructions on adding a new email address to the account, go here.
Change	This button is used to change the email address. For instructions on changing the email address on an account, go here.
Delete	This button is used to delete an email address from an account. For instructions on removing an email address from an account, go here.
Inquire	This button will provide full details of the selected email address.

Virtual Agent Knowledge Base

ADV User Guides Understanding the Customer Search Screen

Scripts

Recommended Display

Recommended Filter

Search Results

Search Tips

Add Mode

Change Mode

Customer Address Maintenance

Customer Maintenance

Additional Customer Maintenance/History

Customer Addresses Tab

Customer Authentication tab

Customer Histories tab

Customer Emails tab