About 44 percent of small businesses fold within the first four years. With numbers like that, you need to make sure your business is working with all the tools at its disposal to give it the best possible chance of success. Some small business needs are universal and can be fulfilled by today's digital tools.
Here are three small business tools you should be putting to good use.
Google Analytics
Google Analytics is a must-have for your business. It's the answer to every question you've ever had about the performance of your website. You can learn:
- How much traffic your website generates
- Where your traffic is coming from
- Key characteristics of your target audience
All of this combines with intuitive chart and graph interfaces, so even the least tech-savvy business owner can confidently understand the information being generated.
A CRM System
CRM stands for Customer Relationship Management. It's essentially a set of best practices for managing a company's interaction with current and potential customers.
A CRM system is a way to automate this process. It helps you:
- Keep customer details up to date
- Track customer interactions with your business
- Manage customer accounts
Cloud Storage
Gone are the days of carting around 15 different USBs with project documents stored on them. Cloud storage gives your business the ability to securely store your files and information in a centralized location. This means you can access them from whichever device you need to at the time with little more than a login required.
DropBox, Google Drive, and the Apple iCloud are a few of the services providing this type of storage. Which one you choose will depend heavily on your budget, requirements, and devices.
Another great thing about cloud storage is the regular, reliable backups. No more losing whole folders full of customer data and client projects when a computer crashes.
Cloud storage solutions back up your data automatically. Some, like Google Drive and Dropbox, also save previous versions of your files, so you can retrieve older data if required.
Whichever service you choose, you can rest easy knowing that your documents are backed up and secure at all times.
Your Small Business Needs These Tools
Your small business needs the right tools to ensure you're putting your best entrepreneurial foot forward. By leveraging Google analytics, setting up a CRM system, and using cloud storage solutions, your business will be in the best possible position to succeed.
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