What and how to automate in your business for improved results in 2020

Nowadays, technology plays an important role on the way processes are carried out in many different fields. The playing field between big firms and small companies or startups seem to have been leveled by technology to some extent, and much of this is happening because of the access to automation that even small businesses now can access.

In the past, the general rule was that only very large enterprises and big firms were able to automate their processes and business. However, that has drastically changed. Every company, from large firms, to medium-sized companies, to small startups all can have access to automation tools and can automate their processes or a part of their businesses.

If currently you are not already automating your processes or parts of your business, the following lines will discuss some of the things you need to automate for improved results in 2020 and some of the aspects you need to take into account when doing so:

Business operations

No matter how much time you spend online, our lives are still in a real, physical world. This is why automation is extremely important for your processes and business operations. These are some of the business operations that you can automate:

·     Employee scheduling

·     Warehouse automation

·     Call centres

Automating the above as well as other business operations will replace the inefficient and time-consuming manual approach with effortless technology through machine automation. This will help you achieve the streamlining of the workflow, savings costs as well as an increased efficiency. In case you need to perform monotonous tasks that might be taking time but are not really valuable to your firm, automating these processes and operations will save so much energy and time. This can enable you to focus all your efforts, time and energy in much more valuable parts of your daily operations.

Sales

Sales and marketing go hand-in-hand in every company when it comes to business. In case you can automate the marketing (marketing automation) and optimise it, then you can also automate the sales process. Regardless of the number of sales reps you have working for you making phone calls or whether you make most of your sales online, you can always utilise automation tools in order to automate your processes. In case your sales happen online, it is important to maintain an up-to-date and optimised checkout page for a smooth checkout process.

Inventory

Automating such processes will enable us to update the inventory in real time, thus saving us some time. This will automatically add, delete, and edit information of the products. It can also make transferring product information to a website much easier. The capacity to update product availability in the real time can help you minimise cancelled orders and eventually improve the whole shopping experience of your customers.

Go ahead and involve an automation specialist in the process

The earlier you can manage to involve an automation expert in the process, the better. These specialists can provide valuable guidance and will help you prevent costly mistakes. It is important that you provide these specialists with as much information as possible. The automaton supplier wants to build a trust-based solid relationship with you. If you go ahead and provide as much information as you can upfront, they will provide you with the best possible guidance for your business operations. You don’t need to be concerned about confidentiality, just go ahead and sign an NDA but do not withhold details or information.

Create comprehensive specifications

Your specifications are key. Getting this right will save you money and time further down the line. Ensure the specifications are comprehensive and clear. This is definitely an area where a great automation provider will help.

Expert advice is definitely worth the investment

Receiving expert advice might initially seem like an extra cost, but this is a factor that can save you so much money down the line. From design to feasibility, advice from a specialist will help you reduce risks and leverage opportunities that you might have missed. When selecting a consultant or automation provider, look for experience as well as a successful track record of delivering effective automation services.

Constant improvement is crucial

Receiving the biggest ROI or return on the investment requires a development team that will be dedicated to be continuously on the lookout for methods and ways to do things better. A constant progress approach will help you enhance quality and reduce risks.

Still not clear why you should automate your business?

Automating business operations will mean you need to invest in new technologies and you need to standardise your processes. But you need to invest in specific areas of the business, described earlier, that will yield a high ROI or return of your investment for your firm in return.

Automation has several benefits for small companies and some of them are the following:

• Automation helps you to be adaptable and thus you will be able to adapt to the demands of the market: it will help you reach the scalability to handle continuous changes in market demand.

• Automation can reduce labour cost: it cuts off the cost of training a large number of employees to perform time-consuming tasks that add less value to the business.

• Also, automation optimises the allocation of workforce: you will have your people focused on more innovative initiatives and ideas rather than repetitive manual works and tasks.

• Automation increases your marketing ROI or return on your investment: thanks to automation, you can optimise the costs and improve the results.

• Automation reduces human errors: important business operations will be carried out by machines, and this helps increase productivity and reduce human-based errors.

• Furthermore, automation can actually increase employee satisfaction: it streamlines the experience of the workers. Automation ensures that employees do not need to overwork themselves and also their requests are met in time.

• Automation improves collaboration: in order to be successful with a project, every employee needs to play their part and your duty is to monitor them. Automation can actually make it easier for you to track this process.

In brief

Today we are living in a digital world, and due to the evolution of technology you can be left out quickly. You can make the most out of your business by jumping on the automation bandwagon.