|
|
| Get Organized - Organization Information |
|
|
|
|
Organization Tips - How to Set Up Your Database
What's in a Name? Everything. What do you do with all the contacts you make in your organisation? Do you: Collect business cards and throw them in the bottom of your desk drawer hoping one day one of these people will ring and do business with you? Have any system for keeping information on your clients and prospects? Do you enter all their details into your database so that you can communicate with them in the future? Do you enter all your clients into the database with information about what they've bought from you and conversations you've had with them? I'm astounded that so many business people keep no comprehensive records of their clients, general contacts and prospects. Your database is a goldmine. It is the most important item in your business. A great system will be able to do the following: Generate a letter, fax or email directly from the program to the contact. Record all contact details and any communication you have had with that person including phone conversations, meetings, emails, promotional information, and sales made. Be able to select any particular group of people, ie. everyone in a specific area, all your "A" clients, prospects, strategic alliances. A reminder system for follow-ups. Which Database Is Right For You? Well, that depends on your organisation. Now there are various databases, eg Microsoft's Access and Lotus' Approach. However specific contact management software can offer far more features, including a "hotlist" to remind you when to follow up. These applications include: ACT Goldmine Maximizer I personally know very successful businesses that use ACT and Maximizer. At The Office Organiser we use Maximizer which we find very good. Speak with successful people in your field and ask them what they use. You may find that there are specific databases that have been designed for your industry. The key when choosing one of these systems is to have a look at their functions and get someone who knows all about the software to set it up and train you in its use. You could also delegate/outsource the task of the initial keying in of data to another team member in your organisation or even a secretarial service or temp. A special note for Salespeople If you are an employee and your organisation has no database, I suggest you invest in one. It will be the wisest business investment you can make. Most salespeople promise everything and unfortunately do not deliver. They rush from one appointment to another and forget to follow through on their promises. If they had some way of keeping in touch with clients and prospects via using their database as an effective marketing and follow up tool, they would increase their sales dramatically. About The Author Lorraine Pirihi is Australia's Personal Productivity Specialist and Leading Life Coach. Her business The Office Organiser specialises in showing small business owners and managers, how to get organised at work so they can have a life! Lorraine is also a dynamic speaker and has produced many products including "How to Survive and Thrive at Work!" To subscribe to her free ezine visit www.office-organiser.com.au This article may be reproduced providing it is published in it's entirety, including the author's bio and all links. For further information please contact Lorraine Pirihi; lorraine@office-organiser.com.au
|
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
Oh No, Not Another Interuption, How To Deal With Everyday Distractions Every day I find junk mail waiting for me, whether it is snail mail or email. Unless I deal with it immediately, I will be faced with piles of unwanted paper, or a full inbox, which just distracts me. It can be very frustrating trying to find something which is buried in a drawer or hidden under a pile of papers. Not only is this distracting but it also takes time and can lead to added stress. Every time you look at a pile of untidy papers you may just notice yourself sighing and notice, too, how your energy is diverted into feeling guilty about one more task not yet done. Balance - And Other Things The Mexican Villager How Long Do I Need to Keep This? - A Guide to Receipts, Statements and Financial Clutter at Home In most homes, paper causes clutter. And it seems to mysteriously multiply by itself. But just how long do you need to keep all those receipts, bank and credit card statements and other financial papers? Below is a handy reference that you can use for dealing with your home paper trail. Get Rid Of The Clutter You really can have a successful business and a great life. Often we get caught up in growing our business or climbing the corporate ladder that we put our personal lives on hold. Rather than filling up your calendar with work, organizations, commitments, and activities that don't bring you joy, think about putting on your calendar the activities that you really want to do first. Make having a great life your top priority. Organization Tips - How To Get Things Done What stops you from 'getting things done?' Finish in Style - Organizing Works! One of my mother-in-law's many oft-quoted and wise declarations was "Finish in style." It has been on my mind lately, as I contemplate the end of another year, and the end of the first fifty years of my life. Based on my heritage, I fully expect to live another fifty years, so it seems appropriate to consider what I need to do now, so that I can finish the next fifty in style! Just How Organized Are You? Take This Quiz For Individuals The Productive Environment Scorecard? 10 Easy Maintenance Tips vs Piling on the Chaos Whether you are in your own business or an employee (or neither) -- if you have a family and a home you are in the business of having a life. I'm betting that none of you went into business to become hot at shuffling papers and reams of e-mail. Making Life Easier, with NLP Chunking! You know, in psychology there is a rule, especially within the NLP circles that I work in and the literature that I read, it is quite a famous rule; 7 plus or minus 2 ? this is the notion that the conscious mind can only keep track of between 5 and 9 discrete pieces of information at one time. Your unconscious can literally keep track of billions and billions of things at the same time aparently (clever thing that it is!), while your conscious mind is more one step at a time and it has a fairly narrow focus. WHatever the truth of this, it is a useful way to expereince your own thinking. A Personal Action Plan for Change There are eight distinct steps to constructing and executing an action plan for effective and lasting change. Tossing and Turning "The real question is, why do you want it? What are you going to do with it? That's where you've got to start; otherwise you're going to waste a lot of money." Until We Go Paperless From time to time I hear this question from an audience member during one of my presentations. They express a dire hope that getting organized is a one-time event based on acquiring the right tools?and then secretly hope for a magic pill. The bigger picture depicts something of more concern. The price tag for not getting organized is significant in time, money and frustration for the individual and thus the organization. Compartmentalize The word "compartmentalize" means to separate into distinct parts. I am intrigued with the fact that the word "mental" is in the word. For me, it illustrates the need to separate mentally what we are doing. One of the tricks I am learning is to separate tasks and do one at a time. As a recovering multitasker that isn't easy, but I am beginning to see the benefits of doing one thing at a time. Clear Your Clutter and Free Your Life Whatever your clutter problem the answer is the same: make a decision to clear your clutter and then take action to clear your clutter. How to Prevent Piles of Paper! If you have piles of paper all over your desk, you're going to love this article. Mental Clutter- Is It Taking Over Your Life? Chances are, most of you have a lot you need to get done. How Can I Deal With It All? Are you feeling overwhelmed? Have a to-do list a mile long? An in-tray that's about to collapse? Closets that are jam-packed with junk and a stack of family photos? Spring into Spring Hasn't time flown? Already we're into the last quarter of the year and isn't it perfect timing to clear out the cobwebs of winter and prepare yourself for the next few months of sun, sand, surf or is it work, work, work? Organizing Solutions for the Disorganized Entrepreneur After more than 20 years as an entrepreneur and a consultant to entrepreneurs, I am convinced that for many entrepreneurs, "organized" is an enigma. "Organized entrepreneur" may even be an oxymoron, because the very strength that makes great entrepreneurs makes for poor organizing ? at least organizing as most of the world defines it. Calendars and Personality Type I recently conducted a survey to look at the relationship between an individual's personality type and his or her organizing and time management style, and noticed that the majority of participants said they have a calendar system that works for them. As there are so many time management systems available, both paper-based and electronic, I thought it would be interesting to find out which calendar systems are most popular with each personality type, and asked my ezine subscribers and visitors to my website to describe their time management system, what they like and dislike about it, and their personality type according to the Myers-Briggs Type IndicatorŪ (MBTIŪ). The MBTI measures your preferences in four areas:
|
| home | site map |
| © 2005 |