#( PENDING INT TAG. )

[cat-esper]

I thought I'd redo my intro post and this time make it ✨pretty✨

I'm Cat [she/her | aroace] and I write sci-fi and fantasy with a dose of cosmic horror. I love mixing genres and general experimentation. Whether my work is marketable or not is less important than having fun. My absolute favorite things are found family, robots, and time travel, and I am a firm believer that platonic relationships can be just as fierce and important as romantic ones. Most of my novels are set within a shared universe I call the Starfish Saga and that's my main focus, though I do have quite a few exciting projects outside that.

I am quite shy but love making new writer friends and am open to tag games and ask games and other sorts of writerly socialization.

I have...a lot of projects. A worrying amount I try not to think about. But! Below the cut, you'll find the ones I'm focusing on for the time being, now with new and improved titles.

Books of the Starfish Saga

The Last Paladin | YA science fantasy | 12 part series

When Chelsea Seaver's parents are abducted by aliens, she embarks on a grand adventure across the galaxy--making friends and learning magic on the way--to bring them home.

Status: books 1-3 drafted

Intro | WIP tag

Incantations of the Mad Mage | YA epic fantasy | 6 part series

In order to honor her dead mentor, battle mage Arna Vaughn races against the Sforia Empire to locate six legendary magic spells that have the power to end a bloody war; whoever finds them first will change the course of their world forever.

Status: books 1-4 drafted, editing book 1

Intro | WIP tag

Records of the Spiral | YA portal fantasy | 4 part series

Three misfits stumble into a surreal world inhabited by strange creatures and watched over by the eldritch Enochians; it's a place they belong to more than Earth and if they don't want to see it destroyed, they'll need to stop the very beings who created it in the first place.

Status: drafting book 1

Intro | WIP tag

Music of the Spheres | YA science fantasy | standalone

Shay Finnegan leaves everything behind when he decides to become a light-wielding Paladin, a protector of the galaxy, in order to find a higher purpose and avoid the fate that haunts him with the words you will bring everything to ruin.

Status: rewriting for the millionth time

Intro | WIP tag

Red Ghost | YA contemporary fantasy | novella

Mel Black joins a ghost-killing organization in order to free the spirit of her dead friend from a fate worse than death, but saving him might just mean the end of humanity.

Status: pending edits

Intro | WIP tag

Nightland Nexus | epic fantasy | 5 part series

As tensions rise across the worlds, a group of characters seek to satisfy their own ambitions, but they'll need to team up and unite the worlds to prevent a long-dormant Darkness from awakening.

Status: world-building

Intro | WIP tag

Sundial Fates | YA sci-fi western | 10 part series

A time machine crashes on the edge of town, launching three reluctant teens into the biggest adventure of their lives. They may be able to face down alien invaders, mad scientists, and unfathomable entities, but can they face the truth about themselves?

Status: overhauling the plot/updating the lore

Intro | WIP tag

Other Projects

The Zodiac Circuit | post-apocalyptic sci-fi | duology

Rhys Valencya reluctantly teams up with an android in order to stop her own family from resurrecting the lich that almost wiped out humanity centuries ago.

Status: drafting book 1

Intro | WIP tag

Androids Don't Rust | time travel | standalone

With human extinction inevitable, four androids are sent into the past to retrieve data for the Archive that will outlast humanity.

Status: very early planning stages

Intro | WIP tag

Robbery on the Hell Express | weird western | novella

Occasional partners and oftentimes enemies, Harlan Nye and John Callahan team up to rob a ghost train--betrayal, deadly wraiths, and a lethal race against the clock mean they may not make it out of this alive.

Status: planning

Intro | WIP tag

The Chronicles of Josephine Mercer | dark pirate fantasy | ongoing series

In a darker version of the 18th century Caribbean, mutineer and newly self-appointed Captain Josephine Mercer escaped the navy with a ship and ambitions that would see her become the bane of the British Empire.

Status: research/world-building

Intro | WIP tag

Liminal Spaces | urban fantasy | 5 part series

Caffeine fueled video game artist, Ref Sanderson, comes home one day to find his daughter is missing. Turns out, she's been making new realities in her free time. Now she's trapped in one and he'll need to learn how to enter and fabricate realities himself in order to save her.

Status: plotting

WIP intro coming soon

Other Starfish WIPs I'm technically working on, in the background, that I probably won't talk about unless someone wants me to:

The Siege of Coracaltone: a space opera about cinnamon roll wizard Flynn on a quest but gets sidetracked by space pirates (waiting for a rewrite)

Pirates vs Dinosaurs: cosmic horror about, you guessed it, pirates and dinosaurs and the slow dissolving of their sanity (drafted and just waiting for editing time)

Dreams of the Spiral: a prelude to Records of the Spiral about the band Red Tape Rocket and the summer things got really weird (still being planned)

If any of them pique your interest and you'd like to be added to a taglist, let me know!

[asbestieos]

video exporting was so cruel and mean to me and made my computer want to explode but when i just uploaded the audio of the rant to soundcloud it was over in like five minutes so easily and painlessly. youtube is cruel and hard and heartless and soundcloud is gently swaddling me in blankets and hugging me and putting smooches on my forehead.

HELPFFNFKKF THE DIFFERENCE IN TREATMENT… soundcloud is a haven whereas youtube is your tormentous hell ♡ but also blake its because soundcloud doesnt have video, its strictly audio hdkdjfKDBFNF THATS WHY ITS KIND TO YOU

[nitronapalm]

❛please don’t be in love with someone else❜ from a certain blue haired girl wow...

