Friday, November 7, 2008

To use or not to use ACT as an MLM contact management system?

ACT, although a solid and feature rich CRM is a poor choice as an MLM contact management system.

Why if ACT is so feature rich is it unsuitable as a CRM for mlmers? I have used ACT for years, I have set up for myself what I believe was the perfect system. Using 3rd party plugins I was able to get all the functionality to make my contact management system very (although not completely) streamlined. There are two problems with using ACT.

1. ACT will inherently be less streamline than a CRM specifically tailored to the industry. With new CRMs being created specifically for the needs of MLM contact management there is no need to usa a hand me down solution that piece-meals together superfluous functionality. Features such as inventory management, employee management, and others are simply distractions to the simpler more streamlined MLM businesses.

2. The learning curve of ACT wil presents a problem in getting setup and setting hundred of others up. Let me explain by my own personal experience. I had ACT setup and ready to provide me with an efficient way of taking the most important actions for my business. I then began setting up my team with ACT. There was an upfront cost but that was ok. The real problem was the hours I spent trying to train others on the system. It simply was not a "DUPLICATABLE" method.

The average MLMer is not a business expert or even a person with sales experience. They have no idea how to run a prospecting system or let alone design their own. Their system needs to be so simple that new distributors can't possible fail in managing the system. CRMs like ACT are too comlicated for average individuals. MLMers are hairstylists, firemen, mechanics, retired folks. The system must be simple... It must be duplicatable...

No comments: