Carolina · Member since 2017 · 519 posts · 222 votes
I have a problem keeping up with everyone I am talking to/networking with. I will start talking with someone on here, over email, phone, etc. and then we may not have a reason to speak again for a bit and I will then, many times, forget that I had wanted to touch base with that person again until way later.
I work a lot, so things slip my brain pretty easily. I can set reminders and what not to remind myself... but I was curious if anyone had utilized something like Excel to track their communications with people. Maybe setting up spreadsheets for Agents, Lenders, Wholesalers, etc. and logging who you have been communicating with, about what you were communicating, when you were communicating, and any planned or expected follow ups from either side.
Mostly, I just am having a hard time figuring out the best way to keep track of all this information without it becoming ridiculously jumbled.
If you are doing a large degree of specific, goal-oriented communication, then I would recommend a tool like Pipedrive.
If it's a much smaller number, then a good task list does the job just fine (you should have one anyway). I have been using a paid app called Remember the Milk, but I am likely to switch to Google Tasks in the not too distant future.
Tampa, FL · Member since 2016 · 51 posts · 30 votes
8y
If you want a CRM/lead management system that automatically organizes all of this communication in one place, I'd suggest Investorfuse, Follow-up Boss, or Podio. Investorfuse or Follow-up Boss are purely CRM/Lead management and might be a simpler solution, whereas Podio is much more comprehensive and complex and can be used for a lot more business processes and data management.
I do like Google Tasks, sadly the native Android app has no widget (can't begin to understand that... that makes a task list epicly more useful!) but I got GTasks and that works in that manner.
In regards to CRM or lead management systems. Are those what I need here? I am not doing any lead calling. I am really just trying to have a system where I can organize who I talk to and about what I speak to them. So I can look over it and realize "Oh crap. I need to touch base with Dave the Contractor again about potentially working on future projects" or "Oh I was supposed to message John back from BP to learn more about MF investing from a distance." or things like that. Is that what that software is for? It just seems like it is more for people that are calling leads to try to find off market deals. Or am I just misunderstanding?
This is an example of the sorts of info I want to track and am trying to figure out.
Any follow up conversation information will then be logged after:
6/20/18: Called again and spoke to David, he is interested in meeting at the property for a walk through on 6/25/18.
6/25/18: Met at property, will be expecting itemized estimate from David by 6/30/18
6/30/18: Received estimate, need to go over this and compare to other two estimates.
And so on and so on, so I don't lose track of my communications with each person.
That is the sort of stuff I am talking about. I felt like starting with an excel workbook with separate worksheets for "Contractors", "Wholesalers", "Agents", "BP Folks", etc. would work but then I don't know how to best organize the info so each sheet doesn't just become insane with so much information that I have a hard time finding what I am looking for each time I refer to the workbook... hopefully that is a little more clear?
I want to be able to reference it for years to come but in a fashion that doesn't mean just scrolling through information to find what I need. Maybe this hasn't been specifically developed yet. Just something that is driving me nuts! haha I am talking to so many people and can lose track of some of it at times since I work so much as well.
Sorry if that is confusing... trying to word it as best as I can. haha
Tampa, FL · Member since 2016 · 51 posts · 30 votes
8y
if that's all you need, set up a Podio account (Free for up to 5 users), create a "Contacts" app with fields you need to capture the info you mention, and use Tasks with reminders for making sure you don't lose track of anything.
I have a problem keeping up with everyone I am talking to/networking with. I will start talking with someone on here, over email, phone, etc. and then we may not have a reason to speak again for a bit and I will then, many times, forget that I had wanted to touch base with that person again until way later.
I work a lot, so things slip my brain pretty easily. I can set reminders and what not to remind myself... but I was curious if anyone had utilized something like Excel to track their communications with people. Maybe setting up spreadsheets for Agents, Lenders, Wholesalers, etc. and logging who you have been communicating with, about what you were communicating, when you were communicating, and any planned or expected follow ups from either side.
