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AND WELCOME TO THE SCORE HOUSTON[SCORE Houston (#09): "Technology - Unleash Your Business Potential"]
TV SERIES.THE ENTREPRENEUR'S JOURNEY WILL SCORE IN EPISODE NINE, TECHNOLOGY UNLEASH YOUR BUSINESS POTENTIAL.
I'M RAY NICKS ONE OF YOUR HOSTS TODAY, AND A SCORE HOUSTON MENTOR.
FOR THE LAST 60 YEARS SCORE HAS BEEN PROVIDING EXCELLENT SUPPORT FOR SMALL BUSINESSES, OFFERING FREE, CONFIDENTIAL MENTORING, AND MANY TOOLS AND RESOURCES FOR DIVERSE BUSINESS AREAS.
NOW WE'RE PARTNERING WITH HOUSTON TV TO DEVELOP A SERIES WITH ACTIONABLE BUSINESS INSIGHTS.
EACH EPISODE OFFERS MANY TIPS AND GUIDELINES TO ELEVATE YOUR UNDERSTANDING OF THE EXCITING JOURNEY OF ENTREPRENEURSHIP.
AND OUR LAST ENTREPRENEUR'S JOURNEY EPISODE, WE EXPLORED BANKING AND ACCESS TO CAPITAL FOR SMALL BUSINESSES.
TODAY WE'RE EXCITED TO TALK ABOUT HOW SMALL BUSINESSES AND STARTUPS CAN TAKE ADVANTAGE OF TECHNOLOGY TO AUTOMATE BUSINESS TASKS, IMPROVING PROFITABILITY AND ACHIEVING SUCCESS.
WELCOME BACK TO TODAY'S EPISODE OF THE ENTREPRENEUR'S JOURNEY, TITLED TECHNOLOGY UNLEASH YOUR BUSINESS POTENTIAL.
I'M RAY NICKS, A SCORE HOUSTON MENTOR, VP OF THE WEST HOUSTON CHAPTER, AND I'M JOINED BY MY CO-HOST, ANOTHER SCORE, MENTOR AND SOCIAL MEDIA CHAIR, ANDREAS GOLDSCHMIDT.
WE'VE BOTH SPENT A GOOD PART OF OUR CAREERS DEALING WITH TECHNOLOGY, SO THIS IS ACTUALLY A TOPIC THAT'S VERY NEAR AND DEAR TO MY HEART.
AND ACTUALLY, I'M REALLY EXCITED TO BE HERE.
IN TODAY'S WORLD, IT'S REALLY, REALLY CRITICAL TO INTEGRATE TECHNOLOGY INTO YOUR BUSINESS PROCESSES.
SO TODAY'S EPISODE IS REALLY ALL ABOUT HELPING OUR STARTUPS AND ACTUALLY ENTREPRENEURS TO UNDERSTAND WHAT TECHNOLOGY EXISTS, HOW THEY CAN ACTUALLY BENEFIT FROM THAT TECHNOLOGY, AND WHAT'S THE BEST WAY TO ACTUALLY HAVE A TECHNOLOGY ADOPTION PLAN FOR THEM.
SO THAT'S ONE OF THE KEY LIMITS.
WE ALSO TALKED TODAY ABOUT WHAT ARE THE HARDWARE CHOICES, WHAT TYPE OF BUSINESS TECHNOLOGY ACTUALLY EXISTS, AND HOW THEY NEED TO EVOLVE ALL OF THE TECHNOLOGY STICK AS THE BUSINESS GROWS IN SIZE AND COMPLEXITY.
SO THIS IS ACTUALLY GONNA BE REALLY A LOT OF FUN.
SO RAY, WHAT ACTUALLY IS BUSINESS TECHNOLOGY? SO, THAT'S A GREAT QUESTION.
IT'S REALLY, UH, THE SYSTEMS AND SERVICES THAT AUTOMATE PROCESSES, BUSINESS PROCESSES WITH MINIMAL HUMAN INTERVENTION, UM, AND INVOLVE SYSTEMS THAT THAT EXECUTE REPETITIVE RULE-BASED COMPLEX WORKFLOWS EFFICIENTLY AND CONSISTENTLY.
NOW, IN THE PAST, YOU KNOW, TECHNOLOGY HAS REALLY BEEN OUT OF, OUT OF REACH FOR A LOT OF SMALL BUSINESSES BECAUSE OF ITS COMPLEXITY.
UM, ITS COST AND, BUT TODAY WITH MODERN SOFTWARE PRODUCTS AND WITH THE INTERNET AND THE CLOUD, IT'S, THAT'S A WHOLE DIFFERENT STORY.
TECHNOLOGY IS VERY ACCESSIBLE BECAUSE IT'S AFFORDABLE, IT'S SIMPLE.
UM, AND SO TODAY IT'S AVAILABLE FOR MOST ANY, ANY, UH, SMALL BUSINESS.
SO, BUT WHY DO ENTREPRENEURS ACTUALLY NEED BUSINESS TECHNOLOGY THEN? WELL, BUSINESS TECHNOLOGY SHOULD REALLY BE INTEGRAL TO ANY BUSINESS STRATEGY TO REALLY DRIVE OR ENABLE EFFICIENCY, INNOVATION, AND COMPETITIVENESS.
UM, THE FIRST, THE PRIME, ONE OF THE PRIMARY BENEFITS OF TECHNOLOGY IS BEING ABLE TO STREAMLINE TASKS, UM, AND, YOU KNOW, LOWER COSTS, BUT, AND FREE UP RESOURCES TO BE ABLE TO WORK ON OTHER THINGS, MORE IMPORTANT TASKS WITHIN THE COMPANY.
