GUARANTEED GREAT IDEAS! Six Indispensable Status Codes from Real Clients & Profits Users Ask Clients & Profits users about status codes and be prepared for strong reactions. Greg Galik of Aadland Marketing Group, says "No matter what anyone in an agency may think about traffic -- the most essential and core traffic procedure is to identify what status each job has at any time." His pick for indispensable status code is: Invoicing/AE Close (61): "It signifies accomplishment and that we got the job done. Many times in an agency environment, so much of the daily work is abstract: thinking about it, writing it, designing and laying it out. The specific measure of output is jobs completed and billed!" Top picks include: 15 - Quote with client: "Let's us know exactly who we need to contact," says Farel Bischoff of FitzMartin Design, "to see if they have any questions regarding our estimates." 100 - In production: "It's the physical location of the job," according to Monique Delay of White Runkle & Associates. "It's moved from ‘concept approved' to execution. It denotes where the accountability is." 41 - Completed jobs that can't be billed: "I hate those," says Kent Schlawin of ITA Group, "but we need to identify how and why that happens, and what needs to be written off." 710 - Closed, reopened w/costs: "Since we set up our ‘reopened' default with this status code," Trudy Wild of Magic Pencil Studios, "late costs are caught and billed. Nothing slips through." 530 - Billing changes needed: "It reminds me that a job should be billed to a different client. So when it is billed, I remember to edit the client code," says Wally Harper of Walt Disney World.

Q. When a job is closed, what happens to unfinished, scheduled tasks?

If a job is closed with the default for closed jobs, then all unfinished, scheduled tasks for that job are removed from scheduling reports, even if they don't yet have a finished date. This saves you from updating each task individually. It's a great way to keep staffers focused on current work.

Q. Is there any connection between milestones and scheduled tasks?

Yes. If the milestone header (the part that's set up on a Job Type) matches a task code exactly, then the due date that's entered for that task on the schedule is copied to that milestone's information. Use this feature if certain tasks are critical to a job's progress (like copywriting), and as traffic manager, you must ensure that task is done on time.

Q. I need to explain to staffers something important about their work. How can I make sure that staffers get those crucial details before they start working?

Use task specs to inform staffers of important information concerning their work. Task specs appear on all scheduling and work-to-do reports. When staffers review their schedules, task specs will tell them what they need to know.

Q. Can I add milestones to a job after it's been started?

Yes! If a job wasn't opened using a job type, you can add milestones later if appropriate for a job. Use the Job Type lookup list while in a job ticket's Job Type field, and double-click on the job type whose milestones you want for a job. You'll be asked if you wish to replace the job's settings; select Yes. Click on the Traffic button to begin using milestones.

Q. Why can't each job have its own milestones?

Because the events that milestones represent are the same or similar based upon the work being done; so milestone headings are tied to Job Type/Spec Sheets.

Q. Why is there only one Status Table if there are two kinds of status codes: production and billing?

It's true; there's only one Status Table to set up your status codes. Any status code can be used as either production or billing. What determines whether a status code is production or billing is where it is entered on each individual job ticket. Besides tracking a job's progress, status codes are report selection criteria. Before printing many reports, you choose by which status code range, production or billing, you wish to print; thus selectively limiting the information appearing on a report.