Running your own business means being resourceful, and this includes how you use your money and what you decide to spend it on. There will be the usual outgoings such as rent, salaries, insurance and bills, but you’ll also need to know when the best time to invest in other items is. That could include technology that can help your company run better.
Investing in technology may mean having to deal with an upfront cost, but in many cases, not only will it save you money in the long term, but it may help you generate a larger income by running your company more efficiently. Here are some of the ways that your business can benefit from using a variety of technology.
Use cloud services
Cloud-based services can reduce the need to buy and maintain different software applications. Such services can be useful for tasks such as back-ups, having document storage and even being used for collaborating with your team.
For collaboration, there are services for small businesses to help their teams work together and share across PCs and cell phones. It’s a share-and-sync solution with the compliance and security needed for businesses, no matter what size you are. You can be an SMB, an enterprise or someone who works from home.
Go mobile
Every department within your business can now work from any location if you have a smartphone or tablet that has the correct technology available. From sales, content marketing and customer service, everything can be done with just the click of a button.
There are many applications available that will suit your business type. If you create an inspection report for a client as part of your work, for example, then you could use a solution that also allows you to streamline your marketing processes and automate tasks such as scheduling and report delivery. Not only will this help you save time, but other members of your team will be able to access this information on the go.
Going mobile is also beneficial for your customers. Since many of us have smartphones these days, more people are using this tech to buy items and even search for local brands.
Keeping track of money
Being a business owner, you’ll want to know that you’re making a profit and if you can expand your brand in the future, so it’s worth reading up on the benefits of accounting software. You could think about investing in a program for you and your staff and make sure you are all trained on how to use it.
Using accounting software means you have the added security that it provides, and you can also monitor your business’s cash flow so you can see where you can save money. Such programs can also help you create invoices. This software will help you save time with these types of tasks and will help correct any human errors, which will reduce the amount of paperwork you may have to deal with.
Communication
It will benefit you and your brand to understand the role of technology in business communication. With your employees, you can set up a network where all of your work-related content can be stored and shared among your staff. This will help your company be more efficient and more productive because people from different departments will always be able to work well together.
It’s also something you can consider with your customers. Even using simple things such as an automated email response will mean that your clients will then stay in the loop.
Lighting
The light that you’re exposed to has a substantial effect on your mental wellbeing. Fluorescent lighting, for instance, can leave people feeling agitated and drowsy. However, smart lighting devices give people more control in the office.
Smart lighting can be controlled by smartphones or other devices over a Wi-Fi network. As well as being able to be turned off and on, these lights can then be dimmed to the correct level for the team’s requirements. It is also possible for these lights to be programmed to follow a particular schedule if dealing with lighting levels seems too tedious.
Stronger screens
It’s easy to crack a screen on a mobile phone or tablet, and dealing with repairs (and paying for them) can be inconvenient, costly and bad for productivity. However, there are more devices with shatter-proof glass entering the market, designed to be tough but thin and light enough to offer users an excellent experience and brilliant screen quality.