Search and Organization
Find clients quickly using search, understand sorting, and organize with tags
Overview
The Clients page provides powerful search and filtering capabilities to help you quickly locate specific clients among hundreds or even thousands of records. Combined with smart default sorting and visual organization through tags, you can efficiently manage and access your client database.
The search system works in real-time, filtering results as you type, and searches across multiple fields simultaneously to ensure you find what you're looking for regardless of what information you remember about a client.
Search Functionality
How to Search
The search bar is located at the top of the Clients page, in the action bar above the client list. Simply click into the search field and start typing to filter your client list in real-time.
- Instant filtering as you type
- Case-insensitive search (searches work regardless of capitalization)
- Partial matching (finds results containing your search term)
- Multi-field search (searches across multiple data points simultaneously)
Tip: You don't need to remember exact names or complete information. Typing a partial word or even a few characters will show all matching results.
Searchable Fields
The search system checks your search term against multiple client fields, making it easy to find clients based on any piece of information you remember:
- Name: Client or contact name
- Email: Email address
- Phone: Phone number
- Company: Company or organization name
- Tags: All tags associated with the client
- Search "john": Finds clients named John, companies like "Johnson LLC", emails like john@example.com
- Search "555": Finds all phone numbers containing 555
- Search "acme": Finds "Acme Corporation" in company field or "acme@email.com" in email
- Search "vip": Finds all clients tagged with "VIP"
- Search "@gmail": Finds all Gmail email addresses
Note: Address fields (street, city, state, country) are NOT currently searchable through the search bar. Use tags to mark clients by location if you need to search by geography.
Search Results Display
As you type in the search field, the client list immediately updates to show only matching results. The counter at the bottom of the list updates to show how many clients match your search.
- "Showing 47 of 47 clients" - No search active, showing all clients
- "Showing 3 of 47 clients" - Search is active, 3 clients match your search term
- "Showing 0 of 47 clients" - No clients match the current search
Tip: If your search returns too many results, add more characters to narrow it down. If you get no results, try searching for a smaller portion of the term.
Clearing Search
To clear the search and return to viewing all clients, simply delete all text from the search field. The client list will immediately refresh to show all records.
Client List Sorting
Default Sort Order
The client list is automatically sorted with the most recently updated clients appearing first. This ensures that clients you've worked with recently are always easy to find at the top of the list.
- Primary sort: updatedAt timestamp (most recent first)
- Fallback: createdAt timestamp if updatedAt doesn't exist
- Second fallback: Appears in creation order if no timestamps available
Practical Effect: When you edit a client's information (contact details, address, notes), that client moves to the top of the list. This makes it easy to find clients you're actively working with.
What Affects Sort Position
Understanding what moves a client to the top of the list helps you predict where to find specific clients:
- Editing client name, email, phone, or other contact info
- Updating client address
- Modifying tags
- Changing notes
- Any save operation in the Edit Client modal
- Viewing client details
- Creating orders for the client
- Completing orders
- Changes to order amounts (revenue updates)
Note: Order-related activities update client statistics but not the sort position. Only direct edits to the client profile affect the updatedAt timestamp.
Search Result Sorting
When you perform a search, the filtered results maintain the same sort order. This means even within search results, the most recently updated matching clients appear first.
Organizing with Tags
Tag System Overview
Tags provide a flexible way to categorize and organize clients. Unlike rigid categories, tags allow each client to have multiple classifications, making them more versatile for different organizational needs.
- Multiple tags per client (unlimited)
- Comma-separated entry format
- Fully searchable through the search bar
- Visual display with colored badges
- Easy to add, edit, or remove
Tag Display in Different Views
Tags are displayed differently depending on the view mode to optimize space and readability:
- Shows first 2 tags as purple badges
- Displays "+N" indicator if more than 2 tags exist
- Tags appear below the client name and company
- Example: "VIP", "Wholesale" +2
- Shows first 3 tags as purple badges
- More space allows for one additional tag compared to table view
- No "+N" indicator shown (more space available)
- Shows ALL tags with no limit
- Tags section clearly labeled
- All tags displayed as purple badges in rows
Effective Tag Strategies
Developing a consistent tagging strategy makes finding and organizing clients much more effective:
- Priority: VIP, Priority, Standard
- Type: Wholesale, Retail, Individual, Business
- Industry: Educational, Medical, Engineering, Architecture
- Status: Active, Inactive, Potential
- Payment: Net30, Prepaid, Credit
- Location: Local, Regional, International
- Special: Repeat Customer, First Time, Referral
Tip: Establish your tag naming conventions early and document them. For example, decide whether to use "VIP" or "Very Important" and stick with it consistently across all clients.
Searching by Tags
Tags are fully integrated into the search system, making it easy to find all clients with specific tags:
- Search "VIP" - Shows all clients tagged as VIP
- Search "wholesale" - Finds all wholesale clients
- Search "edu" - Finds clients with tags like "Educational", "Education", etc.
- Search "repeat" - Finds clients tagged as repeat customers
Note: Because tags are comma-separated, searching for a partial tag name will find all clients with tags containing that text, even if it's not the complete tag name.
View Mode Options
Table vs Card View
The Clients page offers two view modes, each optimized for different use cases. Toggle between them using the view buttons in the action bar (next to the search field).
- Compact display showing many clients at once
- Organized in columns: Client, Contact, Orders, Revenue, Actions
- Best for scanning through large client lists
- Easier to compare statistics across clients
- Shows first 2 tags per client
- Displays clients as individual cards in a grid
- More visual space for each client
- Better for browsing when you know approximately who you're looking for
- Shows more tags (first 3) and contact details
- Responsive grid adapts to screen size (1-3 columns)
Tip: Your view mode preference is saved per session. If you prefer card view, it will remain selected until you switch back or close your browser.
Switching Views
The view toggle buttons are located in the action bar at the top of the Clients page, between the search field and the "+ Add Client" button. Click either button to switch views instantly.
- Table Icon: Grid lines icon switches to table view
- Card Icon: Grid squares icon switches to card view
- Active view button is highlighted in blue
- Inactive button is gray
Best Practices
Develop Tag Standards Early: Before you have many clients, establish a tagging system and document it. Consistent tags make searching and filtering exponentially more effective as your client base grows.
Use Search, Don't Scroll: For client databases with more than 20 clients, use the search function rather than scrolling. It's faster and more reliable, especially when you only remember partial information.
Tag New Clients Immediately: Add relevant tags when creating a client rather than trying to go back and tag them later. This ensures your organizational system stays current.
Leverage Multiple Search Terms: If you can't remember a client's exact name, try searching for their company, email domain, phone area code, or tags. The multi-field search will find them.
Choose the Right View Mode: Use table view when you need to compare statistics or scan many clients quickly. Use card view when you want to browse with more visual context or need to see more contact details at once.
Periodically Review Tags: As your business evolves, review your tag categories every few months. Update or consolidate tags that are no longer useful or that have become redundant.