Send ‘please don’t be in love with someone else’ to see my muses reaction. || @pompedia

"....Hah?" It was his usual sound of confusion and surprise, and it slipped out even now before he even thought about it, his mind too busy running over what she'd just said.

Katsuki.EXE has stopped. Please wait while we refresh the program....

Why the fuck would he be in love with anyone else? Why the fuck would she even be fucking worried about it?

Reboot successful. Loading program....

Unless....

"...You.... fucking like me, Spots?" Even as much of a piece of shit as he acted?

[kkvrtz]

       @ohhanncs

        Surprisingly, Xander’s alcohol tolerance seemed to build itself up.  He wouldn’t be so confident if not for already downing that bottle of vodka. It was the kind of confidence that it’s dangerous to have, the one that makes you feel invincible. So as he saunters towards Hanna, his attempts to be incredibly coy probably wasn’t so convincing.     “      ‘sup, riley ?      ”        A head nod as he smiles in an attempt to be charming.       “      ever hear of an M.O.R ?      ” 

[theprojectcr-blog]

@itsy-bitsy-spidey 

            “   SORRY?   oh, right, well just let me see if I can -  ”  Nina’s first time shopping at an American supermarket hadn’t gone particularly well. She’d knocked some melons off their shelf and now she didn’t have enough money exchanged to pay for the entirety of her groceries. A couple of pound coins sat at the bottom of her purse, and she pulled a face. 

        “   I think I’m going to have t’leave the milk this time, uh –– shall I just put it here for now?   ”   a bit of a sour look from the cashier made her hand shoot out and place the carton back onto the conveyer. she quickly handed over some dollar bills and picked up her bag, just wanting to remove herself from the sudden stress. 

[josieblo]

her fingers are clasped around two styrofoam cups, filled up only half way with red colored liquid.        “      look, i snuck some cocktails from the adults table !      ”    ADULTS TABLE it sounded so juvenile but it’s the way her bubbie described it. don’t touch the adults table, your fruit punch is over there.    not that she was complaining, fruit punch was her favorite drink  BUT she’d risk a small slap on her hand if stealing kosher cocktails would cheer up isaiah.   she extends the extra cup out to him before, gently, plopping herself on the couch beside him.       “     i feel like a vampire, it’s so red.    ”     then, in an attempted DRACULA impression,       “     mwahaha, ivant to drink your blood.      ”    /  @isaiahzeev

[timidstrcngth-arch]

                                                     E R S T W H L E S     ASKED     : " here, i got you a blanket... " / henrik!     //     @erstwhles​     //

she gives the smallest of jolts , much too sluggish or it to have any ‘ oomph ‘ behind it. she smiles in his direction , knowing with her whole heart that he is much too good to her when he didn’t even have to acknowledge she exists. she does what she can to not be so pessimistic ; though when she thinks on it , she can’t help but be so. “ t---thank you , s---sir .... no , h---hen----henrik .... my a---apolo---apologies. “ she says , sighing as she lowers her head as she shakes it somewhat in dismay. she was still working on not using formalities , though to break this habit was not the easiest. “ you d---did not h---have to , it is b---but a - “ she breaks off as she sneezes , the noise punctuated with a squeak. “ ..... c---cold. “ she finishes. 

[engclicht]

✆

TEXT MEME (AC) / @pescaprincipessa

✉PEACH: güten morgen, süßling 😍✉PEACH: you looked far too peaceful to wake. i’m sorry for slipping away. coffee has been brewed and i left you and gabriela some breakfast in the oven. i’ll see you tonight. have a good day ✉PEACH:i love you. give my girl a morning kiss for me. and you as well. 

[sceptilemasterr]

Defenders of the Flame (TE Rewrite) Act 3, Scene 6 - Romance and Reflection

Title: Defenders of the Flame (A CIU Screenplay)

Main Pairings: Shreya x F!MC, Beckett x F!Atlas

Other Pairings: N/A

Genre: Full Rewrite (The Elementalists, Book 1)

Rating: PG-13 for violence, blood, swearing, alcohol, and sexuality

Summary: An impatient Shreya takes matters into her own hands.

Previous Scene: To Ask a Question

Masterlist: Link

INT. PCSA MAIN QUAD - DAY

The main doors of Glebiza Hall swing open, and Shreya leads Fiora by the hand as they emerge onto the snowy quad. When the cold air hits, they both make a few quick gestures almost without thinking. A moment later, a layer of warm air surrounds them.

FIORA: Shreya... where are we going? It’s cold out here, and our Heatshells won’t last forever!

SHREYA: Just trust me, dear. I know what I am doing!

The two of them walk in silence for several moments. Fiora seems to be deep in thought as she repeatedly steals glances at Shreya. Before long, they have arrived in front of Fletchly Hall, and Shreya stops and turns to face Fiora.

SHREYA: Fiora, do you recall coming here for the first time?

FIORA: How could I forget? I was so confused. I thought for sure I was gonna be kicked out.

SHREYA (smiling): Luckily for both of us, that wasn’t the case. I remember convincing you that it was no mistake.

FIORA: Yeah. I was pretty surprised when you did that Stoicheal Transfer on me!

SHREYA (laughs): Quite the fiery Awakening, to be sure.

