Many businesses fail to realize the importance of building and maintaining their own customer information database. While some customers may shun the idea of giving their personal information to others, you may need to find a way on how you can obtain a little bit of 
information on the customers for future reference, especially when these customers have become regular clients and started to purchase on credit.
Usually, official receipts and invoices carry blank spaces that some stores or companies request their customers to fill in whenever they purchase some goods or pay for services. These contain information some very basic information like the customer’s name, address, telephone numbers, mobile numbers, etc. Some customers are patient enough to fill them, but others just fill in their names and miss out the rest of the blank spaces. If possible, request the customers to fill in the other details for warranty purpose, or for them to avail of other extra services. This may encourage them to give additional information.
Take the time to start your customer database by preparing a simple worksheet or template. Each customer’s information may not be sufficient but over time when they become regular clients, they will opt to provide more information. With each database, you will be able to see a little bit of your customer’s history – like when he had transferred residence and how often he changed his phone numbers. That will keep you up-to-date too so that next time you want to call the customer to follow up his payment, you don’t need to go over too many piles to find what you need.
