We have lots of students on our Start Your Own Business Course, so I thought I’d investigate what tools there are available online to help with the numerous tasks that need to be done when setting up and running a small business.
Of course you could stick to doing everything the old fashioned way – with paper and a pencil – and it’ll work fine. After all, people have been doing it this way for years. But why do that when you can get yourself a set of sophisticated tools, often for free, that’ll help you run your business more efficiently?
The tools I’ve detailed below are there to help small business entrepreneurs create and keep track of paperwork, organise their time more efficiently and conduct everyday tasks easily and in a cost effective way. Have a look through them and see if they can help you.
Enloop – when you are starting your business, you’ll need a business plan. So, why not use some of the free business plan software available? It’s easy and quick to use, presents your ideas in a professional format and it’s free.
Smart Sheet – This is a comprehensive pack of documents that can help you keep track of all sorts of things. According to their website people are currently using it for the following tasks:
Project Management To Do Lists Issue Tracking
Expense Tracking Marketing Campaigns Sharing Files
And, it’s free. You can upgrade if you like, but the basic tools are free.
Wave – It’s the whole package! And it’s ‘Made specifically for entrepreneurs, freelancers, consultants and small businesses with nine employees or less.’ You can control your invoicing, payroll (not free and only necessary if you have employees), receipts and personal accounting all in one place.
StudioCloud – A great piece of kit that allows you to manage your business online! They say: ‘StudioCloud is free desktop software that provides an integrated system including Cloud Syncing, Client Management, Scheduling, Point-of-Sale, Bookkeeping, Reporting, Marketing Campaigns, Project/Event/Order Management and much more!’
Google+ Hangouts – This allows you to hold online meetings with up to 15 people from the comfort of your armchair – great if you’re low on cash for travelling or the people you need to meet with are a long way from you.
Yola – There used to be a time when websites would cost a lot of money – not anymore! These days you can create a website for free and pay a minimal amount, sometimes only £3 per month, for hosting. This is one of those websites, but there are many others. You don’t need any technical expertise, as they are really simple to use.
Zentyal – Once you’ve got your business up and running and you’re doing well, you may want to consider moving your website to your own server. Again, this used to be something that required money and a lot of technical knowledge, but open-source software has ended that. You can now set up a server in as little as 30 minutes and, yes you’ve guessed it, it’s free!
So, there you have it, pretty much everything you need to run a small business. If you already use something else and find it useful, please do let me know.