UH, ANOTHER VERY IMPORTANT BENEFIT IS THE ABILITY TO, UM, ALLOW YOU TO SCALE.
SO EVERY BUSINESS WANTS TO GROW, ADD REVENUE CAPACITY.
THIS ALLOWS YOU TO DO THAT WITHOUT ADDING A WHOLE LOT OF COST.
THE THIRD BIG BENEFIT OF, UH, OF, OF TECHNOLOGY IS THAT IT REDUCES HUMAN AIR ERROR AND, AND IMPROVES QUALITY BY PROGRAMMATICALLY ACHIEVE, UH, EXECUTING TASKS, PROCESSES WITHOUT HUMAN INTERVENTION.
AND FINALLY, IT ALLOWS YOU TO, UM, REALLY LEVEL THE COMPLAINING THAT THE, UH, PLAYING FIELD WITH COMPETITORS, WHETHER THEY'RE LARGE OR SMALL.
AND IF YOU ADOPT EARLY ENOUGH, EVEN GET A COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE, GET AHEAD OF YOUR COMPETITORS.
AND IT SEEMS LIKE A LOT OF PEOPLE ARE ACTUALLY GETTING THAT.
I JUST RECENTLY READ A SURVEY THAT NINE OUT OF 10, UH, SMALL BUSINESSES IN THE US TODAY ARE ACTUALLY AT LEAST USING ONE, UH, TECHNOLOGY PLATFORM ALREADY.
AND YOU KNOW, WHAT I'VE KINDA SEEN IS ACTUALLY ACCOUNTING PLATFORMS, YOU KNOW, ABOUT 60% OR SO, UH, ALREADY ARE USING THAT TODAY ABOUT, UH, TWO THIRDS ARE USING SOCIAL MEDIA AND ABOUT 40% ACTUALLY USING MARKETING PLATFORMS.
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SO IT SEEMS ACTUALLY A LOT OF PEOPLE ALREADY UNDERSTAND THAT CONCEPT.SO HOW ARE WE ACTUALLY GONNA GO ABOUT THIS TODAY? SO THE WAY WE'VE ACTUALLY STRUCTURED THE SESSION TODAY IS WE'RE GONNA TALK ABOUT FREE TOPICS.
WE'RE GONNA START WITH HARDWARE CHOICES, AND THAT'S FAIRLY STRAIGHTFORWARD.
YOU KNOW, YOUR SMARTPHONE, YOUR LAPTOP, YOUR DESKTOP.
THESE ARE THE KIND OF THINGS THAT THEY ACTUALLY NEED, BUT ALSO SHARED, YOU KNOW, ELEMENTS LIKE, YOU KNOW, PRINTERS AND ACTUALLY THE INTERNET.
THEN WE'RE GONNA TALK ABOUT GENERAL USE SOFTWARE, WHICH IS, YOU KNOW, ANY KIND OF SOFTWARE THAT ALL MOST ALL BUSINESSES CAN USE TO AUTOMATE THEIR CORE PROCESSES.
AND WE'RE GONNA TALK ABOUT, UH, OFFICE PRODUCTIVITY SUITES.
WE'RE GONNA BE TALKING ABOUT ACCOUNTING PACKAGES, WE'RE GONNA TALK ABOUT MARKETING AND SALES PACKAGES, AND MOST OF THEM ACTUALLY CLOUD-BASED, BECAUSE THAT'S OBVIOUSLY WHERE ALL OF THE THINGS ARE GOING.
AND THEN WE'RE GONNA SPEND A FEW MINUTES TALKING ABOUT WHAT ARE ACTUALLY INDUSTRY SPECIFIC SOLUTIONS, UH, THINGS THAT ACTUALLY ARE SPECIFIC TASKS FOR SPECIFIC INDUSTRIES THAT NOT REALLY EVERY BUSINESS WILL USE.
SO ANDREAS, UM, THAT SOUNDS EXCITING.
UM, IF YOU'RE A STARTUP BUSINESS, HOW DO YOU GO ABOUT DECIDING OR DETERMINING WHAT TO USE? SO IN GENERAL, THE WAY I WOULD ACTUALLY GO ABOUT THAT, I WOULD, UM, TRY TO UNDERSTAND WHAT ARE REALLY KIND OF THE KEY BUSINESS PROCESSES THAT YOU ACTUALLY NEED TO RUN YOUR BUSINESS.
ONCE YOU HAVE IDENTIFIED THAT, THEN YOU CAN ACTUALLY LOOK AT WHICH ARE THE PROCESSES THAT WOULD MOST BENEFIT FROM ACTUALLY BEING AUTOMATED.
THOSE WOULD BE TYPICALLY ONES THAT ARE EITHER HIGHLY REPETITIVE OR WHERE YOU ACTUALLY GET A LOT OF ERRORS INTRODUCED.
AND THOSE ARE REALLY KIND OF THE KEY THINGS THAT YOU WOULD ACTUALLY DO.
LAST POINT ON THAT IS YOU NEED TO PRIORITIZE.
THERE'S GONNA BE A NUMBER OF ELEMENTS THAT ARE ESSENTIAL, AND THERE'S A GONNA NUMBER OF THINGS THAT ARE GONNA BE NICE TO HAVE, AND WE WANNA MERELY MAKE SURE WE FOCUS ON THE ONES THAT ARE ESSENTIAL.
ARE THERE ANY REAL JUST OBVIOUS CHOICES? ABSOLUTELY.
SO THERE ARE SOME BASIC ELEMENTS THAT I THINK EVERY BUSINESS NEEDS, AND THESE ARE ACTUALLY WHAT WE CALL THESE OFFICE PRODUCTIVITY SUITES.
UH, A LOT OF US ARE USING THOSE ON A DAILY BASIS.
