What Is the Best Software for a Small Networking Group?

The short answer: the best software for a small networking group is the one your members will actually use every week. For most groups of 10 to 40 members that means something that works on a phone without an app download, records a referral in under a minute, and adds up the numbers for the leader. A shared spreadsheet is fine to start. Software built for referral groups is worth it once someone is spending an evening a month on totals.

The four kinds of tools groups use

Small groups usually end up with one of these:

• A spreadsheet or a web form. Free and familiar. Works while one person is willing to keep it tidy. See Ecoferral vs. spreadsheets and Google Forms for where it runs out.
• A general CRM. Built for a sales team, not a room of independent business owners. Every member needs a seat, and nobody outside the leader opens it.
• Association or membership software. Good at dues, events and email lists. Usually has no idea what a referral, a 1-to-1 or closed business is.
• Software built for referral networking groups. Tracks referrals to closed business, 1-to-1s, attendance and guests, and gives members their own numbers. This is the category Ecoferral is in, and it is our product, so weigh this guide with that in mind.

What a small group actually needs

Leave the long feature lists aside. A small group needs five things done well.

1. A referral takes seconds to give. If it takes longer than writing it on a slip of paper, members stop doing it. Look for a short form, the giver filled in automatically, and the receiver told right away.
2. Closed business gets counted. The number that keeps a group together is what the referrals turned into. The receiver should be able to mark a referral closed and add what it was worth, and the giver should hear about it. See how to track closed business.
3. Contact details stay private. The person being referred did not sign up for a group spreadsheet. Only the giver, the receiver and the leader should see their name and phone number.
4. Members see their own numbers. Referrals given and received, 1-to-1s, attendance. People who can see their own progress participate more.
5. The leader's monthly work is done for them. Totals, a leaderboard, who hasn't been at a meeting in a while, which guests came back.

Nice to have, once those work: QR check-in at meetings, a chapter website that updates itself, and a way to collect dues. See how to collect dues online.

Questions to ask before you pay

• Do members have to install an app? Every install is a member who won't bother. A website that works on a phone avoids the problem.
• How do members sign in? Passwords get forgotten. An emailed code or a passkey (Face ID or fingerprint) is easier.
• Who pays, and per what? Per-member pricing makes every new member a cost. A yearly price per group is easier to budget.
• Can you bring your history? Your group's past referrals are what make the first month useful. Ask whether they will import your spreadsheet or form entries.
• What happens to your data if you leave? You should be able to export it.
• Does it respect one member per category? If your group runs that way, the join form and member list should know it. See one member per category.

When to stay with a spreadsheet

A spreadsheet is still the right answer if the group is under about ten members, meets less than twice a month, or has a leader who enjoys keeping it. Software solves a time problem. If you don't have one yet, wait.

How Ecoferral fits

Ecoferral gives a group a members-only portal for referrals, 1-to-1s and check-in, a chapter website, and monthly reports, on one yearly plan per group with no per-member fees. Members sign in with an email code or a passkey, on any phone or computer. Past referrals are imported when you start. See how pricing works or see the features.