It's no secret that running a small business is a time-consuming endeavor. In fact, today's connected 24/7 world makes running your small business a 24/7 commitment. But there's another side to the story of ever-present innovation and connectivity: digital tools designed to help run, grow and strengthen your business.
From simple project management to complex email campaign tracking and everything in between, here are 5 digital tools that will help your business day in and day out. Many of these tools are completely free with affordable memberships available should your business grow to require them. Think of them as 5 extra employees who are happy to work around the clock to benefit you, your small business and your bottom line.
1. Bring on HootSuite as Your Social Media Manager
No matter what kind of business you're in, if you're not taking advantage of social media, you're missing out on a massive opportunity to grow your customer base and acquire revenue. And if your business has a presence on social media, you know how tedious and time-consuming it can be to manage all your accounts. HootSuite offers a solution for that by uniting all your social media accounts in one place. It's how Cake tackles posting across the social web—no more multiple websites, logins and passwords are needed to get your message out. Simply setup your account and simultaneously send content to all your social channels including Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram and more. The service also offers powerful analytics to show you which posts are performing best. Plus HootSuite is free if you have 3 social profiles or less, which most small businesses do. Get all the HootSuite details.
2. Employ MailChimp for Effective Email Campaigns
Email marketing is a proven method for driving revenue, acquiring new customers and sustaining a meaningful experience with your customers. And when it comes to email marketing, no one does it better than MailChimp. Users far and wide love MailChimp's drag and drop template creator for its straightforward and intuitive interface. Even digital amateurs are impressed with how easy it is to use. Simply craft your message, add the right photography or graphics and hit send to a custom list of recipients. You'll appreciate how easy it is to use, and you'll love how it helps drive revenue for your business. Here's another thing to love: if your company sends fewer than 12,000 emails per month to fewer than 2,000 subscribers, as many small businesses do, MailChimp is absolutely free. Sign up for a free MailChimp account.
3. Let Google Analytics Geek Out Over Your Data
Think of your company's website as your digital storefront. Think of Google Analytics as a watchful employee who meticulously tracks everyone that walks through your store—keeping an eye on how long they spend inside of it, what they are looking at and even where they are coming from. That's the power of Google Analytics. When Google Analytics is used to analyze the visitors to your website, you'll have a better idea of how you can improve, optimize and change your website to better suit your small business goals. After all, data is a powerful weapon for a business of any size, and Google Analytics is the perfect tool that will work 24/7 to help you decipher all of it. Get started with Google Analytics today.
4. Hire Box to Handle File Storage and Sharing
The “Cloud" is one of the business world's buzziest buzzwords for a reason. That's because cloud storage is revolutionizing how businesses of all sizes store and share their digital files. Of all the cloud storage services out there, Box is one of the better options, which explains why it's trusted by a wide variety of businesses big and small ranging from healthcare to retail. You can count Cake as a happy customer in that mix as well. You'll appreciate Box's unlimited storage capacity and ability to add-on services as their business grows. Box also stands apart from other services thanks to its ability to integrate with a huge range of other companies your business uses on a daily basis like Microsoft, Google, Salesforce, DocuSign and more. It truly is a one-stop-shop for sharing and storing your files from any device, anywhere and anytime. See how Box can help your business.
5. Let Trello Take Over as Your “Task Coach"
Think of Trello as your right-hand man whose sole mission is keeping you on track to complete your business' tasks for the day, week or month. Its simple drag and drop interface allows you to create “cards" that denote a task. You can add as little or as much detail needed to each card, attach files, assign team members, create to-do checklists and, of course, a deadline for it. Trello will even remind you via email when your upcoming task is due. You'll love how easy Trello is to use and how capable it is of helping check off tasks big, small and every size in between. Experience Trello for yourself. When you put digital tools like these to work for your business, you'll experience how they can make your day to day life that much easier. But like all tools and services, see what works best for your unique business and adjust them to suit your company's process and goals.
Other topics
