Gone are those days when small businesses did not have the technology to compete with big businesses. Nowadays small businesses have the same technology and resources to compete with big businesses and that too globally. Can’t believe it? Then read on to know all that is available to you and that you must adopt if you want to win this war of survival of the fittest in our intensively competitive business world. Here we have top 4 technology ideas for small businesses.
#1 Cloud Storage
Emailing attachments is now old news. When you send attachments, then share information using cloud. This will help prevent miscommunication or any scheduling conflicts.
Services like Box.com, Google Drive and Dropbox are all good ways of exchanging information. Of these, Dropbox is the most popular. The interface is easy to use and it is so simple that you don’t need training to use it. All that you have to do is drag the file that you want to send and drop them into the shared Dropbox folder. You get 2GB space that sometimes seems less if you are sending videos or photos. In that case, you can use Google Drive.
#2 Free VoIP
Use VoIP when you have salespeople calling you from remote areas. Paying for such calls can be a huge drain on resources. But, if your employees use services like Skype, Tango or Facetime, then you get free calling. In fact, go a step ahead and set up a free conference call with many sales representatives by making use of these services to do business globally.
Whatever calling-plan the employee has (it can be the cheapest), and whatever the cost, when you are getting a free calling service why would you want to pay the cell phone companies!
#3 Card Readers
With an increasing number of people preferring to use only plastic cash, if your company has a policy of dealing only in hard cash, then you are losing business. Give your customers the benefit of credit card swipes and online payments. It is not just a professional way to conduct business but also a quick way. When your customers don’t have to run to the nearest ATM when they wish to purchase something, they will also be happy.
If you have a merchant account, then the credit card company will be happy to provide your business with a card reader and mobile app. Give your sales representatives the power to accept payment through credit cards and watch your sales increase.
#4 Cheap Tablets
With so many tablets in the market, forget about the person-to-person sales with numerous papers to demonstrate the benefit of doing business with you. Instead, supplement your sales talk with a tablet. It is a professional way of doing business and takes lesser time and resources.
Your sales representatives can also use these tablets to issue invoices and estimates, collect applications from clients and also take inventory. Everything is safe in one place and you can access it anytime you want.
Small time businesses can benefit from using all these tech advancements to do business more efficiently. It enhances productivity, gives a stress free and easy experience, and saves a lot of money.