They continue their conversation as Shreya resumes walking, leading Fiora past Fletchly Hall and further along the quad.

SHREYA: As surprised as I was to learn you’d been raised Tuneless... I think we did a fairly good job navigating Penderghast life. Don’t you think?

FIORA: Yeah... (sighs) Listen, Shreya, I’m sorry for pulling you into all my issues. It can’t have been easy, and I know it’s tough dealing with all my insecurities and anxieties, and I don’t even know what you--

SHREYA: Please, Fiora. If any of that bothered me, you would have been the first to know. I like you, Fiora. Because you’re Fiora, and that’s all.

FIORA: Shreya...

SHREYA: Like I told you the other day: you need to see yourself the way I see you. Because what I see is a wonderful woman who has already grown so very much since the day we met!

Shreya stops, and Fiora looks around to realize they are standing on the steps to Tubigan Hall. Shreya turns to face Fiora again.

SHREYA: You can be frustrating at times, to be certain. But at the same time, you are kind, fiercely protective, gentle yet strong when you need to be... you’ve brought all of us Pend Pals together, you know. You say you’ve been following all of us, but in truth, lately... it’s us who’ve been following your lead. Haven’t you noticed?

FIORA (shocked): Wh...what?!

SHREYA: It’s true. Things could have gone much worse at the birthday party were it not for you mediating between us and Atlas... when you showed that you trusted her, we all did the same. You have so much more than you give yourself credit for.

Her eyes watering, Fiora pulls Shreya into a tight hug.

FIORA: Shreya... I can’t... I didn’t even realize--

SHREYA (laughs): There’s a lot you “don’t realize,” Fiora. Trust me on that.

A thought occurs to Fiora, and she pulls back, hesitating.

FIORA: You’re... you’re right. Look, Shreya, can I ask you something?

Shreya gets a glint in her eyes, and she smiles.

SHREYA: Hold that thought, would you, Fiora?

FIORA: Uh... okay?

SHREYA: You do know where we are?

FIORA: We ran into each other here. Literally.

SHREYA: Exactly. And there’s one very special reason I’ve brought you here today.

Fiora watches curiously as Shreya looks back toward the entrance, snaps her fingers, then makes a gesture above her head. A small burst of flame shoots out of her hands and into the air... and behind her, covering the entire front facade of Tubigan Hall, a massive sign made of floating neon lights appears. It reads: “FIORA LUXEN... WOULD YOU BE MY GALA DATE?” When she reads it, Fiora gasps and stumbles back.

FIORA (astonished): Wha... I... Shreya! Oh my God, yes!

They hug each other, laughing and giggling before pulling one another into a deep kiss.

LUCIA (O.S.) (shouting): Shreya? Are we done yet?

Shreya and Fiora break apart. Shreya laughs and waves a hand up toward one of Tubigan Hall’s second floor windows.

SHREYA (shouting): Yes, Lucia, thank you so much! The sign was wonderful! And she said yes!

LUCIA (O.S.) (shouting): Yay, congrats, you two! Glad I could help!

The lights making up the sign converge into a single beam, which rockets up toward the window where it gets absorbed by the person standing behind it, presumably Lucia.

FIORA: I was wondering how you did that...

SHREYA: Lucia was all too happy to help out. I doubt I could have said the same for Arvan, though.

They both giggle at the thought of Arvan helping out with anything romance-related.

FIORA: Shreya, this was genius. Honestly, I was just gonna ask you a minute ago, I’d only now figured out that you wanted--

SHREYA (laughs): You can be so dense, Fiora! It seriously took you this long to figure it out?

FIORA (blushing): Yeah...

SHREYA: Zeph was right. He’s actually where I got this idea from, you know. He said, and I quote: “You’d need a neon sign the size of a building before Fiora gets the hint!”

FIORA: Well, I dunno if he meant it that literally! But yeah... I honestly didn’t realize. I thought you were expecting someone else to ask you.

SHREYA: What, aside from you? Nonsense. You, Fiora Luxen, are the only one I want as my date to the gala.

FIORA: And I’ve never been happier! Thank you, thank you, thank you!

Giddily, the two of them walk hand-in-hand back toward Glebiza Hall, Fiora practically skipping with happiness.

_______________________

Notes: Nice little reminiscing session for Fiora and Shreya. Our MC has come pretty far since her first day at Penderghast!

_______________________

Next: Never Bet Against Fiora

CIU Tag List: @brightpinkpeppercorn @endlesshero1122 @bbaba-yagaa @acidsugar0 @shaylan211 @griselda1121 @acanthisorbis @marmolady @choicesbabie

DotF/Elementalists Tag List:

[sybariites-blog]

♅  @captainnextweek liked for Porthos ♅

--There is a steady drumming thump of Porthos’ tail, impatient shuffling of paws, all tied together with the expectant, beggars look that only a Beagle could master so well. Though the pleading eyes cast to the human called Reed aren’t for food, ( Phlox had already s p o i l e d the hound well enough with a treat Porthos may later regret ), but curiosity as to just WHERE Johnathan was. To be without his friend for any exceeding amount of time, was something Porthos was not terribly fond of.

--A soft whine is given in the Lieutenant’s direction, hopefully that maybe this tactic as opposed to the former would fetch the human’s attention. Humans were terribly difficult companions, especially those who had not yet mastered the art of understanding just what the hound may want.

