CRM for Individuals

A CRM (Customer Relationship Management) is an application to help companies manage their interactions with customers.  An individual CRM is exactly the same thing, but for individuals (for example freelancers or small business owners).

Business CRM vs Personal CRM

Business CRMs are used by sales people in order to track leads and manage customer relationships.  This includes contact information, history of interactions and other relevant data.  A CRM also generally features a contact management system which tracks the lead source and any notes that can be attached to a particular contact in order to keep a full history of the relationship in one place.

How do I keep track of my personal relationships using an individual CRM?

A CRM is a great way for individuals to keep track of their own relationships, whether these are with family members or friends. This is particularly useful if you have a lot of contacts and keeping track of them can be difficult.  For freelancers who work with a variety of people on a regular basis, a CRM is a fantastic way to organise contracts, invoices and other information relevant to your business.

How CRMs for individuals work

A CRM generally features the ability to manage multiple contacts with their own profiles, which is often where the most time is saved when using this type of software.  One of the most important aspects of CRMs for individuals is being able to track your interactions with each person.  This can include emails sent and received, phone calls made or messages sent on social media. CRMs often have integrations with different services that enable more effective tracking of these activities.

How do you keep track of contacts from networking events using software?

When meeting people at networking events and other business gatherings, CRMs can be used to create a profile for each person you meet.  This can include their name, contact details and any notes about your interactions with that particular person (for example, whether this is the first time you’ve met them or if they’re a long-standing connection). CRMs are also often location-aware which means you can keep track of where your contacts are based. After meeting someone, you could check out their LinkedIn profile and then copy their details across into your personal CRM and set a reminder to contact them before your next networking event.