An area that we constantly work on with our associates is in relation to how they organize all of the information they have as well as their business and personal schedules. Let’s face it you have a lot of “stuff” coming at you every day and the only way to navigate through all of it is with some systems and discipline. A very good system is Microsoft Office: Outlook, http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/default.aspx . With this system you can organize all of your contacts including addresses, emails and comments plus your calendar including reminders and links plus all of your email communications. It is just fantastic. You can go with buying the software and setting it up on your desk/laptop computer or you can go with Office Online and use it in a web based fashion.
Another great system is Act! http://preview.act.com/new/default_b.aspx?WT.srch=1&srch=google&source=A2D7BACB4DE94BBEBDF03035706A83A5 . This is a program that allows you to it all from one application as well. It is easy to set up and use and I know you will be able to take all of those little pieces of paper with scribbled notes and put them into Act! to get yourself streamlined.
One other application that has been a staple to Realtors is none other than Top Producer. The latest version is Top Producer 8i http://www.topproducer.com/ . Many associates use this sytstem and the way it operates is online which has it’s plusses and minuses. A great feature of Top Producer is that it was designed for Realtors so all the little bells and whistles are included specifically to our profession.
The key to managing more transactions, the flow of information and your schedule is doing it all in one easy to use, organized place. We firmly believe any of the recommended systems above will help you get to where you want to go!!
May 26, 2008 at 1:20 pm |
Great advice! Organizing and managing your contacts/prospects is the lifeblood of any successful sales professional and has been since before computers. But remember that computers don’t make the calls: you do. So, while organizing your prospects (whether in a more efficient computer program or in a recipe box, whatever works for you) is extremely important, it’s a meaningless exercise if you don’t use the information to get on the phone and ask for business, including referrals. As a rule of thumb, for every ten minutes you spend updating and adding to your database, spend sixty minutes calling the people who comprise the database.