The business landscape is more competitive than ever before; entrepreneurs either have to shape up or ship out. Nobody should start panicking but 19% of businesses close shop as a result of being outcompeted by their competitors.
You must, therefore, bring your A-game. The following tech tools can give you an unfair advantage over your competitors.
Chatbots
Dealing with customers is not easy, especially if you deal with lots of them on a daily basis. Unfortunately, poor customer service can take your business down. Research reveals that companies in the US lose $62 billion every year due to poor customer service.
You do not have to be rude to your customers for them to move to your competitor; it is the small things that are the greatest put-off. For example, many customers are annoyed by having to deal with long phone menus or being put on hold for long when making an inquiry or seeking assistance.
Good news is that chatbots can make all the difference. When used in messenger apps, bots can promptly answer common questions, provide tech support, or even order products. Modern chatbots are powered by AI and can intelligently engage customers 24 hours a day. This allows human resources to be deployed to other areas.
Smart POS
The history of Point of sale systems date back to 1973 when an electronic cash register was produced by IBM. Since then, many systems have been developed which have revolutionized the way businesses interact with their customers during check off.
Point of sale systems are systems that allow a transaction between the customer and the business to be completed. While traditionally you need a computer to run the POS software, modern systems can run efficiently from a portable device.
Smart POS systems such as the iPad POS, can run from an iPad and can help you manage your finances and inventory from anywhere in the world through cloud connectivity. However, you must have a stable internet connection.
Unfortunately, broadband internet connection can be pricey. The secret is to compare broadband deals to find the most affordable one.
Social Media Tools
There are 3.4 billion active social media users in the world today. Clearly, these are not numbers that can be ignored. Any business that does not have a social media strategy does not have long to live even if everything seems fine in the present.
Of all the marketing and communication channels available, social media stands out for being affordable and quick and of course, having a wide reach. However, managing multiple social media accounts is time-consuming and does not guarantee success.
This is where social media management tools come in.
Tools such as Buffer allow you to schedule posts while managing several social media accounts. It also provides insights into how the posts are doing. You may also want to check out other tools such as Sniply which allow you to insert a call to action when sharing third party posts on social media.
But how do you determine how well you are doing? Social media competitor research is key. Look into tools such as Sprout Social, Phlanx and Social Blade, among others.
QuickBooks
Bookkeeping is one of the pillars of any business. Without a proper accounting system, it will be difficult for an owner to determine if the business is making profits or losses. Many other issues such as cash flow problems are bound to occur, which may bring a business to its knees.
Unfortunately, not everyone enjoys analyzing and keeping financial records. The good news is that software such as QuickBooks can make things easy. This tool helps create invoices, automates payroll management and analyzes cash flow.
But the biggest headache among business owners is filing of taxes. QuickBooks auto-populates tax returns and helps calculate tax obligation.
Filing of taxes is not optional; failure to comply can lead to dire consequences. If you owe the IRS a substantial amount in back taxes, you may be living in fear, especially if you can't afford to pay. Fear not. Apply for an IRS offer in compromise as it's an option that can allow you favorable terms to settle your debt.
Be Better
While you should not be paranoid about competition, you must make every effort to be better than your competitors. The use of some tech tools can help you to have more efficient processes or better cost savings which can make all the difference.
