Sales & Customer Growth
The tool matters less than the habit of writing down what happens next.
Many small businesses keep customer details in phones, chat threads and the owner's head. It works until someone leaves, the phone is lost, or a promising lead is forgotten for a month. This session is about the discipline behind a customer record: what to capture, who owns each follow-up, and what is worth paying for.
Explore this page6 sections
A follow-up that depends on memory will eventually be missed.
In a small business the owner usually remembers everything, until the business grows or someone else starts selling. Enquiries arrive by call, WhatsApp, walk-in and referral, and each ends up in a different place. Nobody can say who has been contacted, who is waiting for a quote or who has gone quiet.
A customer relationship management tool, or CRM, is only a way of holding that information in one place. This session starts from the sales and follow-up habits, and treats software as the last choice, not the first. It is a different angle from learning individual tools, and it can be useful even if you never buy one.
What the session covers
30 topics across 6 areas. Six parts, in the order a small business usually needs them.
What to RecordEnough to act on, not a form nobody fills.5
- Name, business, phone and how the person reached you
- What they asked for and what they were told
- Value, if there is one, and the stage reached
- Date of last contact and what was said
- The next step, who owns it and the date it is due
If it takes more than a minute to log a call, people will stop logging calls.
One Place for Every LeadPulling scattered contacts together.5
- Mapping where leads arrive today
- Moving contacts from phones, notebooks and chat threads
- Removing duplicates and out-of-date numbers
- Naming and tagging customers consistently
- What to do with leads that arrive after hours or outside the office
Follow-Up DisciplineThe reason to have a record at all.5
Participants set up their own follow-up list in the room and test it against the leads they remember worrying about.
- Every lead has a next step with a date
- A short daily list of who to call or message today
- A weekly sweep for leads with no next step
- Follow-up wording that adds something useful
- When to stop, and how to close a lead politely
Sheet, Chat App or CRMMatch the tool to the size of the problem.5
- A shared sheet: cost, limits and when it stops working
- Business chat apps and their labels or catalogues
- A CRM: what you gain, what you must maintain
- Questions to ask when comparing products, from data export to support
- Free plans, paid plans and what to check on pricing before committing
No tool is endorsed here. Features and prices change, so check each product's current terms before you decide.
Customer Data With CarePeople trust you with their details.5
- Keep only what you need
- Who in the business can see or change records
- What happens to the data when an employee leaves
- Asking before adding people to broadcast lists
- Checking current data-protection rules, including the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023, with a professional
Making It StickWhere most attempts fail.5
- Starting with one team and one use
- The owner using it first, in front of everyone
- Reviewing the pipeline from the record, not from memory
- Fixing the process before blaming the tool
- A thirty-day check on whether it is actually being used
What participants work on
- A customer record template with five or six fields
- Their live leads moved into one list
- A next step and date for each lead
- A tool shortlist based on their own needs, not a vendor's list
- A start date and a named owner for the habit
What this session is not
- A demonstration or recommendation of any particular product
- A review of accounting or invoicing software
- Legal advice on data protection
- A promise that software will fix a weak sales process
How the session runs
Two to three hours, in a small group, with each participant's phone or laptop. A practitioner who runs a small sales team explains how their own records are kept and what they stopped recording. Participants then move their live leads into a single sheet or tool of their choice, set next steps and dates, and agree a review routine with a partner. Bring your phone contacts, chat enquiries and any existing sheet.
What your students leave with
- A short list of what to record about every lead and customer
- Every open lead with an owner, a next step and a date
- A daily and weekly routine for follow-up
- A way to choose between a sheet, a chat app and a CRM
- A simple rule for who may see and change customer data
- A plan for moving existing contacts into one place
Scheduled sessions
Nothing scheduled yet
Sessions are arranged with a college once a date is agreed. Ask us and we will find the right person for it.
A student rather than a college? See what is coming up, or ask your placement team to host this.
Write down the next step. Then do it on the day.
Tell us who your students are and what stage they are at. Sessions are free for participants.