We are pleased to announce the release of our newest application, Geopointe. Geopointe integrates Force.com with Google Maps and MapQuest and is the premier Force.com geo/mapping solution providing numerous ways for end-users, administrators and developers to take advantage of geo data and maps.

Highlights of Geopointe include (but is not limited to):

• Map any Salesforce object
• Perform proximity searching (show me what’s nearby me)
• Create custom data sets (queries), both personal and public ones
• Export your results to CSV (Excel) or KML (Google Earth)
• Obtain multi-point driving directions
• The Visualizer helps create dashboard-like summaries of your data
• Automated, Scheduled Geocoding processes your data at 1000+ records per minute
• Get cleansed address data
• Contains an “API” with global Apex methods, Visualforce Components and the ability to extend the application using custom buttons.
• All existing Arrowpointe Maps customers get a free license transfer to Geopointe for the same user count and expiration date as their current license with a goal to get users off of Arrowpointe Maps and onto Geopointe.

To learn more, you can:

• Visit the AppExchange Listing
• Visit the product page on our website
• Visit the YouTube Channel
• Follow us on Twitter
• “Like” Arrowpointe on Facebook

Salesforce just announced an update to AppExchange where they designate apps as “Aloha Apps”.  Aloha Apps are a new “all-you-can-app” category of apps that don’t count against customer org limits (apps/tabs/objects), no matter which salesforce.com edition you’re using.

A number of Arrowpointe applications are in the Aloha category.

• Arrowpointe Maps – map your Salesforce data!
• Auto vCard – Import a record (e.g. lead or contact) into your local address book with 1 click.
• Spam Check – Stop Spam from entering your Salesforce system and wasting your users’ time.

If you install any of the above apps, they will not count towards your app/object/tab limits:

Links to the Arrowpointe AppExchange listings are below:

• Arrowpointe Maps
• Auto vCard
• Spam Check
• Info Center
• User Adoption Dashboard

Thank you for your feedback!

I presented on a number of Arrowpointe Products as well as some 3rd party ones that, over the years, I have come to really appreciate.  I included apps that are both free and ones I consider well worth the money.  The list is not exhaustive and there are lots of good candidates.  For 3rd party apps, I tried to pick ones that were useful to all Salesforce Customers and not ones that were focused on specific business processes or technologies to be integrated with.  That pares down the list quite a bit.

If you are interested, you can download my slides.  For each app I presented on, there are links on the slides to learn more about them.

Thank you San Diego User Group for being a great group to present to and I hope to make it down that way again soon!

The changes most applicable to end users are:

• Search Nearby now includes the ability to start from an arbitrary address.  The Other Tools section of the front page now has a “Search Nearby” link.  This link will let you search for a Lead, Account or Contact or you can manually enter an address.  When in the midst of a Search Nearby process, clicking the Start Over button will also bring you to this page.
• You can now assign specific icons/colors to your Data Sets.  Edit your Data Set and select a Data Set Image.  You can see the image used for each Data Set by viewing your list of Data Sets in the Admin Area of the application.
• The Company/Account Name is automatically included for Lead/Contact Search Nearby searches.
• The first 3 fields configured for a Data Set will now appear in the table of results.  All configured fields still appear in the map marker bubble on the map.
• Search Nearby queries now allow you to use decimal amounts for a range (e.g. 0.25 miles)
• Number fields on Map Pages now accept decimal amounts.
• You can now see a list of the records that failed to map.  On a result set, you currently see something like “29 of 30 records successfully mapped”.  If there is an errored record, a link that says “Show Unmappable Records” will appear and you can click it to see a list of the records that did not map properly.
• The Color Markers By parameter now saves with each Map Report run and will be automatically set for users when that report is mapped the next time.
• The Language and Unit of Measure (miles vs. kilometers) on the Routing screen are now saved as a user preference.
• The last Data Set, Range and Unit of Measure (miles vs. kilometers) used in a Search Nearby query are now saved as a user preference.
• Improved performance on the initial load of the Routing screen.  This improvement also fixes the issue with IE6 and its sporadic inability to load routed records.

NOTE: This upgrade was automatically completed for all users.  It does not require any changes to the AppExchange installation.

