What are Key Fields?
Key fields in Civic Review designate specific fields that will serve specific purposes within the software. They ensure that applications are labeled correctly and that applicants are properly notified via email or mail when needed.
Why Do I Need to Define Key Fields?
Your application won't work unless the key fields for "Identifying Field" and "Contact Email" are designated.
Identifying Field:
When assigning an application question as the "Identifying Field" you're selecting what you'd like that type of license labeled as in your staff portal. For instance you might select street address as the identifying field for a building project, the business name for a business license, and the dog name for a dog license. This key field is in charge of displaying the name of the application.
Changing the identifying field of an existing application type won't automatically alter existing records. This means that any records created before the change will still use the original identifying field. However, if you edit that identifying field within an individual application, it will trigger an update to the underlying name associated with that record.
For example, if you were to change the identifying field from "business name" to "DBA" (which is generally not recommended), the name used to identify a business license record would only change if the DBA information within the application data is also modified. This means that any existing records that were created using the "business name" field would continue to use that field unless explicitly updated.
It's important to note that altering the settings for other key fields will not have any impact on past or future data. This means that any changes made to these fields will only apply to new records created after the modification.
Contact Email:
"Contact Email" is the other required key field for all applications. This field is extremely important since applicants are notified via email regarding all matters that require their attention or action. Many times the application gathers several different emails (ex. business email, contractor email, owner email, applicant email, etc..). In the key fields you designate which of these fields is the "Contact Email" where all messages regarding the application should be sent. Once selected, this email will appear in the "Permit Overview" section of the permit page.
Other Key Fields:
There are other key fields for mailing and billing addresses. These are not required for the form to function, but can help to identify the applicant's correct address information if you need to display it on certificates, documents, or reports.
Defining or Updating Key Fields:
Interested in defining or updating key fields in your forms? Check out this help article on Defining Key Fields: