As a business owner, you have a lot on your shoulders. There is a lot of paperwork to deal with and there are many problems to resolve, and this is the case both within the company and with the external individuals and organisations that you come across in your business dealings. You may feel that you need to put so much time into the mundane management tasks that you have hardly any time or energy left to put into your business, to make a real difference to your employees, to build a relationship with others or to truly influence the success of your company. If that is how you are feeling, you’ll be glad to know that there are many advanced technological solutions that you can apply in your businesses processes that will make your work a lot less repetitive, make a more efficient use of your time, and take off a little pressure from your weary shoulders. One such software solution is that of contact management. To learn more about this application, keep reading! In this article, you will discover what this software solution is, why it is important, why it’s a good idea for your business and how you can choose the right platform for you. Future proof your business, simplify your processes, and make better use of your time by implementing technology. Let’s dive right in!
What is Contact Management Software?
A contact management software program gives you to power to easily store and locate various pieces of contact information that you need to store for business purposes. You can collect and retain information like names, addresses, telephone numbers, email addresses and other useful data in one easy to access central location. This database can be easily updated too, meaning you lower the risk of holding outdated, irrelevant information. Yet, more than simply being a glorified address book, contact management software does more to track the sales progress of the contacts, monitoring their progression in the pipeline. It can track and record interactions with the customers, including their phone calls, emails and in person or virtual meetings. This is a valuable way of determining potential customers and monitoring opportunities to make a sale.
You may be thinking this sounds a lot like a customer relationship management system and in essence you would be right. While the two are similar, contact management being a subset of CRM, they are not quite equivalent. Contact management applications have a broader spectrum of capabilities in the way they can assist sales reps in recording new contacts and their conversations with them.
Benefits of a Contact Management System
There are various advantages that are causing more and more people to implement a contact management solution in their business. Some of them are as follows:
* There is a centralised platform for all contact information.
* Business can benefit from an easy to use database with helpful search functionalities.
* You have the ability to track sales on a customer level.
* It is possible to integrate with email platforms in order to track and record email conversations.
* Appointments and meetings can all be scheduled from this one system.
* Documents related to the customer and their sales are recorded and linked.
* Notes can be added, and conversations can be recorded to enhance the quality of the contact data recorded.
* Fields can be customised to suit the needs of the particular business that is using the system.
* There is the ability to import and export data meaning that the transition to such a system is made a lot easier and the data is easily accessible if needed elsewhere.
* Contacts can be shared and everyone in the business has access to the information they need in order to drive sales.
Why Is Contact Management Software Important?
The benefits listed above just prove how advantageous a contact management system is. However, do you really need one? Why is it important? One major element that makes it worthwhile is the way that it improves workflow for sales teams, sales managers and marketers alike. Sales team can easily integrate and work with other departments as they prospect for new customers. As they work more closely with the marketing team to develop effective advertising strategies, contact management system allows for improved communication and a better workflow. The sales team can spend less time emailing, following up and scheduling and more time selling. The lives of sales managers are also made a lot easier as they can check on the progress and effectiveness of their team and monitor how each team member is doing in regard to their sales goals. The daily tasks of sending out reports and scheduling meetings can be done automatically so that sales managers can put more time into sales strategies and team building and training. Marketers can also feel the benefits as their role involves tracking the success of their marketing campaigns. Contact management systems shed light on which tactics are working and which ones need to be changed. With this kind of insightful information, marketers have the knowledge they need to ramp up their approach and get more business.
How to Find the Right Contact Management Software for You
With how successful contact management technology has proven to be, there are a multitude of options out there for you to choose from. When it comes to finding one for your business, it can feel a little daunting and overwhelming. Therefore, it’s important to have your clear business goals in mind so that you can find a solution that fits your ambitions. Decide on specific features that your business needs in order to grow and look for the technology that will help you to achieve that. Do your research, read up on solutions and their respective user reviews. Sample a few different options, see the systems in action and put in the time and effort to make a good decision. It will be worth it in the end!
