Every business has unique challenges, needs, and goals, but there are a few things that all business owners should do to improve overall efficiency and safety. Here are five smart things you should be doing if you own a business.
1. Streamline communication.
Email revolutionized the communication game in the ’90s, but in recent years more businesses are switching to peer to peer messaging platforms to stay connected with their employees and customers. Peer to peer messaging, or P2P, is the best way to quickly and efficiently send out text messages to a large number of people. You can easily use P2P to send memos about promotional items to your team members. It’s also a great way for your customer service team to follow up with customers about appointments, perks, product reviews, and satisfaction surveys. People are more likely to respond to a text message than an email or voice call, and you can keep track of all of the conversations on the messaging app.
2. Optimize employee training.
Onboarding new hires can be a mess if you don’t have a template for employee training. It’s a good idea to make a professional training video for new hires to watch on their first day of work if you don’t already have one. Experts say that pairing visuals with important information can drastically improve retention. A new employee training video should cover specific job duties, company culture, best practices, and teamwork goals. Your new hires and current employees must be on the same page, so if you’re making a new employee training video, it should be mandatory training for everyone—not just new hires.
3. Step up your SEO game.
If you’re looking to get your company name out there, SEO can go a long way towards achieving that goal. When utilized, SEO, or search engine optimization, will improve your business’s searchability and visibility on the internet. Aside from increasing visibility, there are other ways SEO can benefit your business, including:
- Improving customer experience
- Building trust and credibility
- Impacting the buying cycle
- Receiving quantifiable results
- Discovering new opportunities
With most people searching online for services and products, you want your business to appear at the top of the search results. You can implement SEO practices on your own or hire a professional marketing company.
4. Install a security system.
If you have a brick-and-mortar business, it would be smart to protect it with proper security. All business owners, regardless of business type, can benefit from having a security system. A video surveillance system can help you monitor customers and employees, prevent theft and vandalism, minimize damage from fires or other emergencies, and remotely monitor operations.
If you’re installing a security system for the first time and need to find a supplier, your best bet is to write an RFP security plan. An RFP, or request for proposal, outlines your specific security needs for the solicitation of bids from video security vendors. It might sound complicated, but an RFP simply consists of your objectives, system requirements, budget, and so on. Drafting an RFP is an effective way to determine what specific functions you need and to find bidders who can supply them.
5. Back up your documents.
There’s a lot of good reasons why you should always back up your documents. You don’t want to lose crucial files if your computer is suddenly damaged, stolen, or lost. Backing up your files on a flash drive or the cloud also gives you access when you’re not in front of your work computer. Some people prefer USB flash drives to cloud storage because they’re convenient, small, portable, and can hold a lot of data. Using multiple flash drives can help you stay organized, and you can order bulk thumb drives for your business without breaking the bank. Flash drives can also be protected with passwords and encryption, and are less susceptible to hackers than the cloud.
These business basics are things every smart business owner should be doing. By utilizing these simple tips, you can drastically improve your business’s efficiency, safety, and success.