Operating a business doesn’t have to be complex, and it doesn’t have to be expensive either. If you make smart decisions, especially pertaining to your operations, running a business can be simplified enormously.
- Servers over space.
Instead of using up space in your office with piles and piles of paper and documentation; which could also get lost or damaged in the process, consider using servers. They are basically a digital filing cabinet which will not only help you to store important data, but it will keep it safe and secure too, and you will be able to back them up daily. Servers are indeed more reliable and will certainly simplify your operations, as well as cut cost. Think of the amount of paper you’ll save!
- Use Voip
VoIP is the new and improved way of telephony communication. It does not only make it easier to connect with your clients/potential clients, but it saves you time and money too. VoIP services offer many great features, one being the ‘forwarded’ voicemail function. In simpler terms, one can handle voicemails like email attachments. They can be clicked and dragged and forwarded along quickly and easily. It is also estimated that VoIP can be up to 30-40 percent cheaper than traditional office phone systems.
- Upgrade your accounting systems
As your business grows, you’ll find the need to utilize a more ‘sophisticated’ accounting system. One that’s reliable, easy to use, and can handle large transactions. You will notice the difference it makes when tax time comes or when you are audited, as it has the capacity to pull data that many smaller systems cannot. The best accounting software packages, that you should certainly consider investing in, are: BusinessWorks, Enterprise and Great Plains. If you have already set up an accounting package, you could go one step further and simplify operations even more by automating the process. This way you’ll be able to automatically generate invoices, as well as reminders in the form of mailers, for late payments, and do electronic transfers. The system can also automatically suspend a late payers services, without you having to remember that they have not yet paid and should not be able to use your service.
- Answer questions before they can be asked
As we all know, time is of the essence. There is very little time in the day (if at all), for mundane tasks to be dealt with. One such mundane task which is time consuming, is answering simple client queries. Of course, sometimes these questions are important and can mean the make or break of a deal, however, simple questions which can be answered on your company’s website is a lot easier and less time consuming for you and your staff, than always having to pick up the phone and spend a long while answering questions. So, I’m sure you know the solution to this already. Make sure that any question a client or potential client may have, is answered on your website, so that it needn’t cut into your very busy day and gives you time to get to the important operational aspects of your role.
- Simplify staff management
One major operational function is managing staff. While you may be questioning whether this function can ever really be simplified successfully, we’re here to tell you that it can, and we’ll tell you how.
Firstly, one important aspect of the role is hiring new staff. Operationally, you can cut down the time this takes, and find way for it to be more effective if you consider creating an online application form which has elimination criteria. This way, the unsuitable candidates can be sifted out without you needing to scratch through the pile of applications. Setting strict criteria will also help you to select quicker and of course better, saving you time in the short term, and costs in the long term.
Secondly, to keep an eye on the times employees arrive and leave work, you should consider investing in a software that tracks this data for you, so that you don’t have to be the office hawk! It gives you the freedom to get to your own tasks and access the data whenever you need to during the year. Just a few time tracking software which are reliable and super useful, are: TimeCurve Scheduler, TimeClock Scheduler and Asgard’s Systems Time Tracker
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