Do You Have An Efficient Tech Stack For Your Business?

First Things First

What in the world is a tech stack you might be wondering. It is all the technology used to systemize your business so that things run smoothly. According to Podium.com, the use of tech stacks is changing:

“The term “tech stack” most commonly refers to the combination of programming languages, software products, web servers, operating systems, and other tools used by software-as-a-service (SaaS) and development teams. However, as more and more brands move their operations onto their computers and mobile devices, tech stacks are no longer exclusive to the app, web, or software development process.”

It’s just a fact that more businesses are seeking ways to use technology to increase productivity, save them time and money, and improve their bottom line.

Now that we know what a tech stack is, let's look at different areas of your business to see examples of how a tech stack can impact your business.

Marketing & Selling - Apps like Hubspot can help with customer relationship management, Quotient can help with generating custom customer quotes and Panda Doc can help you create winning proposals.

Workflow & Accounting - Apps like Trello or Asana can help you with project management. Additionally, apps like QuickBooks Online or Xero can help you manage the accounting activities with the business. 

Meetings & Communication - Apps like Zoom, Google Meet, or Slack can help with efficiently running online meetings with useful screen-sharing tools.

Technology is here to stay and it is important to pick the right tools for your business. Additionally, it is so important that if you are integrating tools to work with each other, they play nicely together. For example, if you are using an app with Quickbooks Online it is best to get advice from an accounting or bookkeeping professional about which tools are proven to work best with the software so a nightmare can be adverted. Running a business can get pretty chaotic fast. I hope these tech stack tips help you run your business more efficiently.

Keep IT Sunny!

3 Tech Tips To Help You Stay Organized

We all love technology right? That is for the most part until it stops working on us. Today we are going to look at how technology can help us to stay organized and get more done. 

Tip One

Use the text feature on your phone to schedule text messages to yourself so you don’t forget an important meeting or birthdate. 

Tip Two

Use an online calendar system & link it to your phone to stay on top of meetings and household appointments. I like using Google Calendar for this

Tip 3

Use apps to help you with almost everything. Do you want to stay connected to that business contact you made at a conference? Well there is an app for that called Cloze. This app is a relationship management tool that will keep you connected to your contacts across all social platforms along with having their contact information handy. 

Technology is great! It makes our lives easier and fun. Check out the tips above to help you to stay organized. 

Keep IT Sunny!

3 Tech Tools You Can Use To Create More Freedom In Your Business

I hope you had a great 4th of July with your friends & family.

It is not a day to be taken lightly as we should all be very grateful for the men & women who have sacrificed their lives to make sure we can enjoy our freedom as Americans.

One part of that freedom is the opportunity to create the dream lifestyle we want as entrepreneurs.

America is the land of opportunity and being an entrepreneur allows us to take part in our "piece of the American dream". 

My question to you is: Do you feel free in your business or are you living a recurring nightmare with a growing to-do list of stuff not getting done?

Take a look at the 3 Tech Tools below that you can use to create more freedom in your business:

Customer Relationship Management (CRM)

Contactually.com: This is a great CRM that helps you to manage all your client information in one place. Let's say you met a couple of great potential clients at a networking event and now you have a bag full of event promo pieces and those dreaded business cards. If you don't get those business cards out your goodie bag, follow up with the potential clients while everything is fresh then the trail goes cold and your time is wasted. Contactually allows you to dump all that information into their system in an organized way and manage that lead right onto a viable client and beyond to gain referrals. Check out the site here to see how it all works.

Communication

E-voice: What happens when a prospective client calls you? Do they call your cell phone, business line (if you have one) your business cell line? What if they just called one number and then the call was routed to you in the way you desire. That is the nexus of E-voice. E-voice provides you with a separate business number that rings to your cell, a professional greeting & call forwarding options so you look and sound professional. This will allow you to deliver that white glove experience to your customers. Check them outhere & use promo code "Fire" (thanks John Lee Dumas) and receive $5 off your subscription forever.

Healthy Eating Options

Sun Basket: Now I know your probably thinking how does this create more freedom in my business. Well if you are busy taking care of clients and running your business who is taking care of your belly? When do you have time to check out the latest healthy snacks or produce at the local farmers market? You probably don't have as much time as you would like, so let Sun Basket do all the heavy lifting for you. They deliver healthy organic ingredients weekly right to your doorstep. Check them out here and use promo code "Fire" to get a discount.

So there you have it. 3 tech tools that you can use to create more freedom in your business. Enjoy the journey as you carve out your piece of the American dream.

KEEP IT SUNNY!

3 Tech Tools You Can Use To Communicate With Your Clients

Image courtesy of Stuart Miles at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

The month of March went by way too fast!

We dedicated the whole month to taking a sharper look at how to give your health and wellness business a reboot, tips on how to make your online business more sound and ideas on how to attract your ideal client. As the month ends we will round it out by looking at 3 tools you can use to communicate with your clients. We all know it is hard to find good clients so ensuring they keep coming back is paramount to keeping your business healthy.

 Communication is key.

Using email only to talk to clients can get cumbersome. Here are 3 tech tools you can use to stay connected with your clients.

1. Slack: This is a collaboration tool with many bells & whistles. If you have a project with a team and you need a way to keep your client in the loop then this tool may be just the one to use. Check out how it all works here.

2. Ryver: This is a competitor to Slack and has a lot of great features. The best part of using this tool is that it is free. You can check it out here.

3. Google Suite: Google is the best when it comes to having tools for text-based chats, file sharing, email and video chat. The cost for the basic plan is just $5. 

There are all sorts of techie tools to use as a way of staying connected to clients. The most important thing to remember is to make sure your client knows how to use the tools so that you can make the most out of it. So what tools do you love using to stay connected to clients? Share in the comments below.

Keep IT Sunny!