How efficient is your business? Chances are we could all improve the way we operate to do more for less – especially so if you’re in international business, spanning several countries and continents.

But, how do you do it? In this technology-driven age, the answer lies in the smart deployment of the right software. Pick the right program for your organization and you can free up time and resources and unlock your money-making potential.

So, what should you look for – and how will it help you?

Accounting software saves you a mountain of paperwork

To misquote the Bill Clinton campaign team slightly – ‘it’s all about money, stupid’. Your first priority should be to look for software that can help you to manage your money effectively, because you won’t get far without a sound system for your finances.

The right package can help you to manage payroll, calculate and pay taxes on time, and have a clear understanding of your financial performance at every twist and turn. Companies such as QuickBooks allow you to integrate a number of functions, including cheques, tax forms and supply paperwork.

The ability to be able to have an at-a-glance look at your accounts on the go is especially handy. That’s especially true when you’re first starting your business, like ex-police officer Deidre Peak who quit law enforcement to launch her own Etsy bakery store and juggled e-commerce, retail and three young daughters without needing to wade through cumbersome paperwork.

In this case, accounting software is not just a time saver, it also helps people with little or no financial training to keep on top of their paperwork.

It’s great for bigger firms too, allowing executives to make informed financial decisions while travelling the globe to attend meetings.

2. Project management software boosts your teams’ efficiency and integration

Managing your money is one thing, but managing your workforce is just as important when it comes to getting maximum output for your efforts. Project management software allows you to keep on top of the work you do – breaking big pieces of work into smaller tasks and allocating them to the right individual in your organization. From there, you can set deadlines and carefully monitor progress.

That’s how Carl Hendy Consultancy has used Teamwork, an example of a piece of project management software. The company, with headquarters in London and Sydney, needed software that could help to manage a marketing operation that spans a variety of clients across a number of different time zones.  Teamwork allowed him to allocate tasks to individual employees, break larger projects into sub-tasks and smaller sections, and have a clear understanding of the progress of work so that clients could be kept up to speed.

It’s also proved useful to be able to manage the increasing number of employees working from home, ensuring that they are kept in the picture and effectively managed.

3. Supply chain management software cuts down your logistics costs

Keeping on top of the complex list of companies and items in your supply chain can be tricky. Tracking and monitoring shipments (and as a result, pinpointing areas to reduce these overheads) can help you to reduce your logistics costs and avoid eating away at your profit margin.

A great example of this is Aptean Warehouse Management Systems (WMS). This program is available both in the cloud or on-premise and is specifically built to cater to businesses of all shapes and sizes, from single-site to multi-national operations.

The performance dashboards provide a real-time look at all people, processes and products as they are moving throughout the warehouse floor, and can integrate with your accounting software.

For a slightly cheaper option consider ShippersEdge, which is a web-based system that is scalable and flexible and purports to be able to reduce freight costs by 20% – a significant saving for any business.

4. Slash customer service costs and convert customers faster with an integrated CRM

Keeping customers happy – and persuading them to part with their hard-earned dollars – should be the priority for any business. Customer relationship management (CRM) software helps you to store customer information, collate details of customer interactions, and prioritize leads.  Using this data, your CRM can inform marketing and sales by analyzing and reporting on what does and doesn’t work.

By understanding your customers better you can personalize their experience, with offers tailored to their buying behavior.

How does this work in practice? Check out American video game giant Activision, for example. By using SalesForce’s Marketing Cloud software it monitors social media conversations that are relevant to its products and, with the company’s Service Cloud, it can then follow up on these conversations to keep customers satisfied and prevent issues from escalating.

By doing so, it was able to slash its annual customer service expenses by 25% – a great example of software enabling a leaner and more effective operation.

5. Security software is a crucial weapon in your arsenal against cyber crime

Finally, it’s vital that modern day businesses protect themselves against the dangers posed by cyber criminals. Cyber crime is set to cost the world $6 trillion by 2021, and while software alone cannot eliminate all risk, it can at least function as an important line of defense. Review the security software package you currently use and look at whether it’s doing enough to protect you from malware and viruses. Don’t be tempted to cut corners on this – the data you hold on your company and your customers is valuable and will be a target.