Mostly, I just am having a hard time figuring out the best way to keep track of all this information without it becoming ridiculously jumbled.
Any ideas?
Thank you so much!
Good to meet you..
I had the same issue. However since I also have a call center answering a lot of calls it was a lot harder to stay on top of opportunity especially knowing that lead nurturing is extremely important. We started with infustionsoft, ringcentral, eztexting and an exterior chat service. Then we had to parse the data together since none of the programs spoke to each other. Not to mention they were very expensive.
So we decided to developed our own product. Took about 2 year however I now have all of the data from the inbound and outbound calls, emails, text, chats, webforms and campaigns working seamlessly. Every opportunity is taken care of and from a marketing perspective it is being received well by home sellers. Just yesterday we contracted a house thru exterior chat.
I cant say the products name since it would be self promotion however It does the following.
I have a problem keeping up with everyone I am talking to/networking with. I will start talking with someone on here, over email, phone, etc. and then we may not have a reason to speak again for a bit and I will then, many times, forget that I had wanted to touch base with that person again until way later.
I work a lot, so things slip my brain pretty easily. I can set reminders and what not to remind myself... but I was curious if anyone had utilized something like Excel to track their communications with people. Maybe setting up spreadsheets for Agents, Lenders, Wholesalers, etc. and logging who you have been communicating with, about what you were communicating, when you were communicating, and any planned or expected follow ups from either side.
Mostly, I just am having a hard time figuring out the best way to keep track of all this information without it becoming ridiculously jumbled.
Any ideas?
Thank you so much!
Good to meet you..
I had the same issue. However since I also have a call center answering a lot of calls it was a lot harder to stay on top of opportunity especially knowing that lead nurturing is extremely important. We started with infustionsoft, ringcentral, eztexting and an exterior chat service. Then we had to parse the data together since none of the programs spoke to each other. Not to mention they were very expensive.
So we decided to developed our own product. Took about 2 year however I now have all of the data from the inbound and outbound calls, emails, text, chats, webforms and campaigns working seamlessly. Every opportunity is taken care of and from a marketing perspective it is being received well by home sellers. Just yesterday we contracted a house thru exterior chat.
I cant say the products name since it would be self promotion however It does the following.
Telephone Features:
Call Dialing
Local Numbers
Toll Free Numbers
Call Recording
Call Forwarding
Call Notifications
Multiple Ringtones
Voicemail
Voicemail Transcription
Number Lookups
Call Queues
Call Transferring
Hold Messaging
Text Features:
SMS Send & Receive
MMS Send & Receive
Voice Blasts
Drip Scheduling
Recurring Scheduling
Send Later Scheduling
Unlimited Longcode Keywords
Long Code (Local Numbers)
Text Campaigns
Easy To Remember Shortcode
Text Notifications
Short Code Keywords
Email Features:
Email Campaigns
Simple Email Creators
Drip Scheduling
Recurring Scheduling
Beautiful HTML Creator
Professional Email Templates
Send & Receive
Attachment Capable
File Library
Custom Webforms
Multiple Agents
Tag Applications
CRM Features:
Complete CRM Manager
Build Custom Contact Fields
Complete Communication Manager
Caller Integration
Text Integration
Email Integration
Online Calendar
Campaign Manager
Tag Manager
Task Manager
Autoresponder
Contact Ownership
Chat Features:
Live Chat Included
Automated Initial Response
Custom Start Button
Easily Collect Contact Information
Install On Any Website
Email Notifications
SMS Notifications
Automated Workflows
Simple Chat Builder
Communication History
Automated Contact Creation
Custom Background
That sounds like a really comprehensive piece of software but I feel like it is way beyond what I need. I'm not even talking about leads. Just more organization.
Carolina · Member since 2017 · 519 posts · 222 votes
8y
@Bill Carovano I am having a lot of fun discovering how much I can customize all this with Podio. Thank you for this suggestion. I'm going to be up way too late tonight... lol My micro-managing brain loves this kind of stuff.