NAVIGATING THE SEA of apps, web services and programmes designed to help business owners can be difficult.
Each one promises to cut costs, save time, or increase efficiency. Choosing the right one, especially if you’re going to spend money on it, can be a fraught process.
TheJournal.ie spoke to the experts to find out which solutions can help SMEs to make reap genuine rewards.
Olwen Dawe, enterprise and economic development consultant
If you were to talk to the average SME owner, the one bugbear you’d find top of the list would almost definitely be accounting and the associated administrative processes.
They’re often time-consuming and, particularly for small businesses, can clog up hours in compiling receipts, reconciling statements and so-forth.
I’ve heard great things about BulletHQ, which offers a range of accounting solutions across mobile platforms – so you can be mobile, using a smart phone or tablet – and also access via PC or laptop.
Another application which is receiving excellent reports is Receipt Bank. Again, it’s a way to simplify and manage ongoing administrative requirements, as well as ensuring everything is tracked and filed.
Krishna De, online strategist
One service I use is Google Hangouts. They can be used for private meetings – for example I was part of a judging panel recently, and we used Google Hangouts to connect to fellow judges and host our meetings, which meant that we could save travel time and costs. This was especially beneficial for the members of the panel who lived across the country as they did not have to travel for the meeting.
You can also use it to reduce overheads as an alternative to investing in a webinar platform for your lead generation programmes or online events. Your event will be automatically recorded and will be available as a replay on your YouTube channel.
AIB did one recently for first time mortgage applicants. Rather than delivering an in-person seminar, they used the free resource of Google Hangouts On Air to provide content of interest to prospective clients. If people missed the live event, they could watch the replay of the event at a time that suited them.
Another version of it is called HelpOuts by Google, which was launched last year, and can be used to provide customer support or attract new customers. Sears run these for customers in the States.
If you’ve bought a product and need help, they can do a video chat and their customer support person is right there – so if your product isn’t working, you get face-to-face support.
This works for all types of small businesses who could apply to become a helpout provider. Some of the types of free and paid Helpouts that are currently being offered by small businesses include language classes, cookery tips, fitness instruction and home renovation. There are endless possibilities.
Amanda Webb, spiderworking.com
One of the services that is great for helping small businesses cut costs is Canva. It’s a really easy and user friendly way to create graphics for your social media account or website.
There’s templates for Facebook and Twitter, and you can use stock images or create your own. The stock images are only $1 each, which is a very good price.
Another one I rely on for work with Blog Awards Ireland is Freedcamp, which is a free project management software. Our project manager puts all of her tasks in there and we get emails automatically reminding us of our tasks. It really works to keep us all on track.
Finally, for those of us that can get distracted in work, Strict Workflow is a Google Chrome plugin that blocks websites for 25 minute periods.
Quinton O’Reilly, tech writer, TheJournal.ie
If you have documents that you need to scan and keep a record of, Camscanner turns your smartphone camera into a scanner.
For any notes, images and ideas you need to save, Evernote is the only app you need. Simple, easy to use, and comprehensive.
IFTTT joins up services and apps so you can get more done. For example, any time you email someone with an image or document, you can set it so it also saves onto Dropbox/Google Drive.
Which area do you think online services can help businesses can cut down on costs most in?
Have you heard of any other great web services? Tell us in the comments.
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