Smart Business Solutions for Startups Growth Automation

Henri Yoki
8 min readJul 20, 2021

Modern-day entrepreneurs rely on a stack of skills and technology to build their company, which is why they’re called Smart Business Solutions.

smart business solutions on the go
Photo by Medienstürmer on Unsplash

There has been a shift from traditional marketing methods towards more innovative ways of reaching customers and making sales in today's world. One such way is using digital technologies like SaaS services, websites, blogs, mobile apps and eCommerce platforms. These digital business tools have become very popular among both businesses and consumers for convenience and efficiency.

You are reading this blog, for example.

One reason for me writing a blog is to get some hands-on experience to understand better how to use digital tools for building businesses. There is no shortcut to this other than start writing one for yourself.

Anyways.

These digital tools, meaning smart business systems to use the target keyword, can be applied to starting businesses and optimising old ones who want to reach their target audience with ease and low cost.

To understand what makes up a “smart” solution, we first need to look at some definitions.

A smart business solution uses modern technological tools to improve customer service and increase sales.

business on a laptop from home
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Benefits of Smart Technology

With many companies offering free trial periods, you get to test drive the product before committing to purchase.

This means less time wasted trying different products and more money in your pocket.

In addition, there are fewer costs, in time and money, associated with running a business since it doesn’t require expensive server space or maintenance fees.

The benefits of having a smart business solution include:

  • Increased productivity
  • Faster growth
  • More control
  • Reduced costs
  • Greater flexibility
  • Easier access to information
  • Faster decision making
  • Lower risk

The last point is security; since most providers encrypt information stored online, hackers cannot steal personal details or credit card numbers. Also, you no longer need to manage multiple servers, databases, email accounts and backups.

Not so nerdy anymore.

How to Grow Fast Using Smart Business Solutions?

The internet has made it possible for people all over the globe to connect in real-time. This means that if your product or service meets an unmet demand, then you could potentially make money by selling online without having to go out into the marketplace physically.

There are nearly 8 billion people in the World. So anybody with Internet access can read this blog.

Try to feel it… A high market, eh?

Stargazing the big galaxy
Photo by Greg Rakozy on Unsplash

The Internet allows companies to create products and sell them directly to customers instead of going through retail stores. It also provides access to millions of buyers around the world. It gives companies the ability to communicate with clients instantly via email, phone calls, text messages, etc.

You only need a laptop and an Internet connection.

What’s more, many web-based applications are free or inexpensive to use.

As long as a website exists and a market-priced product is on it, there might be someone somewhere who wants to visit for shopping.

If you own a website, you should take advantage of these opportunities. You may even find yourself turning away large amounts of profit because you weren’t aware of how much traffic was coming to your site.

But traffic is not the same as conversion.

Increasing revenue with smart business solutions — image of a web page
Photo by Austin Distel on Unsplash

Examples of Smart Business Solution Companies

Smart business solutions are those that use the latest technology available to help run a successful business. They include things like web-based software applications, cloud computing, social media sites, search engine optimization, content management systems, video streaming, virtual reality, digital robots (or automation), artificial intelligence (meaning fancy algorithms), big data analytics (a lot of data crunching), machine learning, augmented reality, IoT devices, blockchain, crypto… and a ton of other buzzwords!

You would need to understand what works in your business, or if you don’t know, start testing as soon as possible—the Web offers a ton of information.

You should be not needing any code, or at a minimum, only use codes with ease. I mean, installing tracking scrips are a pretty common issue in running growth marketing campaigns. Don’t fear them; they are not too complicated!

Example smart tools for the whole stack! Book your domains from Namecheap, use Canva to design your graphics, get the photos from Pixabay, use Google Ads to drive PPC traffic to your Unbounce landing pages and have the prospects book a meeting with you with your Calendly pages, using Square to get paid while tracking everything with Google Analytics.

Voilá!

With 200 to 600 euros and 4 weeks, you should have your first build and test cycle completed; you have facts instead of speculation.

Simple, cost-effective and fast!

simple banana
Photo by Mike Dorner on Unsplash

How to Experience Improvements in Your Sales — Use Automation to Optimize Your Customer Experience.

