As a business owner, keeping your employees, customers, and clients happy and engaged is your number one priority for success. Whether you have a wealth of experience behind you or you’re about to launch your own startup, here are five business skills that every business owner needs to master in 2019.

Motivating Employees

As the head of a business, all eyes are on you. For employee satisfaction, commit to providing effective motivation to your employees. A paycheck is not enough; employees must be led with enthusiasm and appreciation in order to accomplish tasks and reach fulfillment in their work. Their success directly impacts the success of your business, so this particular business skill delivers exponentially on the effort you provide. Giving your workforce a push in the right direction makes a huge difference in meeting your business goals.

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Planning Ahead

“Fail to prepare, prepare to fail.” – Benjamin Franklin

Every project deserves your best effort. Before any outcome can be realized, your time must be spent in the process of planning. This business skill can make or break a project before the work has even begun! 

Successful planning ensures that the project is completed on time and with excellence. Clients and stakeholders want to trust in your brand, so creating an effective plan for your work is your top priority. You cannot risk starting a project with your eyes shut. Take the time to plan so you may avoid potential risks and pitfalls to allow your project to run smoothly. 

RELATED ARTICLE: 8 QUICK TIPS TO GETTING STARTED WITH YOUR NEW BUSINESS

Marketing Skills

Knowing how to market and promote your business makes it possible for you to find and keep the customers you want. When it comes to your brand it’s important that you take every opportunity to get your business at the top of consumer awareness. Use social media to your advantage; creating branded business pages and ads. Set up a web presence that is easy to find and easy to use. Make sure that your messaging and branding is consistent across all platforms and that they give customers more of an insight into what your company is all about. Utilizing the right strategies can help build up a loyal following.

Networking Skills

The networking business skill has long been a staple of the successful business owner’s toolkit.  Word of mouth can make or break you when it comes to running a successful business. Remember, word of mouth can be positive or negative and customers are more willing today than ever to post their thoughts to your website, search engines, and social media. If you aren’t delivering a quality service, customers are more likely to leave negative reviews, which can tarnish your reputation.

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Being professional, friendly, and attentive to whoever you meet is crucial. Take advantage of in-person and online networking to build your brand. When the feedback comes, knowing how to communicate effectively is key to diffusing difficult situations and attracting return customers. Every touchpoint with a customer or potential customer is important.

Time Management

Stakeholders and clients set the schedule of the work you provide as a business owner. The time management business skill will help you stick to the deadlines and avoid over-promising and under-delivering. Various project management tools are available to help keep you on track and ensure your projects run smoothly and efficiently. Use whatever tool assists you in keeping your commitments so you can build trust with those who make your business a success. 

Small business owners and leaders of large corporations use these business skills to accomplish their goals in business. Let 2019 be the year that you master these skills to enhance your impact and your success. 

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Building your brand is more than a one-day task. It requires much hard work, dedication, and teamwork. Moreover, planning to start a business without having a fool-proof idea about how you’re going to build your brand is not a good option.

There are two essential pillars of the modern startup. Those are your company’s recognized online presence and your customers’ experience of your company. When it comes to successfully building your brand, we have identified three powerful tools that can help.

1. TurboLogo Can Help with Building Your Brand

One of the first things you’ll need for building your brand is to create a logo. If you haven’t done that yet, look into the tool called TurboLogo. It’s easy to use, even if you have no design skills.

To create a logo on TurboLogo, follow these four simple steps:

• Type your brand name
• Choose colors and icons that are suited to your brand
• Customize the generated results
• Admire your splendid new logo

TurboLogo will give you high-quality images and backgrounds for your new logo. Plus, its user-friendly editor allows you a full range of creativity, so your logo design will help with building your brand. Give it a try here.

2. Build Your Brand with an Effective Social Media Strategy

The next thing to think about with regard to building your brand is how you’re using social media. This is because a well-defined social media strategy will help you achieve better connections with your target audience.

In order to do this, however, you’re going to need to gain users’ trust. So be sure to post relevant and useful content. Then people will come back for more and eventually become loyal to your company. If you’re having trouble finding compelling content to share, look for other social media tools to help.

RELATED ARTICLE: AFFORDABLE MARKETING STRATEGIES FOR PROMOTING YOUR ONLINE BUSINESS

3. Get Your Team Up and Running

Another important aspect to building your brand is to make sure everyone on your team is on the same page. Team software such as Slack can help you to do this. Additionally, Slack offers cloud-based financial, operational, and workspace management solutions, whatever the size or type of your organization.

Specifically, there are three things Slack offers to any enterprise:

Smart Scheduling

Smart scheduling is an intelligent scheduling tool to help you and your team know exactly who is doing what and when they’re doing it.

Always-On Connection

Get a real-time view of who is clocked in and who is not.

Communication Tools

Communication tools allow you to deliver schedules and site instructions to your workforce.

