Technology has really taken over the world. Advancements like artificial intelligence, digital marketing, and cyber security have digitised everything, changing the way things are done. Businesses and entrepreneurs need to ensure they are not left behind.
As a small to medium-sized enterprise (SME), you need to ensure that your business has the right technology. There are certain business information technologies you must have for your SME.
Business information technology refers to the concept of harmonising information technology with enterprise operations. These technologies help improve the efficiency and survivability of any business.
As an SME owner, you need to invest in these technologies to improve your business. Information technology can help cover many different areas. Investing in a robust and strong IT system can benefit your business today and in the future.
Let’s explore which types of business information technology you must have for your SME.
Digital Payments
Since the COVID-19 pandemic, a lot of people and businesses have preferred online payments. This allows for safe and secure payments, and it also means people don’t have to risk carrying cash.
As an SME owner, you need to invest in technology that allows people to pay you without using hard cash. You can invest in point-of-sale (POS) systems from companies such as Yoco or iKhokha. These companies make affordable POS systems for small businesses.
By investing in this technology, you can attract a lot of new customers who prefer digital payments. Additionally, POS systems can help you keep track of your sales and ensure you can still get sales from customers no matter where they are.
Business Website
Another consequence of the COVID-19 pandemic is that people prefer shopping online. For your customers to even think of shopping online, you need a business website. Your website can be a valuable tech tool that can help you provide your customers with critical customer service.
Your website will also provide your customers with information on your business such as your products and services, prices, office location (if you have one) and your business hours.
An optimised business website can also generate new leads for you which can lead to increased sales.
Accounting Software
Accounting software is designed to help you automate accounting processes. Using this software helps you analyse financial data, budget, create invoices, process payments, manage inventory, payroll and cash flow.
Platforms such as QuickBooks are great for small businesses. The platform has features such as tracking your income and expenses, sending invoices, and managing bills and payments. QuickBooks plans begin at R 26,45 per month and can go up to R 1 092 per month.
Customer Relationship Management (CRM)
Managing the relations between you and your customers is important for customer loyalty and customer retention. Using a CRM platform can help you with tasks such as marketing, sales, customer services and engagement on social media.
CRM platforms like HubSpot can help you with customer services and make it easier to maintain the relationship you have with your customers. It will also help you with navigating new customers and their needs.
Digital Advertising
Digital advertising is a great and affordable marketing resource for small businesses. You can find advertising tools online and some are free. You can also use social media to advertise your company without paying heavy fees as you would in traditional marketing.
Within digital marketing are things like e-mail marketing, SMS marketing, social media marketing etc. All these forms are cheaper to use than things such as radio advertising, billboards and TV ads.
As an SME, you need to find the right platform for your business to help with digital marketing. Platforms such as MailChimp (e-mail) and Sakari (SMS) can help you automate customer messaging and send custom promotional messages to your customers. Using digital marketing tools can help increase customer engagement, build customer loyalty, and increase your customer base. All this leads to an increase in sales and revenue.
Artificial Intelligence
The technology on everyone’s minds, artificial intelligence (AI) has taken over the way we do almost everything. For businesses, the technology allows them to develop new products and services.
As an SME, you can utilise AI tools like Zoho Zia to streamline your sales department. This leads to quicker sales and ultimately more profits. If you are trying to up the creativity of your business, tools like DALL-E 2 are great for image generation. You can use these images for social media and your website.
Cyber Security
With the integration of technology into a lot of processes, it’s important to have solutions in place to protect your business and your customers.
As an SME, you need to invest in cyber security because you handle sensitive customer data such as phone numbers, bank accounts and e-mail addresses. If anything happens to this data and you don’t have the necessary protective tools, you will lose your customers.
Additionally, there are laws and regulations that you must comply with. In certain industries (tech, health, fintech), there are strict data protection and cyber security regulations. By having the right tools in place, you reduce the risk of heavy fines and costly implications.
Investing in technology solutions does not have to be expensive. By investing in these tools, you can tech-proof your business and also ensure that when you scale up your business.
Visit our advice page to speak to one of our mentors on how to start, manage and grow your business.
Discussion about this post