Felicia Savage is a content strategist and up-and-coming PR specialist living in Indianapolis. When she isn’t sharing online content, Felicia loves to draw and watch animated films in her spare time. Twitter: @canonicalkitteh
As technology continues to evolve and become more accessible, people adopt certain devices and programs to make their lives easier. To increase productivity, businesses have also embraced technology as a timesaving tool. The use of technology in the business world has lightened the workload and increased sales volumes for businesses of all sizes, but this trend has been especially beneficial for small businesses.
Technology and the small business
Many small businesses are operating with a small staff and limited funds. In order to grow, these businesses often rely on employees to put in extra effort. With the help of technological tools, however, small businesses can lighten the load on employees without slowing down the growth process. Below are some of the most effective technologies and applications that small businesses are putting to use:
- Video calls: Small businesses can talk face-to-face with representatives of other companies all over the world, opening doors to the kind of international trading and collaboration that was once solely the domain of larger corporations.
- Project management software: Multiple employees can work on the same project and view real-time updates from virtually any location. With the help of tablets, laptops and smartphones, employees can even work from home or while traveling.
- Mobile applications: Since most employees already have smartphones, mobile apps are a logical choice for small businesses experimenting with technology. Apps are available for document sharing, video conferencing, shipment tracking and more. If a business needs customized applications, mobile application development can be used to create a specialized app for almost any purpose.
- Content management frameworks: For small businesses that don’t have an in-house tech department, content management frameworks can simplify the process of building and managing websites and web-based applications.
Small business tech statistics
Small businesses are already seeing a significant amount of growth from their use of technology. For example, the PaySimple blog reports that small businesses who use mobile apps save an average of 5.6 hours per week, which translates to more than $14,000 every year. This statistic doesn’t even include the money businesses save as a result of their other technological tools, nor does it include the added income businesses earn because of their increased productivity.
Looking forward
More than half of all small businesses already have a website up and running. 25 percent of the same use search engine optimization to bring in more consumers. Both of these statistics are significantly higher than they were last year, which indicates the adoption of technology among small businesses is steadily increasing over time.
As more business owners become comfortable with technology, it’s likely these numbers will rise even more. Likewise, small businesses already using basic forms of technology are likely to adopt more sophisticated tools, such as customized mobile applications. Furthermore, new technologies are developed every day, many of which can be used in business operations.
Where do you think technology will take small business next?