Business is not done the same way as in decades past. In fact, in many ways, it’s not done the same way as five years ago. Businesses evolve and change. By far and large, this evolution is driven by the progression of technology. If you don’t adapt to the changes, you may end up losing a substantial part of your market to your competitors. With that in mind, below are five technologies your business must implement to stay relevant.
Cloud Computing
If there is one technology that has transformed the business landscape in the past decade, one of the top contenders would certainly have to be cloud technology.
To simplify the somewhat hazy term, the cloud in this case refers to things like software, and computer infrastructure, and more than once had to exist in a business’s own local network but now can be provided directly over an internet connection.
In many ways, the cloud is a game changer. It changes information technology from an investment into hardware and software in a central location to a service provided by professionals. This slashing of overhead is the reason why 9 out of 10 businesses use the cloud in some form.
CRM Software
CRM, a customer relationship management software, is integral to competing in today’s high-tech world. This technology, in essence, allows you to track, utilize and manage data concerning current customers and potential customers.
It is, for one, vital to supply your sales team with the leads they need to keep money rolling into your coffers. It’s also vital to your customer service operations as well. If you have all the data regarding a past customer’s interactions with the company and brand, you’ll be able to provide superior service.
You’ll also have better intel on what products they would be most interested in. You’ll have all of this available to you from the same software suite. It can make a huge difference.
SMS
Today, almost all of the population of the United States uses mobile phones to communicate. As such, one technology you must invest in to remain relevant is SMS. SMS stands for short message service.
This is a more technical term for text messaging. Today, text messaging may be an even more viable digital market platform than e-mail. Almost everyone uses text messaging and is quite likely to check their messages more than once a day.
One strategy you could use to take advantage of this situation and generate leads for your company is to implement an automated texting service. This can, for example, include SMS “drip messaging” that sends out messages slowly over time so the receiver is not overwhelmed.
Automation
Automation, in general, is a good thing to adapt to your company. This can even be implemented regarding customer service. Think, for example, of how many customer questions tend to be similar.
While you could hire customer service reps to just repeat themselves over and over again, wasting a lot of time and money, you could instead use a chatbot to answer such questions before a person is sent to an actual service rep if they do in fact have a unique question that requires your attention.
Many other tasks can be automated including things like accounting and payroll. Automation can slash costs, increase efficiency and increase productivity.
SEO Tools
Something integral to your success as a business these days is your internet presence. Most consumers now perform research regarding businesses on their phones. Your ability to obtain a high ranking in search engine results can help determine how competitive you are in your industry.
If you don’t have the right ranking, the business you would have will be funneled off to companies with superior SEO. Utilize SEO tools to track your web traffic, the keywords used to find your products, and the interactions on different landing pages.
If you find, for example, that certain landing pages work while others do not in converting leads into paying customers, you can use that information to improve your success rate.
Bottom Line
Overall, you have no choice. We live in a highly digital age. Without technology, you will not be able to compete. Make sure to utilize technology in places that can make your company more relevant and allow you to obtain the kind of business you need to stay profitable.
