3 Tips for Organizing Your Small Business

Running a small business can lead to an overwhelming amount of work. Allowing your inbox to go unchecked or trying to keep up with everything in your head will only lead to disaster. You don’t have to go it alone these days! There is a myriad of helpful tech tools and resources to help support you. 

At Freedom Makers, we have clients from many different areas of business. The one theme that runs the same for all of them is their need to stay organized. Here are our top 3 recommendations that will help your small business be more organized and ultimately more successful.

Utilize Simple Tech Tools

It can be overwhelming the number of tech tools out there to support your business. Take it one task at a time to tackle issues in your business. The great thing is we live in an age where the question is more which platform or app should I use rather than does one exist. Sometimes you start with one and then grow into another.

For example, if you need a way to send PDFs and signed documents look at apps like Geniuscan that serve as a portable scanner on your phone. There are more apps that can assist with signing and sending PDFs. Read more here. 

If you are having trouble with keeping track of your to-dos, find a dynamic to-do list to assist you. At Freedom Makers, we use Asana as our project management tool. But we started with Process Street. Asana is a more complicated system but having worked with Process Street prior we had a foundation for organizing our tasks that easily lent itself to Asana. 

You can start with an App for your to-do list and then build into a more sophisticated project management tool once you are ready. Read here for recommendations on apps that will help with your to-do list. 

Another simple tech tool to help your small business is an invoicing platform. As you grow, your systems will expand and require more sophistication. Platforms such as Harvest or Freshbooks offer simplified ways to set up your business. You can easily track your hours, send invoices and track payments. 

Stay on Top of Email

The number one need we receive from clients is assistance with communication. They want to keep up with their clients, leads and colleagues but do not have the time. For a small business, it is imperative that you maintain strong communication to establish yourself within your area of expertise.
Managing your email inbox is the front lines of your communication. At Freedom Makers, we have developed our Email Nirvana which is 10 actionable tips to clearing your inbox. Email consumes 28% of the workweek and less than half of those emails deserve your attention. But just because that number is high, you cannot ignore the other portion of emails that need your attention. They could be potential clients or important leads. 

The first step is looking at your inbox. Determine which emails are important and how you want to sort through them. Designate a time during the day when you will focus on your inbox. That time is the same everyday and a part of your routine. This way you will stay on top of your inbox daily. There are definite ways to organize your email so that you are more productive and spend less time fretting over email and more time on productivity.

Hire a Virtual Assistant

In the end, the best advice I can provide is to hire a virtual assistant in your small business. As a small business owner, there are so many tasks on your plate. There are the administrative tasks of running your business daily, the communication tasks, the financial tasks etc. Wouldn’t it be nice to lay your head down at night knowing that your to-do list is not out of control? That’s where a virtual assistant comes in.

A virtual assistant can assist your business in any way you desire. They can help organize your inbox if that is too overwhelming. Let them take over your invoicing platform and be responsible for sending out the monthly invoices. They can respond on your behalf to your clients so support and care is provided to your client base every step of the way. Hire a virtual assistant to maintain and manage your social media. If your business needs a digital presence, let them keep those wheels turning while you grow the business in other ways. 

The list goes on and on in the ways that a virtual assistant can help grow your business. I guarantee that your to-do list will shrink once you bring one on. Many times through their experience, they can make suggestions to help streamline your workflows and operations. And in the end they provide you with peace of mind that the daily tasks in your business will get done. Check out this blog on how much a virtual assistant costs and this one on how much value they can bring to your business.