The world just keeps on moving, whether we like it or not. The truth of the matter is that we don’t have much say in it. You can either accept, learn and adapt to the new tech trends or you can be left forgotten in nostalgic times. And although investing in new software does have a tendency to come with learning curves, it also offers plenty of rewards in return. Learning how to streamline your business with software can not only take your business to the next level but can increase just about any type of performance within your company. And when you put all the cubes together, you can a direct path towards an increase in revenue.
Streamline your business to make it better
Starting a business nowadays has become a brutal “Russian Roulette” type of play. One in every ten businesses tends to fight through the gravitational pull of the real world and lay the foundation for further progress. One of the many reasons why this tends to happen is the lack of streamlining everyday business procedures that lead to profitability. And without this key step, a small business has little to no hope of evolving past its infancy stages into adolescence. It is time lost on a day-to-day basis that can never be retrieved.
So, what would be the simplest solution to this trending issue at hand? It’s easy when you think about it. It all comes down to the decision to streamline your business with software. After all, securing the help of the right type of CRM systems and small business management software solutions is a well-established and accepted standard today. What we are talking about here is a single interface that all employees and business owners can use to perform the most basic and complex of tasks. Not only does it make operations simpler, but it also reduces the overall waste of resources:
- less time is spent on the completion of basic tasks
- operational expenses are much lower due to a universal interface and better internal communication
As a direct result of this, inefficiency drops whereas productivity blooms – a combination that makes a major difference in the bottom line of every company. Hence, it is a matter that should find a place in the mindset of every small business owner.
7 apps to help you streamline your business with software
So, if you truly want to lay the foundation for a positive work environment with a growing level of productivity in a short time frame, you might want to look towards small business management software solutions. So, rather than going through different types of internal processes and procedures, streamline your business with software that will simplify daily operations whilst increasing company revenue. Here are our top seven picks of software moving companies can use to better their day-to-day operations:
1. Slack – streamlining has never been easier and more practical
Mark Parker once said: “The biggest sources of opportunity are collaboration and partnership. And today, with digital communication, there is more of that everywhere. We need to expose ourselves to that as a matter of doing business“.
To put it plainly – you could have a million tools and the best possible equipment in the world, but it is all worthless without open communication among your team. A lack of communication is the most common cause of problems in companies today – in fact, since always. The solution can be found in Slack. An online chat that helps teams stay in contact all day – no matter the time of day or physical distance.
Here, one can create conversation threads regarding specific projects or channels that focus on particular topics within the company. It is a place and piece of software that can accommodate all internal company communication. Thus, it not only offers a way to streamline your business with the software but to collaborate and make hasty decisions.
2. Trello
The appeal of Trello is the efficiency it offers when it comes to project management, from top to finish. Each person or team can have their own dashboard, with scheduled and delegated tasks. You can create and assign cards to yourself and other members of your team. Deadlines, comments, attachments – you can have it all in one place. And the best part – it makes project management a breeze.
3. PandaDoc
With everything going digital in the world of business, relying on paperwork has not only become outdated but unfriendly towards the environment. Hence, using a document management software tool such as PandaDoc is proving more than practical for stuff like contracts, proposals, quotes, etc. With this lovely program, you can handle all the paperwork digitally, without any hard print paper trail.
Creating, sending, tracking documents – everything goes here, with an e-signature to wrap it all up. This takes off the time you waste on the tedious part of the business which is paperwork. As a result, you can devote yourself to other, more important, tasks.
4. Freshbooks
Economic uncertainty has come up as the #1 challenge of running a business today, according to modern findings. And this is completely understandable – nobody really likes to manage finances, especially for others. That is unless you have the option of Freshbooks. This useful little software simplifies the process of financial management greatly. You can track your expenses, forward invoices, and manage books with no effort whatsoever. Talk about the ideal way to streamline your business with software!
5. ZenDesk
Businesses today need to be able to rely on customer service and feedback. However, this is yet another aspect of business that you would be smart to streamline with software. And what better way than with the help of ZenDesk – your helpdesk solution to a positive interaction with clients. Email, chat, phone, or social media – you can connect with customers using any of these channels, and all from a single dashboard.
6. Calendly
The schedule of a business owner can be pretty full, borderline chaotic. Hence, pushing in new appointments in your already booked schedule can be quite the hassle. Enter Calendly – your solution to scheduling meetings and tasks. This lovely piece of software can help coordinate your appointments and help you avoid going back & forth over past correspondences in search of pre-made plans.
7. MailChimp
Email marketing plays an important role in the promotion of a small and young business. And regular email providers such as Gmail or Outlook can only get you so far when sending mass emails. But luckily, there is always MailChimp that you can count on to get your message through.
This is a tool that can help you not only forward a large number of emails to countless contacts, but it also offers the option of designing the entire email campaign, as well as monitoring it. All you have to do is create and schedule a campaign – MailChimp takes care of everything else. In the end, you need only gather the data and start analyzing.
When you think about it all…
Technology is your friend – the sooner you realize that the easier it will be to run your business with efficiency. And while your streamline your business with software solutions we noted here, you will free up time to focus on other, more important, aspects of your companies’ development.
