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Business success in the modern world is often dictated by systems and software. In fact, every year, several billions of dollars are lost when unsuitable software results in waste. The issue lies in the availability of products. Simply put, there are so many different business apps to save time and money, it can be difficult to choose. Therefore, it can be useful to ensure you understand the software you already have and how to make it work for you. Read on to discover how to make common business software you already have a more effective part of your work.
Separate The Want And The Need
You might have an idea of what you want, but it won’t always match up with what you think you need to get there. Undertaking business systems analysis to identify common processes and procedures which could be streamlined will help to inform a list of tasks and objectives, which can then be measured against the software capabilities you have. Any gaps can be filled with additional business operating systems, and knowing how you need these to integrate with existing software and data is really important as well.
Most requirements will fall into one of several major categories. For example, marketing software, business intelligence CRM systems, or sales systems are some of the top categories. Individual industries will need specialized elements, and different products within the same category will offer vastly contrasting specifications. It’s important to consider the number of users too – the size of different teams and departments within any business will dictate the type and number of systems you’ll need to invest in.
Common Software Solutions
Microsoft Office products are a staple of many office-based environments. In addition, the current iterations of each program have been built following years of feedback and adaptation to encapsulate the majority of modern processes in easy to use form. If you’ve not explored the ability to pin emails in Outlook, add LaTeX equation support in Excel, or break the language barrier with Translator, then it might be time to take a look. Automating common tasks to free up time, and improving your inbox to aid task prioritization and time management could give you a flying start when it comes to revolutionizing your business systems.
An Integrated Approach
Communication and time management are two areas that most businesses will need to find a systems solution for. However, the specific requirements will very much depend on the size and sector of your business, and the environment in which you operate. Amazon Web Services, Google’s G Suite, Microsoft office online, and Salesforce are all well-known options that can be adapted to fit flexibly with other business systems. These focus on communication and time management, and can often be integrated with Microsoft products to allow for effective software streamlining.
Slack, with almost 12 million daily users, is another big contender in the superior business systems race. Often considered as a critical tool for teams and organizations that want to stay connected. Although it is officially branded as a ‘messaging app’, it offers much more than this simple descriptor suggests, with advanced features to improve collaboration and communication between co-workers. The software uses Open API, which means it can be tailored by a developer, adding other tools within the user stream which will make it work effectively for intranet, advertising, payroll, and structure management for your day-to-day business.
Think Big By Staying Small
Don’t underestimate the benefit of lesser-known software systems either – many of the fastest growing products are from smaller companies that you may not have heard of before. For example, some software allows you to create engaging, mobile-ready surveys with a chat-like experience. These can help you to communicate more effectively with customers by sharing branded short links to your information, with a custom domain name. If communicating with even more people is what you’re after, then there are other solutions that can help you transform your web content, offering translation management with mobile functionality. Despite the large advertising budgets that go along with the tech giants of the modern business software world, sometimes the best software for your specific business might actually be found emerging from the innovation and effort of a smaller start-up.
Embracing the opportunity that common software solutions offer is a really good way to boost productivity, lower frustration, and improve the mood of all your employees and contacts. Take the time to review the systems you already have and how you can use them better, and you’ll benefit from less wasted expense in the future.