MICROSOFT 365, GOOGLE WORKSPACE, OUR SOHO WORKPLACE.
THESE ARE ALL KIND OF TOOLS THAT WE USE, AND THEY ACTUALLY HAVE A WIDE RANGE OF WHAT THEY ACTUALLY CAN DO.
THEY CAN, UH, ON THE ONE HAND, YOU KNOW, CREATE AN EDIT DOCUMENTS, CREATE AN EDIT PRESENTATIONS, HELP US ACTUALLY ANALYZE, UH, AND STORE DATA, UH, COLLABORATE, UH, ALL OF THE THINGS ACTUALLY KIND OF, YOU KNOW, THAT WE NEED, YOU KNOW, KIND OF FOR KEEPING CALENDARS TOGETHER, ALL OF THOSE THINGS, YOU KNOW, THEY CAN ACTUALLY HELP US DO.
UH, THEY ARE ALSO ACTUALLY REQUIRING EQUIPMENT LIKE, UH, YOU KNOW, THE SMARTPHONE, UH, YOU KNOW, UH, YOUR LAPTOP, YOUR DESKTOP, YOU KNOW, AND ACTUALLY SHARED PRINTERS AS WE TALKED ABOUT.
YOU ALSO NEED INTERNET SERVICES BECAUSE OBVIOUSLY YOU NEED TO BE ABLE TO GET TO THEM BECAUSE THEY'RE OBVIOUSLY SITTING IN THE CLOUD.
AND TYPICALLY A SMALL WIFI HUB IS ACTUALLY ALL YOU'RE GONNA NEED FOR THAT.
AND SO FROM THAT PERSPECTIVE, YOU KNOW, UH, AS LONG AS YOU ACTUALLY NOT HAVE, YOU KNOW, GOTTEN VERY HIGH BANDWIDTH NEEDS, LIKE EVERYBODY AT THE SAME TIME ACTUALLY AT A VIDEO CONFERENCE, UH, OR, YOU KNOW, YOU ACTUALLY HAVE HIGH GRAPHIC USAGES, THAT'S GONNA TAKE YOU ACTUALLY A LONG WAY.
AND THEN FINALLY, OBVIOUSLY YOU'RE GONNA NEED STORAGE.
STORAGE IS ANOTHER KIND OF CRITICAL ELEMENT THAT YOU KNOW, YOU REALLY WANT TO HAVE HERE.
AND THAT, YOU KNOW, IN THE PAST WE NEEDED, YOU KNOW, KIND OF SERVERS AND ACTUALLY STORAGE RACKS TODAY, MOST OF THAT ACTUALLY COMES WITH YOUR PRODUCTIVITY SUITES AND THOSE PRODUCTIVITY SUITES.
IF YOU ACTUALLY RUN OUT OF THOSE, UH, YOU KNOW, FROM A STORAGE PERSPECTIVE, YOU CAN ALWAYS GO TO, UH, AWS OR GOOGLE CLOUD OR MICROSOFT AZURE TO ACTUALLY GET STORAGE IN A SCALABLE AND CHEAP WAY.
RIGHT? SO IT SOUNDS LIKE A LOT OF THOSE BASICS ARE THINGS THAT WERE A LOT, A LOT OF PEOPLE ARE ALREADY FAMILIAR WITH AND FAIRLY SIMPLE.
BUT AS YOU GROW, AS YOU EVOLVE OVER TIME, YOUR CHANGES, YOUR, YOUR, UH, YOUR NEEDS CHANGE AS WELL.
AND SO THINGS LIKE PERFORMANCE, CAPACITY, RELIABILITY, AND SECURITY BECOME POTENTIALLY MORE IMPORTANT.
AND AT THAT POINT, YOU PROBABLY NEED TO TURN TO AN EXPERT TO GET MORE HELP, UH, TO GO DOWN THAT, THAT, UH, JOURNEY DOWN THAT PATH.
SO WE'VE BEEN HEARING A LOT ABOUT ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE.
UM, SO JUST HOW SHOULD SMALL BUSINESS THINK ABOUT USING ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE? UH, IS IT SOMETHING THAT THEY SHOULD CONSIDER? SO AI ACTUALLY IS VERY ESSENTIAL KIND OF TODAY TO THE OFFICE.
SO WE WOULD ACTUALLY STRONGLY RECOMMEND TO ACTUALLY KIND OF GET TAKING A LOOK AT THAT AS, YOU KNOW, KIND OF GENERAL PURPOSE AI SOLUTIONS, AND MORE AND MORE IT'S ACTUALLY BUILT INTO APPLICATIONS AS WELL.
BUT AS WITH EVERYTHING ON AI, MAKE ABSOLUTELY SURE YOU TEST AND ACTUALLY KINDA REALLY RESEARCH BEFORE YOU ACTUALLY USE THE RESULTS OVER AI.
YEAH, SO AI IS SUCH A GAME CHANGER.
SO IN THE NEXT SEGMENT, WE'LL TAKE A CLOSER LOOK AT YOUR BACK OFFICE NEEDS PROGRESSING UP THE SALES AND MARKETING STACK.
SO STICK AROUND, UH, AS WE CONTINUE TO GET UP AND CLOSE AND PERSONAL WITH BUSINESS TECHNOLOGY.
FOR EMERGENCY ASSISTANCE SUCH AS AMBULANCE, POLICE, OR FIRE, THE FIRE HYDRANT IS GUSHING
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EVERYWHERE.CALL 3 1 1 FOR CITY RELATED SERVICES LIKE WATER LEAKS, TRAFFIC TICKETS, AND MORE, I NEED HELP FINDING A NEW PLACE TO LIVE.
