5 Kinds of Software Your Business Needs
Starting a business can be exciting but daunting, especially when there are so many things you need to think about. From marketing strategies to recruit the right team of employees, the list goes on and on. One thing you might not be thinking too much about is the kind of computer software you will need to help your business run. Don’t forget about these four essentials because they will make a big difference and be very useful to your company.
- Payroll
Making sure your employees are paid on time and correctly is essential. While doing this manually is possible, it’s an incredibly time-consuming task and leaves a lot more room for error. Automated payroll systems and accounting software like QuickBooks or Sage are great for both small and big businesses alike. It will help your accounting team and HR stay on top of these administrative tasks and keep your records up today, making it easier when it comes to filing the company accounts each year.
- CRM Systems
Your customers need to remain happy using your products and services, so it will take time and effort to work on those relationships and make them feel appreciated. Teaching your staff how to interact professionally with your customers is one thing, but great customer service goes well beyond polite manners and courtesy. CRM (Customer Relationship Management) systems can help you improve your customer’s experiences. It tracks a wealth of customer data from your website, social media pages, sales, etc., and gives you reports showing where improvements could be made. It’s a great tool for marketing purposes, too.
- Employee Portals
Automated payroll is great for your HR team, but so is having an employee portal installed in your business networks. These online platforms can allow your employees to access important HR information such as the company’s code of conduct, training updates, company news, etc. They can also see information about their wages, annual leave, job opportunities within the company and can directly message HR if they have an issue. This saves a lot of time, and these portals have been shown to boost employee morale and satisfaction.
- Open Source Platforms
Open source platforms are great for collaborative projects for DevOps, and it allows teams to share and communicate with each other more efficiently. This is probably more useful for your IT teams that are developing web projects or apps for your business or if you’re a company that delivers these services to clients. You can find out more about providers of these platforms but look for one that can offer your company security, too, like this open source Slack alternative.
- Anti-Virus and Malware Protection
Last, but not least, every business needs to have top-quality anti-virus and malware protection for their business networks. Numerous online threats keep evolving, and keeping your business, employee, and customer information safe is essential. Furthermore, you don’t want your files to become corrupted and unusable, as this could lead to severe issues for business operations. Always invest in the best protection your business can afford.
When running a business, there is a lot to think about, and getting the right kind of software to help you run things might not be on top of your list. However, make sure you do make this a priority so your business can continue to run smoothly.