CRM & Contacts

CRM & Contact Management

Hal includes a built-in CRM to help you manage customer relationships, track deals through your sales pipeline, and organize contact information—all in one place.

Overview

The CRM feature combines:

• Contact Database - Store and manage visitor information
• Pipeline Management - Visual Kanban board for tracking deals
• Custom Stages - Define your own sales or support workflow
• Conversation History - All chats linked to contact records
• Custom Fields - Track additional metadata about contacts

Contacts

Automatic Contact Creation

Hal automatically creates a contact record when:

• A visitor starts their first conversation
• A visitor provides their email address
• You manually create a contact from the Contacts page

Each contact includes:

• Name - Display name from widget identification
• Email - Email address (if provided)
• Visitor ID - Unique identifier for tracking across sessions
• First Seen - Date of first conversation
• Last Seen - Date of most recent activity
• Conversations - Number of chat sessions
• Metadata - Custom attributes passed via the widget

Viewing Contacts

Access your contact database from Contacts in the main navigation. The contacts list shows:

• Contact name and email
• Current pipeline stage (if assigned)
• Last activity timestamp
• Number of conversations

Click any contact to view:

• Full contact details and metadata
• Complete conversation history
• Pipeline stage and deal information
• Activity timeline

Editing Contact Information

You can manually update contact details:

1. Open the contact from the Contacts page
2. Click the edit icon
3. Update name, email, or custom metadata
4. Save changes

Pipeline Management

What is a Pipeline?

A pipeline is a visual workflow for tracking contacts through stages. Common use cases:

• Sales Pipeline - Lead → Qualified → Proposal → Closed Won
• Support Pipeline - New → In Progress → Waiting → Resolved
• Onboarding Pipeline - Signed Up → Activated → Onboarded → Active

Creating Pipeline Stages

Set up your pipeline in Settings > CRM Settings:

1. Define stages

   Create stages that match your workflow. For a sales pipeline, you might use: Lead, Qualified, Proposal, Negotiation, Closed Won, Closed Lost.

2. Set stage order

   Arrange stages in the order contacts typically progress through them.

3. Assign colors

   Choose colors for each stage to make the Kanban board visually clear.

4. Save configuration

   Your pipeline stages are now available in the CRM view.

Using the Kanban Board

Access the CRM Kanban board from CRM in the main navigation:

• Visual Organization - See all contacts organized by stage
• Drag and Drop - Move contacts between stages by dragging cards
• Quick Actions - Click a contact card to view details or start a conversation
• Stage Counts - See how many contacts are in each stage

Moving Contacts Through Stages

There are three ways to update a contact's stage:

1. Drag and drop on the Kanban board
2. Use the dropdown on the contact detail page
3. Via API programmatically update stages

Each stage change is recorded in the contact's activity timeline.

Deal Tracking

Associate deal value with contacts to track revenue:

• Deal Amount - Set expected or actual value
• Currency - Support for multiple currencies
• Close Date - Expected or actual close date
• Probability - Likelihood of closing (percentage)

The CRM dashboard shows total pipeline value and forecasted revenue based on stage and probability.

Custom Metadata

Store additional information about contacts using custom metadata:

Via Widget

window.HalSettings = {
  appId: 'your-app-id',
  visitorId: user.id,
  name: user.name,
  email: user.email,
  metadata: {
    plan: 'pro',
    mrr: 99,
    signupDate: '2024-01-15',
    company: 'Acme Inc'
  }
};

Via API

Update contact metadata programmatically:

PATCH /api/contacts/:id
{
  "metadata": {
    "plan": "enterprise",
    "seats": 50
  }
}

Metadata appears in the contact detail view and can be used for filtering and segmentation.

Contact Segmentation

Filter and segment contacts based on:

• Pipeline Stage - View contacts in specific stages
• Date Range - Filter by first seen, last seen, or activity date
• Metadata - Search by custom attributes
• Conversation Count - Find active vs. inactive contacts

Exporting Contact Data

Pro Business

Export your contact database to CSV for analysis or integration with other tools:

1. Go to Contacts page
2. Apply any filters you want
3. Click "Export to CSV"
4. Download the file with all contact data and metadata

Integration with Conversations

The CRM is tightly integrated with the Inbox:

• Unified View - See all conversations for a contact in one place
• Context Switching - Jump from Inbox to contact details and back
• Stage Updates - Change pipeline stage directly from the conversation view
• Activity Timeline - Messages, stage changes, and notes in chronological order

Best Practices

1. Design Your Pipeline

Start with 4-6 stages that match your actual workflow. You can always add or adjust stages later.

2. Keep Contacts Updated

Regularly move contacts through stages to maintain an accurate pipeline view. Set reminders to review stale contacts.

3. Use Metadata Wisely

Track key attributes like subscription plan, company size, or industry to personalize support and sales outreach.

4. Link to Conversations

Always review the conversation history before reaching out to understand context and previous interactions.

5. Export Regularly

Back up your contact data by exporting to CSV periodically, especially before making bulk changes.

CRM Pricing

CRM features are available on all plans:

• Free Plan - Up to 100 contacts, basic pipeline (3 stages)
• Pro Plan - Unlimited contacts, custom stages, CSV export
• Business Plan - Advanced segmentation, bulk actions, custom fields

Next Steps