5 Essential Technologies That Every Business Should Invest In

Business spending in technology is expected to rise up to $3.7 trillion this year, according to reports from Business Insider. This figure serves as a testament to how important technology is in the business sector and how much faith companies put into new IT, hardware, and software solutions to run their day-to-day operations. But for a starting entrepreneur and inexperienced business owner, it can be confusing to determine which technologies are actually worth the bucks. Below is a rundown of tech categories you should allocate funding in.

Communications

Slack and similar communications platforms are transforming how companies with remote teams and freelance contractors are getting things done. It's a real struggle trying to communicate effectively with your management staff, employees, and community members with only the outdated slate of tools, like Skype and Yahoo Messenger, at your disposal. Slack can help you collaborate with your workforce more efficiently by bringing all team communications in one place. It lets you segment different conversations and topics into Channels. You can then invite users to whichever channels they need to be on depending on what project they are a part of.

Customer Relations

Maintaining a strong relationship with your customer base is key to minimizing customer acquisition and retention costs. A business cannot scale successfully if it keeps on losing clients left and right. The best free CRM software helps you manage both consistent brand messaging as well as your relations with customers. It gathers leads, analyzes the data to help the business understand their ideal customer or target market, and adjusts advertising campaigns to align with your audience.

Responsive Website Design

With search engines, like Google, factoring in mobile-friendliness of a site when ranking it on their search pages, it's not only best practice to make your site responsive but is a matter of making it visible to users. A responsive layout ensures that your site behaves as intended when users are viewing it on their mobile phones or tablets. With millions of people using their smartphones to shop for products and subscribe to services, it's in your business' best interest to have a responsive mobile application.

Accounting

QuickBooks, Zoho Books, Xero, and other accounting software are changing the way small businesses are managing their books. With plans starting as slow as $4.00 per month, you can track income and expenses, maximize tax deductibles, manage invoices, accept payments, and track sales and sales taxes. For businesses that have more specific needs, you can upgrade to different account tiers, such as sending estimates to customers, tracking inventory, and managing 1099 contractors. When comparison shopping for accounting software, don't just leave it to pricing and features. You should also look into how easy it is to install, use, and maintain. Good accounting software should have an easy installation process and can patch updates automatically.

Cloud Storage

The bigger your business gets, the more data it handles. From bank account statements to user information, data is valuable, and hackers now it. Protect your business' intellectual assets by moving your physical data storage to the Cloud. Services, such as Google Cloud Storage, are designed specifically for enterprise and developer clients. You can access data instantly from any secure and authorized device, which means a boost in productivity and output. Another great thing about Cloud services is that you only pay for the space you use. It does not have any upfront charges, and costs are entirely based on usage. Yet more importantly is the level of service you get as a user. Make sure you have access to 24/7 customer support to resolve any software issues.

Final Thoughts

From Cloud storage to collaboration platforms, these technologies should be at the bedrock of your business' IT infrastructure. And while it's true that it will cost you money to implement these technologies into your business, the potential value it brings can quickly outgrow the initial expenses.