As a home business owner, you wear many hats. Marketer, salesperson, entrepreneur! So, it’s natural that you need some help getting all the things done. Technology has introduced an array of tools and items that are ideal for the home-based business owner. Here is our list of must-have technologies for a successful home business.
#1 Google Adwords: This is an excellent tool for even the smallest of home businesses. Google AdWords places your advertisement on relevant web search results and web pages. For example, if you are selling weight loss inducing products, then you can choose to place advertisements of your products on sites that talk about health and weight management or on the search results for ‘Weight loss’ on Google.
#2 SEO: SEO stands for search engine optimization. It means making your website, search-engine friendly. If your website is search engine friendly, then whenever someone ‘Googles’ or searches for your line of products or services on the web, your website will show up in the top results.
#3 Social Media: Being present on popular social media sites such as Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube lend you more visibility on web search results. As an additional method, social media can also be an effective viral marketing medium. If your home business’s page is liked by 10 people who have 100 friends, all 100 of them will be exposed to your product page
#4 Lead management tools: As a start-up, you CANNOT afford to ignore your leads. However, there are tools that let you track your leads, understand who they are, and help you “read” their online behavior so that you can effectively target your sales pitch. Also, since small businesses thrive on personal relationships, these tools can help you build personal relations with your leads. Keep in touch with them in a consistent fashion that is personalized to their interests.
#5 Marketing Automation: Doing everything in-house poses a challenge because you may not have experience in marketing to develop formal marketing campaigns. That’s exactly what a good marketing automation software can do for you. You create your own templates for marketing and sales materials such as product brochures, coupons, HTML e-mail campaigns and more! With marketing automation software tools, you can use these standardized templates to create sophisticated, lead generating, professional marketing campaigns in a few clicks. But it is very important to select the marketing automation software that’s right for you. Make sure the automation software you pick is easy-to-use, and flexible enough for all your marketing needs and offers excellent customer support.
#6 Websites & landing pages: Every business must have a website—yes even the smallest home business. A website is the only public “storefront’ you have. Also, when designing your site, make sure there is a personal side to it. Be sure to emphasize what “you” bring to this business. And…make sure your web pages are styled as landing pages to attract leads and get them to sign up for your offerings.
#7 Skype: Skype is a chat software program that allows you to communicate instantly with your clients and prospects—free of charge. You can create a Skype ID and share it with your prospects and clients and they will be able to get in touch with you through voice, video or traditional chat whenever you both are online. For a nominal fee, you will also be able to make phone calls using Skype.
#8 Bluetooth: Cutting the wires: Bluetooth is a wireless connection that links your earpiece to your mobile phone. Using Bluetooth, you can take business calls even when your hands are full—literally. Whether you are driving or sorting through paper work, having Bluetooth technology in place helps. You can also use Bluetooth technology to connect your PC to its peripherals like keyboard, mouse and printer—thus getting rid of the ugly mess wires often cause.
#9 External Hard-drives: As a home business owner you must always keep back-ups of your business-related data. Client details, invoice details, your marketing and sales materials, prospect database, books of accounts are all important information that you can’t afford to lose. Purchase an external hard disk and develop a routine for daily back-ups, so that in the event of even the worst system failures, your data is still intact.
#10 Smart phone friendly technologies: Did you know that over 40% of web visitors browse using a mobile device? Mobile technologies are gaining in popularity. Android and iPhone markets are growing, and the result is—increased mobile browsing. Make sure your home business marketing materials and website are mobile friendly—or you could be missing out on a large audience. Secondly, it’s time to get a smart phone. A phone that lets you connect to the internet helps you stay in touch with your potential buyers any time. Having a smart phone allows you to send and receive emails related to your home business, chat with your prospects, create or send marketing materials to them and provide customer support—anytime, anywhere.
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