[yladri]

Innocent or Guilty

Asked someone to marry you? — “...Innocent.”

Kissed one of your friends? —  “Guilty. More fun’n kissin’ a stranger, yeah?”

Danced on a table in a bar/tavern? — “Innocent.”

Ever told a lie? — “Guilty.”

Had feelings for someone you can’t have? — “Guilty.”

Ever kissed someone of the same sex? — “Guilty. Not int’ guys.”

Kissed a picture? — “Innocent.”

Slept until 5pm? — “Innocent.”

Worked at a fast-food chain/restaurant? — “Guess guilty? More bar’n restaurant.”

Stolen something? — “Innocent.”

Been fired from a job? — “Innocent.”

Done something you regret? — “Guilty. Who hasn’t?”

Laughed until something you were drinking came out of your nose? — “Innocent.”

Caught a snowflake on your tongue? — “Innocent.”

Sat on a rooftop? — “Innocent.”

Kissed someone you shouldn’t have? — “Guilty. Wasn’t upset, but uh, asked me not t’do it ‘gain.”

Sang in the shower? — “Innocent.”

Been pushed into a body of water with all your clothes on? — “Innocent.”

Shaved your head? — “Innocent.”

Made a boyfriend/girlfriend cry? — “...Dunno.”

Shot a gun? — “Guilty.”

Still, love someone you shouldn’t? — “Innocent.”

Have/had a tattoo? — “Innocent.”

Liked someone, but will never tell who? — “Innocent.”

Been too honest? — “Innocent. That a thing?”

Ruined a surprise? — “Prob’ly innocent?”

Been told that you’re beautiful by someone who totally meant what they said? — “Guilty. Always kinda weird.”

Stalked someone? — “Innocent.”

Thoughts about murder? — “’Pends what y’think’s murder.”

How about mass murder? — “Same’s the last one.”

Cheated on someone? — “Innocent.”

Gotten so angry that you cried? — “Innocent.”

Tried to stay away from someone for their own good? — “Innocent.”

Thoughts about suicide? — “Innocent.”

Had a girlfriend/boyfriend? — “Guilty.”

Gotten totally drunk during a holiday? — “Innocent.”

(( Look how innocent she is! :P ))

Tagged by: @yuki-yukichan

Tagging: @bexli-nelhah, @missmeela, @vhas-ya-ffxiv, @thegildenheart, @laceys-ffxiv-blog, @minquisitor, @the-bunbreaker, @cinnamon-suncat, @nahlithehatcat, @knifewaifu, @kotone-shimayasu, @kailani-ffxiv, @wildflower-havoc, @skysinger-musings, @chxsingthemoon, @signhere, @crimson-sunrise-ffxiv

[orblossom]

        “      boo!      ”    it’s a sudden exclaim as she nearly jumps on top of the other, her hands placed on his shoulders.   she can’t be certain if her scare actually happened but it didn’t stop the laugh that emitted.  @nerowilder

[everhat78]

Spotify Download Local Files To Android From Mac

Spotify

1. Spotify Tools

2. Spotify Account

3. Discount & Free

4. Spotify playlists

5. Spotify For Devices

6. Tips For Spotify

7. Others

How To Download Spotify In Mac

Download Spotify For Mac Free

Spotify is a digital music streaming platform. And with the recent update, you will be able to watch videos and shows. Thus, it a one-stop entertainment shop. There are certain limitations for different users and depending its support network to almost every existing operating system. You can find it compatible to Android, Mac, iOS, Windows. It’s a very interactive and easy to use application which can be used to listen on the subscriptions. How to install spotify on Mac or Windows? How to get Spotify on Android or iOS device? Don't worry and this article will give a full guide telling you the detailed steps. What's more, we will recommend a software to download Spotify music free and listen offline whenever you want.

When I go back in Spotify on Android, it's no longer there but not sure if the files remain, so I want to locate and delete. There's been other occasions where I've deleted a playlist from Android but not 'undownloadwed' it so want to make sure these old files are not taking up space. Cheers in advance for any advice/tips etc. Basically my problem is that spotify won't sync my local files (embedded in my offline playlists). Under the device menu on my computer, the playlist are checked. The ones having local files in them are just saying 'Pending' and won't start downloading the local tracks. 2.1 About a year ago I bought a premium subscription for spotify. Make Spotify your all-in-one music player. In addition to over 50 million tracks we offer, you can also use your Spotify app to play music files stored on your device (which we call 'local files'). Note: Files or downloads from illegal sources are not permitted. Using the desktop app, add Local Files you want to sync to a playlist. Log into Spotify on your Android using the same WiFi network as your desktop. Tap the menu button. Tap the playlist containing the local files from your computer. Select the playlist containing the local music files and press the Available. Any issues are normally down to communication issues so here's a list of things to check if local files won't download. Your PC and mobile must be connected to the same Network/SSID and spotify should be running on your PC. First of all, we will have to import local music to Spotify desktop application. To do this, open the.

Having problem downloading this fun-filled app, or willing to know how can you download Spotify easily?

Part 1. How to Install Spotify on Mac?

Step 1 Create an account on the Spotify network.

Once the registration is completed, verify the account. You will be directed to the download link.

Step 2 The download would proceed automatically. If not, click on the download link and click on save file.

Step 3 Once the download is completed, open the folder containing the downloaded file and double click to run.

