If you’re a business owner, you might feel like you’re always short on free time. How can you tackle your to-do list more efficiently each day, especially if you’re not able to delegate certain important tasks?
You can leverage time-saving tools to make your workload easier to manage. Here are a few apps and software programs that practically every entrepreneur can utilize for productivity.
Online Label Maker
If you’re selling products, you can create labels that illustrate your brand with an online label maker. Trying to put together labels from scratch can be tricky if you’ve never taken on a design project before, but you can simplify the process by using a label template. With free online tools like this, you can choose a template you like, and personalize it to fit with your overall brand aesthetic.
Project Management Software
Are you still trying to keep track of project progress, client communications, and other important details with nothing more than a notebook and pen? If so, it’s time to invest in project management software instead. Being able to see the big picture of all your ongoing projects can make it much easier to manage your time and check off necessary tasks. Look for project management software that enables you to include detailed task lists, assignments to specific team members, time estimates and deadlines, and links between interdependent tasks.
Bookkeeping System
A comprehensive bookkeeping system that enables you to manage invoicing and accounting can be a major time-saving tool for small business owners. Whether you have an internal bookkeeper or not, this type of software is worth investing in. If you work in a specific industry, like retail, food service, or manufacturing, you’ll want to look for bookkeeping software that’s specifically designed for business owners in your niche. This will give you access to all the functionalities that you need to manage your finances.
Internal Communication Platform
If you need to communicate with employees or contractors throughout the day, it’s best to choose an internal communication platform that your whole team can access. Rather than going back and forth over email, you can centralize your communications, making it easy to get in touch with everyone and look back over previous conversations. To pick the right platform, Business 2 Community recommends checking in with your team to see which platforms they’re familiar with—implementing a program your team already knows how to use will make the onboarding process much easier.
Video Conferencing Program
Holding meetings in person can take up a huge chunk of your time. Sometimes, phone meetings aren’t particularly convenient—you can’t easily share documents and you may get stuck with a spotty connection. The solution? Video conferencing software, With remote work rising in popularity, many people now prefer to meet via video chat rather than meeting in person.
With many options for video conferencing software, what should you choose? Skynova recommends looking for software that includes features like screen sharing, mobile access, and multi-device access, video recording, chat support, background images, and high-quality audio and video. This will enable you to communicate easily and share resources with your clients and employees over video.
As an entrepreneur, you may feel like your plate is always too full. With these apps, you’ll be able to optimize your business processes and “create” more time in your day. Soon, you’ll find yourself enjoying plenty of downtime again.
About the Author
Cody McBride is an IT technician and creator of TechDeck.info, where he offers easy-to-understand tech-related advice and troubleshooting tips.