It has never been easier to start a business. And its never been easier for small and medium businesses (SMBs) to compete with larger competitors. Technology and innovative digital tools are driving these opportunities.
SMBs can finally enjoy some cost savings previously only afforded by big companies. SaaS tech tools cater specifically to smaller enterprises. Many tech companies act like coops. They essentially group SMBs together and give them complex digital tools. This allows them to share in the economies of scale and scope. All without adding employees or complexity. Such digital tools help SMBs eliminate human errors and improve customer service.
Workers can now collaborate more efficiently than ever before. Whether working down the hall or across the globe, some digital tools facilitate communications. Others prompt access to shared information. All of this is a boon to productivity. And smart businesses can generate more sales and improve profit margins.
There is a clear link between profit, productivity and customer satisfaction. The smart digital tools below can help your organization enter this virtuous cycle. Adopt these today and see how quickly perceptions of your company improve.
Digital Tools to Transform Your Business
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Self-help kiosks – Self-help kiosks fall into two categories. One helps customers purchase a product. The other helps parties connect. Greetly, for example, is a digital visitor sign in app. Thus, the latter category. Greetly allows office visitors, or retail customers, to sign-in without any human intervention. The interaction is fast, easy and eliminates human error. The purpose of both, however, is the same. They both provide greater convenience and flexibility to your consumer, client or visitor. They also free up human capital to work on higher value efforts.
- Online knowledge portals – One of the primary reasons behind the lack of expected output from your employees is that they spend a significant portion of their time searching for relevant information for their projects and assignments. This is especially true for knowledge workers who can spend up to 20% of their stipulated work time researching for information. A centralized archive can store the relevant information in smartly named categories making information easily accessible. That is one reason why companies spend so much on CRM. But just linear storage of information is not enough. Different categories and subcategories will have to be created for faster retrieval of information.
- Digital collaboration between employees – This category includes tools like Google Keep, Trello, Yammer or Idea Flip, among others. They are all designed to make communication, collaboration and exchange of ideas super quick and completely hassle-free. You don’t need to invest in expensive, custom technologies. You do not need to house your employee based in one room. They do not need to spend time and money traveling to collaborate. The tools enable your employees situated at different locations to interact. And all thee digital tools are available for free.
Conclusion
Starting and scaling your business has never been easier. You won’t need to spend on new recruits or technologies thanks to the digital tools above.
The best thing is you don’t need to wait to enjoy their benefits. They are all inexpensive and can be launched very quickly with limited technical ability.