Since September 2018, EBD Group is using its new version of partneringONE to manage meetings at their conferences.
We have updated the EBD Meeting Import capability accordingly, improving its look and feel while also ensuring that it continues to work with this new partneringONE.

This article will explain how it works now and give you some tips and tricks to save time during and after the conference.

How does it work?

You can now quickly and easily import all your EBD meetings into your Inova Classic application in a few steps.

Export EBD data

The first step is to retrieve the data via an export from partneringONE.

1. Go to the "Requests" tab.
2. Click on "Download" to get an Excel file of your meetings.

Please do not apply any filters before exporting your file or the file conversion will fail.

Only the Excel file exported from the "Requests" tab can be imported into Inova.
Be aware that the file exported from the "Agenda" tab is different and cannot be imported.

Convert your EBD Excel file

To make sure your EBD Excel file is in a supported format, please do the following:

1. Download the Excel file named "Convert EBD File to Inova Meetings Import.xlsm".
2. Open this Excel file.
3. If you get a warning message indicating that protected view is activated, please click on the Enable Editing button.
4. If a Security Risk banner appears, that is because macros from the internet are now blocked by default in Office.
   To unblock macros, here is what to do:
   • Close your Excel file,
   • Right-click on your Excel file,
   • Click on Properties,
   • Go to the General tab,
   • Select the Unblock checkbox
5. Then, if you get a security warning indicating that macros have been disabled, please click on the Enable Content button.
6. Once the macros are activated, please click on the convert button, browse your computer's folders/files and select your EBD Excel file.
7. Your Excel file is now ready to be imported into your Inova Classic application!

Create a new conference

Then, go to your Inova Classic application and create a new conference.

Import EBD data

Once the conference created, go to the "Meetings" tab and click on the "Import meetings" button.

If the "Import meetings" button is not visible, press Ctrl + F5 to force a cache refresh.
If the button is still not visible after this, please contact your Customer Success Manager.

Then you just have to upload (or drag and drop) the Excel file previously exported from partneringONE.

The Excel file will be analyzed in seconds and you will then be asked to choose which meetings you want to import.

1. The Excel file exported from partneringONE.
2. Total number of meetings ready to be imported into your Inova Classic application.

Even if your Excel file includes all the meetings (i.e. including those that are "Requested", "Declined" or "Canceled"), only "Scheduled" and "Rescheduled" meetings will be proposed for the import into Inova.

3. People from your company who attend meetings but who are not yet a contact in your Inova Classic application.
   If you click on "Map contacts", the attendees will be automatically created as internal contacts in you Inova Classic application.
   However, the email address will not be filled in because it does not exist in the EBD export file.
4. Choose to import some or all of the meetings from your company.

Best practices

If you are going to attend one of the EBD group conferences soon, here are some tips and tricks to save time.

Save your meeting notes right after the conference

1. Export all your meetings from partneringONE the day before the conference.
2. Filter the Excel file to keep only the scheduled meetings you will attend.
3. During your meetings, take notes in the "Message stream" column of the Excel file.
   
   • If you want to import the messages exchanged in partneringONE, write your notes before the messages (press Alt + Enter to start a new line in the cell).
   • If you do not need to import messages, you can simply replace them with your notes.
4. After the conference, import all your EBD meetings and notes into your Inova Classic application via the Excel file.
   Your notes will be added in the "Description" field of your meeting in your Inova Classic application.

Please note that :

• If you upload the Excel file again, the meetings will be updated in your Inova Classic application with the new data from the Excel file.
• If in your Excel file you have modified the list of participating companies, know that a new meeting will be created in your Inova Classic application.

Organize your conference follow-ups efficiently

Once you have imported your meetings, you can prioritize them by defining the outcome of the discussion.
By doing so, you can easily plan your follow-up efforts according to the level of interest of the potential partner.

Using the “Edit Page” button, you can also easily transform your meeting list into an editable format. You will be able to type up your notes and define all the follow-up actions on one page!