CALL 2 1 1 FOR ALL SOCIAL SERVICE NEEDS, SUCH AS FOOD BANKS, HOUSING, SHELTER ASSISTANCE, HEALTHCARE AND CHILDCARE SERVICES.
MAKE THE RIGHT CALL, 2 1 1 3 1 1 9 1 1.
TODAY WE'RE TALKING ABOUT HOW TECHNOLOGY CAN HELP YOUR BUSINESS ACHIEVE BUSINESS SUCCESS BEYOND GENERAL OFFICE PRODUCTIVITY TOOLS.
WHAT TECHNOLOGY SHOULD A STARTUP OR A NEW BUSINESS CONSIDER AN EXCESS ESSENTIAL RAY? WELL, THAT REALLY DEPENDS ON, YOU KNOW, WHAT BUSINESS ACTIVITIES INVOLVE THE MOST REPETITIVE, UH, LABOR INTENSIVE WORK.
UM, BACK OFFICE ACTIVITIES LIKE ACCOUNTING AND BOOKKEEPING ARE PRIME CANDIDATES FOR AUTOMATION.
AND WE HAVE A, WE NEED TO REALLY TURN TO AN EXPERT TO HAVE A CONVERSATION ABOUT THAT.
I HAD A RECENT CONVERSATION WITH SANDRA, UH, VALEJO, WHO IS THE OWNER, UH, AND A C OWNER OF P DRIVEN AND A CPA, UH, P DRIVEN IS A, A, AN ACCOUNTING AND ERP CONSULTING FIRM.
UH, SO I HAD A RECENT CONVERSATION WITH HER.
LET'S TAKE A LOOK AT THAT VIDEO.
HI SANDRA, AND THANKS FOR TAKING THE TIME TO BE WITH US TODAY.
AS A SMALL CPA FIRM THAT FOCUSES ON, UH, ARCHITECTURAL AND AND ENGINEERING FIRMS, UH, YOUR COMPANY P DRIVEN HELPS BUSINESSES ACHIEVE SUCCESS BY, UH, ESTABLISHING SOUND, UM, AND EFFICIENT ACCOUNTING, BOOKKEEPING AND FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT PROCESSES, RIGHT? THAT IS CORRECT.
WE HAVE BEEN HELPING FIRMS FROM STARTUP TO MEDIUM CLIENTS FOR OVER 20 YEARS BY HANDLING THEIR ACCOUNTING.
WE OFFER REAL TIME ACCESS TO FINANCIAL DATA, ENABLING CLIENTS TO FOCUS ON THEIR BUSINESS OPERATIONS.
GIVE THEM THE BIG PICTURE, THE DEEP DIVE, OR JUST LET THEM ASK BETTER QUESTION IS THEIR DECISION.
SO, AND TECHNOLOGY IS THE KEY TO TO, TO DOING THAT AND YOUR SOLUTIONS, BUT CAN YOU TELL US WHY TECHNOLOGY IS SO IMPORTANT IN, UM, YOU KNOW, IMPROVING THESE PROCESSES? SURE.
IT SIMPLIFIES A CRITICAL BUSINESS FUNCTION AND ALLOWS OWNERS AND TEAM TO FOCUS ON ACTIVITIES THAT GROW THE BUSINESS.
TECHNOLOGY IMPROVES PRODUCTIVITY, ACCURACY DECISION MAKING, PROVIDES REAL TIME ACCESS TO FINANCIAL DATA, AND IS A COST EFFECTIVE JUST TO NAME A FEW BY LEVERAGING TECHNOLOGY BUSINESS CAN IMPROVE THEIR BOOKKEEPING PROCESSES, ENABLING BETTER FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT AND CONTRIBUTING TO THE OVERALL SUCCESS.
CAN YOU GIVE US SOME EXAMPLES OF SPECIFICALLY HOW TECHNOLOGY CAN HELP? THERE ARE MANY WAYS JUST TO NAME A FEW.
SMALL BUSINESSES CAN AUTOMATICALLY RECORD TRANSACTIONS FROM LINK BANK ACCOUNT, CREDIT CARDS, PAYMENT PROCESSORS LIKE PAYPAL AND STRIPE.
THEY CAN CATEGORIZE AND TRACK EXPENSES AUTOMATICALLY FOR ACCURATE RECORDS OF YOUR SPENDING.
THEY CAN ALSO GENERATE AND SEND INVOICES TO CLIENTS AUTOMATICALLY AND SEND AUTOMATED REMINDERS TO CLIENTS FOR OVERDUE PAYMENTS TO HELP MAINTAIN CASH FLOW.
YOU CAN SCAM AND UPLOAD RECEIPTS TO MATCH THEM TO CORRESPONDING TRANSACTIONS.
AND FINALLY, IT IS IMPORTANT TO BACK UP YOUR FINANCIAL DATA SO IT IS SECURE AND RECOVERABLE THESE TOOLS.
DO THAT AUTOMATICALLY BY AUTOMATING THE STEPS, YOU WILL SAVE LOTS OF TIME AND REDUCE ERRORS, NOT TO MENTION, PROVIDE INSIGHTS INTO YOUR BUSINESS FINANCIAL HEALTH.
YEAH, WELL, I CAN SEE HOW THERE WOULD BE A LOT OF REPETITION AND TIME CONSUMING WORK THAT YOU WOULD CUT OUT WITH THESE, UH, WITH THESE PROCESSES.
ARE THERE SOME TOP, UH, ACCOUNTING AND, AND BOOKKEEPING SOFTWARE PRODUCTS THAT SMALL BUSINESSES SHOULD, UM, YOU KNOW, BE CONSIDERING CHOOSING THE RISE OF WEAR DEPEND ON A SPECIFIC BUSINESS NEEDS BUDGET AND INDUSTRY REQUIREMENTS.
