Work smarter, not harder. With all of the amazing technologies at our fingertips these days, there is no reason not to make this old adage your business’ motto! There are a few tech basics your business needs to embrace for optimal efficiency. If you haven’t made these four office investments, make these a priority this quarter and watch your productivity and efficiency increase leaps and bounds as a result!
- Cloud Based Collaborative Office Suite
Being tied down to a single, physical location for storage and collaboration is a thing of the past! By utilizing a cloud-based office suite like Google’s Drive, Docs, Sheets, and Slides or Microsoft Office 365, your team will be able to work together quickly and efficiently from anywhere! There is no need for flash drives, complicated emailing of files, or server access issues. Make it quick, easy, and most importantly efficient for your team to create and share everything by embracing a cloud based option. The great thing about Google’s options is that they are free and easy to use, making them effective for even the smallest startup. However, if your team if more comfortable with traditional Microsoft options, the expense may be worth it.
- Digital Printer/ Copier Center
That inkjet printer and single page scanner is killing your business in terms of wasting time and unnecessary costs. If you don’t have a quality digital printer/copier center, this should be a priority procurement! You’ll be able to print your own marketing materials and forms in-house at a substantial discount, scan records for easy digital storage, and print from any device on your network with a single piece of equipment. This doesn’t have to be a huge capital investment either. With sites like, www.JJ Bender.com you can buy quality name-brand used printers for a fraction of the cost! You’ll save money and not take the kind of hit on depreciation that you would encounter by purchasing new!
- Multiple Monitors
It’s a well known fact, that using multiple monitors improves productivity and improves user satisfaction. Employees can streamline multitasking, reduce eye strain, and spend less time toggling between windows through the use of multiple monitors. Just like digital printer/ copier centers, this is another equipment option that can easily be purchased used and garner the same results. Dell even offers refurbished monitors for as little as $49.00 each! That’s a miniscule investment in comparison to the increase in productivity and efficiency you’ll experience as a result.
- Cloud Storage
Maintaining your own storage solution is expensive and inconvenient. You encounter increased security risks too. Cloud solutions are better equipped to mitigate these risks for small businesses and they decrease costs by sharing the expense amongst many clients. A cloud based storage solution enables your employees to be completely mobile! Did you know that Harvard Business Review says that allowing employees to work remotely increases productivity and employee satisfaction? With so many options to choose from, like Dropbox, Box and SugarSync, you are sure to find an option that fits your budget and business needs at the same time.
