Activity Tracking Guide

Every interaction, captured

Dove365 CRM — Starter supports five types of activity, each designed to capture a different kind of customer interaction. Together they build a complete picture of the relationship on the record timeline.

• Email

  Track inbound and outbound emails against CRM records. With Outlook integration enabled, emails can be tracked automatically via server-side sync or manually using the Dynamics 365 App for Outlook.

• Phone Call

  Log calls against accounts, contacts, leads, opportunities, or cases. Record the subject, direction (inbound or outbound), duration, and notes from the conversation. Schedule follow-up tasks directly from the call record.

• Task

  Create tasks against any CRM record to track to-dos, follow-ups, and commitments. Tasks have a due date, owner, and status. Use them to ensure nothing gets missed and to keep commitments visible across the team.

• Appointment

  Log meetings, demos, site visits, or any scheduled interaction. Appointments link to specific accounts, contacts, opportunities, or cases and appear on the record timeline alongside all other activities.

• Note

  Add freeform notes to the timeline for context that doesn’t fit other activity types, internal observations, meeting summaries, research findings, or important background about a customer’s situation.

A complete record of every relationship

Every CRM record, accounts, contacts, leads, opportunities, and cases, has a timeline. It shows all activities, notes, and tracked emails in chronological order and is the single most important tool for understanding a customer relationship.

When to check the timeline

• Before a customer meetingReview the timeline to see what was discussed last time. Check outstanding tasks. Understand context before you speak to the customer again, without asking them to repeat themselves.
• Before converting a leadCheck the engagement history. Have enough conversations happened to justify converting? Is the timeline showing genuine interest or just a single initial contact?
• Before closing an opportunityReview the timeline to confirm all commitments have been addressed, all objections have been noted, and the full conversation has been captured before marking Won or Lost.
• When a colleague takes overThe timeline means a new team member can pick up any record without a briefing. All context, calls, emails, notes, and tasks, is already there in full.

What the timeline shows

• Chronological history

  Activities appear in time order with the most recent at the top. See exactly what happened and when at a glance, without searching through email or notes.

• All activity types in one place

  Emails, calls, tasks, appointments, and notes all appear together on the same timeline. One place to see the full picture, no switching between tools.

• Searchable and filterable

  Filter the timeline by activity type or date range to focus on what matters, all tracked emails for a specific period, or all open tasks against a specific record.

• Linked across related records

  A tracked email sent to a contact may appear on multiple related records, the contact, account, and linked opportunity, giving you a connected view of the interaction.

Outlook emails in your CRM timeline

With Outlook integration configured, emails sent and received in Outlook can be tracked against CRM records automatically. Your inbox and your CRM stay aligned without manual effort.

Making activities work for your team

• Use meaningful subject lines

  A task or call record titled ‘Follow-up’ is useless without context. Use specific, descriptive subjects, ‘Discussed proposal scope with Sarah’ tells a story. ‘Call’ does not.

• Complete activities when done

  Marking tasks and calls as complete keeps your activity list accurate and your open task dashboard meaningful. Outstanding activities left open inflate your workload view.

• Add notes for important context

  If a call reveals something significant about a customer’s situation, add a note immediately. Notes live on the timeline permanently and provide context that field values alone can’t capture.

• Check the timeline before acting

  Before calling a customer, sending a proposal, or creating a case, take 30 seconds to review the timeline. It prevents repeated conversations and ensures you always engage with the full context.

• Create a task for every commitment

  If you promise a customer something, information, a callback, a document, create a task before the conversation ends. Tasks are how Dove365 CRM — Starter ensures commitments are tracked and don’t get lost.

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