How To Download Spotify In Mac

A message would appear, prompting 'drag Spotify to Application folder'

Note: If an error appears, that the file cannot be moved as the application cannot be modified and a warning dialog box may appear. Click on authenticate and proceed.

Step 4 Now the application is ready for use. For ease you may create a shortcut on the Dock.

Part 2. How to Install Spotify to Windows?

Step 1 Open your browser and go to the following link:

https://www.spotify.com/int/download/windows/

These windows may appear.

Step 2 Once the downloading and installation is over, open the file. The registration link appears. Fill in the details to use the application.

Step 3 Verify your account. Login to the registered account and click on the link provided in the email. Once the link activates your account, you can access the tracks and other services of Spotify.

These will activate only the free account and limited access for few days. In order to enjoy uninterrupted services, purchase the member and make use of all the features available with the subscription. Features may vary with type of subscription, platform and region.

Part 3. Get Spotify on Android

Downloading apps from the Playstore is very easy but sometimes difficult, because of the similar looking apps and services. But, it is suggested to take note of the number of downloads, developer details and other details in case you get confused.

Step 1 Open the PlayStore and search for Spotify.

Step 2 Press the install button and install the application to your device.

Step 3 Create an account, or login through Facebook.

Note: if you are looking for a Premium account, you are needed to provide you card details to make payment and other in-app purchases.

There are certain limitations over the Playstore. Since Spotify is not available for all devices or Android versions, you may not be able to install or search for the app. If it is available, certain features may not be available because of the region. Every country or state has certain limited features which may be a disappointment for may users.

Part 4. How to Install Spotify on Your iOS Device (iPhone or iPad)

Download Spotify For Mac Free

Step 1 Search for the application on the iTunes or AppStore.

Step 2 Download and install the application to your device.

Step 3 Create an account or provide credit card details to confirm your identity.

Step 4 Enjoy the features of the application as per the Subscription type you opt for.

Spotify has not yet been launched in many nations, thus you may not find the application in the Search if you are accessing the network in those nations. Some features may be different as the regions, it is recommended to look for those details before purchasing the membership if you are willing to make payments.

Part 5. Download Spotify Music Free with iMusic

iMusic - Music Downloader, transfer and manager for your iOS/Android Devices

YouTube as your personal music source

Supports 10000+ sites to download music and videos

Transfer music between any two devices

Use iTunes with Android

Organize entire iTunes music library

Fix ID3 tags and covers

Delete duplicate songs & remove missing tracks

Share your iTunes playlist

[sarcasminho]

Best Contact Management Software

Disclosure: This content is reader-supported, which means if you click on some of our links that we may earn a commission.

When you’re trying to make the sale, you want to be as tactful as possible. You want to talk to your customer at the exact time they want what you’re selling.

This means going beyond storing their basic contact information and tracking points of contact, rebuttals, and previous sales deals.

That’s where contact management software can be one of your most valuable sales tools. It helps you streamline your sales process so that you can close sales faster, keep your most valuable customers, and grow your business.

But how do you find the right contact manager to integrate into your sales system?

In this extensive guide, I review five of the top contact management tools on the market and walk you through the best features as well as their price points.

Let’s get started.

#1 – HubSpot Review — The Best Free Contact Management System

HubSpot stands alone as a powerful free contact management system with tons of accessible tools to enhance your sales cycle from beginning to end.

That’s because HubSpot gives away a free version of its award-winning CRM (customer relationship management) software . Contact management is one of the foundational services included with this suite, but you will find tools for sales, marketing, and customer service teams.

For a free product, it’s unbelievably rich.

Focusing in on just the list of contact management tasks you can do for free with HubSpot’s software still gives you a long list. You can keep track of contact website activity, deals, company insights, manage ticketing, manage ads, email tracking and notifications, and even messenger integrations.

HubSpot’s free contact management software is an excellent stepping stone toward more varied and growth-oriented contact management as your business grows since you can always upgrade to one of their paid CRM plans without having to migrate.

If you’re getting started with contact management and want to do more with your contacts in terms of sales strategy on a budget, I recommend you start onboarding HubSpot’s free tools for a strong beginning.

Start using HubSpot for free here.

#2 – Bigin Review — The Best For Simple Contact Management

A small or mid-sized business doesn’t always have use for tools built with enterprises in mind. Bigin takes the prize for a simple yet reliable contact manager you can easily start with.

A single dashboard unifies all your data points so you can make strategic decisions at a glance and manage everyone on your roster. It helps to think of it as your own personal yellow pages except for ten times more useful.

You can do things like adding your preferred tags to contacts to find what you’re looking for quickly, glance over at your expected revenue numbers, and see all your pending tasks.

Bigin makes it easier for you to close deals by scheduling follow-up activities and then closely monitoring results, all on an intuitive dashboard.

Bigin’s simplicity bleeds into its pricing structure, too. Here’s a quick overview:

Free

Single user

500 contacts

One pipeline

Express – $7/user per month

50,000 contacts

5 pipelines

Add 10,000 additional contacts for $1/month

Up to 20 custom fields per module and 10 custom dashboards

It’s that simple. One user with one pipeline can manage up to 500 contacts free, forever. And the paid tier isn’t tough to stomach, either.

Get started with Bigin here to go beyond managing a simple list of contacts.

#3 – Pipedrive Review — The Best For Visual Contact Management

Pipedrive is loved not just for the wide array of CMS tools it offers but because it makes the whole contact management and sales process straightforward and visual. It’s been used by over 90,000 companies in more than 170 countries and business giants like Vimeo, Amazon, and Re/Max.

