THERE ARE things all businesses need to do, regardless of their industry. For instance, they need to identify and make contact with clients, manage contacts and track sales.

But as universal these tasks may be, different businesses manage them in varying ways. Some keep paper files, others may use one or several databases, and still others may recognize the need to invest in an organized database.

In Nova Scotia there are a couple of information technology companies making strides to change the way businesses manage their client information by specializing in a field called customer relationship management or CRM.

In the book Managing Enterprise Content: A Unified Content Strategy, Ann Rockley defines it as "tracking and acting upon everything you need to know about your customers . . . their buying history, budget, timeline, areas of interest, and their future requirements." Essentially, organizations that practice CRM can maximize efficiency, profitability and service by having all relevant customer information in one accessible place.

Strophe Atlantic, a Halifax-based company, is one firm trying to make the daunting sounding task a little easier. It provides businesses with Microsoft Dynamics GP, a tool that manages and integrates information on finances, e-commerce, manufacturing, customer relationships, human resources and more.

Another company in the field is Halifax-based Liberated Networks. It specializes in building custom web-secure and web-based CRM systems. Their Clear Service suite can be configured to fit the CRM needs of any business.

For instance, one business may only want to have a database to organize their client contact information and set up a centralized billing station...

See the full story at The ChronicleHerald.ca