Having shared contacts gives you benefits. Learning how to properly manage your shared contacts gives you the full advantage of having them. A common contact database within your organization allows easier collaboration. You and your team no longer need to rely on a spreadsheet file to exchange client contact information.
Using the shared contacts as a company directory makes contacting anyone in your organization possible from any of your devices – laptop, workstation, or even mobile phone. All without saving their numbers separately from each gadget’s memory.
However, to fully enjoy these perks, you must look into the following aspects:
Ensure proper labels
Make sure the labels you categorize your contact lists are easily identifiable to anyone who has access to it. Naming your contact label AAA won’t cut it. Take a few seconds to think about the appropriate label. This saves you and your team time from wondering what contacts are in that AAA folder in the future.
Check on permissions
Shared Contacts for Gmail® offers five (5) permission levels. You can read more details in this article. This is the overview:
- View Only
This is the most limited permission level. The shared contacts appear in autocomplete on all their devices. The users with this permission cannot edit, add, or delete any detail regarding the contract. However, they can write private comments regarding the contact.
- Editors
The users with this level of permission can see the shared contacts as well as modify the contact details. They can edit the contact info like the name, number, email, and other fields. Additionally, they can also add a new contact to the list.
Furthermore, they can add private and public comments regarding the contact. Public comments can be read by anyone who has access to the shared contact list.
- Can Delete
The users who have this level of permission can do all the things similar to those who have “Can Edit” access plus they can erase a contact from the list. This permission must be given warily as the list owner will not be notified once a single or several contacts have been removed.
- Can Reshare
They can enjoy all the features available to those with “Can Delete” access plus the ability to reshare the contact list. Aside from adding new collaborators, they can also remove users who are accessing the list.
What’s more, they can change the access of someone. Those with “Can Reshare” can make someone with “View Only” clearance have “Can Reshare” permission as well. Hence, one must take extra caution before giving this kind of authorization.
- Owner
The owner of the list enjoys all the privileges stated above. On top of that, they are the only ones who can delete or rename the whole shared label. In short, you as the owner have the responsibility to manage your shared contacts.
You can transfer the ownership of the contact list, too. This feature is practical for those who are leaving the company or being assigned somewhere else.
Privacy and security compliance
Ensure that your contact-sharing solutions adhere to privacy and security standards. This gives assurance to the clients that their data is processed and handled accordingly. When customers know you are GDPR, Google Technology Premier Partner, CCPA, or other renowned privacy regulations, they tend to be more complacent in transacting with you.
It has additional advantages on your business side as well. These include better data hygiene and cleanup, clearer streamlining of data processing, and more awareness of security vulnerabilities among others.
Add comments
Writing down observations regarding a contact contributes data that contributes to painting a better insight of the customer. Notes like “this lady is soft-spoken” or “he speaks loud but not angry” can help your teammates get to know the client as you do. So, when you turn over the customer, your colleagues already have an expectation of the possible interactions. They can interact correspondingly.
You may also write “for deletion” as a public comment in case the data is no longer needed. This gives the clearance for the data administrator to put the contact in the trash.
Periodically check deleted contacts
Shared Contacts for Gmail® allows unlimited recovery time of deleted contacts on Corporate accounts. In this manner, one can audit even the deleted contacts. You eliminate the risk of accidentally removing a client from the list. However, the data can be completely removed from the system with proper authorization and notification to our data protection officer (DPO).
On the other hand, Lite, Team, and Business accounts can only store deleted data for up to 30 days. This time period supports the backup feature of the app. In this case, it is advisable to routinely go through the deleted contacts to see if there are accidental deletions.
Takeaway on how to manage your shared contacts
Handling contacts may not be as simple as it sounds, especially when it’s by the hundreds or more. Sharing it can either lighten the load or be disastrous, if not managed properly. Hence, choose an excellent contact-sharing app that guarantees you get the positive aspect of contact-sharing.
