Multiple digital technologies, innovations, and gadgets can help a small business leverage a great business idea into a successful venture without a big budget. These digital business tools allow a greater range in target market reach, solutions for efficiency and customer management when you do not have a big team, and alternatives to expensive marketing efforts.
Small businesses are no longer limited by their size. Some can even operate out of a home office by using an online collaboration suite to connect with employees while running a website as the digital storefront. Small business VoIP providers can keep you connected to every member of your team who can help facilitate real-time collaboration and problem-solving. Online payment gateways can eliminate the bane of running a small business which is unpaid invoices.
Find out what is available so that you know what is best for your small business needs.
Project Management Tools
These help to keep you and your staff organized and ensure that prioritized tasks get done promptly. If you rely on freelancers for the bulk of your work, then this can help them to stay on task without needing your direct supervision every day.
Time Tracking Software
This is an excellent tool for small businesses that allow working from home for the majority of their office staff. It helps map the time spent on any given task by each staff member and helps you identify ways to make more efficient use of time. It helps to keep staff accountable, improve processes, and identify the skills of each staff member so you can assign tasks that they are the best equipped to handle.
Digital Dictation Tools
This has been a great boon to businesses that have a lot of transcription work. As transcription is time-consuming, it can be very helpful to have a tool that can help streamline the tasks and organize them to keep track of the transcriptions.
Online Payment Portal
You can develop an online payment portal attached to your website that requires your customers to pay for the services and goods before they receive them. This eliminates your need to waste valuable employee time on calling clients to complete payments. It also guarantees complete payment as these portals can offer discounts and vouchers but require full payment before they complete the transaction. Your accountant will be very grateful for the ease this brings in balancing your books.
Accounting Software
Accounting software can help to streamline business expenditure, income, and spending. It is a great way to budget your profits and reduce unnecessary spending. You can easily share files with your accountant and view their work. It is also possible to file your taxes via these online tools so you can stay on top of this without worry.
Combined Marketing Platforms
These platforms help you to develop a marketing plan for the digital world. You can develop content for your social media sites and find out which ones best suit your business brand.
These platforms can be set up to automatically share posts to social media sites like Facebook and Twitter and update your blog regularly. They also collect your clients’ email addresses so that you can send out newsletters and promotional information to people that will value the information.
Secure Cloud Storage
Secure cloud storage allows you to provide your employees with all the files they need to do their work efficiently. Some platforms that help generate these systems can be adjusted to indicate the clearance of each employee for the type of files they are allowed to access. This helps to keep sensitive information secure.
This type of file sharing and storage solution can help to reduce the amount of paper your business generates. Going paperless can help to reduce the amount you have to budget for storage, make your business more Eco-friendly, and make it easier to keep track of files. In the past, businesses have been crippled because of a fire or flood that destroyed their files. You will never have to worry about this as your files will be safely stored in the cloud.
Customer Relationship Management Software
This is one of the best innovations for small businesses to utilize. This software helps you to provide answers to generic customer questions, direct them to products, and allows them to schedule appointments without keeping a 24-hour staff on hand. It is a great way to ensure that every customer gets an effective solution for their inquiry at any time of day without you having to sacrifice your free time or hire staff you cannot afford.
These are just some of the most popular digital business tools out there. Many others all serve different functions and can help you keep your business running smoothly. Administrative software can help free up your employees to focus on customers and building value with each interaction. Remote desktop applications allow your teams to keep track of work and provide solutions without being physically in the office. The future of your business lies in finding the right digital solutions for the bumps in the road that are keeping you from achieving business viability.