Pipedrive is a highly intuitive system that easily updates and automates contact tasks and sales calls. The easy drag-and-drop features and their clean and approachable interface make them an easily adaptable and usable system.

With a visual dashboard in mind, they don’t falter in the features department, as it offers plenty of tools for powerful contact management like task automation, lead pipelines, and smart lists that track the last time you contacted a prospect.

You can always try Pipedrive free for 14 days. It doesn’t hurt to spend a few days trying out the software’s ins and outs to see if they’re a good company match. Otherwise, the ricing plans break into four tiers:

Essential – $12.50

Advanced – $24.90

Professional – $49.90

Enterprise – $99

#4 – Zendesk Review — Best For Reporting and Analytics

Zendesk is a dynamic CMS that emphasizes the analytical and reporting aspects of contact management.

The last thing you want is to grow a robust list of leads and then have no idea what to do with them due to lack of data. Zendesk’s analytics make it possible for you to engage in better conversations with your prospects with their pre-built analytics features.

With them, you can track rep activities, call response times, and live chat interactions. Their rich reporting features ensure you keep a finger on every touchpoint of your sales cycle. This makes it easy to increase the ROI of each sales rep on your team.

Zendesk’s price breakdowns can get specific depending on the solutions and features you’re looking for. The contact and relationship management tiers start at $19 per seat.

Here’s a quick overview of the pricing tiers:

Team – $19 per seat per month

Professional – $49 per seat per month

Enterprise – $99 per seat per month

Elite – $199 per seat per month

Get started with a free demo of Zendesk here .

#5 – Salesforce Review — The Best Scalable CMS

Contact management software that scales with you and offers powerful tools to take you beyond the basics? There’s a tool for that. It’s called Salesforce.

The point of a CMS is to increase the efficiency of your daily operations, so you’re never blindsided by lost sales or missed relationship-building opportunities.

Salesforce does that by offering the tools to build a good contact management base. This means contact history, survey answers, and email responses. But they take it a step further with their social data tool to keep track of what your customer is saying about products and services.

Not only that, but Salesforce makes it easy to collaborate with everyone in your business. You can share documents, comments, analytics and insights, sales history, and any other information relevant to your ROI.

On-the-go contact management is also possible with its mobile app. You can hop on a call armed with plenty of preemptive information about your customer from anywhere. This awesome array of tools makes Salesforce not only a contact management tool but a sales closing system, too, which is why it’s made it on my top five picks.

Here’s a breakdown of each plan they offer:

Essential – $25

Professional – $75

Enterprise – $150

Unlimited – $300

Each plan comes with:

Account, contact, lead, and opportunity management

Email integration with Gmail and Outlook

Access to the Salesforce mobile app and all it’s features

The higher the tier, the more access to customizable features and tools you’ll have. Thankfully, you don’t have to jump right into a plan without testing how they work first.

Salesforce also gives you the option of testing any pricing tier first before committing.

Try Salesforce for free fi rst here and see what plan fits your contact management needs the best.

What I Looked at to Find the Best Contact Management Software

Choosing the best contact management software goes beyond making sure they provide the standard contact management software (CMS) tools like sales tracking, customer notes, emails, and sales history.

Your business is unique, which means your CMS needs are also unique. Because of this, it’s hard to pinpoint a one-size-fits-all CMS that you can use in any given sales scenario or industry.

You also have to consider the size of your team, your plans for scaling and revenue growth, and what functionalities are non-negotiable in your given industry.

Beyond that, there are a few specific key factors to think through when trying to make the best choice in a sea of software. Use these criteria to ensure you’re making the best contact management investment possible.

Reporting and Analytics Capabilities

Some contact management systems put more emphasis on sales reporting and analytics than others. This can prove to be a valuable asset or just an extra feature to your team, depending on how you handle your sales process.

These days, contact management software is increasingly robust in terms of the analytics it can gather to help you make the best sales decisions. Some of them can measure everything from live chat interactions to sales calls, email responses, and even what you’re prospective customers say on social media about you or your competitor’s product or service.

Deciding how deep you need your contact management analytics to go will ultimately depend on your sales goals and budget. Consulting with your sales team can be a sound idea in the process of making a final decision.

Sales Process and Software Fit

The sales process you use to sell printers isn’t necessarily the same one you’d use to sell premium car parts. This also means you’ll want to find a CMS that fits every unique point of sale your team goes through continuously.

If done right, this can mean higher ROI, shorter sales cycles, and more revenue. This is where it’s a good idea to take the time to test drive every prospective CMS that looks appealing to your sales team. Most of them have the option for a demo or a 14-day free trial.

These trials exist for a reason. I highly recommend you take advantage of them before you commit.

User Experience

The more scalable integrations and features a CMS has, the more likely it is to have a big learning curve. This is important to take into account when thinking about onboarding your sales team to the system successfully.

Besides that, the user experience for both your front-facing customer features like contact forms and chatbots and the backend features your sales team will have to interact with daily is also a crucial part of the process as far as ease of use goes.

An array of powerful features is pretty much useless if your sales team continually runs into trouble using them, or if integrations prove too clunky to operate properly.

This also raises questions about what support features your preferred CMS provides and whether they offer any accompanying training options like forums, live chats, or even training webinars.

