A business is a function of many departments – Planning, Finance and Accounting, Marketing, Communication, and Customer Service. In today’s technology-driven world, it is imperative for an executive leader and manager to give their different departments a technical edge to improve the overall efficiency of their business.
Business managers, executive leaders, and promoters also need to improve on time management, task management, and project management to ensure a cost-effective business.
Here are some great tech tools that executive leaders should use to build a more efficient business:
Finance and Accounting Tools
1. Quick Books
QuickBooks is an online accounting tool that helps small and medium businesses automate the tedious accounting system. It is a multi-purpose accounting system for small businesses.
QuickBooks can be used for not only simple accounting applications like managing invoices, keeping track of expenses, paying bills, and tracking cash flows but also for complex accounting tasks like generating financial reports, tax reports, and even running payrolls.
It also helps simplify the process of calculating taxes, accept online payments, and scan receipts. QuickBooks Desktop offers three versions – Pro, Premier, and Enterprise to suit the requirements of different businesses from a small business to manufacturing enterprise and large enterprises.
2. Wave
E-commerce is changing the way sales are generated by present-day businesses. Wave is the perfect app for e-commerce based businesses.
With Wave, businesses can accept online payments easily and also produce receipts. It also facilitates payments in multiple currencies for businesses with international clients. Wave is completely free and comes without any usage restrictions. It is compatible with both desktops as well as mobile devices.
One of the most sought after features of Wave is its facility to provide unlimited credit card and bank connections. It also works without the need to install software on the desktop. Wave also provides several integrations like Etsy, PayPal, Zapier, and HubSpot.
3. Square
Square is a free point-of-sale (POS) app. It simply uses a credit card reader and your tablet or phone to process payments.
With the help of this POS tool retailers are able to process and manage sales easily. includes features like generating sales reports, inventory management, and managing customer directories.
Square is especially beneficial to retailers for efficient management of their business. Square is fairly easy to use. It does not require lengthy applications, complicated contracts or expensive fees.
A business can start selling in minutes with its fast sign up process. It has fast and free sign up process on their website. Users can then download the app on both tablets or mobile phones, connect to a card reader, and start selling.
Marketing Tools
1. MailChimp
MailChimp is the perfect tool for email marketing. It is widely used by smaller businesses as it is more feasible than expensive advertising channels like radios, newspaper advertisements or TV commercials.
With the help of MailChimp, businesses can create and sort their email mailing lists. It becomes quite easy to add and manage contacts.
MailChimp offers the facility to send personalized emails, and convert blog posts into emails. It helps not just in attracting new businesses but also in building up brand loyalty of existing customers by building a better communication system, eventually increasing the overall sales.
2. Hootsuite
Hootsuite also helps in the scheduling of social media posts. It can be used to post on more than 35 different social networks like – Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Google+, Reddit, and many others.
Hootsuite comes with a sharp analytical feature that provides detailed reports on how your social media posts are performing. It also offers businesses the facility to view customer questions in one place eliminating the trouble of checking different social media sites to keep track of customer feedback.
Hootsuite also provides vital information and data about industry keywords and trending topics as an insight for businesses to come up with relevant content.
3. Buffer
Online marketing and social media are an essential part of marketing strategy today. Buffer is a valuable marketing tool. It helps to organize all your social accounts in one place.
Buffer also offers the flexibility to set up posts in advance and at your chosen time. One of the most unique features that Buffer offers is the analysis of your post’s performance.
It also allows you to add up to 25 members to the same account for facilitating multiple posting.
Time Management
OnTheClock
OnTheClock is a very efficient employee tracking tool preferred by contemporary businesses. It comes with a great interface, is simple to use and has several features packed in for improving employee satisfaction.
One of its most favoured features is its GPS service that helps in the easy clock in/outs and also improved employee locations. OnTheClock boasts of Excel export for payroll generation and project reporting facilities.
Its fully automated system completely eliminates the hassles of manually adding up employee paid time off hours.
OnTheClock is compatible with both mobile and online platforms. Managers and employees are able to use OnTheClock on all device types running all types of major operating systems.
Being a completely online version, it removes the need for unnecessary software downloads or updates. OnTheClock provides 24-hour phone support for troubleshooting along with 100% internet based security.
Communication and Sharing Management
Evernote
Evernote is one of the most versatile tools for securely storing notes, contracts, proposals, and project guidelines. It also offers superior quality scanning features to save documents, paperwork and important business resources.
The Evernote camera can be used to also scan Post-Its, journals, handwritten notes, business cards, and also whiteboards. They can be organized efficiently with the use of tags and folders. Sharing and access are possible from any nook and cranny of the world with the help of cloud sync.
Customer Service Management
ZenDesk
ZenDesk is a modern age tool that helps businesses build upon their customer service. It includes the automation of common customer support requirements with the help of chatbots and involves human interaction for more complicated issues.
ZenDesk is a unique combination of technology for building personal as well as fruitful customer relations. ZenDesk is suitable for versatile industries. It is useful not only for retailers but also for HR teams, educationists, IT teams, and small businesses.
ZenDesk highlights important emails and helps facilitate prompt action leading to a negligible build-up of the backlog. It also offers a Customer Self-Help portal that helps customers access the required information by themselves saving time for themselves as well as the business.
Task Management
Wunderlist
Working smart is one of the most important aspects of any business. The Wunderlist as the name suggests is a wonderful list management application for all your things to do! It lets you organize not just your office work but also lets you manage your list of grocery, travel, and even picking up your child from school.
The best feature of Wunderlist is its Prioritize option. By using its different Tags users are able to prioritize on the important work. Its amazing back-up function provides a back-up facility for deleted files for up to 30 days.
It also facilitates sharing your lists with others. And it works seamlessly with a host of different devices.
Using technological tools promotes efficiency, productivity, and leads to better customer satisfaction as well as enhanced employee motivation.
These seemingly small things ensure a better business environment. With the help of modern technology executives give a unique perspective to the adage, “Time Is Money”.
