Key Tips for Business Owners
Updated On July 18, 2022 | by Alex Jones
As a business owner, you’re going to spend a lot of your time making important decisions. This includes choices about everything from your commercial air conditioning to your customer service department. While it’s okay to make a few mistakes along the way, it mostly helps when you get things right the first time.
Between implementing contact center software and finding better ways to navigate tax season, it’s important to follow some key tips on whether you run a small business or are in charge of a budding enterprise brand. Here’s what every business owner should know.
Invest in the Right Call Center Software.
These days, it’s important to encourage brand loyalty whenever you can. Often, this means working on your contact center or customer service department. Even if a customer has an issue with a delayed order or a problem with their product, a positive customer service experience can retain customers and even encourage repeat business. When you’re focusing on your contact center, it often means investing in capable call center software that can help you empower each customer interaction and improve the customer experience.
When choosing between a few contact center software solutions, it’s important to look for key features. For instance, your call center solution should include call routing, interactive voice response (IVR), and live chat integration. You can also look for a platform that can integrate with your CRM system. This will help you keep your call center updated with the latest tech benefits to streamline your contact center solution. For instance, call routing helps your customers get to the right agent in as little time as possible.
Similarly, advanced features like IVR make it easier for customers to navigate prerecorded messages and streamline certain call center agent tasks. For instance, if a customer calls to check their account balance or try to learn when a payment is due, your call center solution can help you set up easy menu options that don’t require an analyst or live chat. This helps your customers get the information they need without requiring you to expend additional resources. The right call center platform can greatly empower your brand and help you grow your loyal follower base.
Focus on Cyber Security.
If you sell products online or store customer data on your servers, you should probably retain a security analyst to help you deal with unwanted threats. Whether you’re having problems with your social media or you’re worried about following cybersecurity best practices, a security analyst can review your existing cybersecurity protocols and find knowledge gaps, areas of improvement, and key fixes. This can help you make the right adjustments to your cybersecurity policies and protect your customer’s sensitive data, including debit card or credit card information, phone numbers, and email addresses.
When you’re looking for a cyber security engineer, it’s best to choose someone with years of experience and a relevant college degree. In some cases, you may want to vet CVs for a master’s degree in computer engineering, computer science, or a related field. The right cybersecurity engineer will help you set up firewalls, conduct scans, and review data analytics to find any gaps in your security systems or areas for improvement. This will help protect your brand from any unseemly data breaches, scams, or cyber attacks that can compromise your brand’s reputation and your sensitive information.
Purchase the Right Supplies.
Whether you’re buying regular maintenance equipment or you’re ensuring you have a tax return envelope, you must have the right supplies around your office space or in your home office. Especially when it’s around tax season, having tax return folders, envelopes, and other helpful equipment on hand make it that much easier to navigate your business’s finances. This is especially important because your tax returns impact your business in major ways.
If you’re looking to buy envelopes, packaging, or other common office supplies, you can easily visit an office supply store or even your local U.S. Postal Service location. This is a great way to pick up a lot of essential items in one place. Otherwise, you can also order plenty of supplies from online vendors. Many online vendors offer bulk buying discounts or allow certain businesses to purchase office supplies at cost. It’s a great option if you’re looking to save some money on some of your favorite office essentials.
Keep Your Employees Comfortable.
If you don’t have remote workers or primarily work in person, it’s important to take your employees’ comfort and well-being into account. While you should always focus on your daily workflows, you should understand that poor air quality, a broken HVAC system, or a hot office can greatly impact productivity and even employee health. Improper ventilation can trigger allergens and your HVAC system can push around mold spores, allergens, dander, and dust mites. If you want to help your employees provide a great customer experience, you need to ensure their work experience is great.
There are other reasons to repair your commercial air conditioning system that include energy efficiency improvements, office upgrades, and new smart technology integrations that can help you save a lot of money on your space’s monthly overhead and utility bills. For instance, many energy-efficient AC unit installations last for a long time and help you save money on your heating and cooling bills each month.
There could be several things wrong with your HVAC system too, which is why it’s often a good idea to hire a technician or someone with technical skills. Whether you have a busted coil or you’re experiencing problems with your refrigerant, a technician can both diagnose and repair your commercial air conditioning system to help keep your employees comfortable.
Don’t Be Afraid to Try New Things.
When you’re following business tips, forging your career path, or trying to improve your brand’s image, it’s important to try a few new things now and then. Business owners should realize that not every business tip brings overnight success and some skills take months and years to master. But, whether you’re picking up new technical skills or you’re investing in quality office supplies, there are ways to help your brand run more smoothly.
