More and more people are finding success with their online businesses than ever before. The economy is pointing toward a future of increased digital commerce, and entrepreneurs are taking advantage of the current buzz in that direction.
Still, these businesses won’t make it far without the right tools and software. Every business should have an arsenal of software tools to carry them through the competition of the online world.
Without the right tech backing up your business, you’ll discover just how fierce the competition can be. New online businesses are cropping up all over the web in every industry. It’s virtually impossible to create a business that doesn’t have other players in the market.
One way to stand apart is by improving your processes, offering dynamite customer service, and bringing some personality to the business. The right software can help. Here are three kinds of software that you can use to help your business develop its own brand.
Small businesses often overlook software such as CRM because they don’t have a lot of customers to work with; however, businesses of all sizes can benefit from this tool that manages data and interactions with customers.
Managing your customers is much easier when you have all of the information in one place. It’s easier to keep track of customers, track emails, make appointments, schedule phone calls, look over analytics, and follow leads with CRM software, making almost every process easier.
Despite a world of brand new tools and email marketing ideas that have emerged over the last few years, email has yet to be replaced both for communicating with customers and for generating leads. Aside from using business email software that can handle large numbers of messages, businesses should also have a way to manage and to track their email interactions.
The right email software allows you to collect email addresses, schedule emails, and analyze customer interactions. Not only can this software show you how many people are opening your emails, but also what time of day that they do so. The resulting data is invaluable for planning marketing efforts.
The freelance economy has grown exponentially since smartphones have become mainstream, and nearly everyone has Wi-Fi. At the end of 2015, 54 million Americans had engaged in freelance work, which is more than 35 percent of the working population. Because employees have the ability to work anywhere at any time, companies need software to help them adapt. Collaboration software enables everyone to stay on the same page at all times.
Even those who don’t do freelance work benefit from being able to see the progress that others have made on certain projects. It also aids in budget and time tracking so companies can be sure that their time and money is being used wisely.
These tools won’t immediately solve all of your problems or bring customers flocking to your virtual door, but they can cut costs and improve efficiencies. Technology is continuing to blossom in businesses’ favor, and those who get involved early on will benefit the most.
Anurag Choudhari is the co-founder of Geekenized Technologies LLP, a web development & digital marketing agency that helps various SMBs & SMEs in developing & maintaining their online presence.
