- Letter Generator explained
- Overview
- What is it?
- Key benefits
- Smart Styling
- Default Styling Settings
- Scenario wizard
- Recipient (To)
- Salutation
- About
- Body
- Free text
- Template
- Free text and templated text
- Sender (From)
- Standard sign off (valediction)
- Filename (optional)
- Generate letter
- Letter output
- Troubleshooting / FAQs
Letter Generator explained
Overview
The Letter Generator wizard allows you to quickly create bespoke letters to various entities (clients, suppliers, professional connections, referrers and power of attorney.
This article is intended to be read in conjunction with the help notes within the Letter Generator scenario wizard. Where we believe areas of the wizard are self-explanatory, we haven’t reproduced that here.
As always, though, we are open to feedback if anything needs to be clarified or included.
What is it?
The Letter Generator offers a quick and easy way of producing a personalised letter without having to use coding. In essence we’ve combined up to 40 pre-coded letter templates into one wizard for you. We’ve designed it to be easy for all to use. You simply make a series of selections and the wizard merges the client data and creates a personal letter.
Each letter is saved as a scenario allowing multiple users to collaborate before generating.
Letters can be linked to asset, pension, annuity or protection policies, inserting the relevant policy details as the title. Alternatively you can create your own non-policy related title.
- Styled
- Run for one entity at a time
- The format can reflect your brand (logo / colour / font)
- Branding options only need to be set once for consistent branding to support your style
- Logo alignment (left, centre, right)
- From address
- Footer alignment - which can include a logo (left, centre, right)
- Valediction (sign off) options can also be set once
- Signature image to be included
- Qualifications
- Job title
- Contact details
- Company name
- Populate linked policy details as title
- Free text, standard paragraphs or both for the body text
- Automatically selects Yours faithfully/sincerely
Key benefits
- Brings consistency to your letters
- Multiple users can collaborate in the scenario wizard
- Create letters to a range of recipients (clients, suppliers, professional connections, referrers & POAs)
- Select a specific type of address: residential, business, postal
- County automatically included on letters addressed outside of the UK
- Include standard or bespoke salutation
- Create letters from a range of senders (current user, other user,)
- Create letters on behalf of your clients eg. LOAs (client, partner ,joint)
- Alternative free text sign off when required (valediction), not just yours faithfully/sincerely
- Populate the file name of your letter in the output document
Smart Styling
The Letter Generator uses Smart Styling when generating the output. These settings are stored at User Group level in the Smart Styling Configuration Page.
It is here where you set the font, size and colour that is shared with all smart styled documents (fact finds, valuation reports, invoice).
Tip: Smart Styling is based on the Client Adviser’s primary user group. Regardless of the user group that the client is in, the styling will reflect the adviser’s primary user group.
Default Styling Settings
The Smart Styling - Letter Generator page is also located at User Group level, which means the options are selected once and are consistent for all users in that group, instead of users having to make the repeated selections on each letter.
Defaults have been set on all Xplan sites so you can start to use the Letter Generator immediately.
Tip: If using headed paper you can exclude the logo from letters but still keep it on other reports eg. fact finds, valuation reports and invoices.
Footer
Text or an image can be uploaded and is stored in User Group > Key Details > Themes > Xmerge logo 4 on the client adviser’s primary user group.
Scenario wizard
A scenario wizard creates a separate scenario (instance) for each letter, allowing multiple letters to be worked on simultaneously. This also allows multiple users to collaborate on a letter before it is generated.
Scenarios can be linked to an active case, acting as an audit trail for compliance purposes.
Scenarios can also be locked and only unlocked by a user with the relevant capabilities.
Tip: Click on Scenario Index in the menu to return to a full list of scenarios.
Recipient (To)
This section lets you choose which entity type you are writing to along with the relevant address.
Mark as Private and Confidential? Yes / No
Private and Confidential will be displayed above the recipient's address.
Who are you writing to? Clients, Supplier, Professional connections, Referrers, POA
Which address are you writing to?
- Preferred
- Residential - for clients only
- Postal - for clients only
- Business - for clients only
- Registered - for clients only
- Post - for clients only
- Settlement - for clients only
When writing to Supplier, Referrer and Professional Connection the 'Preferred' address and 'Address title' will be selected by default.
Only when writing to Clients (eg. client, partner, joint) you will have the option to select different addresses
Salutation
To whom are you writing? Client, Partner, Joint (only displays for clients)
Do you want to use the default salutation? Yes / No
- Yes uses the default salutation stored against the entity.
- No allows free text.