QUICKBOOKS ONLINE IS IDEAL FOR A SMALL TO MID-SIZED BUSINESS THAT NEED COMPREHENSIVE FINANCIAL FEATURES, ZERO FOR BUSINESS, LOOKING FOR A USER FRIENDLY INTERFACE WITH ROBUST FEATURES, FRESHBOOK WAVES AND SOHO BOOKS FOR SERVICE BASED BUSINESS AND FREELANCERS WHO NEED SIMPLE ACCOUNTING SOLUTIONS.
SOUNDS LIKE THERE'S SOME GREAT SOLUTIONS.
HOW DO YOU GO ABOUT CHOOSING ONE? ANYTIME YOU ARE APPLYING TECHNOLOGY TO A BUSINESS, MAKE SURE TO BEGIN BY MAPPING OUT YOUR PROCESSES TO DETERMINE WHAT YOU NEED.
TALK TO YOUR CPA OR BOOKKEEPER.
DO YOUR OWN RESEARCH ON THE INTERNET.
USE AI TOOLS TO ASK QUESTIONS, DO COMPARISONS AND GET QUICK ANSWERS.
CONSIDER WHICH SOLUTION FITS YOUR BUDGET.
SOME RANGE FROM AS LOW AS $10 PER MONTH SUBSCRIPTION FOR ENTRY LEVEL ONLINE PRODUCTS.
FIND OUT WHICH SOLUTIONS ARE EASIEST TO USE, IF THEY CAN ESCALATE TO MEET NEW GROWTH PLANS AND WHAT INTEGRATION THERE IS WITH OTHER TOOLS YOU INTEND TO USE, SUCH AS YOUR OPERATING SYSTEM, BANKING SERVICES,
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CRN SYSTEM, E-COMMERCE PLATFORM, ET CETERA.AND ALL THESE ARE EASY TO CONSUME ONLINE ON A SUBSCRIPTION PAYMENT BASIS, RIGHT? YES.
AS I POINTED OUT, YOU CAN AVOID BIG LUMP SUM PAYMENTS AND INSTEAD MAKE LOW PAYMENTS ON A MONTHLY BASIS.
SO WE ALL KNOW THAT, UH, ENTREPRENEURS AND STARTUP OR, OR YOUNG BUSINESSES, UH, TO THEM TIME AND BUDGET, UH, ARE REALLY IMPORTANT.
AND SO MANY OF THEM START OUT USING SPREADSHEETS TO MANAGE THEIR ACCOUNTING AND BOOK BOOKKEEPING PROCESSES.
BUT IF THEY'RE REALLY PLANNING TO SCALE AND GROW, IS THAT REALLY RECOMMENDED? AND IF THEY DO START OUT THAT WAY, WHEN SHOULD THEY TRANSITION TO THESE AUTOMATED TECHNOLOGY SOLUTIONS? IT IS RECOMMENDED.
SOME ENTREPRENEURS MAKE THE MISTAKE OF THINKING THEY CAN SAVE MONEY BY BUILDING SPREADSHEETS TO HANDLE BOOKKEEPING AND ACCOUNTING.
UNLESS YOU ARE AN EXPERT IN BOTH, UH, SPREADSHEETS AND BOOKKEEPING AND ACCOUNTING, INVEST IN AN ONLINE SOLUTION AS SOON AS YOU CAN AND FOCUS YOUR ENERGIES ON GROWING YOUR BUSINESS.
IMPLEMENT A SOLUTION SOON AFTER YOU START INCURRING EXPENSES AND GENERATING INCOME, EVEN IF YOU JUST USE A BASIC LEVEL PRODUCT.
WELL, SANDRA, YOU'VE GIVEN US A LOT TO THINK ABOUT.
THANKS FOR YOUR TIME AND HAVE A GREAT DAY.
IT'S TIME FOR ANOTHER QUICK BREAK.
WHEN WE COME BACK, WE WILL DIVE INTO THE ROLE OF MARKETING AUTOMATION AND INDUSTRY SOLUTIONS TO HELP YOU AS AN ENTREPRENEUR ON YOUR BUSINESS JOURNEY.
SAM HOUSTON PARK IS PICTURESQUE WITH WADDLING DUCKS AND NINE FROZEN IN TIME HISTORIC BUILDINGS.
WHAT DO HOUSTON'S BEST COFFEE EXPERTS, SUSHI CHEFS, BAKERS AND BREWERS HAVE IN COMMON? YOU CAN FIND THEM ALL IN DOWNTOWN HOUSTON.
THERE'S ALWAYS SOMETHING NEW TO TASTE WHEN YOU JOIN US DOWNTOWN.
VISIT DOWNTOWN HOUSTON.ORG TO FIND YOUR NEXT DELICIOUS ADVENTURE.
WELCOME BACK TO THE FINAL SEGMENT OF TODAY'S EPISODE, BUSINESS TECHNOLOGY, UNLEASHING YOUR BUSINESS POTENTIAL.
WE'VE BEEN SHARING INSIGHTS INTO HOW ENTREPRENEURS CAN APPLY TECHNOLOGY IN STARTUP AND ESTABLISHED BUSINESSES.
YEAH, SO QUICKLY GENERATING SALES AND SUPPORTING MARKETING CAMPAIGNS IS REALLY A TOP PRIORITY FOR ALL ENTREPRENEURS.
UM, HOW CAN TECHNOLOGY HELP HERE? SO SUCCESSFUL STARTUP ENTREPRENEURS HAVE A LOT ON THEIR PLATE.
SO IF YOU THINK ABOUT IT, THEY NEED TO ACTUALLY PROMOTE THE BUSINESS.
