Open Source Contact Management Software

For many small- to medium-sized businesses, the cost of quality contact management software may be more than they can afford. These companies need help with business tools that will meet long and short terms contact relations goals without breaking their budget. Too often, such solutions are great in terms of pricing but fall short when it comes to options and variety.

One option to consider is open source contact management software. It’s the latest new tool in the business world for businesses in search of affordable contact management software. Prospective users should keep in mind, however, there are a few drawbacks to open source software, but first, a simple definition.

Open source software is software whose code is freely available. Open source contact management, from the user’s perspective, differs very little from other types of contact management software, except in one major way. Most open source software is highly customizable, allowing users to input their own choices for basic aspects of the software. This feature is highly sought after with small to mid-sized businesses seeking to tailor their software to fit a variety of different day-to-day scenarios.

Open source contact management is also usually built to be very compatible. In fact, most open source code provides compatibility with a variety of major database management systems such as MySQL, Microsoft SQL Server, or Oracle. Some even offer an Outlook plug-in along with the capability to allow users to customize fields. Other add-ons, such as Office Plug-in and Thunderbird Extension, or at least support for them, may also be available.

One of the biggest drawbacks of using open source contact management software is the amount of technical expertise required to manage the free code. Yes, it is easily customizable to fit the growing needs of a small business, but the know-how level may be beyond the expertise of small business owners. Most open source software users depend on forums to gain the knowledge necessary to use the software effectively. It’s a good idea to join one of these in order to get sound guidance for the open source software of your choice.

Open source contact management software is all the rage at the moment, mostly because of it no cost price tag. Prospective users should keep in mind that the down- side may be the amount of time and effort needed to implement and use it. The best approach, as always, is to study up on the variety of open source contact management software available in order to make the best decision for your business possible.