Options when writing to clients:
Options writing to a supplier, professional connection, referrer or POA:
About
Are you writing about a policy? Yes = Which policy type? No = Please enter letter subject
Writing about a policy:
Not writing about a policy:
Body
The body text is not compatible with Xplan Smart Styling as it is already configured as an HTML editor.
A default style of Calibri 11 has been preset, however, you can edit the options within the body by selecting your chosen font and size.
Free text
The body of the letter can be populated with free text, as in the example here:
Tip: Extend the body section of the wizard by dragging the image in the lower right corner.
Template
Standard paragraphs, known as Managed Field Content, can be inserted via the Template button.
Tip: Create the managed field content in your required font, size and colour to blend with your styling.
Free text and templated text
The templated text will be added after any existing text, ie. appended.
Sender (From)
Sender Choose from: Current user, Client adviser, Other user
or Client, Partner, Joint
Do you want to use the standard sign-off Yes / No
wording (eg. Yours sincerely/faithfully)?
Please enter the alternative sign-off Free text field if ‘No’ selected above
Sender options:
Standard sign off (valediction)
The letter generator has been coded to insert the standard sign off of Yours sincerely or Yours faithfully based on the salutation used:
- Dear name = Yours sincerely
- Dear Sirs = Yours faithfully
Using the standard sign-off:
Using alternative sign-off:
Filename (optional)
Please provide a filename Free text field, enter up to a maximum of 62 characters
The filename is visible in your download folder, making it easier to identify a specific letter.
It is also used as the filename of the letter in Word or PDF.
Tip: Using fullstops may shorten the filename.
Eg. using this as a filename: Aviva.Joint protection.A12345678.cover letter will not display the full filename.
As the filename is optional, it can be left blank and the letter will generate as the default name: ‘Clients Letter dated dd month yyyy.docx’
Generate letter
Once all the fields have been selected and the body text is finalised, simply click on Next to generate your letter.
- If you are writing about a policy, the relevant option to generate an asset, annuity, pension or insurance letter will be displayed.
- You can also generate the letter and save a copy as a Doc Note.
- In the above example select the Insurance Letter.
- A Variable Substitution pop-up is displayed.
- Click on the magnifying glass icon and select the policy from the drop-down list.
- Ok, Execute.
The letter will be sent to the Notification icon to be downloaded.
Letter output
The letter is compiled of the following:
Layout - default layout is portrait in Word format.
Logo **- optional.
From address** - optional.
Client address title - as saved in Client Focus.
Client address - as saved in Client Focus.
Salutation - as entered in the wizard on this occasion. Alternatively, as saved in Client Focus.
Title - relates to the protection policy selected in the variable substitution pop-up:
- Provider
- Product type
- Policy number
- Policy owners: client/partner/join names
Body text - as entered in the wizard, either as free text or templated text.
Sign off - as entered in the wizard on this occasion. Defaults to either Yours faithfully/sincerely.
Signature** - as saved against the relative user.
User name - as saved against the relative user.
Qualifications** - will display on the same line as the user name. Only generated if it exists against the user.
Job Title** - as saved against the relative user. Only generated if it exists against the user
Company name** - user group name.
Contact details** - preferred email and preferred telephone number as saved against the relative user.
Footer** - optional. As saved against Smart Styling
**As stored in Smart Styling - Letter Generator page.
Sample letter:
Troubleshooting / FAQs
- How do I include my own text?
There are two types of text you can include in the body of the letter, you can use one of them or a combination of both of them.
Here you have three options:
- You can add specific text for the client in your own words.
- You can use a templated paragraph (called “Managed Field Content”) which you can have set up for your team for use in the letter.. To set up standard wording for this purpose, see here.
- Or, you can have a combination of both - use a templated paragraph as a basis and tweak the wording as you see fit.
Whichever option you choose will only apply to the current client’s letter so you can tailor it to suit.
Tip: Templated text will be inserted after your free text, using the append option.
- How are branding styles updated?
Branding, specifically for the Letter Generator ,is updated on the Smart Styling - Letter Generator page which is stored at User Group level in Xplan.
Single site administrators will have access to this page.
Users on our Essentials sites should request the change via the Iress Connect portal > Essentials Site Services and select one of the following:
- Reports, letters and templates or
- Styling options
Iress will make the necessary changes on your behalf.
- How do I write to a POA?
The Power of Attorney (POA) must be recorded as an entity in order to generate letters via the Letter Generator.
Tip: When writing to a POA, the letter needs to be linked to a policy. Only when a policy is linked will the system recognise the entity as the client or partner and associate a linked POA.