Overall, Slack software allows for greater productivity and higher quality work.

Greater Productivity and Higher-Quality Work

When your team is running at peak efficiency, your customers will get better service. And top-notch customer service is essential to building your company’s reputation and your brand.

Take Advantage of These Three Powerful Tools for Building Your Brand

Building a brand takes time. However, if you do it right, you will firmly establish your company in such a way so as to naturally connect with your customers. The three tools discussed here can help to put your company in a strong position.

Additionally, you might want to consider working with other professional agencies. This can help you to reach your goals faster. For example, a marketing agency can conduct research on your behalf and help you to define your goals.

So make building your brand a priority today. Then start using one or more of the three tools we suggest here, and soon you’ll be well on your way to having a strong brand in the marketplace.

Take any department of a modern organization—be it marketing, human resources or purchasing—and you’ll see how important processes are to the smooth running of the everyday tasks and activities that make up the team’s operations. This is certainly the case for the finance function, where there are many sequences of events that are performed over and over again. These finance processes form the backbone of the whole organization’s business operations and contribute massively toward the company’s effectiveness and efficiency.

Working
with Finance Processes on a Small Scale

The finance function is home to a number of processes. For instance, there are employee expense payments, budget approvals, and capital expenditures. And these are only a few. Companies still trying to coordinate and manage these processes manually inevitably fall into the same difficulties.

First, manual workarounds such as spreadsheets, basic databases, or even paper files aren’t sufficient to the tasks at hand. They don’t have the capacity to harness the unpredictability of the steps in the process, for one thing. What’s more, they cannot automate them to minimize or even eliminate human involvement. This means that employees have to input data, oversee it, analyze it, and even make manual calculations. And this is just so they can carry out a basic task that is performed numerous times a day.

Needless
to say, this is not an effective use of trained, skilled finance team members’
time, time that could be put to much more value-adding use.

RELATED ARTICLE: 5 BUSINESS GROWTH STRATEGIES

Moving
Toward Automated Finance Processes

Utilizing some form of automation within the finance function can be an effective way to streamline and simplify existing processes. Moreover, automation can have the following benefits:

Improved Efficiency and Visibility

Automation helps the finance team to spot blockages or bottlenecks in the process. Then they can take proactive action to address these issues. This reduces delays. What’s more, since the steps in the process are clearly defined, everybody knows what to expect and where each task is. This naturally improves overall efficiency and productivity.

Better Compliance

It is so much simpler to track error rates or potentially fraudulent activity using automation. This usually goes hand-in-hand with in-built permissions and access rights. Additionally, back up processes can be called upon if issues arise. From an employee perspective, the clearer guidelines and policies that result from automated processes often lead to a better understanding of each process. Therefore, all employees spend less time on approvals.

Finance
Processes That Benefit from Automation

Practically any multi-stage activity carried out in the finance function can be moved from a manual to an automated process. Here are some of the most common ones:

• Purchase orders
• Employee expense reimbursement
• Employee timesheet approval
• Budget approvals
• Capital expenditure

Financial automation tools can work in partnership with your organization to identify the most value-adding processes in your organization. Then it can help you create personalized automated workflows that match your company’s procedures perfectly.

The
Process of Automation

Implementing automated workflows into your finance team is usually a straightforward task. However, it is one that benefits greatly from being planned out in advance. In this way, you’ll be better assured of getting the best results. Moreover, you will minimize disruptions to ongoing business. Here are the key steps in the planning process:

Lay Out Your Objectives

Before embarking on automation, consider key issues. For example, what do you want to achieve from automation? What is your potential budget? Also, estimate the costs and anticipate any possible issues that might arise as a result of automating your company’s processes.

Plan the Process

It’s a good idea to draw up a road map of each process flow that you want to automate. Among other items, this can include the individuals involved at each stage, as well as the documents or software that will be needed throughout the process. Additionally, involve your team as much as possible during this step. In this way, you will ensure it is as accurate and realistic as possible.

Test the Process

Before going live with a new automated process, run some trials within a test environment to check its performance with no risk. This is a great opportunity to make any adjustments you deem necessary.

Implement Your New Automated Processes

Make sure your team is trained. Moreover, be sure to inform the rest of the business and other stakeholders such as clients about what to expect. Then, put your new processes into action in real-life situations.

Review and Improve

Finally, analyze the performance of your new automated processes regularly, especially immediately after going live. You need to ensure that they are meeting the needs of the business. Thereafter, make tweaks where necessary based on feedback and performance.

Take
the Next Step Toward the Benefits of Finance Process Automation

If your organization is still struggling to coordinate and manage the range of essential processes within its finance function, give automation a try. See for yourself how it can help your business to grow and thrive. At the very least, it will improve productivity and efficiency. Financial process automation is the perfect way to streamline and tighten up your existing finance processes. It will reduce your error rates, improve efficiency, and save you money along the way.