THEY NEED TO, YOU KNOW, FIND NEW CUSTOMERS AND THEY ACTUALLY NEED TO GET THE FIRST ORDERS.
ALL OF THAT TYPICALLY IMPACTS THEIR CAPABILITY TO MARKETING.
MARKETING AUTOMATION AND MARKETING TECHNOLOGY CAN REALLY HELP HERE.
IT'S VERY IMPORTANT BECAUSE ACTUALLY IT HELPS YOU DO YOUR MARKETING ON A TIMELY BASIS.
AND WITH AS LITTLE HUMAN INVOLVEMENT AS PHYSICALLY POSSIBLE, THAT'S OBVIOUSLY VERY, VERY IMPORTANT.
AND SO WE ACTUALLY WANT TO KIND OF MAKE SURE THAT MARKETING HAPPENS, AND THAT'S WHY MARKETING AUTOMATION CAN HELP HERE.
BUT ONE WORD OF WARNING, YOU CANNOT START THINKING ABOUT WHAT TECHNOLOGY TO USE BEFORE YOU REALLY HAVE DECIDED WHAT YOUR MARKETING STRATEGY IS.
'CAUSE THAT WILL DRIVE ULTIMATELY WHAT TOOLS YOU NEED RATHER THAN ACTUALLY THE TECHNOLOGY DRIVING YOUR STRATEGY.
SO WHAT IS SOME OF THE SOLUTIONS THAT SHOULD BE CONSIDERED? SO PROBABLY ONE OF THE KIND OF MOST POPULAR AND ACTUALLY MOST EFFECTIVE SOLUTIONS IS EMAIL MARKETING AND TEXT MARKETING.
THAT IS PROBABLY ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I WOULD RECOMMEND FOR MOST BUSINESSES TO USE FIRST.
AND ACTUALLY IT SEEMS THAT, YOU KNOW, A LOT OF ENTREPRENEURS AGREE THAT ABOUT TWO THIRDS ACTUALLY OF ENTREPRENEURS ARE USING EMAIL AND TEXT MARKING IT ALREADY.
AND IT HELPS YOU TO DO A WHOLE HOST OF THINGS.
IT ACTUALLY ALLOWS YOU TO KIND OF DRIVE, YOU KNOW, KIND OF, UH, NURTURING, UH, YOU KNOW, YOUR, UH, LEADS AND IT ACTUALLY KIND OF REALLY HELPS YOU KIND OF DRIVE YOUR GROWTH.
SO HAVING ACTUALLY THAT FUNCTIONALITY IS REALLY ALLOWING YOU TO KIND OF DO A NUMBER OF DIFFERENT THINGS.
FIRST, IT ACTUALLY ALLOWS YOU TO COLLECT AND STORE ALL THE CUSTOMER DATA THAT YOU GET, WHETHER THAT'S COMING IN FOR YOUR WEBSITE, WHERE PEOPLE ARE SIGNING UP FOR A NEWSLETTER, UH, WHETHER YOU ACTUALLY, YOU KNOW, GET YOUR FIRST ORDER.
IT REALLY HELPS ACTUALLY BRING THIS DATA IN AND STORE IT SECURELY.
SECONDLY, IT ACTUALLY ALLOWS YOU TO KIND OF HAVE, YOU KNOW, AUTOMATIC EMAILS SENT.
SO FOR INSTANCE, IF YOU'RE ACTUALLY GETTING AN ORDER FROM A CUSTOMER TO HAVE THAT, YOU KNOW, IMMEDIATELY KIND OF RECOGNIZED, UH, OR IF SOMEBODY SIGNS UP ACTUALLY FOR THE NEWSLETTER, YOU CAN ACTUALLY KIND OF PROVIDE THEM THAT THIRD, IT CAN ACTUALLY DRIVE CAMPAIGNS.
AND THAT'S REALLY, REALLY IMPORTANT.
'CAUSE IF YOU THINK ABOUT AUTOMATING A CAMPAIGN IS SUCH A GREAT THING.
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'CAUSE YOU WANNA ACTUALLY TREAT CUSTOMERS DIFFERENTLY.SOMEBODY WHO ACTUALLY HASN'T OPENED YOUR EMAIL, YOU WANNA BE ABLE TO KIND OF GO BACK TO THEM AND ACTUALLY REMIND THEM THAT YOU SENT THAT EMAIL.
SOMEBODY WHO'S ALREADY OPENED THAT EMAIL AND MAYBE HAS BEEN ACTUALLY TO YOUR WEBSITE.
YOU WANNA ACTUALLY, YOU KNOW, HAVE A DIFFERENT ACTION FOR THEM.
UH, YOU ALSO WANNA MAKE SURE THAT YOU KNOW, IF THERE'S CUSTOMERS THAT ACTUALLY, YOU KNOW, ARE AT TRADING, THAT YOU HAVE, YOU KNOW, A GREAT OFFER FOR THEM AND BRING THEM BACK, JUST REMIND THEM THAT YOU'RE ACTUALLY THERE.
AND ALL OF THAT, YOU KNOW, IS REALLY, REALLY IMPORTANT.
UH, BECAUSE YOU ALSO GETTING GREAT DATA TO ACTUALLY DRIVE YOUR MARKETING, IT ACTUALLY GIVES YOU, UH, WHAT'S THE OPENING RATES, WHAT'S THE CLICKTHROUGH RATES, SO THAT YOU REALLY CAN FINE TUNE YOUR MARKETING.
AND SO THAT'S WHERE ULTIMATELY, YOU KNOW, THESE MARKETING, YOU KNOW, TOOLS REALLY ACTUALLY ARE PARTNER AT YOUR SIDE TO MAKE SURE THAT YOUR MARKETING ACTUALLY GETS DONE.
