What are the best "client relationship management" (CRM) tools for an individual?

Microsoft Outlook is the best personal CRM software package: office.microsoft.com/en-us/outlook/defau..." rel="nofollow">office.microsoft.com/en-us/outlook/defau... Specifically: Outlook allows you to create custom hyperlinked fields to link things like a LinkedIn profile, their website, etc. Outlook has a large field for misc notes on each contact. Outlook also has a handy "journal" that I use a lot.In short, it is very easy to record quick notes on conversations. They will be automatically time & date coded and link everything to a specific contact.

Outlook syncs with everything. Transparently, you can access the exact same contact information on your desktop, laptop, mobile phone, etc. I also like this addon: identafone.com/cidpop.html When a call comes in, the full contact information pops up on your screen. This is really handy in a small business scenario because every client will start to feel like you know them personally if you keep good records.

Outlook is included with many versions of Microsoft Office. There is a free trial (60 day) version at: office.microsoft.com/en-us/outlook/defau..." rel="nofollow">office.microsoft.com/en-us/outlook/defau... Alone, it costs $109 although I've seen it for as low as $69 at campus bookstores.

Salesforce. Com (if you want the CRM to be in the "cloud"). If you are using a mac, then you could also use Bento.

Civicrm. Its open source, free and php based. Check out the site: civicrm.org/ I think it has all the features you would need.

Plus some.

When it comes down to CRM Tools, the choices available can be a daunting task. On the one hand, it's the tendency of management to have a robust, more reporting you could ever need, grow into CRM Software program with all the bells and whistles. The problem with these systems is that the more difficult you make it for the salespeople to use, the more trouble you are asking for when it's time to buy into using the software.

The last thing you want is to invest serious money into a system like Siebel onDemand and have your salespeople not use the darn thing. The most important thing is to make sure that you involve the line in the decision making in the early stages. Have a meeting and ask them what features would make their jobs easier in their next CRM Software.

This doesn't have to be a long drawn out meeting, but you need to convey to the people that will be using the software on a day to day basis that you are going to pick a software program that fits their needs, but also the needs of management. In other words, it's going to be a win/win for the whole group. But, as far as making the decision, it really depends on what the primary needs of your salespeople are.

I don't care what anyone says, the real value of CRM Software is for the salespeople, and too often they are left out of the process. If your salespeople are pure business developers and they hand leads off to account managers to close, then you need to equip them with a solid lead management software without too many bells and whisles. If you are using the software for customer service reps, you want to give them a solution that is easy to understand and encourage the actions that you want them to take after they speak with customers.

Let's face it, it's a nice thought to have a customer service rep use all the features in a CRM Software but don't overwhelm them. Have your programmer give them limited screens to work through and then add more as they progress. The last thing you want to do is overwhelm them with a robust contact management solution, run them through a 4 hour training session, and then have them lost in the software program.

Start slow, add more, and then tweak as needed. So, hopefully that will help you finding the right CRM Tools for your business. The most important thing to remember is that the buy in for the salespeople is huge and should not be overlooked when picking the solution that's right for your business.

We are offering our CRM suite Free Edition without cost and you can use it. It is NOT trial edition. It is fully functional and no time limit.

We have Sales Management that includes lead qualification, opportunity management (sales stage/probability), sales forecasting, chart and reporting. And you can generate quotation automatically because our Sales Management is tightly integrated with Product Management. Contact Management.

We also offer Calendar Management, with powerful scheduling. You can set event such as "Touch base with existing customers on the first week day of every month". And yes, it supports RSVP too.

Our new offering: Marketing Blog is especially useful. Our existing users is delighted that we add this. It allows them to blog their product/services update, creating product awareness and allowing them to interact with their customers.

Please visit our website: http://www.borneosoft.com Regards, Luke.

WEB BASED CRM - InfusionSoft Voted Best Web Based CRM for 2008 by SmallBizCRM Excellent web based CRM solution for small to medium companies seeking a comprehensive, reliable CRM tool. Awarded the prestigious 2007 CRM Excellence Award for “Top Small Business Marketing Software� , InfusionCRM tracks all your information in one consolidated CRM system.

InfusionCRM provides support for shopping cart and sales transactions, auto-responders, product information, customer details, order history, payment plans, marketing sequences and responses, lead tracking and progression, Skype integration and more. Their impressive offering and user base did not go unnoticed - Pat Sullivan, former founder and CEO of ACT! And SalesLogix, has now joined their Board Of Directors!

What also made me sit up was when I noticed mails coming to me from the likes of Palo Alto (makers of BusinessPlanPro, the definitive business planning software) and Perry Marshall, the Google Adwords PPC guru, using InfusionCRM. InfusionSoft also produce an excellent Real Estate Agent CRM solution, MortgageProCRM. TOP CONTACT MANAGERS & PIM's - iContact Pro .

IContact Voted Best Online Contact Managers by SmallBizCRM #1 For The Serious eMail Marketer Formerly Intellicontact PRO, iContact PRO is remarkable web-based contact manager / email marketing software combined that really gets the balance right. If your business involves the regular sending out of eMail newsletters, this polished, value-for-money software will form an essential part of your marketing arsenal. You can manage your email marketing campaigns and any sales lead follow-up's that result.

Their affordable pricing structure depends on the size of your mail list and starts from only $9.95 per month.

I use SugarCRM - it's open source, web based. A bit overwhelming at first but very useful and has room to grow. I run a small web design/conferencing firm and it suits our needs very well with minimum investment of time & $$.

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