Owning and running your own small business can be a rewarding endeavor. Not only do you get to work as your own boss, but you get to completely control the vision and outcome of your small business. Although rewarding, managing a business can be difficult for online entrepreneurs without the support of a large scale operation.
Luckily, there are several available business tools that can help run your small business. Below, let's take a look at the top 8 small business tools for online entrepreneurs.
Online Presence
If you are an online entrepreneur your online presence is essentially the storefront of your business. It is important to not only take control and manage your online presence but do so professionally and efficiently.
Website
Probably one of the most important factors when it comes to running an online business is to have a strong online presence. Navigating the internet can be difficult though, especially when you have an entire business to run. That is why Google has created a program called GSuite. Using a Google-based program you will be able to set up and own your domain, track website analytics, manage client email, and even schedule and manage promotions.
GSuite allows you to organize everything related to your business's website all from one convenient location. Plus, the cost to use GSuite is relatively low leaving you more money to dedicate to your small business.
Social Media
Social media has quickly changed the way businesses think about customer relations, marketing, and sales campaigns. There is so much marketing power within Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram that businesses are quickly taking the reins on their own small business accounts. Managing a social media account can be time-consuming, and an out of date account can actually deter future and potential customers from turning to your business.
Invest in automated software that can help schedule timely and relevant posts to keep your business up to date. While there are several programs and apps to use, SocialBee is a completely free application with great reviews from fellow businesses. Now as part of the onetool app ecosystem, you can take advantage of the currently offered discounts for SocialBee as well.
Team Organization
Every online entrepreneur is only as strong as the team behind him or her, so it is important to invest in the tools to help keep your team organized and on track. Utilizing small business tools can help keep you organized so that you can put more attention into developing and marketing your product.
Communication
If your entire team is working remotely to help support your online business, it can be difficult keeping everyone on the same page. That is why several companies turn to a communication program to help speed up and clear up conversations between coworkers. One of the best business tools for small business owners to use is Slack.
This program helps to keep your team connected and streamline the communication process. It is possible to filter messages going directly to you, and also set up small communication teams for people to belong to. Plus, Slack can also be used for telephone communication and file sharing, all through the internet.
Human Resources
Tracking the necessary paperwork with your employees can be cumbersome and messy, especially if your entire operation is handled remotely in an online format. That is why it is essential to use HR business tools that are designed for remote usage. One of the best tools to turn to is called GoCo.
This online tool will help you keep your employee's HR files all located in one place. It is possible to work through onboarding and off-boarding paperwork, and even integrate GoCo with payroll systems to make payday a breeze. This computer program is easy to use and can take a load off your shoulders when it comes to managing your team.
Hiring
Finding the right members to join your team can be tricky. Posting positions, screening, and interviewing candidates can be time-consuming, especially if you have a small business to run. Many small businesses will turn to a program called GoodHire. This program can help you do reference checks, verify employment history, and even help with drug testing. GoodHire helps to keep the process streamlined in one available place allowing you to sort through your candidates to help you find just the right person to add to your team.
Day To Day Operations
Managing your day to day operations can be difficult, especially if you are working in a manufacturing or production type industry. Luckily, there are several online tools that can help you make sense of your operations, find the most efficient way to work through production, and still keep a close eye on profitability.
Workflow Help
Managing a process can be difficult, but is necessary in order to have an organized and functioning team. One of the best ways to help manage your workflow is to utilize a program like Asana. Completely free and available for up to 15 different users, Asana allows you to define tasks and operations and assign them to various users. All of the tasks can be viewed from one convenient dashboard allowing you to track progress and workflow from one location.
Inventory
A wonderful tool to help manage your sales process and inventory is a program called Sellsy. Not only is this a great idea to help manage the sales process, keeping close contact with your customers and tracking the point in the process you are in the relationship and sales effort, but Sellsy is a wonderful way to help track available inventory.
It is extremely easy to integrate with the systems you are already using because it can pull data from several sources including online sales, point of sale systems, and inside sales efforts.
Questions
No matter how experienced you are at running a business you are going to have questions along the way. Knowing that there is a community of fellow business owners you can turn to for help can make the world of difference. Many small online entrepreneurs regularly turn to Quora.
Every community member in Quora has to have a registered and verified account, so you can be sure you are talking to fellow professionals. Plus, the Q and A format are completely anonymous, so you don't have to feel bad about asking a particular question as it relates to your business. Know that you can get relevant, up to date, and helpful information from a trusted online source.