There are so many different factors at play when it comes to any aspect of business communication, be it your customer interactions, your internal practices, or your partnerships and investors. In fact, your communication patterns, channels, and strategies encompass a range of your departments and operations, including your IT sector, your communications departments, and the tech tools you use. As a small business, you need to establish clear communication rules and hierarchy, so that you can boost productivity with each new project and each new relationship you start.
With that in mind, let’s cover a few carefully selected segments of your small business that you can improve through the technology and methods at your disposal. You can incorporate them seamlessly without disrupting your current business model, but they can also help you adapt to the current need for switching to remote work for most companies. Here’s what you should keep in mind.
Embrace the cloud
The ongoing health crisis caused by the pandemic has changed how companies operate, and it has increased the need for transitioning to a remote model. Some small businesses have already started implementing these changes, and one of the core technologies allowing the use and safe storage of data for companies is the cloud.
It has become the most vital component for any IT department, as well as overall communications conducted at the office or remotely. With cloud computing and the right software applications, which you can easily integrate, you can manage access, control data, and scale your business with ease.
Switch to VoIP for your customer support
Now that your customers are predominantly using smartphones and other advanced gadgets to communicate with brands, you need an equally flexible, digital telecommunications system that will help your agents remain available, even when doing their jobs from home.
Since there are many options out there, check out the top VoIP provider solutions that are suitable for your business, based on the price range and the features that come with each solution. You’ll find them to include all kinds of useful features such as video conferencing, texting, emailing, faxing, and voice analytics and other advanced functionalities. You can use them to boost the productivity of your team, but also to understand how you can improve your interactions over time.
Enable collaboration through PM tools
The quality of your internal communications will define your small business’s ability to keep customers happy and engaged. The best way to streamline your employees’ work is to use a project management software solution.
These tools and platforms keep everything neatly organized; they allow you to use live chat, email notifications, and share files with other team members. Plus, you can keep track of your project management success rates based on the built-in analytics, to make sure your efforts improve as you move forward and introduce new projects to your pipeline.
Invest in the needed hardware
Improving software solutions, internet packages, and cutting-edge cloud providers all require equally advanced hardware. Your customers are typically using the latest smartphone models, as well as some of the more advanced laptops and PCs at their disposal to communicate with your brand. Your employees, in turn, need the same kind of agility and speed when interacting with one another and with your customers.
Even with superbly fast VoIP connectivity and 5G at your disposal, you’ll need the tech tools to support such solutions. So, make sure that your employees are properly equipped with the right gear before you flood them with more work.
Focus on cybersecurity
As one of the most relevant emerging trends for this year, cybersecurity is a burning issue for small businesses in every possible industry. Now that you’re sending employees to work from home, using the cloud to store your data, and interact via all kinds of social media networks and digital platforms and project management tools, you need advanced cybersecurity measures in place.
Just like the tech we use to communicate is evolving, so are the hackers who keep discovering and inventing new ways to penetrate our more basic protective systems. Instead of your single-layered defense strategy, invest in software and hardware that will keep your cloud-based data secure, your communications encrypted, and all of your interactions safe online.
Technology is advancing fairly quickly, so you’ll be able to choose a wide array of new hardware and software solutions in the months and years to come. In the meantime, brace your small business for the future with the help of these innovative systems that will elevate your communications to a whole new level. You’ll be able to make your customers happy, boost their satisfaction rates, but also help your employees feel like a team that can collaborate easily, wherever they are at any given time.
