Not a “Necessary Evil” — Technology Can Help You Serve Your Customers Better

Change can be difficult, and sometimes even painful. It can be expensive. It can be downright scary. Technology moves so quickly that keeping up with the advances is still a “catch-up” game. And with all of the options, ensuring that you’ve chosen the right set is a daunting task. The prospect of “analysis paralysis” makes paper ledgers and handwritten receipts feel like a comfortable alternative. If you find yourself longing for The Good Old Days of low-tech, keep these things in mind:

• Technology advances have made it possible for you to get more business. “Like Us On Facebook” is the new “Find Us in the Yellow Pages.” Your customers are finding you in some time-trusted ways, certainly: traditional advertising, word of mouth, driving by your place of business. But more of your potential customers are using technology to shorten the time and reduce the effort to find providers of the goods and services they need.
• Technology advances make it possible for you to serve your customers better, faster, and smarter. Your inventory can be more current. Your invoices can be more accurate. You can keep better records of past purchases so you can suggest complementary items. You can keep in touch with your customer base more regularly, keeping your business in front of them, rather than letting them go searching again.
• Technology advances can make it easier for you to learn what your competitors are offering. You can bet your competitors are using technology to find ways to steal your customers.

But which technology — technologies — do you need? Should you be using a massive Enterprise Resource Planning suite? Should you have a social media presence? How should your devices talk to each other to share information, and how do you protect the information you have?

Not every business requires a fully-staffed IT department. In fact, if you are a small & medium business owner, your resources may very well be put to better use by outsourcing your technology implementations. In the same way that you know your business upside-down and inside-out, that’s what a tech firm does. You don’t need to know the ins and outs of the latest and greatest; you just have to find a firm that you can trust to look deep into your company and help you find what will fill your requirements.

What should you look for in a technology firm? At least these things:

• Your questions should be answered in a way that you can understand. The firm should express commitment to help you use and get comfortable with everything that is implemented.
• Billing and payment should be clearly understood before work gets started.
• What happens if things go wrong or you’re not happy with the implementation? Both sides should have an understanding of this clearly defined.
• When technology changes (and it will), when upgrades are needed (and they will be), when the needs of the business change (and they will), will your technology services provider be there to help you make those changes?

You can count on 403Tech Inc as a trusted choice when it comes to staying ahead of the latest information technology tips, tricks, and news. Contact us at (403) 215-7506 or send us an email at [email protected] to see how we can serve your business.