Technology has transformed the way we live, learn, and do business over the last few decades, but it’s easy to take many of these innovations for granted. In order to stay competitive in today’s digital world, it’s vital that you stay up-to-date on how technology can help you reach your goals faster and easier than ever before. The following guide will help you see how technology can transform your business by highlighting five common mistakes that people make and five ways to avoid them.
An Overview of Key Digital Technology
The first and most important step to improving your business with technology is getting familiar with all of your available options. From social media and email marketing to website design, there are hundreds of ways you can employ digital tools for your business. Here’s a quick breakdown of key digital technologies you should consider using for your business.
CRM/ERP Software
Customer relationship management (CRM) software and enterprise resource planning (ERP) software can help small businesses keep track of important customer information and enable them to process large amounts of data in a centralized system. Not all CRM or ERP systems are created equal, however; different platforms are designed for different industries. If you own a restaurant, for example, you might look into an application tailored to restaurants such as OpenTable, Restaurant Manager Pro or Kingsoft Office.
Hardware (computers, phones, tablets)
Any time you’re purchasing a piece of hardware, think about whether it will last you more than a year and whether it will be able to perform its main function for that period. If you need your phone to take amazing photos, make sure it has an excellent camera (which can cost more). Similarly, if you want your computer to be portable so you can travel with it, consider buying one that has a solid battery life.
Cloud Hosting Services
Hosting your website or app on a cloud hosting service is a quick and easy way to get set up. While it may be more expensive than self-hosting (where you host your own site or app), you won’t have to worry about maintenance, upgrades, backups, etc. In addition, there are lots of benefits to using a cloud hosting service such as low costs for extra space, 24/7 monitoring and security enhancements.
Marketing & Communications Tools
Have a look at your website analytics and see what you’re doing right and wrong when it comes to attracting new visitors. Pay attention to bounce rates, time on site, conversion rate and other useful metrics. Armed with that knowledge, there are many easy ways to quickly optimize your website
HR & Office Automation Tools
Think of HR tools as all those technologies that help you keep track of who’s doing what and when, whether it’s payroll software for tracking hours worked, or a project management tool for keeping everyone on task. Office automation tools are all those bells and whistles—from CRM systems to chatbots to document assembly apps—that are designed to make life easier and boost productivity.
Software Development Tools
Before you can improve your business with technology, you need to know how software development works. While software development is an enormously broad topic, there are several key concepts that are central to improving a business with tech. In our essential guide to improving your business with technology, we will review each of these concepts so that you can learn how to improve your business using modern tech tools.