Suppose you’ve recently migrated your business to the digital realm, or you’re just beginning to settle into a remote workplace as the new normal. While you probably think that having everything placed on your desktop is the way to go, think again. There’s more to organizing than just filling your screen with numerous folders and shortcuts.
As a hands-on business owner or manager, you need to realize this entails taking care of every detail and every aspect of your business—from sales, inventory, customer service, and even data management. You need to set appointments with investors, answer emails from customers, pay your suppliers, update your bookkeeper, and make sure you have time to upload content for your followers. That’s a whole of organizing to do, especially when you have everything online.
Trying to do all of these may have you pulling your hairs out, but have no fear. We’ve got you covered with tips to make sure you can manage all aspects of your virtual office. You can also aid your efforts by using digital management tools like those from resources like Aceyus.
Online organization isn’t that hard—all you need are some tools and apps to help you stay on top of things in a digital-savvy way.
Tips to Keep Business Organized Online
Here are the 12 surefire tips to keep your business organized online throughout 2021 and beyond:
1. Start with your desktop
Organizing your business online starts with your desktop computer or your laptop. Now look at your screen and tell me, do you still see your desktop background? Can you even make out the image of your favorite pet or your Instagrammable shot of the sunset on your palm?
If you can’t then it’s time to declutter. Remove all downloaded files and clean out the trash. Ideally, all that should be on your desktop is the recycle bin. I know that’s shocking, but why bother with shortcuts when everything is in your app’s folder anyway? Having a clutter-free desktop is the same as a clean workspace. Besides, this is where an organized business begins.
2. Back up your files
Cleaning your computer can work wonders for its efficiency. Utilize the cloud to create backup copies of your work, and you don’t need to worry about losing them in the case that your computer malfunctions. The cloud gives you this advantage—’with great storage comes great(er) productivity.’
3. Synchronize your devices
Managing various aspects of your business online entails having all devices—PC, laptop, tablet, and smartphone—in sync so you will always be in touch with your employees, clients, and contacts. Make sure you use productivity tools that are available for both mobile and desktop so you can access them even if you’re out of the office.
4. Manage your inbox
Emails are effective venues for communication. However, you can be quickly bombarded with so many numerous messages and notifications that opening your email can become stressful. How can you restore its purpose?
Sort through your mail and create folders for must-reads and non-essential items. Unsubscribe from newsletters you no longer read and save only sent items you plan on reusing in the future. Toss the rest into the trash and empty the deleted box regularly. This way, you can spend just a few minutes scanning your email and allocating time to more critical tasks.
5. Create a calendar
As an entrepreneur, you fill multiple roles at the same time. Keep track of all your appointments with an online calendar and sync it with all your devices. That way, you can keep tabs on who you’ll be meeting with and have enough time to prep for such encounters. You can even share this with your officemates and external contacts, so they can view your schedule and have the liberty to choose what time they’re most convenient.
6. Organize your passwords
Passwords are critical in ensuring data privacy. You cannot afford to forget them as this grants you access to your platform and tools. Store them in an online password vault that’s guaranteed safe and fool-proof.
7. Update your social media accounts
Your online presence is measured by how much you put into your social media accounts. Making sure these are active and updated can be quite challenging when you have multiple accounts. You can make the most out of these sites if you trim your efforts to where your audiences frequent.
Check to see which platform your brand gets the most responses on and drop those no longer in use. You can also choose to remove inactive followers or those that don’t follow you back.
8. Schedule content uploads
Content for your social media accounts must follow the ’80–20 rule’ wherein you direct the majority of your content towards informative updates, entertaining blog posts, and helpful videos. The rest you can devote to promotional campaigns to market your products.
Uploading content can be challenging since you need to appropriately pace these to sustain your audience’s interest. You can create a content calendar to organize your social posts and set a schedule to send these out. This way, you don’t scramble to post. Plus, this gives you the flexibility to adjust your calendar to accommodate changes or delays.
9. Set up a feedback mechanism
Customers are the heart of your business. Providing them with exceptional service ensures their loyalty, generates referrals, and ultimately increased sales. You can keep track of customer feedback through automated CRM systems. You can also gain insight on your customer journey and call representative analytics with resources from Aceyus.
10. Monitor employee time and tasks
Organizing your remote workforce can be challenging. For this, you need a platform to track employee hours and their tasks to ensure that they remain productive despite the pandemic. Aside from this, it is also necessary to have a collaboration tool in place so your staff can work on projects much more efficiently.
You can also incorporate communication channels such as teleconferencing, video calls, and online chats to ensure you maintain good working relationships with your employees.
11. Track sales and expenses
Organizing your business online also entails using the necessary accounting software to track sales, expenses, and receivables. It provides insight into your cash flow and prompts you to implement cost-cutting measures when necessary.
Proper filing of receipts, bills, and invoices not only makes your audit team happy. Besides, it can also minimize legal hassles when tax due dates come up.
12. Evaluate your productivity tools regularly
Organizing various aspects of the business can be done with the use of multiple tools and available apps. However, you would also need to review and evaluate if these selfsame instruments serve your business or time for an upgrade.
You may find online resources that integrate several functions into one platform or something else that can simplify your business processes. A key takeaway is always on the lookout for products that can help you keep your business organized online.
Conclusion
Managing a business requires some excellent organization skills to ensure that everything is in place, and everyone contributes to reaching your goals. Managing a virtual office and even a remote workforce can be all the more enjoyable. Still, with the right tools, you can surely save time to focus on your business’s essentials and maybe spare you enough to enjoy life outside of the office and with the people and things you love.
