Helping your business succeed requires plenty of resources as well as ingenuity and creativity. Bringing all of these aspects together successfully requires developing an organised and actionable strategy, but many managers get overwhelmed. If you feel like just getting everything done is a challenge, making use of these tactics can help you create a more organised plan for your business.

Ditch the paper

There’s probably too much clutter in your place of business and, believe it or not, that’s affecting your ability to run your business efficiently. Fortunately, businesses no longer need to collect paper records now that we have Cloud computing and mobile technology. Everything from human resource records to bills of sale can be stored digitally and retrieved far more easily via a computer or mobile device. This will help you clean up your office and that will take away much of the stress connected to running your business.

Use new technology

There’s an app to do virtually anything and making use of them can help you stay connected and organised. Using instant messaging and video conferencing apps can help you stay in touch with employees, partners and vendors. Regardless of the type of business you operate, there are also apps specifically designed for your industry. Additionally, using smart technology can help generate data analytics reports that will help you better manage your daily business operations, inventory supplies and marketing efforts. Implementing the right technology can do wonders in helping your business stay organised.

Spend less time on customer support

Many businesses already don’t put enough effort into delivering quality customer support, but that doesn’t necessarily mean spending more time on this area of your business. While it is important to provide quality customer care services, you should be developing procedures that enable your employees to respond to customer enquiries and complaints without making it the focus of your business. Using software, such as Groove, can help you and your employees manage customer service issues more efficiently and you may even find that customers are more satisfied with the experience.

Develop a better Social Media strategy

You know you need to maintain a social media presence and you may have been devoting a large chunk of your time to this aspect of marketing your business. While engaging with social media users is important, it doesn’t have to be time-consuming. It’s a good idea to use a service that will let you schedule your posts for specific days and times. This way you can write your posts for the week all at once and schedule times and days for them to be published. This will save you valuable time, which you can spend on other aspects of your business.

Invest in accounting software

If you’re just starting your business, you might not have hired an accounting person. That’s okay. You don’t need one and, in fact, many businesses are doing away with them. Recent advances in AI and smart technology have made accounting software more useful than ever before. Data is integrated from various sources in your business, so maintaining your books is almost completely automated. Software varies from performing the simplest functions to completing complex operations, all depending on how “hands-on” you want to be.

Install a comprehensive security system

Another concern that can cause you stress and distract from your business is maintaining adequate security. By working with cybersecurity professionals, your computer system and the security of your physical place of business can be improved. Implementing secure access protocols and protecting against breaches can help you keep data safe from exposure. This will help keep your employees and vendors trained and compliant with the same protocols, so you can devote more attention to the immediate needs of your business. By streamlining these different aspects of your business, you’ll be able to develop a more orderly and more efficient operation. As you begin to implement these changes, you’ll appreciate how smoothly things will begin to run and you will have more time to concentrate on growing your business.

Jenn Livingston is a US-based freelance writer who works primarily with small businesses. She loves to help other people solve problems in the workplace, and enjoys reading and exercising in her spare time.

This article appeared in the January 2019 issue of HR Future magazine.