The CRM has three foundational record types. They're easy to mix up — this article exists so you don't have to.
- An account is a company — the legal or organizational entity you do business with. The customer, the prospect, the vendor.
- A contact is a person — usually an employee at one of your accounts. Conversations happen with contacts.
- A location is a place — a physical site that belongs to an account. Where the work actually happens.
How they relate
- One account → many contacts (employees of that company).
- One account → many locations (sites, branches, properties).
- A contact links to one account at a time.
- A location links to one account.
Which one should I create?
- New customer/prospect/vendor? → account, then a contact for the person who reached out.
- New person at an existing customer? → contact, linked to the existing account.
- Same customer, different site? → location under the existing account. Don't duplicate the account.
Why this matters
Activity, leads, and opportunities all attach to accounts (and through them to contacts and locations). If you duplicate accounts, you fragment the customer view: half the activity sits on one record, half on the other, and reporting can't see the whole picture.