About the Author

Dinesh Varadharajan is Vice President at Kissflow. He leads the product management team that looks after the company’s flagship workflow automation product. Dinesh is a hands-on executive with a wide range of experience working with leading-edge technologies, developing great products, and mentoring highly productive teams. He has profound knowledge in design and technical implementation of BPM solutions.

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dineshvaradharajan/

Featured image from Tim van der Kuip on Unsplash

Whether businesspeople are made or born is up for debate. But being in business means making an impact in the world with your ideas. A business is a long-term investment that requires dedication and constant development. If you are considering starting a small business while studying or when you complete your studies, there are many things to consider. 

Running your own growing empire has its advantages, but it also comes with immense challenges you need to be ready for. However, with the proper tools, your small business can make it to the big time. Here some small business tips to help you hit the ground running.

RELATED ARTICLE: HOW TO PREPARE TO RUN YOUR OWN BUSINESS WHILE STILL IN SCHOOL

1. Get Started with Your Small Business ASAP

Starting as soon as you can, put yourself in a position where you can assess the true value of your small business idea. Nowadays, the business model has transformed immensely. 

For example, it is no longer the norm to present a complete and final product to your market. In fact, some innovators suggest a minimal viable product (MVP). This is a product with the basic functionalities that lacks all of the bells and whistles the eventual product will have. An MVP allows you to grow with your market and make changes according to demand. 

2. Be Ready to Take the Risk

If you are not up for the risk, then you are probably not suited for the cutthroat business world. Taking the leap to get your small business started is a brave step that requires your dedication. Investing money and time into your idea is about focusing on the rewards, yet understanding that it might not work out. 

Get over that fear and operate from a place of reasonable faith. In business, failing is part of the process. It will leads you toward growth. This is because each failure carries a lesson, so don’t let fear deter you from your journey. 

3. Don’t Be Afraid to Make Mistakes

As mentioned in the second point, mistakes are part of the journey. However, fear of making mistakes can debilitate the aspiring entrepreneur. Just remember that many small businesses start off with a series of failures, until they become a success. 

However, successful companies also continue to experience failures dictated by different circumstances. You need to remain true to yourself and your business goals to overcome factors around you that stifle your growth. Anyone from friends, family, and co-workers may disagree with a certain course you are taking. However, whatever happens, always remain true to yourself. 

4. Create and Mold Your Own Life Along
with Your Small Business

Since you are still studying, being a little ahead of your peers with your career might mean you will miss out on some of the fun things young people do in college. Additionally, if you get started right away, you might struggle to balance your studies with running your small business. 

If that is the case, you can get your personal assignment assistant with an online writing service. That will help you to get your dissertation, thesis, college essays, and other writing work done on time.

Additionally, in creating a life for yourself and taking ultimate responsibility for your life and your small business, read business articles to get inspiration from the greats.

Image from Austin Distel on Unsplash

5. Work Hard, Play Harder

Being in business is different from studying or working a full-time job. Mainly this is because there are no holidays, paid time off, or someone to monitor the work you put in. Therefore, working hard is important, but remember to give yourself a break now and then. So take up a new hobby or find other healthy ways to blow off steam. 

As a businessperson, your efforts may not translate into monetary gains immediately. A steady balance allows you to constantly refresh your mind and focus on success. A good idea here is to use business automation apps to stay on top of your work with your small business.

6. Be Open to New Ideas in Your Small Business

Our ideas are like our children. We want to
keep them close to nurture them and watch them grow. Unlike children, however, you
have the option to let ideas go when they are not growing as well as you
expected. So if one of your ideas is no longer serving your small business, feel
free to let it go.

Of course, it is hard to let go of something we are passionate about and it might sting a little bit. However, business is no place for ego or pride. Pay attention to feedback from your clients to continue servicing their needs. From time to time, this might require an entire overhaul of certain ideas and elements of a product or service.

Just remember that when you can let go of an idea that’s no longer serving you, you will make space for a new and better idea to come along.

7. Seek Allies in the Business World

Networking is so important for a growing businessperson. Networking allows you to connect with like-minded individuals who likely face similar challenges in the small business world. Having allies in business will allow you to draw important lessons and find ways to business success.

8. Find a Mentor to Walk You Through the Process

Finally, it is a good idea to identify a mentor in your field so that you can learn from them. Stepping into the world of business requires the ability to be preemptive about challenges you may face. As you create your long-term plan upon entering the business world, a good mentor will help you to have a good understanding of your challenges and your potential growth points. 

There are good mentors out there who will be willing to hold your hand through the process and give you feedback on possible strategies. As an aspiring businessperson, you need to keep your finger on the pulse of development and make sure that you are on course with your goals for your small business, and a good mentor will help you to do that.

