As small business owners are 24/7 connected to the cloud, it’s only logical for them to embrace the all-available apps which can help them operate their small businesses better.
The downside of the availability of small business apps – literally thousands of them – is in choosing the right ones for you.
As a small business owner with a keen interest in apps – both web-based and mobile, I have tried many, many apps in my search for the ultimate list of apps which can make my business life easier.
During my search, I discovered some must-have apps which you can use to simplify your business activities, as well as improving your and your business productivity.
From my list, here are 10 small business apps which I think will enhance your competitiveness in your niche. Without further adieu, here they are:
1. Trello
Trello looks simple. In a glimpse, it looks like a to-do list app. But boy I was wrong – it is, by far, the most easy-to-use business and project organizer available on the market today.
You can use it as a simple to-do list. But when you explore all the features, you will find that Trello can handle your – and your team’s – business and project management tasks. You can virtually manage everything, from managing your meeting schedules to managing projects with your team.
2. Square
Square is a game-changer: It allows you to transform your smartphone or tablet PC into a credit card payment processor. This brings limitless possibilities for you: You can take payments anywhere; you can offer perks for your clients to pay on delivery.
It’s free to use, but you do need to pay for their service – Square charges 2.75 percent per transaction. Quite affordable for such a service.
3. Skype
The old reliable. Skype solves your communication problem by offering a free way to talk with your partners, colleagues, clients and prospects. ’nuff said.
4. Evernote
Evernote is yet-another-app which revolutionized the way you remember things. Good bye bulky note book, hello anytime, anywhere note taking – from your smartphone.
You can store, organize and share nearly everything: Text, photos/images, voices/sounds… on the go. Got an eureka moment? Just scribble about it on Evernote; never again you need to try hard to remember that big idea you just discovered.
5. Dropbox
Online storage and sharing services has nearly become a commodity – so many choices out there – but for some reasons, I’ll just stick to Dropbox. Its third party apps support is my main reason why I keep my account with them.
6. MailChimp
Is your small business online? If not, well, you should. There are so many opportunities out there online; potential customers are out there, waiting for you outreach to them.
Well, when you are promoting your business online, you must have realized that the money is in the list. Keeping a tidy list of prospects and customers will allow you to contact them with updates, special offers, newsletter and other materials which keep them engaged. MailChimp is my top choice for my email marketing needs.
Not only keeping your contact and delivering regular newsletters and offers, MailChimp also offers you the ability to do A/B testing, helping you to explore which offers, which subject times and so that will work best for you.
7. SocialOomph
Are you on social media? I’m sure you do. With the many social media platforms you are on – Facebook, Twitter, etc. – you need a dashboard to help you manage your social media activities: Sending tweets, making status updates, scheduling tweets, and so on. SocialOomph can offer you just that.
Not having as strong analytics as HootSuite‘s, it does offer much more on the free level: Schedule unlimited tweets on unlimited number of Twitter accounts.
8. Shoeboxed
I was running a business service shop, and with many products and services I sell, it’s easy for me to get buried in receipts. We all know that they are required in keeping your finances tidy and accountable. Unfortunately, storing those receipts are challenging.
Shoeboxed answers the problems by allowing you to store and organize receipts in digital forms; never miss another important receipt ever again.
9. HelloSign
As I do business online, I often need to partner with others located in other countries. Document signing was very much a challenge, as emails are not ideal (not mentioning the email hacking activities, making signing confidential documents a real problem.)
HelloSign solves my problem by taking document signing online: Just upload your document, sign it and have the other party to login and sign the document. Simple, secure and eco-friendly.
10. InDinero
Let’s just say InDinero as Mint for small business. I use Mint, and although it’s intuitive and easy to use, it’s not ideal for managing a small business’ finance.
Enter InDinero. With the finance app, you can keep track of your business’ day-to-day financial activities, as well as keeping track the all-important cash flow. Not only tracking those, you can also sync with your bank accounts and credit cards, providing you with valuable reports and cash flow forecasting.
So, there you go – 10 of many apps which I think essential for your small business operations. If you want more suggestions, you might want to visit the following pages:
- http://www.inc.com/ryan-holmes/5-free-apps-for-small-businesses.html
- http://www.nerdwallet.com/blog/small-business/2013/05/14/25-apps-small-business-owners/
- http://www.forbes.com/sites/ilyapozin/2012/05/29/10-brilliant-apps-small-businesses-should-use/
- http://finance.yahoo.com/news/7-best-apps-small-businesses-040111507.html
- http://www.linkedin.com/today/post/article/20130423145609-5799319-10-apps-to-boost-your-small-business
Do you have a favorite app from the list above, or do you have a recommended app to recommend? If so, please share it below on the comment section.
Photo credit: Jorge Quinteros
