Automation for Small Businesses: Making the Most of Your Resources

As a small business or not-for-profit, resources can be hard to come by. Automation offers a way to stretch those resources and make the most of what you have. In this blog post, we’ll explore the benefits of automation for small business, how to get started, and the best tools available.

The Benefits of Automation for Small Business

Automation can help small businesses and not-for-profits become more efficient and effective. Automation allows you to save time and money, and free up resources to focus on more important tasks. It also reduces the number of errors and improves data accuracy. Automation can also help you increase productivity and streamline processes, giving you a competitive edge.

Time Savings

Automation can save you and your team precious time. Instead of spending time on tedious, repetitive and time-consuming tasks, you can use automation to take care of those tasks quickly and accurately. Automating repetitive 0r logic-based tasks such as data entry, customer support, and other administrative tasks can free up time to focus on more important tasks.

Cost Savings

Automation can also help you save money, either by not having to hire someone additional carry out the tasks that have been automated. Or by reducing the time spent by your existing staff are spending on activities – freeing them up to focus on more important tasks. Another benefit of Automation is that it can help you reduce costs associated with errors, since it greatly reduces the chance of mistakes.

Getting Started With Automation For Small Business

The first step in getting started with automation is identifying the tasks you want to automate. Easier said than done though right?  Check out our recent article Automation for Small Business – What Could I Automate? for help on how to identify what to automate. Once you have a list start prioritising it based on the tangible time that it’ll save you, then you can start looking for automation tools that can help you achieve your goals.

Finding the Right Tools

There are a variety of automation tools available, and it’s important to find the right tool for your business. Consider your budget, the type of tasks you want to automate, and the complexity of the processes. Look for tools that offer features such as scalability, integration, and automation triggers. If you’re looking for some inspiration, check out our Free Tools Series which has a some really cool tools, available for free, than can help you get started.

Implementing Automation

Once you’ve chosen the right tool, it’s time to implement automation. Start by setting up the automation process and testing it to make sure it works as intended. Once you’re sure it’s working, you can start using automation in your day-to-day operations. We’ve helped a lot of our customers with the setup and running of automation, head over to our Small Business Automation Tools page for more information.

The Best Automation Tools for Small Businesses

There are a variety of automation tools available for to reap the benefits of automation for small businesses and not-for-profits. Here are some tools we like for automating tasks and processes that also have decent free plans:

Make

Make is an all-in-one suite of tools designed specifically for small businesses. With Make, you can quickly and easily create custom forms, build automated workflows, and automate repetitive tasks to help streamline your business operations. You can also track progress in real-time and get personalised insights so you always stay one step ahead of your competition.

Publer

Publer is an automation tool specifically designed to help small businesses create and execute marketing campaigns. It allows users to automate messages with targeted content, schedule posts on multiple social networks, measure results in real-time, and more. With Publer’s user-friendly interface, you can easily set up campaigns that are tailored to the needs of your business. Plus its advanced analytics feature helps you gain actionable insights into your customer engagement so you can make informed decisions about where to focus your efforts.

Calendly

Calendly is an automation tool for small businesses that makes managing and scheduling meetings a breeze. It allows customers to view available time slots and select one that works best for them, all from the same page, making appointments much easier to handle and manage. With Calendly’s advanced features, you can easily set up recurring events as well as different rules for availability on each day. Plus its reporting feature gives you insights into how your customers use it so you can make informed decisions about how you schedule meetings in the future.

Lumen5

Lumen5 is an essential automation tool for small business owners looking to create high-quality videos tailored to their brand. It’s perfect for businesses that want to make an impact on social media, allowing users to quickly turn blog posts and articles into professionally-crafted videos that can be easily shared online. With Lumen5’s powerful tools, you are able to customise your video content in terms of colour, font size, and more. Plus it integrates with many popular social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter so it’s easy to share content with your followers.

Conclusion

We’ve covered at a high-level the benefits of automation for small business, how automation can help small businesses and not-for-profits save time and money, and free up resources to focus on more important tasks. It’s important to find the right tool for your business and implement it correctly. There are a variety of automation tools available, but the ones listed above are some of the best for small businesses and not-for-profits.