Technology and business have always been two very closely related and often interwoven facets of human civilisation. What is fairly new, on the other hand, is the rate at which the two have grown recently, with one fuelling the other perpetually.
From digital marketing to AI-powered, automated software/hardware solutions, the innovations have been constant, with even more promises for growth and spread of business waiting just around the corner. Amidst all this, the real question that a businessman should ask is, which ones can benefit their establishment and its specific business goals?
It’s a fairly simple and pinpointed approach to figuring out which one of the many fields of business-oriented tech is relevant to them and their business goals. Stay with us as we try to answer that question by taking a brief look at some of the most important aspects of modern tech that are largely relevant across multiple segments of business.
Digital Marketing
Digital marketing is what has empowered even the smallest of ventures to economically invest in branding themselves, and marketing their products/services. The most important sections or tools of digital marketing campaigns can be summarised as below:
– Content marketing via web content generation, blog posts, guest posts and social media posts
– Social media marketing across multiple social media outlets such as Facebook, Instagram and YouTube
– SEO campaigns to improve SERP rankings on popular search engines
– Customer identification, management and retention efforts
Before digital marketing became what it is today, proper branding/marketing/sales campaigns were reserved exclusively for the big names with the big budgets. In many ways, digital marketing is what has allowed the rapid growth of successful start-ups around the globe and in almost all segments.
SaaS: A Few Common Services That Almost Every Business Needs
SaaS, or Software as a Service, denotes any and all applications/app packages that operate via cloud computing platforms to provide business-specific software solutions. As one may imagine, the opportunities here are pretty vast, and so are the options, but they can still be divided into the primary categories, as mentioned below:
– Customer Relationship Management (CRM) Systems
– Office tools such Office 360 or OpenOffice
– Commercial storage on cloud servers
– Web services for eCommerce site creation and management
– Real time chatting, calling, video-calling and information syncing platforms for transparent and borderless business
– Comparative market and in-house performance analytics
– Information services dedicated to keeping clients updated with industry-specific details (crypto-trading, share-trading, forex trading, etc.)
– Automation for repetitive processes
– Cybersecurity, malware protection, digital forensics and constant threat monitoring
Leveraging Competition Among Suppliers
Whether we are discussing commercial utility suppliers or industry specific raw material suppliers, there are websites and even mobile applications to help businesses compare prices from the respective suppliers on them.
The option to compare and negotiate energy quotes isn’t just limited to business organisations only. Sites like Utility Bidder provide a platform for comparing even mosque energy prices from the electricity and gas providers in the establishment’s vicinity. It’s a simple way to empower non-profit and religious organisations in getting a better energy rate than what they might be used to.
The bottom line here is that digital platforms can now be used to give even the smallest of businesses and non-profits at least some negotiating power over huge suppliers, whether the raw materials in question are microchips, steel or electricity itself.
Boosting Productivity with a Variety of Digital Services
This is a vast field once again, and the effective digital services can be anything from training and education programmes for present employees, to the adoption of Six Sigma, lean or kaizen for direct improvements in employees, processes and even the executive management itself. The principle idea at the core of any such digital technology is that they help in bringing about betterment of business productivity, cost-efficiency and profitability. The effects can be seen on process, workforce or management, if not on all three simultaneously.
We are heading towards a future where the already blurred lines between the various fields of digital tech in business will continue to become more obscure. It will happen as a natural progression of technology, when the suppliers, providers and developers of the different solutions continue to aim for an even more seamless, connected and unified experience.
Until that day comes though, be careful in investing in the right technology, so as to not waste money on something that you don’t really need. This particularly applies to scalability, since that must also match the customer and the business’s variable needs.
