Guest Article

Many thanks to life and career coach Julie Morris, who took the time to write a guest article for the Plenitude website regarding small businesses and tech innovation. Read it below!

Tech Upgrades to Move Your Small Business Forward in 2021

The pandemic caused a halt in many aspects of business and everyday life last year. But innovators didn’t slow down and technology kept advancing. If your small business was forced to hold back on investing in new tech during the pandemic, now is the time to ramp it back up and get the tools your team needs. From collaboration apps to cybersecurity systems, Plenitude Productions has listed some of the best tech upgrades for small businesses in 2021: 

Collaboration Tools

Text messaging works fine for simple communication between a few employees. But when you’re working on team projects, it’s not the most efficient or secure form of communicating. Now is the time to invest in a collaboration app like Slack or Flock. These apps keep all of your chats and projects in one place while also fostering company culture. 

The Cloud

As with using collaboration apps, you want to ensure that sharing documents, files, and other content among team members is as secure and efficient as possible. Be done with the extra steps and obstacles to data sharing, and move all of your data sharing to the cloud. Microsoft OneDrive and Google Drive are a couple of the most popular sharing platforms for small businesses, and they will make completing projects and storing information much easier for everyone on the team. 

Payroll Software

Payroll gets a lot of small businesses in trouble. Not only can neglecting to do payroll accurately and on time yield legal repercussions, but it can also lead to HR and reputation issues. Make sure you are using up-to-date and intuitive payroll tools to supplement your payroll services. When determining which platform to purchase, look for features like automatic payroll scheduling, same-day direct deposit, and automatic tax filing. These will lessen your filing worries, as well as keep your team happy and motivated.

Digital Content 

Digital marketing is a key to success for any type of small business these days. If you’re not already doing it, be sure to maintain a blog on your website. Your business blog should provide your audience with useful information pertaining to your industry, and it should be professionally written in your brand’s unique voice. This might include anything from informative pieces to product stories to how-to guides. 

Along with keeping a blog, consider creating video content that can inform and entertain your audience. Visual content is the most powerful way to reach your customers and potential customers, and Plenitude Productions can help you develop high-quality videos that move your business’s marketing and overall success forward!

Cybersecurity

Cybercriminals are targeting small businesses like never before. If your company suffers a breach that involves sensitive employee or customer data, then it could be difficult to recover. Don’t neglect to protect your systems, especially if you’re working with remote teams. Look into the various cybersecurity solutions on the market (e.g., Symantec, Cisco, ScienceSoft, etc.), and don’t hesitate to implement the best system you can afford. 

Internet Speed

In this day and age, your company simply cannot afford a lagging or fickle internet connection. If you rely on the internet for payment processing, team collaboration, financial management, or any other aspects of your operations, then make sure you’re using a provider (e.g., Virgin, Sky Connect, Plusnet, etc.) that offers exceptional speed. Moving online can do wonders for your business and keep you from getting left behind by the competition, but only if you have the internet connection to support your day-to-day operations. 

This is the year to start investing in tech again for your small business. Research the market to determine which collaboration apps, cloud platforms, payroll software, digital content services, cybersecurity systems, and internet providers will fit into your budget and serve your business the most. Then, your team will be equipped to produce your best year to date!

If you would like to learn about Plenitude Productions’ original film and multi-channel digital content creation, reach out today