We've all heard the phrase "content is king" when it comes to the internet, but if you're in business, chances are your contacts will take precedence.

Any business worth its salt has built up an extensive network of contacts over the years. But what would happen if you were suddenly parted from your address book? Although the chances of this may seem remote, don't be so sure. With scenarios ranging from simply being out on the road with no way to access your contacts to a major disaster destroying your files, businesses can never be too careful with their contacts lists. The following tips should help you to maintain up-to-date records of essential contact details.

Keep them organised

There's no point in having a vast amount of contacts if they aren't organised so you can access them at the touch of a button. While the days of rolodexes may be almost behind us, some companies are so disorganised, this old paper-based method may be more efficient than current practices.

Use a contacts management program of some sort to keep your prized numbers and email addresses up-to-date. You may be content with the address book on your email program, or you might want to opt for a paid-for software application that acts as customer relationship management (CRM) software too. Act from Sage, or Microsoft's Business Contact Manager, are two examples.

Back them up

Ensure that when you run back-ups (which should be run weekly, at the very least), your contacts databases are included. And make absolutely sure that backed-up files are stored off-site.

Keep them up-to-date

Keeping your business contacts up-to-date - whether the data is an email address, phone number or business address - is vital. Lose contact with a customer and you lose business - it's as simple as that. Chances are you work off several devices and can update contacts on any of them. The trick is to ensure that they all say the same thing. There are a number of ways to ensure that you keep your business address book as up-to-the-minute as possible.

Update contacts manually. This is the 'old-school' way to do things. Each time you contact one of your customers - be it by phone, post or email - ensure that the contact details are up-to-date. Not the ideal way to go, as it is at best boring, and at worst, time-consuming.
Sync your devices. Whether you carry contacts on your mobile phone, your PDA or even your iPod, make sure they all have the same information. There is little point in updating one while allowing other devices to access out-of-date information. The auto-sync feature on many devices allows you to link up your devices with your desktop PC quickly and easily.
Software. Use a program that is designed to keep your contacts book up-to-date, such as Plaxo or GoodContacts. These programs, which integrate with Microsoft's Outlook email client, will periodically send out email requests to your contacts asking them to check that their details are correct. This happens practically without having to lift a finger.

However, a word of caution about such programs: read the instructions carefully. Some will harvest addresses from your email inbox and automatically send out notes to contacts asking them to update their information. This could include people you don't need contact details for. Ensure that the program is configured correctly from the beginning, and if it gives you a list of contacts that are about to emailed, read through it carefully.

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