If your response is: “Negatory!,” I will argue that you DO, in fact, have a database.

It may not be well formed or organized.

You might be resisting calling it a “Database” because that may feel too sterile/corporate/businessy and not interpersonal enough . . . as if you’ve turned your BFF into a “Contact” simply by adding her to your database.

. . . or does it just sound like “too much work?”

Let’s call it something else and build from there.

Do you have a “Christmas List” with all of the people to whom you send Christmas cards each year? You might drag this list out every December and update the addresses of those folks who have moved.

How ’bout your Social Media “Friends?” How many of those folks are there on Facebook, Instagram, Linkedin, Snapchat . . . ?

In your “Real World” – The people with whom you interact face-to-face in the normal course of your personal and professional life – Friends of your kids’ parents, church friends, Colleagues, vendors . . . etc.

ALL of these folks ARE your “Database” whether you want them to be or not.

The ONLY disconnects between you working for your database (and it being a pesky time waster) and your database working for you (and being a HUGE time, energy, and money saver) are:

Integration - How easily can you work it into your way of life and doing business? If this part is too cumbersome, you may start and never finish . . . thereby abandoning the pursuit altogether and returning to “the way things have always been . . . and doing the same things expecting different results.”

Scalability - As your database grows, can the “platform” scale? That is, will you theoretically be able to increase it infinitely large (if you so choose) and use the same database without having to change platforms?

Efficiency - Is it “seamless” when it comes to adding, deleting, editing your peeps’ contact info . . . and communicating with them individually and in “Niche groups” defined by you whenever and wherever you may be? can you make a change from your cell phone that instantly updates the info on your desktop computer? Can you email all of the soccer team parents in fewer than 4 clicks with every one of your devices?

There are many fancy, industry specific, Customer relationship management (CRM) programs which “use technology to organize, automate, and synchronize sales, marketing, customer service, and technical support, but many of them try to do more than they need to do and feel overwhelmingly clunky.

Before you “invest” in a complex CRM I recommend honing in on what you want it to do for you.

Isn’t the end-game a desire to be able to keep in regular contact with everyone who matters to you and your business such that they think of YOU (and not your competitor) first when they have the need for your services?

Better yet . . . can you turn them into “Raving Fans” who are actively and intentionally bird-dogging leads for your business?

No fancy software can do this work for you.

When properly structured, your database will help you prioritize all your peeps such that you are always tuned in to the ones who matter the most to your business NOW!!

So . . . if you REALLY want a REAL business . . . Build that Database and feed it and maintain it every day.

That’s all I’ve to say about that (today)

About Barry Owen

Residential Real Estate Principal Broker and Founder of Pareto Realty, LLC. Creating the quintessential real estate firm with emphasis on "Live, Work, & Play" balance . . . and a true Performance Oriented environment for Real Estate Professionals. Serving the Real estate needs of Home Buyers and Sellers in Middle Tennessee.