SO RAY, WHAT ARE THE MOST POPULAR EMAIL, UH, AND TEXT, YOU KNOW, KIND OF CAMPAIGN MANAGEMENT SOLUTIONS OUT THERE? WELL, THERE ARE GREAT, SEVERAL GREAT SOLUTIONS.
OF COURSE, HUBSPOT MARKETING HUB IS ONE OF THE MORE RECOGNIZED.
UM, MAILCHIMP IS A VERY POPULAR ONE, UH, VERY ECONOMICAL SOLUTION FOR, FOR SMALL AND USED BY MANY SMALL BUSINESSES.
BUT THERE ARE A NUM NUMBER OF OTHERS.
BVO, CONSTANT CONTACT ZOHO CAMPAIGNS, ACTIVE CAMPAIGN.
UM, AND THEY DO ALL DO THE KIND OF AUTOMATION THAT, THAT YOU TALKED ABOUT.
UM, AND THEY'RE ALSO OFTEN INTEGRATED WITH OTHER, UH, APPLICATIONS.
SO THEY'RE, THAT CAN SHARE INFORMATION, UM, AND REDUCE, YOU KNOW, KIND OF HAVING TO REENTER INFORMATION ACROSS DIFFERENT APPLICATIONS.
UM, MOST OFFER FREE BASIC PACKAGES, BUT THEN ALLOW YOU TO HAVE MORE ENTRY LEVEL OR MORE ADVANCED FUNCTIONALITY AND PACKAGES FOR AS LITTLE AS $13 A MONTH.
UM, AND THE BEAUTY OF THIS TECHNOLOGY, AGAIN, IS IT'S ALL ONLINE.
UM, SO IT'S EASY TO ACCESS AND EASY TO USE.
YOU MENTIONED HOW BUSY PEOPLE ARE, THIS IS EASY AND THEY CAN SAVE A LOT OF TIME AND STAY ON TOP OF CAMPAIGNS TO, TO MAKE SURE THAT YOU'RE DRIVING SALES, UM, IN A RIGHT WAY.
OKAY, SO RAY, WHAT OTHER SALES AUTOMATION SOLUTIONS ARE AVAILABLE? WELL, MOST SMALL BUSINESSES ARE ALSO INVOLVED IN SOCIAL MEDIA MM-HMM
AND, UM, TRYING TO DRIVE AWARENESS AND GENERATE LEADS THROUGH THAT.
UM, SO KEEPING CONTENT FRESH ON ACROSS SOCIAL MEDIA CHANNELS IS, CAN BE VERY TIME CONSUMING FOR ADMIN AND CREATIVE PEOPLE.
UM, THERE ARE TOOLS LIKE SOCIAL MEDIA MANAGEMENT PRODUCTS AS WELL AS CONTENT MARKETING TOOLS THAT, THAT VERY MUCH SIMPLIFY THAT AND, UH, MAKE IT EASY TO CREATE AND PUBLISH CONTENT ON A REGULAR BASIS.
SO IF YOU'RE A COMPANY THAT'S INVOLVED, UH, THAT'S REALLY, UH, SOCIAL MEDIA IS STRATEGIC AND YOU'RE DOING A LOT OF THAT FREQUENTLY, IT'S GOOD TO USE, CONSIDER THOSE KIND OF TOOLS.
UM, WHEN IT COMES TO SALES, UH, THERE'S A LOT OF OPPORTUNITY FOR AUTOMATION THERE.
UM, CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP MANAGERS, CRMS ARE THE TECHNOLOGY THAT ARE REALLY TALKED ABOUT, UM, OR USED IN IN THAT SITUATION.
AND IF YOU THINK ABOUT IT, IT, IT, YOU KNOW, THE WAY A LOT OF COMPANIES START OUT IS WITH SPREADSHEETS AND, YOU KNOW, TRADITIONAL EMAIL TO MANAGE, UH, CUSTOMER INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATE.
AND YOU CAN QUICKLY BECOME OVERWHELMED, UH, WITH THAT BECAUSE TRYING TO GET INFORMATION, YOU KNOW, INSIGHT INTO CUSTOMERS OUT OF SPREADSHEETS THAT, UH, MAYBE MULTIPLE SPREADSHEETS SPREAD ACROSS MULTIPLE FILES, EMAILS, YOU KNOW, FOLDERS CLUTTERED, UM, TRYING TO MANAGE, UH, ACCOUNTS THAT WAY CAN BE DIFFICULT.
AND SO, UM, WHAT CRMS DO IS THEY GIVE YOU A WAY TO ORGANIZE ALL OF YOUR CUSTOMER INFORMATION AND, AND MANAGE INTERACTION IN ONE SPOT.
AND THAT, OF COURSE, DRIVES SALES PRODUCTIVITY SIGNIFICANTLY.
UM, IT ALSO HAS A, AN ADVANTAGE IN THAT, UM, IT PROVIDES CONTINUITY.
SO IF YOU THINK ABOUT WHEN FOUNDERS, UH, OWNERS START HANDING OFF, UH, ACCOUNTS TO NEW SALESPEOPLE OR AFTER ATTRITION, YOU HAVE NEW SALESPEOPLE COMING ON BOARD, IF YOU'VE GOT ALL THIS INFORMATION, ALL THIS HISTORY ABOUT ACCOUNTS ABOUT IN IN ONE PLACE, IT MAKES IT EASY FOR PEOPLE, UH, TO PICK UP, CARRY ON, AND MOST IMPORTANTLY, GIVE THE CUSTOMER A SEAMLESS TRANSITION IN ALL CASES.
UM, SO CRMS, UM, ARE, ARE VERY GOOD AT, UM, UH, AT DOING ALL THAT.
