For small business owners, the choice between a networking app and a CRM often leads to the wrong conclusion — because most people are comparing the wrong things. The real question isn’t “networking app or CRM?” It’s “what does my business actually need to grow through relationships?” And for most small business owners, the answer is something that combines the best of both: a relationship management tool.
Let’s break down what each does, where each falls short, and what the right solution looks like.
Key Takeaways
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What Networking Apps Actually Do
Networking apps are designed to help you make new connections and exchange contact information — primarily at events and through digital platforms. They’re built for the discovery phase of relationship-building.
Popular networking apps include Bizzabo, Brella, Grip, and LinkedIn (in its event-specific functions).
What they’re good at: - Facilitating introductions at events (matchmaking features) - Exchanging contact information digitally - Providing attendee directories at conferences - Scheduling meetings at events
What they’re bad at: - Maintaining relationships after the event - Holding context about who you spoke to and what you discussed - Reminding you to follow up - Managing relationships with people you already know
The fundamental limitation of networking apps: they’re ephemeral. They’re designed for the event experience, not the relationship that follows.
What Business CRMs Actually Do
Traditional business CRMs (Salesforce, HubSpot, Pipedrive) are pipeline management tools. They’re designed for sales teams tracking prospects through deal stages.
What they’re good at: - Tracking deals through a defined sales pipeline - Managing large volumes of leads - Team collaboration on sales activities - Reporting and forecasting for sales managers
What they’re bad at: - Managing existing relationships (not just leads) - Proactive relationship maintenance outside active deals - Mobile capture at networking events - The personal, contextual relationship management that small business owners need
Business CRMs are designed around transactions, not relationships. Once a deal closes, the contact largely disappears from view — there’s no cadence for maintaining the relationship, no reminder that a past client hasn’t heard from you in six months.
The Gap Both Miss: Relationship Maintenance
Here’s what both networking apps and traditional CRMs miss: the ongoing relationship-maintenance work that generates most of a small business owner’s revenue.
Your revenue doesn’t primarily come from new connections you made at events last week (networking app territory). It doesn’t come from a formal sales pipeline of cold prospects (CRM territory). It comes from:
Past clients who liked your work and have new projects
Referral partners who know and trust you well enough to send introductions
Warm prospects who needed more time to be ready
Long-term relationships that occasionally generate business in unexpected ways
Maintaining these relationships requires a tool that: holds complete contact records with context, provides proactive reminders when a relationship has gone too quiet, captures new contacts in the moment with voice notes, and works mobile-first on the go.
Neither a pure networking app nor a traditional CRM provides this. A personal relationship manager does.
The Personal CRM: What Small Business Owners Actually Need
A personal CRM is designed for exactly what small business owners need: managing existing relationships proactively, with intelligence and context.
Regards: Built for in-person-heavy networkers who need mobile capture, voice notes, and weekly follow-up reminders. The best choice for small business owners, realtors, consultants, and anyone who networks in person regularly.
Clay.earth: Best for desktop-heavy users who want automatic contact intelligence (AI pulls in LinkedIn updates, news mentions, and social data about your contacts). Strong follow-up features. iOS-only for mobile.
Dex: Best for LinkedIn-centric networkers who want their interaction history organized by contact. Less strong for in-person networking.
How to Think About Your Specific Needs
If most of your new business comes from conferences and in-person events: You need a tool with excellent mobile capture — business card scanning, voice notes, event context. Regards was built for this use case.
If most of your new business comes from LinkedIn: A personal CRM that integrates well with LinkedIn (Dex) or surfaces your LinkedIn contacts’ activity intelligently (Clay) will be more useful.
If you have a high-volume new leads pipeline alongside relationship maintenance: You might need two tools — a lightweight personal CRM for relationship maintenance, and a pipeline tool (HubSpot free tier works well) for tracking active opportunities.
If you’re primarily maintaining existing client relationships and referral networks: A personal CRM with strong cadence and reminder features is what you need. Regards handles this well.
A Practical Comparison
Feature | Networking App | Personal CRM (Regards) | Sales CRM (HubSpot) |
New connections at events | ✓ Excellent | ✓ Good | ✗ Not designed for this |
Maintaining existing relationships | ✗ Poor | ✓ Excellent | ✓ Limited |
Proactive follow-up reminders | ✗ None | ✓ Weekly surfaces | ✓ Deal-stage based |
Context and notes per contact | ✗ Minimal | ✓ Rich (incl. voice) | ✓ Good |
Mobile capture | ✓ Good | ✓ Excellent | ✗ Limited |
Business card scanning | ✗ Varies | ✓ Built-in | ✗ Limited |
Pipeline / deal tracking | ✗ None | ✗ Basic | ✓ Excellent |
Pricing for individuals | Varies | From free | From free |
Related reading:
A Practical Guide to Getting More Referrals
How to Stay in Touch With Clients
The Small Business Follow-Up System
Why we built Regards
I’m bad at staying in touch. Not because I don’t value people. Its a lot of work, and I didn’t have a system. This started as my fix. A quiet assistant that helped me nurture relationships thoughtfully. When people noticed the difference and asked what I was doing, it slowly evolved into a product. And the love has been incredible. Regards, Khuze
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you build a referral system for a small business?
Build a referral system in six steps: (1) identify your two types of referral sources — past clients and referral partners; (2) map your existing referral network; (3) set regular follow-up cadences (every 6–8 weeks for clients, monthly for partners); (4) make referrals easy by giving sources clear language; (5) ask at the moment of a clear win; (6) acknowledge every referral immediately and generously.
How do you get more referrals for a small business?
The most reliable way to get more referrals is to stay consistently visible to past clients and referral partners through personal, regular touchpoints — not by asking repeatedly, but by maintaining relationships that keep you top-of-mind. When opportunities arise, you’re the first name they think of. A CRM like Regards automates the reminder layer so you never let important relationships go cold.
Should you pay for referrals?
Referral fees can work in some industries but often feel transactional in relationship-driven businesses. A better approach: thank referrers genuinely and generously (personal acknowledgment, thoughtful gifts, or reciprocal referrals), and maintain the relationship consistently so referrals come from genuine advocacy rather than financial incentive.
How often should you contact referral sources?
Past clients with high referral potential: every 6–8 weeks with a personal touchpoint. Active referral partners: monthly. These cadences keep you top-of-mind without overwhelming people. The key is consistency — showing up reliably over time is what creates the relationship depth that generates referrals.
What is the best tool for managing referral relationships?
Regards is the best tool for managing a referral system for small businesses — it stores contact context, sets cadence-based follow-up reminders, and surfaces who you should reach out to each week. It’s mobile-first and designed for individual professionals rather than sales teams, making it practical for solopreneurs and small business owners managing their own referral networks.
