BUSINess Technology and Systems
Using current technology and efficient systems in the operations of your business can really give you a competitive edge in your industry. Some of these are no-brainers, whereas others might be new to you.
Web Sales / E-Commerce
Besides a website being a necessity for PR, marketing, credibility and communications, it can also bring in revenue and drive sales. If your business sells a product (or many products), consider having a storefront on your website. This will allow you to take orders 24/7 from anywhere in the world (you can always limit sales to “domestic” or “local,” but the capability for global sales is there). Additionally, there are options to seamlessly accept orders on your own website, or inexpensively process them on a third party site.
Workstations and Servers
These days, every business needs, at bare minimum, an e-mail address and a computer with Internet access. The communication and information capabilities of e-mail and the Web are vast, versatile, and valuable, and if you’re not taking advantage of them, your competition can easily leave you in the dust. Even home-based business are reaping the benefits of a reliable server and computer network, providing a dependable communications and storage network with preventative measures against hardware failure and data corruption.
Point-of-Sale Equipment and Software
Long gone are the days of the traditional cash register. If you’re running any sort of retail business, you need to be able to efficiently analyze your sales data over any given period of time, integrate your credit card processing, and decrease the processing time of each transaction. These and many other reasons are why retail establishments are now using software instead of register tape to process and record their transactions. It’s a good idea to get point-of-sale software that will tie into your accounting software, which makes closing out the day as easy as a couple mouse clicks. Additionally, you should use brand-name, reliable hardware to help prevent untimely system crashes (when are crashes ever ‘timely’ anyway?) and other manifestations of Murphy’s Law.
Accounting Software
A crude spreadsheet may work for your first few clients, but you should really set up your business to use accounting software. Consult with your accountant or bookkeeper to find the best software to match your operations. QuickBooks by Intuit has a pretty generic interface that can conform to many different small business models. The further you stray from the mainstream software, the harder it gets to support your software or upgrade your system down the road.
Enterprise Management Software and Systems
As you work through your ‘firsts’ (first client, first manufacturing contract, first day on the job, first phone call, first marketing material, etc.), begin documenting the steps you take. These can work as a company procedure manual for when you hire your employees. On that same note, document job descriptions for all the jobs you are doing for the business. If you’re doing the job of 15 people, document what each of those 15 people would be doing in your stead. This will help you effectively hire employees and give more structure to their role in the company.
In some cases you may need software to coordinate the operations of your business (imagine how a company like FedEx would run without using software). There are generic customer-relations management software packages for different industries, but if you need to tie in your specific operations to the software, be prepared to make a large capital investment in software programming.
How Can Vanivo Help Your Business’ Technology and Systems?
Vanivo will bring an innovative perspective to your technology situation. Our focus is for your business to achieve the highest ROI (return on investment) possible on your investment in technology. From servers and networking to e-commerce and point-of-sale systems, we’ll help you get what you need without overspending on the ‘latest’ or undercutting on the ‘cheapest.’
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