How organized is your address book?

In addition to listing a bunch of names and numbers, does the list also help you track your interactions with those contacts (leads, website activity, etc.)?

The answers to these questions are important because your contact list – and how you use it – is the most important factor in your success. The way you interact with a potential client doesn’t mean anything unless you’re able to know when to interact with them.

This is where customer relationship management (CRM) comes in.

Organizing your contacts is essential, but by integrating a CRM with your address book, you’re able to capitalize on those contacts. 

Here’s what you need to know about how to integrate your address book with a CRM and why you need to start now. 

Why Should You Integrate a CRM with Your Address Book?

Your address book should have the basic details of your contacts, like their contact information, name, email, etc. It’s a great organizational tool, and if it’s anything like the Contact+ app, it should make your life easier by automatically updating your contacts’ information, so nothing is dated or stale. 

But if you’re going to build on that relationship, you’ll want a sophisticated system that tells you more things like the actions they take on your website, whether or not they’re opening your emails, and your previous interactions with them. 

The result is a more developed profile of your key contacts, which will allow you to engage with them in more meaningful ways. 

Here are some other advantages a CRM offers when integrated with your address book. 

Insight Into Your Contacts’ “Story”

Everyone has a story, and you need to know how to interact with that person’s story, even if it’s different from yours. Relating to each contact helps you understand how to help them. Your CRM lets you tap into contact information based on different factors, such as:

• If they’re current clients or leads
• If you’ve contacted them already
• If you have had multiple interactions 
• What stage they are in the buyer’s journey (i.e., just a prospect or you have a contract out with them waiting for signature) 

You can use your CRM to tag your contacts based on these various qualifiers, allowing you to easily pull lists of your contacts that have the same characteristics so you can send them personalized emails. Information like this helps you plan your strategy on when to contact individuals for the best possible chance of success.

Access to What Your Contacts are Thinking

The biggest challenge to any interaction is trying to figure out what the other person is thinking. It’s even more challenging when you aren’t currently talking to them. CRM apps eliminate the guesswork by tracking the activity of your key contacts.

This gives you an instant glance into the client’s behavior, so you can figure out the answers to questions like:

• Where are they at in their decision? 
• What questions do they still have?
• What kind of content could help answer their questions?

The system can also automatically trigger hot lead alerts to follow-up with prospects who are ready to buy so you can focus more of your time on the opportunities that are likely to yield a return. 

More Focus and Less “Fire-Fighting”

Are you constantly trying to keep up with everything you have to do?

With so many things coming at us every day, it’s hard to sit down and just think. You’re trying to close all the open loops in your funnel until unexpected loops randomly open up. 

BenchmarkONE’s CRM app has automated task creation and notifications, so you don’t have to spend mental energy on remembering what you have to do. The data shows you exactly where to focus your energy to get the most out of your day, and you can set and forget reminders (until you’re sent a notification) so nothing falls through the cracks. 

Automated Workflows

Success is based on routine – executing a set number of tasks in order and consistently. The most successful people are disciplined in knowing what they have to do and when. However, discipline requires willpower, and willpower can be exhausting. You could have the best manual routine for initiating conversations and reaching out to new leads, but all of that means nothing if you don’t follow up with people.

CRM apps can automate sales workflows for you, where you know when to follow up on that new lead and when to check in with a new client. You can create workflows based on your sales cycles, your work style, or best practices to ensure you time your conversations to create and close the deal.

Better Email Engagement 

Everyone is on a different timetable. Your day, week, and month depend on making sure you are making the right moves at the right time. Since all these timetables intersect with each other, keeping track of the potential client’s timetable is crucial.

Once your lead shares their timetable with you, every interaction should be focused on providing the most value at that moment. This is where email tracking comes in.

A CRM app can track your emails for each client so, at a glance, you can see their engagement levels.

• Have they not opened the latest email you sent?
• Did they just download a whitepaper on your website and get added to a new email campaign? If so, which one? This can tell you a new interest of theirs which you can use in your next outreach. 
• Have they unsubscribed from your emails altogether?

These questions are easily answered in a CRM app so you can gather insights to inform your strategy. The more you know about their activity, the more likely it is that you’ll get better engagement from them in the future. 

Everyone’s busy, and if we want to survive, we have to harness our energy into being strategic instead of stressed. Take your contact management to the next level by incorporating a CRM so you can eliminate as much guesswork as possible and provide better, more tailored outreach to your contacts.