Small businesses are founded with an idea and a passion. In today’s digital world, they are grown with a combination of exceptional service and technology, the latter of which helps you keep up with the big guys. This article showcases how you can integrate technology into different areas of your small business.
Billing
All businesses need to get paid on time to operate without snags. If you are still using outdated billing methods, switch to cloud-based accounting software. This will help you quickly send more accurate invoices so that you will get paid faster. It also helps you stay organized and maximize your tax deductions.
Shipping
Cargo ports across the world are utilizing new technologies to improve shipping and logistics. CargoPort notes that this includes robotics and blockchain technology. Although you may not be able to afford (and you likely do not need) these multi-million-dollar tools, there are plenty of tech-forward ways you can improve your shipping processes. The ShippingEasy software is one example of an out that will help you streamline your shipping processes.
Marketing
As the world has gone digital, so too should your marketing endeavors. Digital marketing consists of everything from having a desktop and mobile web design to prioritizing search engine optimization, content, and graphic design/branding. You can also utilize social media to spread your message as far and wide as possible.
Customer Service
Customer service matters more so than price or, in some cases, even product quality. Technology can help you improve your customer service game by helping you collect data from real customer interactions. Some programs will help you create surveys while others will pull and decipher data from your existing social media channels. The benefit is that you know better what your customers want and can see where you’re falling short. Artificial intelligence is another way that technology can boost your customer service endeavors, and even something as simple as having a chatbot representative answer common questions online can keep your customers happy.
Productivity
Being productive is always better than not. Technology makes it easier to be productive in all areas of your business, no matter how big or small you are. Time management, project management, collaboration, and other types of software that can help you automate certain processes give your human capital more time to focus on their jobs while also eliminating tedious tasks that can, quite frankly, make their jobs boring and mundane. Payroll, social media, analytics, email sorting, and time tracking are all examples of time-consuming jobs that are perfect for automation.
Remote Work Security
Remote work is more popular now than ever, and you already know that you need technology in the form of email, online collaboration, and cloud storage to make things happen when your team is spread out. However, no matter how much technology you’ve already implemented to make off-site employees possible, if you are not using digital security protocols and tools, then your business is vulnerable. At the very least, consider requiring your employees to log in through a virtual private network (VPN). This is essentially a server that wraps information sent to and from your employees’ computers in a private tunnel, making it exponentially difficult for hackers to access. For extra security, make sure all PDF files are password-protected to thwart hackers. Use a tool that combines PDFs to keep all your documents in one file, and sort them appropriately to keep all your records in order.
Technology has been a boon to businesses across the globe. If you think you are too small to harness technological advancements, think again. Technology can help all areas of your business, from billing to remote work security and everything in between, and it’s more accessible than you think. Implement one small change at a time, and you will soon be operating more efficiently and with happier customers than ever before.