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Request Queue set up for multiple videos

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Level 5
Here's our issue: Our video team has two types of requests, a single video or multiple videos (usually for trade shows). Because there is no table functionality in the custom forms, users currently have to either upload an excel with the videos and their related fields (name, description, approvers, budget, tagging details, etc.) or open one request for each video. As you can imagine, people would prefer to just use an Excel. Does anyone have a use case implemented where a user requests that multiple videos be created as part of one ticket where each video has supporting details? Jazmin Allen-Collins Analog Devices, Inc.
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Level 3
Jazmin, As I understand it, a request can only be tied to one project. So my question would be, are you going to manage the multiple video requests as one project? If not, you would need them to submit separate requests for each video anyway. This is the problem we have come into with design campaigns. I can build a custom form that allows a user to select multiple deliverables (poster, monitor slide, invitation) but since I can only tie that request once to one project, it is not beneficial for me to allow them to submit one request for multiple items. I'd be interested to see what others have as a solution. Debbie Scalf BCBST

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Community Advisor
We've done a couple different things with items like this. We have an email form where the requester might have a main focus for the email then multiple secondary focuses - but we need all the same information for each focus. So we have a question for how many focuses will you have, say the select 3, then they get 3 sets of all the same fields. In your case maybe: name video 1, description video 1, approvers video 1, etc. then name video 2, description video 2, etc. This works real well for our creative team since all the information for that one email is all in one form. The problem with this is that reporting gets real messy if it's needed just because there are so many columns. Another thing we do for our photo studio that I think might apply better to your case - maybe. We get in requests for photos of multiple products (up to hundreds) from one requester. There's some basic information that we need pertaining to each requester, but then we also need information on each product to be shot (name, SKU, if they want additional angles shot, suggested keywords, etc). We have them go ahead and fill out the spreadsheet and upload it to their request. We then copy that product info into another Excel template that we have with additional info and we kickstart that spreadsheet into Workfront so every product becomes its own issue. Then each issue/product can run through our photography process individually. I'm guessing your multiple videos might be on slightly separate timelines even if they are for the same tradeshow. Once you have each one kickstarted into its own issue you could keep them under one project with a main schedule for all of them or you could convert them each to their own project with their own schedules.

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Level 10
We have a 4-person video department. We use a custom form that provides the technical details they need, but the creative brief is done via a kick off meeting and a Word document that summarizes the meeting and the decisions made about the creative direction. When there are multiple videos – ie right now we are creating 30 new videos for our website -- we use separate Word documents for each video and upload those for reference. Document naming is important so that they don't all say "Website Video Brief." I don't see anything wrong with uploading an Excel if that's easier for everyone. It's the same effort to look at that as the Custom Form. The main difference is you can't report on any of the fields if you need to sort and filter on types of videos being created.

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Level 6
Hi Jazmin, This is also an issue we face. And against my better judgement I have let some folks setup up duplicated numbered fields in their custom forms - one drop down field that says "how many videos do you need?" - and based off what you select you see the duplicated fields (e.g. "Video 2 - Title", "Video 2 - Target Length" etc.). As mentioned by Heather, this makes reporting more complicated. While it wouldn't totally solve this issue, one idea I had hoped to get more traction on was a concept of list objects in custom forms: https://experience.workfront.com/s/idea/0870z000000PSv4AAG/detail If you think it's a good idea, please take the time to give it a vote. Sean Sanders | London Drugs

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Level 4

Hi Jazmin, I just create the custom form as a "table". It is time consuming for the first creation but then it is done. Our business doesn't use video but I'm attaching a screen capture of what a custom form "table" can be. We also use drop down to give a many defined options to eliminate as many text field as possible. Dr. Rochelle L. Webb, CSM Sr. Project Manager, Project Management Office MHMR Tarrant County Ft. Worth, Texas 817-569-41460690z000007Zh1sAAC.jpg

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Level 10
Hi Jazmin, As an alternative to the build-your-own-grid approaches above, for one to many situations such as this, I invite you to consider using the Expense object, with a custom form to collect each rows different data, and the common data at the parent level (be it Issue, Task, or Project). Regards, Doug Doug Den Hoed - AtAppStore

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Level 5
Thanks everyone! These are all ideas I have considered, but was hoping someone had something else. The makeshift table idea would totally work (and we do it in other places), but there is a tagging component that mucks everything up. Each video requires product category, market solutions, and technology solutions tagging which is a series of fields and display logic that can't be replicated without cluttering the system and causing a very confusing UX. Hoping Workfront will come up with functionality where you can either do the tagging through the typeahead (one data source) and/or be able to duplicate fields in multiple sections without literally having to replicate. Jazmin Allen-Collins Analog Devices, Inc.

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Level 3
Doug, I haven't heard of using an Expense Object, but since you indicate it would resolve cases such as ours, can you provide an example of where you have used this, or even Workfront documentation on how to use Expense Objects with custom forms? Debbie Scalf BCBST

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Level 10
Certainly Debbie, The UseExpensesInsteadOfHardCodedGrids.png screenshot below: illustrates a solution I designed for an Oil & Gas Client several years ago, and uses the Expense object (which was officially designed to track costs ) to prove the desired 1:many (one row per expense item) relationship, which relate directly "under" a particular Project (in this case, but the same idea could be done under a Task or Issue), and happens to be templatized (e.g. all the expense rows "show up" when the Project is created from a certain Project), which effectively provides an ready and waiting quote of all possible items for the end user to then fill in as a Quote, and uses custom data at the expense level to capture a number of specific fields, such as Revenue Category (for grouping), Revenue Type (for sub grouping), Quoted Units ("how many?"), Book Rate (for standardized Price Book pricing), Override Rate (special deal as a $/unit instead of the Book Rate), Quoted Discount (special deal as a % off the Book Rate), Quoted Rate (a calculated field of the resulting Rate, after discounts), Quoted Amount (Quoted Units * Quoted Rate), and Lock Quote (Yes/No checkbox so the user can confirm particular rows as negotiations process) Negotiations then proceed and in time, all items are locked and the deal is struck, at which point we then used our "https://store.atappstore.com/product/magic-reports/" Magic Report solution to create a pdf of the quote for physical signatures (crude, but effective), the finalized pdf was then uploaded to Workfront for the record, and the resulting work (and in time, associated invoice...another Magic Report) was then scheduled and performed accordingly. Thanks for the stroll down memory lane. I hope it give you some ideas for your situation. Regards, Doug Doug Den Hoed - AtAppStore