Run tests. See what works and what doesn’t. Smart companies can provide information on their business quickly and easily. You should act based on that information. Don’t second guess.

This saves time and costs.

No need to travel to different locations; digital products rock! You don’t need to worry about shipping problems. Instead, you experience the bliss of digital goods.

In short:

1. You need a website that is easy for customers to navigate and understand to find what they are looking for quickly.

2. Your site needs to have an effective call-to-action button or link on every page. This CTA should lead them directly into making their purchase decision.

3. The content on your site (ad your ads) must be relevant and useful to visitors. It also has to be written in such a way as to make it interesting and engaging.

4. Make sure all links within your site work properly. If one doesn’t work, then people won’t click through to another part of your site.

This saves so much time and effort when compared to other forms of business.

In addition, you can use social media sites to interact with current and prospective customers.

Social networking sites allow users to share ideas, opinions, pictures, videos, music, links, blog posts, news articles, etc. Many companies now choose to advertise on the web with these options available rather than print ads because of its cost-effectiveness.

a system and two laptops
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In One Solution; A System to Help You Track and Manage all of Your Leads, Prospects, and Customers

A lead is the first step in any sales process. It’s what you do before you talk with someone else about your product or service, and it can be as simple as sending an email introduction letter or making a phone call.

Leads are not just anybody; they are folks who have shown some level of interest in your business. This includes potential customers, current clients, referral sources, partners, employees, friends, family members, etc.

Here are few questions to consider:

  • How do I know if my lead has been converted into a customer?
  • How will I be tracking the conversion process for each lead?
  • How can I access my data?
  • How should my centralized dashboard look like?
  • What are some ways to improve the quality of my sales pipeline?
  • Can I have an automated marketing campaign in place before I start selling?
  • Is it possible to automate most or all aspects of prospecting?
  • Can I use social media as part of my business model and the system?
  • Do I need to hire someone else to handle this?
  • What skills do I need?

Various smart solutions can increase sales and revenue without the need to invest in expensive marketing campaigns.

You might be losing opportunities, but you don’t know this due to not having the information about it. Information turned to knowledge is key.

Dodgy character with a laptop
Image by Hnnng from Pixabay

Few Words on Security

Visibility into business activity is important both internally and externally.

With knowledge comes responsibility; you would need to know who is using and what. Multi-system access control is a system that can grant or restrict access to resources. You can track the usage of your systems and allow and disallow usage per a specific user.

Please don’t give your contractors or co-workers full access; give them the things they need to do their work.

Bigger businesses have a single log-in, and the system checks what rights you have as a user. This is interactive security and smart; it can make smarter decisions. You could have it just on an excel sheet.

Security is a big business; pick the right tools and be smart about them. And, remember to lock your office door when you leave work! Not all security needed is digital.

Growth expert with a tablet
Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay

When Hiring an External Business Consultant Makes Sense [or should I do it myself]?

In short, when it is cheaper.

If you don’t have any skills in using digital tools to grow your company, it might make sense to have an external consultant.

Opportunity analysis and identifying key areas of potential improvements shouldn’t take too long.

Managing a growth campaign takes longer.

Often, there’s no time or resources to manage growth.

Using smart business solutions skillfully and cost-effectively takes some time to master. Therefore, in many cases, it can make sense to buy the know-how externally.

In simple terms, it’s the same as hiring an electrician for a house job, small or big. It takes time to master the profession, any profession, and it doesn’t make sense to learn everything by yourself if you only need the job done.

If you aspire to become an electrician, then it is another whole different case.

Conclusion

Smart Business Solutions are becoming increasingly important because of how much easier they make doing business.

They allow us to do things faster than ever before while saving our valuable resources.

We no longer have to spend hours searching for information about our industry, trying to find someone who will help us, or even worse, wasting precious time waiting for something to happen.

With these solutions, everything happens automatically, so we don’t waste any time.

You can grow fast, cost-effective and hit your goals.

But it takes some time to master growth, the tools and the skills. So, you decide how best to use your time.

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Henri Yoki

A double trade sale exiter, a triple MSc entrepreneur with a set goal to do a one more startup and then go full time professional meditation. www.henriyoki.com