Summary

Finding the right contact management system can make the difference between constant sales, shorter sales cycles, and more efficient business growth all around.

But it starts with figuring out what your sales needs are, how you go through your sales strategy, and what you need to optimize for higher ROI. Once you’ve figured out your key needs, you can start narrowing down your list of prospects.

My recommendations are all excellent products, but they each have their strong suit:

HubSpot – Best free contact management software

Bigin – Best for simple contact management

Pipedrive – Best for visual contact management

Zendesk – Best for reporting and analytics

Salesforce – Best scalable contact management software

My top choices for effective contact management are HubSpot , because of their extensive list of free tools, and Salesforce , because of how versatile and adaptable they are. Make sure to use this review as a roadmap to make your final decision.

See How My Agency Can Drive Massive Amounts of Traffic to Your Website

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Go to Source Author: Neil Patel

This post Best Contact Management Software first appeared on WalrusVideo

[speechlanguage]

Best Contact Management Software

Disclosure: This content is reader-supported, which means if you click on some of our links that we may earn a commission.

When you’re trying to make the sale, you want to be as tactful as possible. You want to talk to your customer at the exact time they want what you’re selling.

This means going beyond storing their basic contact information and tracking points of contact, rebuttals, and previous sales deals.

That’s where contact management software can be one of your most valuable sales tools. It helps you streamline your sales process so that you can close sales faster, keep your most valuable customers, and grow your business.

But how do you find the right contact manager to integrate into your sales system?

In this extensive guide, I review five of the top contact management tools on the market and walk you through the best features as well as their price points.

Let’s get started.

#1 – HubSpot Review — The Best Free Contact Management System

HubSpot stands alone as a powerful free contact management system with tons of accessible tools to enhance your sales cycle from beginning to end.

That’s because HubSpot gives away a free version of its award-winning CRM (customer relationship management) software . Contact management is one of the foundational services included with this suite, but you will find tools for sales, marketing, and customer service teams.

For a free product, it’s unbelievably rich.

Focusing in on just the list of contact management tasks you can do for free with HubSpot’s software still gives you a long list. You can keep track of contact website activity, deals, company insights, manage ticketing, manage ads, email tracking and notifications, and even messenger integrations.

HubSpot’s free contact management software is an excellent stepping stone toward more varied and growth-oriented contact management as your business grows since you can always upgrade to one of their paid CRM plans without having to migrate.

If you’re getting started with contact management and want to do more with your contacts in terms of sales strategy on a budget, I recommend you start onboarding HubSpot’s free tools for a strong beginning.

Start using HubSpot for free here.

#2 – Bigin Review — The Best For Simple Contact Management

A small or mid-sized business doesn’t always have use for tools built with enterprises in mind. Bigin takes the prize for a simple yet reliable contact manager you can easily start with.

A single dashboard unifies all your data points so you can make strategic decisions at a glance and manage everyone on your roster. It helps to think of it as your own personal yellow pages except for ten times more useful.

You can do things like adding your preferred tags to contacts to find what you’re looking for quickly, glance over at your expected revenue numbers, and see all your pending tasks.

Bigin makes it easier for you to close deals by scheduling follow-up activities and then closely monitoring results, all on an intuitive dashboard.

Bigin’s simplicity bleeds into its pricing structure, too. Here’s a quick overview:

Free

Single user

500 contacts

One pipeline

Express – $7/user per month

50,000 contacts

5 pipelines

Add 10,000 additional contacts for $1/month

Up to 20 custom fields per module and 10 custom dashboards

It’s that simple. One user with one pipeline can manage up to 500 contacts free, forever. And the paid tier isn’t tough to stomach, either.

Get started with Bigin here to go beyond managing a simple list of contacts.

#3 – Pipedrive Review — The Best For Visual Contact Management

Pipedrive is loved not just for the wide array of CMS tools it offers but because it makes the whole contact management and sales process straightforward and visual. It’s been used by over 90,000 companies in more than 170 countries and business giants like Vimeo, Amazon, and Re/Max.

Pipedrive is a highly intuitive system that easily updates and automates contact tasks and sales calls. The easy drag-and-drop features and their clean and approachable interface make them an easily adaptable and usable system.

With a visual dashboard in mind, they don’t falter in the features department, as it offers plenty of tools for powerful contact management like task automation, lead pipelines, and smart lists that track the last time you contacted a prospect.

You can always try Pipedrive free for 14 days. It doesn’t hurt to spend a few days trying out the software’s ins and outs to see if they’re a good company match. Otherwise, the ricing plans break into four tiers:

Essential – $12.50

Advanced – $24.90

Professional – $49.90

Enterprise – $99

#4 – Zendesk Review — Best For Reporting and Analytics

Zendesk is a dynamic CMS that emphasizes the analytical and reporting aspects of contact management.

The last thing you want is to grow a robust list of leads and then have no idea what to do with them due to lack of data. Zendesk’s analytics make it possible for you to engage in better conversations with your prospects with their pre-built analytics features.

With them, you can track rep activities, call response times, and live chat interactions. Their rich reporting features ensure you keep a finger on every touchpoint of your sales cycle. This makes it easy to increase the ROI of each sales rep on your team.

Zendesk’s price breakdowns can get specific depending on the solutions and features you’re looking for. The contact and relationship management tiers start at $19 per seat.

