Getting Started

Welcome to MEMO — the relationship tool for people who hate CRMs.

You're not here to manage pipelines or automate follow-ups. You're here because you build your business on real relationships, and you want a simple way to stay connected to the people who matter.

This guide walks you through your first 10 minutes. By the end, you'll have MEMO set up and ready to use.

What to Expect

MEMO starts you with three people — not three hundred.

Most apps want you to import your entire contact list on day one. We don't. We've found that people who start small actually use the app. People who import 500 contacts get overwhelmed and quit.

So we're going to ask you to pick just three people: your Core 3. These are the people you most want to stay close to. Everything else can come later.

Step 1: Your Name

First, we'll ask for your first name. This personalizes your experience throughout the app.

That's it. No lengthy profile setup. No company info. Just your name.

Step 2: Your Core 3

This is the heart of onboarding.

What is the Core 3?

Your Core 3 are the three people you most want to stay connected to. Maybe they're:

Your top referral sources
Close friends who advocate for your business
Past clients who always send people your way
Family members who talk you up at every opportunity

These aren't necessarily your biggest deals or most impressive contacts. They're the people where the relationship matters most.

How to pick them

MEMO will ask permission to access your phone contacts. If you grant it, you'll see your contact list and can search to find your three.

Can't decide? Ask yourself: "If I could only stay in close touch with three people this year, who would they be?"

Don't want to grant contact access? That's fine. You can skip this step or use sample contacts to explore the app first.

Why only three?

Because depth beats breadth.

We'd rather you have 3 contacts you know deeply than 300 you barely remember. Starting small forces you to be intentional. And it lets you experience how MEMO works before scaling up.

You can add more contacts anytime. The Core 3 is just your starting point.

Step 3: Quick Enrichment

For each of your Core 3, we'll ask you to do two things:

Add a photo

Tap to select a photo from your library. Faces make your Sphere feel human. If you don't have one handy, skip it — you can add later.

Write a memo

We'll give you a prompt — something like:

"What's their go-to drink order?"
"What do they do for fun?"
"What's the name of their pet?"

Answer in a few words. Don't overthink it. These memos become the first personal details attached to each contact.

If you don't know the answer, skip it. The point isn't to fill in blanks — it's to capture what you actually know.

You're In

After your Core 3 are set up, you land in the main app. Here's what you'll see:

The Stack

Your daily action center. At the top: your Short List (the 3 people to contact today — likely your Core 3 at first). Below that: The Daily Deal (a quick card game to enrich your data).

The Sphere

Your complete contact list, sorted by who needs attention. Right now it's just your Core 3, but it'll grow.

Settings

Your profile, preferences, and Your Pulse (relationship health metrics).

Adding More Contacts

Your Core 3 is just the beginning. Here's how to grow your Sphere:

Manual Add

Tap the "+" button anytime to add someone new. Enter their name and whatever details you know. They'll appear in your Sphere immediately.

From Your Phone

Open a contact's profile and use "Add to MEMO" (if you granted contact access). Their info imports automatically.

Bulk Import (Coming Soon)

We're building a web companion that will support CSV upload for those who want to import larger lists. But even then, we'll encourage you to be selective. Quality over quantity.

Quality Over Quantity

Here's MEMO's philosophy on contact lists:

20 complete contacts are worth more than 200 incomplete ones.

A "complete" contact isn't just a name and phone number. It's someone whose birthday you know, whose kids' names you remember, whose coffee order you could recite. It's someone you actually talk to.

Most CRMs encourage you to hoard contacts. The more names in your database, the better — right? Wrong. A bloated contact list creates noise. You can't possibly stay in touch with everyone, so you end up staying in touch with no one.

MEMO is different. We want you to have a tight, curated sphere of people you genuinely know. Start with your Core 3. Add people intentionally. Enrich them with real details. Remove the ones you're never going to contact.

A small, rich network beats a large, shallow one. Every time.

What's Next

Now that you're set up, here's how to make MEMO a habit:

Daily (2-5 minutes)

Open The Stack. Check your Short List — those are your 3 people for today. Reach out to them however feels right. Play a quick round of The Daily Deal if you have time.

Weekly (5-10 minutes)

Scroll through your Sphere. Notice anyone you've been meaning to add? Anyone drifting? Add a contact or two. Write a few memos.

Monthly (10-15 minutes)

Check Your Pulse in Settings. How's your streak? How many people did you reach this month? Any Focus Stacks worth diving into?

The rhythm is up to you. MEMO works whether you use it daily or weekly. The key is consistency — small touches compound into strong relationships.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Can I skip the Core 3 and just start adding contacts? Yes. During onboarding, tap "Skip for now." You'll land in the app with an empty Sphere and can add contacts manually.

Q: What if I picked the wrong Core 3? No problem. Your Core 3 are just regular contacts marked as Inner Circle. You can change their status anytime or add new people to your Inner Circle.

Q: Do I need to grant contact access? No. It makes adding people easier, but MEMO works fine without it. You can always add contacts manually.

Q: How many contacts should I have? There's no right number. Some people thrive with 30. Others have 300. What matters is that you actually know and engage with the people in your Sphere. If you have contacts you never think about, consider archiving them.

Q: Can I import contacts from my CRM? Not yet. We're building CSV import for the web app. For now, we recommend starting fresh and adding people intentionally. It's a chance to curate rather than dump.

Q: What happens to my data? Your contacts, memos, and activity are stored securely and sync across your devices. Only you can see your data — it's never shared or sold.

Summary

Step	What Happens	Time
Your Name	Personalize the app	10 seconds
Core 3	Pick 3 people to start with	2 minutes
Enrichment	Add photos and memos	3 minutes
You're In	Explore Stack, Sphere, Settings	Ongoing

MEMO isn't about managing hundreds of contacts. It's about actually knowing the people who matter. Start with three. Go deep. Add more when you're ready.

Welcome to MEMO. Let's build real relationships.