Understanding the Business Contact Manager

Microsoft Office 2003 provides an extension to Microsoft Outlook called the Business Contact Manager. The Business Contact Manager makes it easy for you to organize business contacts and business opportunities. Because it is integrated with Microsoft Outlook, the Business Contact Manager provides a familiar interface and tools such as e-mail and faxing that make it a simple and effective small business tool.

When Business Contact Manager (BCM) is installed with Microsoft Outlook, it is integrated into the Outlook environment. You will find that a BCM mail folder is added to the available Outlook mail folders. BCM Account and Business Contacts are added to the Contact folders. An Opportunities list is also added to the Tasks folder.

You will also find that a Business Tools menu is added to the Outlook menu bar. The Business Tools menu provides you with access to the various BCM features including the ability to create reports based on your business contacts, accounts, and opportunities. Let's take a look at creating business accounts using the BCM.