A couple of decades ago we ran businesses in the glory days of snail mail, calculators and pen and paper. There was no Internet or video conference calling, and the cloud remained solely part of the water cycle. Fast forward twenty years and a technological revolution has happened with vast swathes of technological advancements making our business lives more efficient, less time consuming and simpler. Take a look at these three ways in which technology can help make running your business in the twenty-first century an easier task.
Goodbye Paper
Walk into an office in the 1990s, and you would have seen one, two, maybe even three light gray metallic filing cabinets full of documentation and paperwork vital for the running of a business. Now we no longer require hard copies of every invoice and contract as we can safely store it online aboard the mythical cloud. This virtual filing cabinet allows us to remove the shackles of the paper laden office to work in less cluttered office environments. The documents are still as accessible as they were when they were in the office, and we can print them off at a moment’s notice should we need them.
As well as our filed documents, any snail mail that we now receive can be delivered to a virtual PO box. It used to be that PO box availability was limited to a standard little metal box which you had the key for. You would then have to leave the office to pick up your post every so often. Now your snail mail can be delivered to a PO box and uploaded as separate PDFs to your own virtual and private online repository. This means you have access to your mail from anywhere in the world using your laptop, tablet or smartphone.
Webinar
Like something out of a science fiction movie, important business meetings can now take place using WebEx online so you can both see and hear the people you are conversing with. People from all corners of the globe can securely meet at a set time, saving money, time and effort. You no longer have to fly out to LA to meet with your development team. You can simply arrange a conference call.
E-Commerce
The emergence of online shopping has seen many a retailer fall by the wayside as they chose not to keep up with the rapid development of e-commerce technology. Most large retailers now commit a high percentage of their expenditure to developing their online shopping platforms as this is deemed the future of consumer spending. Smaller retailers and artisan producers can now sell their goods and products online with the advent of free platforms such as WooCommerce and OpenCart. Setting up shop no longer means leasing a premises but rather becoming savvy enough to set up your own website.
Technological advancements are continuing to emerge to make the lives of business leaders more streamlined. It’s vital that you keep abreast of the relevant new technologies in your field to remain at the forefront of your industry sector.
Leave a Reply