About Arrowpointe Maps

Arrowpointe Maps is an on-demand mapping platform that facilitates a conversation between Salesforce.com & MapQuest allowing for easy deployment of mapping capabilities in your organization and providing end-users a simple means for mapping their data. Arrowpointe Maps is configurable and can be tailored to your organization, so that your users can work with their information in a meaningful way.

The official location for information on Arrowpointe Maps is its product page at http://www.arrowpointe.com/maps. There, you will find answers to the most frequently asked questions, screencasts and links to its AppExchange page.

Click the image below is see a demo of the functionality in action.

About Arrowpointe Maps

Arrowpointe Maps is an on-demand mapping platform that facilitates a conversation between Salesforce.com & MapQuest allowing for easy deployment of mapping capabilities in your organization and providing end-users a simple means for mapping their data. Arrowpointe Maps is configurable and can be tailored to your organization, so that your users can work with their information in a meaningful way.

The official location for information on Arrowpointe Maps is its product page at http://www.arrowpointe.com/maps. There, you will find answers to the most frequently asked questions, screencasts and links to its AppExchange page.

Click here to get started.

The changes most applicable to end users are:

• Released the new “Search Nearby” feature to allow for proximity searching.  This has been the #1 requirement from users since the day the application went live.  Search near any Lead, Account, Contact, Opportunity or Case and look for other Leads/Accounts/Contacts within a user-provided proximity.
  • Leads, Accounts, Contacts can all be included on the map at the same time.
  • Supports the ability to search within subsets of Leads/Accounts/Contacts that your administrator pre-defines (e.g. “Our Customers”, “Our Service Centers”, “Gold Partners”, etc.)
  • Use miles or kilometers
  • Ties into the Routing module
  • Future blog posts will explain this functionality in more depth and also provide video demonstrations.
  • IMPORTANT NOTE:  This functionality requires an update to your AppExchange package and Salesforce has not yet published this update on AppExchange.  Until they do, the feature has been disabled in Arrowpointe Maps so that users can’t click on things and get errors.  Once Salesforce publishes the updated package, this feature will be enabled.  When that happens, a new blog post will be published, an email will be sent to all admins and a note will be displayed at the top of the application front page.
• Support for multi-select picklist fields on Map Pages.
• Users can specify multiple filter criteria for a single field on a Map Page.  This applies to any text, picklist or multi-picklist field.  Values should be separated with a semi-colon.
• Added a Default Country value for every customer.  This feature will allow every organization to specify a country for Arrowpointe Maps to assume their data is in unless it is specifically entered on the record.  This can be edited on the Org Info page in the Admin area.
• Translate your country values to valid ISO country values when searching for data in the Routing screen.  This helps ensure better accuracy in geocoding.
• Fixed a bug occurring in Internet Explorer 6 where the records selected to route were not being pre-populated on the routing page.
• Added a “Remove from Map” option inside the map marker bubbles.
• Added a confirmation before removing a record from the map.
• Added an “Add To Route” icon to the data table.  This eliminates the need for users to open the map marker bubble for every record that needs adding to a route.

About Arrowpointe Maps

Arrowpointe Maps is an on-demand mapping platform that facilitates a conversation between Salesforce.com & MapQuest allowing for easy deployment of mapping capabilities in your organization and providing end-users a simple means for mapping their data. Arrowpointe Maps is configurable and can be tailored to your organization, so that your users can work with their information in a meaningful way.

The official location for information on Arrowpointe Maps is its product page at http://www.arrowpointe.com/maps. There, you will find answers to the most frequently asked questions, screencasts and links to its AppExchange page.

If you are an admin using Arrowpointe Maps, you’ll see a warning at the top of the screen like below:

To upgrade, simply:

1. Go to AppExchange and click Get It Now. You DO NOT need to uninstall the old version.
2. Follow the prompts on the screen to sign in and install the application as you install any other application. The screen will indicate it’s an upgrade.
3. Once completed, you should add the new Map Reports and Routing tabs to the Arrowpointe Maps custom application so that your users can access that functionality directly. If you don’t do this final step, they can still access this functionality from the front page of Arrowpointe Maps.

Submit a Case from the application’s front page if you have any problems.