Understanding Contact Types, Departments, and Prioritized Views in Shape

Contact Management

Understand how to track, update, and work every contact and file.

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Contact Types and Priority Views

Update Contact Relationship Types

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Referral Partner Management

Realtor Partner Portal Guide

Link Referral Partners and Providers

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Understanding Contact Types, Departments, and Prioritized Views in Shape

This video walks through how Shape organizes your data so you can work your leads, applications, loans, referral partners, and other contacts in a way that fits your workflow. Everything you see in the system, from record types to department views to prioritized lists, can be shaped around how your team operates day to day.

How Contact Types Work in Shape

In the mortgage template, you’ll see several contact types in the top left of your screen:

Mortgage contact types

Leads, applications, and loans represent borrower records. They move from one stage to the next automatically through pre-built triggers based on a borrower’s status. Referral partners are typically real estate agents, though they can also include attorneys, CPAs, and other service partners. Contacts is a flexible contact type that many lenders use for recruiting or general outreach.

You can use all of these or streamline the list based on the needs of your team.

Controlling Which Departments See Which Record Types

Shape allows you to decide which teams or departments see which contact types. This keeps each group focused on the work that matters to them.

For example:

Where to control this

Settings → Manage Users → Departments

Inside each department, you can control:

This lets you customize the experience for each role so every user sees a layout that fits their responsibilities.

Customizing Tabs by Department

Tabs across the top of a record are tied directly to the department a user belongs to. A loan officer might see tabs like:

But an LOA or processor might see a different set of tabs that better supports their workflow.

Admins can switch between departments to preview how these layouts look and adjust them as needed.

Prioritization Rules: The Heart of Your Lead Organization

Prioritization rules let you build custom views that segment your contacts in a meaningful way. These rules decide the order of records in your list views and which contacts appear in each segment.

Where to find prioritization rules

Settings → Search "Prioritization Rules"

Each contact type can have multiple views. For example, Applications may have:

You can add a new pipeline view at any time.

Pull Queue vs List View

When creating a new view, you can choose between:

List View

Shows all records in a list. The user chooses which record to open next.
This is the most common option.

Pull Queue View

Automatically pulls the next record when the user clicks into the view.
This is often used for shark tanks or call sessions where speed matters.

Creating Your Own Segments

You can create custom list views for almost any purpose. A common example is Leads by Source.

You can customize:

Sorting options often used in contact strategies include:

You can choose whether the view applies to everyone or only specific users, teams, or departments.

Locking or Unlocking Columns

You can choose whether the columns in a view are fixed or editable.

Locked columns keep the view consistent for everyone.
Unlocked columns allow users to rearrange or select their own columns.

This is helpful if you want tighter control over high-priority views or specialized workflows like credit monitoring.

Building Rule Segments Inside a View

Each segment in a prioritized view represents a filtered portion of the list.

For example:

You can layer multiple rules together using:

You can reorder segments to prioritize the ones that matter most.

Once the rules are saved, the view appears in your dropdown, and users will only see the records they have permission to access.

A Real Example: Creating a Leads by Source View

The video walks through building two segments:

1. Customer Portal Leads

2. Lead Aggregators

Once saved, the view loads in your list dropdown and is available to the users you selected.

Helping You Build a Clean Lead Strategy

Shape gives you flexibility to structure your data exactly how you want it. Whether you’re customizing contact types, building department workflows, or creating detailed prioritized views, the system adapts to your process.

If you need support designing the best contact strategy for your team or want help fine tuning your views, let us know.