Every business owner has their own problems to solve, but one issue that almost everyone struggles with is time management. Whether your business is just getting off the ground or already has customers knocking down your door, optimising your operation is crucial.
Fortunately, the digital revolution has provided a wide variety of time-saving tools that automate your processes and help business owners reclaim their week. Here, we highlight five of our favourites and explain how these can help your business perform even better.
1. Hootsuite
Considering how social media has become a key way businesses engage with their customers and promote their products, remaining active on the leading platforms is imperative to your sales figures. However, constantly developing content to post is undoubtedly a time-consuming task.
Hootsuite is an incredible platform that solves these concerns, with users able to monitor all their profiles from a single dashboard. Plus, you can schedule new posts in advance and respond to customer queries. Alongside a host of data-driven insights, this marketing automation tool for small businesses will make your life significantly easier.
2. Calendly
If your business involves endless meetings and phone calls, finding the ideal time to schedule engagements can feel like a full-time job. Calendly has quickly become a popular automation tool for this problem, ensuring you can skip long and tedious email conversations.
So, how does it work? Calendly allows users to set their availability and share a link to their schedule. This means customers, partners and colleagues can easily book an appointment without ever needing to send a message.
3. Google Docs
Just because your business is growing doesn’t mean you need a costly solution to take your work to the next level. Millions of people might use Google Docs, but it remains one of the best business automation tools for collaborating on documents.
With this user-friendly platform featuring powerful permissions, it’s simple to manage who has access to new content as it goes through the drafting process. Plus, Google Docs effortlessly keeps track of each version, so you can seamlessly review how your content evolves.
4. Trello
As your business grows, you need to ensure each project is managed carefully from start to finish. With mistakes potentially causing costly delays, Trello is one of the leading business process automation tools for keeping on top of your most critical tasks.
The platform’s straightforward dashboard allows remote teams to remain in close communication, while colour-coded cards and checklists ensure you never lose track of your progress. With Trello by your side, your company’s productivity will go through the roof.
5. Canva
Modern businesses need to create countless graphics, ranging from social media posts and event invitations to business cards. Rather than struggling with complex software like Photoshop, Canva ensures you can produce stunning images with no prior technical knowledge.
With thousands of vibrant templates to choose from, brands can design and edit these to spice up their content. Alongside vast stock image galleries, fonts and graphic elements, producing great content in an instant will undoubtedly save you hours each week.
Grow your business today
Spend more time growing your business by adopting these digital tools into your company’s workflow. In fact, with growing numbers of employees now working from home as the default, these tools can help hybrid work models settle much quicker. As you reclaim these hours, focusing on your next steps helps solidify your brand's future.
For New Zealand businesses looking for a logistics-driven time-saving tool to help streamline export processes, having a DHL Express account is a good place to start. With paperless transactions, all-in-one consignment management and tracking, and access to the latest regulatory news and clearance processes, businesses can save time on export procedures and connect with their global customers more efficiently.
Sign up for a DHL Express account today and start making the most of your time as a business owner.