A contact manager is a

software Software is a set of computer programs and associated documentation and data. This is in contrast to hardware, from which the system is built and which actually performs the work. At the lowest programming level, executable code consists ...

program that enables users to easily store and find contact information, such as

name A name is a term used for identification by an external observer. They can identify a class or category of things, or a single thing, either uniquely, or within a given context. The entity identified by a name is called its referent. A personal ...

s, addresses, and telephone numbers. They are contact-centric databases that provide a fully integrated approach to tracking all information and communication activities linked to contacts. Simple ones for personal use are included in most

smartphone A smartphone is a portable computer device that combines mobile telephone and computing functions into one unit. They are distinguished from feature phones by their stronger hardware capabilities and extensive mobile operating systems, whic ...

s. The main reference standard for contact data and metadata, semantic and interchange, is the

vCard vCard, also known as VCF (Virtual Contact File), is a file format standard for electronic business cards. vCards can be attached to e-mail messages, sent via Multimedia Messaging Service (MMS), on the World Wide Web, instant messaging, NFC o ...

. Sophisticated contact managers provide

calendar A calendar is a system of organizing days. This is done by giving names to periods of time, typically days, weeks, months and years. A date is the designation of a single and specific day within such a system. A calendar is also a phys ...

sharing features and allow colleagues to access the same database. The main reference standard is the

vCalendar The Internet Calendaring and Scheduling Core Object Specification (iCalendar) is a media type which allows users to store and exchange calendaring and scheduling information such as events, to-dos, journal entries, and free/busy information, a ...

. In management terminology, advanced contact managers can be called individual resource management (IRM) or contact management (CM) tools – systems for managing an individual's interactions with current and future contacts, to organize, collaborate, and synchronize health, lifestyle, and financial needs.

History

Contact list A contact list is a collection of screen names. It is a commonplace feature of instant messaging, Email clients, online games and mobile phones. It has various trademarked and proprietary names in different contexts. Contacts lists' windows ...

s have been available for a long time. The original contact management system (CMS) was Exsell for DOS by Excalibur Sources, released in 1984.

Benefits

A contact management system (CMS) may be chosen because it is thought to provide the following advantages:Aberdeen Group (January 2009) Automating Success: The Choice Between Contact Management and Customer Relationship Managemen

/ref> *Centralized repository of contact information *Ready-to-use database with searching *Sales tracking *Email integration *Scheduling of appointments and meetings * Document management system, Document management *Notes and conversation management *Customizable fields *Import/export utility *Contact sharing

Differences from customer relationship management

Traditionally, a contact manager is usually used for instances where the sales interaction model of the organization is a one-to-many interaction model, in which a single sales representative is responsible for multiple roles within a company. Alternatively, a company with a

many-to-many Many-to-many communication occurs when information is shared between groups. Members of a group receive information from multiple senders. Wikis are a type of many-to-many communication, where multiple editors collaborate to create content that is ...

interaction model, in which many sales representatives are targeting a single job role, a

customer relationship management Customer relationship management (CRM) is a process in which a business or other organization administers its interactions with customers, typically using data analysis to study large amounts of information. CRM systems compile data from a r ...

(CRM) system is preferred.:. However, most recent contact management solutions are fully adapted to many-to-many interactions models, and the difference between a CRM and a Contact Manager starts to lay more on the fact that CRMs are commonly used to automate sales and marketing processes (quotes, invoices, reminder emails, etc.) where contacts management solutions focus on a people-centric approach which goal is to centralize all contact information within an organization and have better control on who can access this data and how it is accessed.

References

Data management software

History

Benefits

Differences from customer relationship management

See also

References