SO WHAT FUNCTIONS DOES A CRM THEN AUTOMATE? UM, WELL, SO SALES PROCESSES INVOLVE LOTS OF REPETITIVE AND TIME CONSUMING ACTIVITIES, AS WE'VE TALKED ABOUT.
AND, UH, THEY ALSO NEED DISCIPLINE AND A LOT OF MONITORING AND TRACKING, AND THAT'S WHERE AUTOMATION,
[00:25:01]
UM, REALLY CAN COME INTO, INTO PLAY AND BE A BIG, HAVE A BIG IMPACT.SO CRMS, UM, UH, REALLY AUTOMATE DOCUMENTING ACTIVITY, STORING CUSTOMER INFORMATION, UM, INTERACTIONS IN ONE PLACE, UH, ALLOWING YOU TO CAPTURE LEADS AND TRACK LEADS, ALLOWING YOU TO SCHEDULE AND TRACK ACTIVITIES, HAVING AUTOMATIC REMINDERS, WHICH ARE REALLY IMPORTANT TO HAVE, PROVIDING AN ANALYTICS AND, UM, AND, UH, GIVING YOU A PLACE WHERE, PARTICULARLY FOR SALES MANAGEMENT, WHERE YOU CAN MANAGE P PIPELINES TO MAKE SURE YOU'RE ON GOAL, ON YOUR GOALS.
UM, AND SO THEY ALLOW YOU BASICALLY TO STAY ON TOP OF EVERY OPPORTUNITY.
AND NOW, UM, THERE ARE, UH, A LOT OF THESE COMPANIES ARE BUILDING AI INTO THESE TOOLS, AND THAT'S A HUGE ADVANTAGE BECAUSE IT ALLOWS THE, UH, THE TOOLS THAT THE AI TOOLS TO, UH, DEVELOP INSIGHTS, HELP WITH SALES STRATEGY, HELP WITH, UH, CREATING CUSTOMIZED COMMUNICATION, UM, FOR, FOR CUSTOMERS.
SO AGAIN, BACK TO THE FACT THAT THERE'S A LOT ON THE, ON PEOPLE'S PLATES HERE AND A LOT OF STRESS ASSOCIATED WITH THIS.
NOT EVERY ENTREPRENEUR IS BORN AS A SALESMAN.
SO THE, THESE TOOLS CAN REALLY HELP MAKE IT EASIER, EASE THE PAIN.
THERE'S A LOT TO CONSIDER HERE.
SO HOW DO YOU CHOOSE? WELL, IT'S BEST TO START BY DETERMINING YOUR MARKETING STRATEGY, UM, AND, AND SALES STRATEGY.
AND IF YOU'RE OBVIOUSLY FOCUSED ON SOCIAL MEDIA, GO WITH THOSE TOOLS.
IF YOU'RE SO FOCUSED ON EMAIL MARKETING AND UM, UH, UH, TEXT MARKETING, THEN MAILCHIMP AND, UH, UM, UH, AND, AND BVO ARE VERY GOOD FOR, FOR THOSE APPLICATIONS.
AND THEN FOR THE REST WHERE YOU WANT EMAIL MARKETING AS WELL AS MORE ADVANCED MARKETING AND, AND SALES AUTOMATION, THEN THE CRMS OF THE WAY TO GO.
SO RAY ENTREPRENEURS ALWAYS WORRY ABOUT COST.
HOW MUCH DOES A BUSINESS HAVE TO BUDGET FOR TECHNOLOGY? WELL, THAT DEPENDS ON A WHOLE LOT OF FACTORS AND IS A MUCH LONGER CONVERSATION THAN WE HAVE TIME FOR TODAY.
BUT WE'VE TALKED ABOUT FREE, UM, UH, BASIC PACKAGES AS WELL AS VERY ECONOMICAL, UM, ENTRY LEVEL PACKAGES TO GET GET STARTED, IF YOU JUST TAKE A QUICK LOOK AT A, A LANDSCAPING BUSINESS AS AN EXAMPLE AND THE THREE TYPES OF APPLICATIONS THAT THEY MIGHT USE IN A STARTUP SITUATION, YOU CAN SEE THAT, UM, THEY ADD UP TO LESS THAN $750 A YEAR, WHICH IS, YOU KNOW, SOMETHING THAT MOST STARTUPS, SMALL BUSINESSES SHOULD BE ABLE TO ACCOMMODATE.
SO IT'S REALLY NOT, NOT GONNA BREAK THE BANK TO BE ABLE TO START USING SOME OF THIS TECHNOLOGY.
SO TO START WRAPPING THIS UP, WE'VE TAKEN A BROAD LOOK AT HOW TECHNOLOGY CAN MAKE BUSINESS MORE EFFICIENT AND PRODUCTIVE AND FREE UP RESOURCES TO UNLEASH BUSINESS POTENTIAL.
THE OPPORTUNITIES TO AUTOMATE ARE EXTENSIVE.
YOU REALLY NEED TO ASSESS WHERE YOU ARE SPENDING THE MOST TIME ON REPETITIVE TASKS AND MAKING THE MOST MISTAKES.
FIGURE OUT WHERE YOU CAN USE TECHNOLOGY TO DELIVER HIGH QUALITY AND BETTER CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE.
ANALYZE HOW YOUR CUSTOMERS USE TECHNOLOGY, RESEARCH ATTACK OPTIONS, DETERMINE THE SOLUTION ADOPTION COSTS, AND CONSULT OTHER ENTREPRENEURS VENDORS AND USE AI TO SHARPEN YOUR WORK, PRIORITIZE AND CREATE THAT ROADMAP FOR ADOPTION BASED ON HOW YOU EXPECT YOUR BUSINESS TO GROW AND EVOLVE.
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