AUTHOSHow to choose a LinkedIn CRM as a solo consultant
Choose a CRM around the work you need to remember: the buyer’s problem, the last conversation, and the next agreed step. For a solo consultant, the useful test is whether you can recover that context quickly and act on it accurately.
Define the job before comparing features
Write down where your last five opportunities came from and what happened next. If nearly all begin in LinkedIn conversations, keeping those conversations connected to next actions may matter most. If opportunities span email, referrals, events, and a team, a broader CRM may fit better.
Separate a contact from an opportunity. Someone can be worth knowing without actively evaluating your services. Recording that distinction prevents a list of connections from becoming a misleading sales forecast.
Three approaches to compare
| Approach | Useful when | Check carefully |
|---|---|---|
| Simple tracker | You can maintain a small number of conversations manually. | Can you keep links, context and due dates current? |
| General CRM | You need a broader process across channels or people. | How will LinkedIn context enter the record, and who maintains it? |
| LinkedIn workspace | Content and LinkedIn conversations are central to finding clients. | What syncs, how fresh is it, and what requires a browser extension? |
Run the same practical test
- Choose a conversation where a prospect asked a real question.
- Locate the latest message and record its date.
- Add the stated problem, an appropriate stage, and one next action.
- Prepare a reply that answers the question without inventing context.
- Return a day later and see whether you can continue without reconstructing everything.
Use your own test contact or permissioned data. Record missing information and manual steps. Do not count a feature as successful just because a menu item exists.
Decide what you can maintain
Score each approach as “works for this task,” “needs manual work,” or “not verified.” Include setup time and ongoing maintenance. Avoid a long weighted score that hides a missing requirement behind dozens of minor features.
If the tracker already works, keep it until you can name the task it fails. If your problem is recovering conversation context and keeping content connected with next steps, evaluate a workspace against that job. See the follow-up record for a starting template.