About the Author

Emma
Rundle works as a business consultant for small and mid-size businesses and
startups. She has a special interest in startups backed by student entrepreneurs
and has helped them to scale up various companies ranging from organic food to
online writing services. In her free time, she likes to play tennis and try her
hand at gardening and writing blogs.

Featured image from Pexels

For a business to thrive, it needs to have the right tools at its disposal. Unfortunately, many business owners are not aware of the number of software options and tools available to them. As a business grows, it sometimes becomes stuck in its ways, and newer possibilities are seldom explored.

If you want to improve your business, one of the best things you can do is explore new software for your business. You’ll likely find there are some amazing tools out there that can help improve almost every aspect of your business. To get you started, here are just six types of software you need for your business.

#1 — Website Management Software

No matter what kind of business you’re running, you likely have a website. A website helps potential customers find you online and makes it easier to advertise to the world. To run a website, you have two primary options. You can either outsource the entire operation to a third party and let them run everything, or you can do it in house. If you want to do it in house, you’ll need a few pieces of software, such as:

• Web design software
• FTP software

Membership Site Software

If you want to run a successful business, one of the best ways to take care of your customers is by creating a membership site. This gated part of your website needs to be kept in line by a membership site software. It will allow customers to create a membership through your website, where they will have access to special features and content.

Some of these tools you can find for free. However, for others you might have to pay a monthly subscription. Which tools you need will also depend on the type of site you want to run. For instance, if you want to host a simple blog, you can do most of this online through tools like WordPress. In this case, you won’t need to download any additional software.

#2 — Marketing

Next, you’ll need some software that helps you get the word out about your business. A good marketing software will help you manage all the different tactics you’re using in one place. For example, you’ll want software in which you can track your SEO efforts, social media, content creation, and more.

A good place to start is the Hubspot Marketing tool. This all-in-one tool has received great reviews from past customers. With it, you can increase the number of visitors coming to your site and improve your conversion rates.

#3 — Communication

Communication is
an essential part of any business. Your team members need to be able to talk to
one another easily and share important files and updates about projects. If
your business is currently relying solely on email and phone calls to get
things done, you’re not operating as efficiently as you could be.

To improve this, you’ll want to look into getting some new communication tools. Slack is a great option if your team needs to talk quickly, or you can use Skype if you need to video chat. The best thing you can do is to analyze your current situation, including talking to your employees and find the areas where communication could be better. Once you pinpoint the pain areas you can find the right communication software to improve it.

#4 — Customer Relationship Management

As your business gains more customers you’ll need a reliable way to manage them all. This is where a good customer relationship management (CRM) tool comes in. With a CRM you can:

• Store important customer data
• Track a customer’s progress along the sales journey
• Find new leads and opportunities for sales
• Manage your outreach programs in one place

There are a lot of CRMs available, each one with its own features and cost. Here is a list of the best CRMs to help you start your search. A good way to pick CRM software is to find one with a free trial and give it a test run. Then do this for a few different CRMs and see which one suits your needs best.

#5 — Project Management

Image from Pexels

Just as it’s good to manage your customers all in one place, you need to do the same with any projects you’re working on. Project management software will allow relevant employees to track the status of different projects and collaborate with other team members. Without project management software, you’ll likely find that things aren’t getting done right. This is because everyone is on a different page.

RELATED ARTICLE: 5 ESSENTIAL PROJECT MANAGEMENT SKILLS IN 2019

When looking for
project management software, there are a few things you’ll want to search for.
First, the tool should be easy and simple to use. Next, it should make
communication between team members more efficient. Finally, it should be a
place where you can transfer files or work on the same documents. Popular project management software options include:

#6 — Accounting

Finally, you’ll need reliable software to help you keep track of all your financials. A business that doesn’t keep a close eye on expenses and revenue is doomed to fail. However, with solid accounting software, you can easily keep track of all of this in an easy manner.

To find the right accounting software you should first consider what type of business you have. Large corporations will likely need different software than a small local business. You should also take into consideration the person who will be using the software. If you’re handling the books yourself, and you don’t have much experience with accounting, you’ll want software that is more tailored toward beginners.

Cloud-Based Accounting

Another thing to look for is cloud-based accounting software. If your software operates on the cloud, this means you won’t lose your data if your computer breaks. Plus, you can use the software from any device. This makes managing your finances easier and provides you with some peace of mind.

Make the Most of the Software Tools Available

These days
there’s practically ten software options for any problem your business might
face. Whether it’s poor communication, inefficient project management or
marketing deployment, or something else, there are plenty of software solutions
available that can help you out.

Take the time to study your business and look for areas you need to improve. Then explore the software options available to you, and consider both their features and their costs. If you take your time with the decision, you should end up with new software for your business that helps everything run smoother at a reasonable cost. After that, it’s only a matter of time before you start to see the effects in your profits.