When people think of technology, they associate it with things like mobile devices, the Internet, and hardware, which are frequently plagued by hardware issues and common Windows errors. But the truth is that technologies are more than these physical and tangible devices. In the business realm, companies are leveraging a multitude of technologies to increase a company’s productivity, boost revenue and improve their bottom line. In this article, we’ll take a look at some of the technology businesses are using today to increase their revenue.
1. Custom Mobile Applications
There’s been an explosion of mobile apps in recent years, and businesses are quickly taking notice. In fact, many companies now have one or more mobile apps of their own, offering an added layer of accessibility and convenience. For those in the e-commerce and retail space, a custom mobile app helps you increase revenue by allowing users to purchase products directly. Mobile apps allow companies to engage and connect with their customers and build a stronger brand. Apps are also used internally to help increase efficiency and reduce waste within a company. Plus, with the rise of low-code development platforms such as Microsoft Power Apps, companies can create and launch professional apps in-house in an extremely cost-effective manner.
2. Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) Software
What is ERP? An enterprise resource planning (ERP) system allows businesses to connect their operations under a single cloud-based solution and consolidates their core business operations such as finance/accounting, sales, purchasing, production, inventory, HR, and more. It allows you to streamline and automate key processes and gives you 360-degree visibility into your company’s performance and operations. ERP software offers a lot of benefits, including reduced operating costs, increased efficiency, and improved reporting, to name a few. For growing companies, an ERP solution is often the next step once they’ve outgrown their basic accounting solution.
3. Customer Relationship Management (CRM) Software
Once upon a time, companies kept individual files of customers. These documents would detail what products each customer purchased when they made their last purchase and any other sales interactions they may have had. These files were stored in paper format—but that was way back then. Today, customer relationship management (CRM) software consolidates all customer data and interactions within one central location so companies can manage, track, and organize their customer relationships. This cloud-based software allows businesses to understand their customers better, streamline sales and marketing, and improve customer experience.
4. Email Marketing Automation
Email marketing remains one of the most effective tools for lead generation and converting those leads into customers. Marketing emails are a great way to upsell, build your brand, and retain your customers. However, it is not as easy as you think. You need to have proper timing and make sure you send your emails at a convenient time. This is where email marketing automation solutions can help, as they allow you to automate the entire email marketing process. You can easily set up different email workflows to welcome new clients, nurture your leads, and follow up with loyal customers. It also allows you to plan and execute an email strategy and save your team time so they can focus on other tasks.
5. Business Intelligence Software
Simply put, business intelligence (BI) is the process through which raw business data is collected, analyzed, and transformed into useful visualizations, dashboards, and insights – giving a company full visibility into its financial performance. BI software helps a company make sense of their data in real-time so they can gain actionable insights that are used to make informed, data-driven business decisions. While many small and medium-sized businesses may think BI software is too costly or too advanced for a business of their size, this is no longer the case, thanks to self-service solutions like Microsoft Power BI.
6. Cloud-Based Technology
Cloud computing is not a trend – it is the new normal and a great way to scale your company. Research shows that small and mid-sized businesses that use cloud technology to overcome their growing pains and challenges tend to grow 26% faster and deliver 21% higher gross profits. Thanks to cloud computing, growing businesses can access enterprise-level technology without a massive financial investment. Regardless of size and industry, cloud computing offers businesses a lot of benefits, including lower operating costs, data security, easier collaboration and scalability, and disaster recovery plans, to name a few.
Wrapping Up
Small and mid-sized businesses should take advantage of technology so they can scale, gain a competitive edge, and ultimately increase revenue and boost profits. However, before you invest in any technology, keep in mind that you should do research, compile your requirements, and do a proper assessment before selecting software that is right for your company.