Jon Moss is a photographer and marketing consultant who uses both Basecamp and Highrise with his clients. He answered some questions about how Highrise helps him and his clients...
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Tell us about what you do.
I'm a freelance marketing consultant, just setup after working 11 years for a big healthcare corporate. I've been using both Basecamp and Highrise since last year, and find them invaluable in my day to day life. It is great to be able to finally use them properly with my new clients!
My first major contract is for a high end watch and diamond jewellery business called Ian Blowers Jewellers. Whilst they are a very successful, small, family business, one of the key areas they needed improvement was customer data and communication. This is where Highrise fitted in perfectly! As well as working with customer information, I am also looking after their rebranding, new websites and also general marketing, so Basecamp is the perfect tool for keeping people within the business up to date with what is going on, and what needs to be done.
How do you (or your clients) use Highrise and why do you like it?
They have implemented Highrise within the business, so every new customer is now logged into Highrise when they are taking details on the phone. This includes, normal contact details, but also items that they have bought, items they want and also misc details like partners name, likes and dislikes.
Which features do you use most?
What we are really finding useful is the tasks list. Mark, the son of the owner, Ian, can now come to his computer at the beginning of the day and see exactly who needs to be called, which watches need to be sent out and what jobs need completing.
Also, tags, are starting to become very useful. We are using them to tag people by their profession, whether they are male or female (we might use a slightly different email to each of them) and also whether they are looking for something special. This way it is very easy to pop in vintage Rolex for example or a Panerai particular model and it quickly brings up the relevant people. Very, very useful!
What did you use before and why did you switch?
Before Highrise, they had loose slips of paper with customers details on, and to be honest, these still exist but are getting less and less used. It is SO much easier having everything online, accessible from anywhere. You then don't have the problem of individual members of staff running about to find details of someone written down by someone else.
What's the best part of using 37signals products?
For the client, Ian Blowers Jewellers - they are very pleased about using Highrise and Basecamp! What has really made a difference is having something people can get stuck into straight away without too much training and fuss. None of the people within the business are computer geeks, but all have taken to Highrise and Basecamp easily, and more importantly have kept on using them!
Any tips or tricks for other customers?
I would recommend tagging and making sure people are using the same tags, as otherwise, you are in trouble!
Do you use a 37signals product in an interesting or noteworthy way? Let us know.
