Groups: The More, the Merrier

As your business grows, your contact list will, too. To stay organized, it helps to categorize your contacts into different groups. Suppose you own a landscaping business. You could easily divide your customers into groups like “Lawn Mowing,” “Gardens,” and “Tree Trimming.” Groups give you a bird’s eye view of your business and help you work efficiently. For example, it only takes one click to export a group into a spreadsheet or to send the entire group an email.  So with one click and you can send your “Lawn-mowing” group an email that it’s that time of year to add fertilizer!

Add a group. Pull up your contact database by clicking on “Contacts” in the orange menu bar at the top of the screen. In the left side bar you’ll see the option to “Add a New Group” to the two default groups (Contacts and Companies). Click and you can enter the name of the new group, such as “Tree Trimming.” Finish up by hitting “Create Group.”

Pick your clients. Now you’re in your contact database, surrounded people you know (or want to get to know). It’s simple: just click on each contact who needs your tree-trimming services; those you choose will turn blue. Afraid you’ve forgotten someone? Click the “Other Contacts” tab at the top to make sure you haven’t left out the Martin family or the sweet old man on Georgia Avenue. To review your selections, click on the tab with the name of your Group. When you’re done, click the “Save Changes” button at the bottom of the screen.

Adjust with ease. Let’s say one of your contacts is so pleased with your tree-trimming services that they want you to landscape their garden, too. You can change or add to a contact’s group by going into his or her contact detail page and clicking “Edit Contact” below the photo. Toward the bottom of the screen is the section called “Groups” where you’ll see a list of your available groups. Simply check or uncheck the boxes as needed to put the contact into the right group (or groups). Don’t forget to hit “Save Contact.”

For full instructions on contact management using Groups, check out our tutorial on Adding and Managing Groups.