Here’s a quick overview of the pricing tiers:

Team – $19 per seat per month

Professional – $49 per seat per month

Enterprise – $99 per seat per month

Elite – $199 per seat per month

Get started with a free demo of Zendesk here .

#5 – Salesforce Review — The Best Scalable CMS

Contact management software that scales with you and offers powerful tools to take you beyond the basics? There’s a tool for that. It’s called Salesforce.

The point of a CMS is to increase the efficiency of your daily operations, so you’re never blindsided by lost sales or missed relationship-building opportunities.

Salesforce does that by offering the tools to build a good contact management base. This means contact history, survey answers, and email responses. But they take it a step further with their social data tool to keep track of what your customer is saying about products and services.

Not only that, but Salesforce makes it easy to collaborate with everyone in your business. You can share documents, comments, analytics and insights, sales history, and any other information relevant to your ROI.

On-the-go contact management is also possible with its mobile app. You can hop on a call armed with plenty of preemptive information about your customer from anywhere. This awesome array of tools makes Salesforce not only a contact management tool but a sales closing system, too, which is why it’s made it on my top five picks.

Here’s a breakdown of each plan they offer:

Essential – $25

Professional – $75

Enterprise – $150

Unlimited – $300

Each plan comes with:

Account, contact, lead, and opportunity management

Email integration with Gmail and Outlook

Access to the Salesforce mobile app and all it’s features

The higher the tier, the more access to customizable features and tools you’ll have. Thankfully, you don’t have to jump right into a plan without testing how they work first.

Salesforce also gives you the option of testing any pricing tier first before committing.

Try Salesforce for free fi rst here and see what plan fits your contact management needs the best.

What I Looked at to Find the Best Contact Management Software

Choosing the best contact management software goes beyond making sure they provide the standard contact management software (CMS) tools like sales tracking, customer notes, emails, and sales history.

Your business is unique, which means your CMS needs are also unique. Because of this, it’s hard to pinpoint a one-size-fits-all CMS that you can use in any given sales scenario or industry.

You also have to consider the size of your team, your plans for scaling and revenue growth, and what functionalities are non-negotiable in your given industry.

Beyond that, there are a few specific key factors to think through when trying to make the best choice in a sea of software. Use these criteria to ensure you’re making the best contact management investment possible.

Reporting and Analytics Capabilities

Some contact management systems put more emphasis on sales reporting and analytics than others. This can prove to be a valuable asset or just an extra feature to your team, depending on how you handle your sales process.

These days, contact management software is increasingly robust in terms of the analytics it can gather to help you make the best sales decisions. Some of them can measure everything from live chat interactions to sales calls, email responses, and even what you’re prospective customers say on social media about you or your competitor’s product or service.

Deciding how deep you need your contact management analytics to go will ultimately depend on your sales goals and budget. Consulting with your sales team can be a sound idea in the process of making a final decision.

Sales Process and Software Fit

The sales process you use to sell printers isn’t necessarily the same one you’d use to sell premium car parts. This also means you’ll want to find a CMS that fits every unique point of sale your team goes through continuously.

If done right, this can mean higher ROI, shorter sales cycles, and more revenue. This is where it’s a good idea to take the time to test drive every prospective CMS that looks appealing to your sales team. Most of them have the option for a demo or a 14-day free trial.

These trials exist for a reason. I highly recommend you take advantage of them before you commit.

User Experience

The more scalable integrations and features a CMS has, the more likely it is to have a big learning curve. This is important to take into account when thinking about onboarding your sales team to the system successfully.

Besides that, the user experience for both your front-facing customer features like contact forms and chatbots and the backend features your sales team will have to interact with daily is also a crucial part of the process as far as ease of use goes.

An array of powerful features is pretty much useless if your sales team continually runs into trouble using them, or if integrations prove too clunky to operate properly.

This also raises questions about what support features your preferred CMS provides and whether they offer any accompanying training options like forums, live chats, or even training webinars.

Summary

Finding the right contact management system can make the difference between constant sales, shorter sales cycles, and more efficient business growth all around.

But it starts with figuring out what your sales needs are, how you go through your sales strategy, and what you need to optimize for higher ROI. Once you’ve figured out your key needs, you can start narrowing down your list of prospects.

My recommendations are all excellent products, but they each have their strong suit:

HubSpot – Best free contact management software

Bigin – Best for simple contact management

Pipedrive – Best for visual contact management

Zendesk – Best for reporting and analytics

Salesforce – Best scalable contact management software

My top choices for effective contact management are HubSpot , because of their extensive list of free tools, and Salesforce , because of how versatile and adaptable they are. Make sure to use this review as a roadmap to make your final decision.

See How My Agency Can Drive Massive Amounts of Traffic to Your Website

SEO – unlock massive amounts of SEO traffic. See real results.

Content Marketing – our team creates epic content that will get shared, get links, and attract traffic.

Paid Media – effective paid strategies with clear ROI.

Book a Call

Go to Source Author: Neil Patel

This post Best Contact Management Software first appeared on WalrusVideo

[josieblo]

         she’s bent over a toilet. a bottle of water sitting by her leg as her head rests on her arm sitting on top of the toilet seat.     and each time she’d breathe out a laugh she’d begin to feel slightly woozy.  YET  she continued to laugh.      “     i’m gonna –   i’m gonna throw up.     ”       nearly hysterical laughter as she holds her stomach, still kneeling over the toilet.          “      oh my god !!   i don’t know why it’s so funny.      ”       /   @ariewinters