One of the things that makes fantastic salespeople different from average salespeople is effective follow-up. We've all seen the stats and we know the numbers, the average sale takes 6 contacts but the average salesperson stops at 2. How could this be? It seems pretty obvious that if you keep in touch with prospects that it will result in more business for you and your company. What holds salespeople back though? If they know that more touches are needed, then why would they start over trying to get into a new door when the statistics say they are still on the right track?. My thoughts are that it might be because it's so difficult to keep track of who and when you talked to and that is exactly what a contact management software is for.

CRM software is a program that makes it easier for salesman to effectively followup on their leads. There are many options available for contact management software. You can buy the software for install on your own server, use a web based hosted crm solution, or you could even try one of the many open source crm software options. Obviously, each one of these has it's good points and bad points, but the important thing is that salespeople are using a solution that will get them on the track of having a system for following up on their leads and prioritizing them.

A very popular option in the last few years has been the web based crm solution. This is popular for many different reasons. As we all know, the salesman's job is to be on the road and visiting customers as much as possible so it's vital that they have access to all their records. Hosted CRM solutions let them do that. As working from home becomes more popular, more are opting to do as much work as possible from the comfort of their own home. First off, it gives the salesperson more flexiblity in how they manage their day. Being in sales means that salesperson needs to be on the road most of the day. Being on the road means that they need to stick around the office to fill out their call notes when they would much rather go home to their family and complete their notes from their home on their time. For managers, it's nice because salespeople can still be productive if they are at home with a sick child or if they just want to work from home for one day.

Small businesses are also figuring out that CRM is just as important to their business as a Fortune 500 company. As owners look to grow their business rapidly, they look to contact management solutions to aide in that growth and make it as efficient as possible to stay in touch with important prospects. Many CRM Software companies have seen this trend and have come out with programs specifically geared at small businesses, even ones that require just one user for a nominal monthly fee. To be able to followup with key contacts is so important to the growth of many of these small businesses.

So if you are in the middle of deciding whether or not the cost of a business contact manager can be justified. A good way to look at it is by thinking about what 1 additional customer per year would mean to your business. CRM allows salespeople to have a spot where they can come in and check their records for the day and get more accomplished because they have a clear head. It also allows managers and owners to plan their pipeline as they can see new opportunities coming from salespeople everyday. Besides the big benefits, you can even use the software to remember things like anniversaries or important dates to the customer. What better reminder that you care about your customers than by sending a card on their birthday? Those little things make a big difference and are just some of the reasons that a good contact manager can be valuable to your company.