Most small business owners are in the same boat – short on funds, hands and time. Here are 5 FREE online applications that I use to get organised, save time and save money.
1. Dropbox
How many times have you sent an e-mail that is returned or undelivered because the file size is too big? Sick of waiting ages for your mail client to send/receive that 2MB e-mail? Worried that if your laptop is stolen, you’ll lose all that work?
Download Dropbox to your PC and the app will create a new folder where you can store all the files you want to share including documents, photos and videos (there is an option for private folders.) Instead of e-mailing files, you can simply ask client or employee to download the application and all your shared files will be available to them almost immediately. You can install Dropbox to your laptop, mobile phone and desktop computer and files will all be synchronised – make a change to one file version and it will make the change to the others. My personal favourite is the fact that I can access these files anywhere, at anytime, on any PC - simply by logging into Dropboxes website.
Take a video tour of Dropbox here.
2. Skype
Every penny counts, so I love businesses that allow me to call them using a Skype profile – imagine what you’re saving in phone bills being able to talk for free. Conference call other Skype profiles for nothing or add a phone or mobile at a reasonable cost. Out of the office? Never fear, Skype is available for mobiles. The share screen function is fantastic for online meetings – but if I do need to e-mail a file, I can do that through Skype too. SMS, video conferencing and instant messaging. Skype has it all.
3. Surveymonkey
Big business uses Surveymonkey and so can you. Create an online survey of up to 10 questions and with 100 responses for free before you have to start a new one. There are 30 survey templates to choose from or you can create your own. Answers can be multiple choice, one word answers or full comments/suggestions. You can share your survey through various social networking sites including Facebook and Twitter or by e-mail or even via a webpage pop-up. What amazes me is that upgrading to an account allowing unlimited questions, up to 1 000 responses and downloadable results only costs R200.00 per month.
Take a tour here.
4. Hootsuite
The biggest excuse I hear from people NOT using social networking for business is that they don’t have the time. There are so many Facebook business pages that were created with great intentions, but hardly have any posts or owner engagement. Posting consistency is vital to any social network marketing campaign. Hootsuite allows you to schedule posts on a variety of SN channels including Facebook and Twitter. You can spend an hour or two on a Sunday evening creating posts for the week and scheduling them for posting at optimal times. The free version allows for up to 5 SN channels per user and you can upload links, pictures and video for posting as well as track click stats and retweets. Don’t become completely reliant on it though – a few real time posts during the week (when you have the time) is a good idea.
Check out all its features here.
5. MailChimp
This little monkey is a powerful tool used to design e-mail campaigns and manage your mailing lists. The choice of features is initially mind boggling, but take the time to read through their series of bootcamp e-mail tips and you’ll be designing sending out professional looking campaigns in no time. I find their support and FAQ topics extremely interesting and helpful in understanding things like spam filters, ect. plus there are about 10 MailChimp guides in their resources section to help get you on your way.
Want to see more? Then visit my blog at www.firebirdash.blogspot.com and view Another 5 FREE online tools you should be using for your business.
Do you have any tools that you'd like to share? Tell us about them in the comments area.