As Entrepreneur highlights, there should be seven key elements to every business’ security package. These are:

1. Password tools. Security tools such as 1Password can offer you a safe central location through which to store and update your passwords, closing up a common security weakness.
2. Virtual private networks can encrypt your operation and make it safer for users in different countries to access your system from different devices.
3. Antivirus software. The likes of McAfee and AVG are essential to ward off threats such as malware.
4. This can filter out many of the threats you face and block access to some dangerous websites.
5. Up-to-date hardware. Upgrading this is important so that you benefit from the latest – and safest – new technology.
6. Up-to-date software. The same logic applies for software. New patches are always being released to fix any security flaws that are found. You need to be able to run regular updates throughout your software.
7. Entrepreneurs final point is an important one – without training you leave yourself open to ‘human error’. Training is necessary to ensure everyone understands your system.

Protecting your data, keeping your customers happy, monitoring your supply chain, project management and accounting are all crucial for international businesses’ bottom line. And all can be optimized through investing in the right software. By putting applications to use in these areas, you can boost the efficiency of your business and move closer to maximum output.

The post These 5 software applications will improve your business’s bottom line appeared first on Trade Ready.

With the new year on the horizon, you’re likely setting goals and outlining strategies for growing your business in 2017. As you plan to improve your business in the year ahead, you should look at some key technologies that can help you manage your customers, your data and your products.

1.     Customer Relationship Management software

Every business thrives on healthy customer service and customer relationships. When you’re dealing with clients across the globe, especially as you expand, it can be difficult to keep track of all of your contacts. That’s where Customer Relationship Management (CRM) software can help.

CRM software enables you to create a database of all of your contacts that can be accessed by any applicable members of your team.

With CRM software, you can store a complete record of all of your company’s interactions with clients or potential clients. You can set up your database to capture each individual’s order history, concerns, business and personal information, and all points of contact they have had with members of your team, including phone calls, emails and chats.

CRM software is especially helpful when dealing with businesses on an international scale. It will help you and your team track where customers are located along with the languages they speak, local customs that you and your team need to be aware of and any applicable trade rules or restrictions.

CRM software can help you serve customers better by staying on top of their needs, concerns and preferences. It can also help your team to operate more efficiently, cutting down on time spent searching for information, emails or files related to their customers.

2.     Cloud computing

At this point most people have heard of cloud technology, and nearly everyone who uses a computer, tablet or smartphone has used “the cloud” in some way. While the technology has become ubiquitous, you might not be aware of how cloud technology can improve your business’s operations.

When using cloud technology, your company’s digital operations take place on off-site servers that can be accessed from anywhere.

This can be particularly beneficial to companies operating on a global scale whose employees travel frequently or work remotely.

By using cloud technology, an employee on the go can access files and software utilized by the company back at headquarters from anywhere. It also means that any traveling employees can remain connected to staff back at the home office, whether it’s filing reports, sharing data or communicating seamlessly across international borders.

3.     Logistics tracking technology

For companies that buy or sell internationally, logistics can be the most troublesome part of doing business. Executing, receiving and tracking shipments requires a lot of careful consideration and planning, and shipments that go awry can cost time, money and customers.

To help organizations tackle these tasks more efficiently, innovative new technology is becoming available. Logistics management systems can help bear the brunt of the burden of international shipping. They can help plan trade routes, monitor any trade restrictions or problem areas, and track shipments.

Logistics tracking technology can also be a major help in reworking disrupted routes to get your deliveries back on track.

Electronic shipment tracking is also evolving quickly to help meet businesses’ needs. Once cost prohibitive, radio frequency identification (RFID) devices have become more affordable and attainable for companies to implement. As the technology becomes more accessible, Bluetooth beacons provide another option for electronically tracking shipments.

As both RFID and Bluetooth beacons become more commonplace, businesses will be able to take advantage of automatic identification and data capture (AIDC) in their supply chains, making it easier and more efficient to track and manage their goods.

4.     Translation and language learning software and services

Language barriers can be a major challenge for global companies. It goes without saying that it’s crucial to be able to communicate effectively with customers, leads and business partners.

Web-based translation companies are improving their functions every day. They are sophisticated enough to translate and check your communications, at least for a first draft. While this technology has made great strides in recent years, it’s still advisable to have a fluent speaker or professional translator check your work to avoid any inaccuracies.

If you plan to do business with partners or customers in a region for an extended period of time, learning the language can save you money on translation costs, and it can help you provide better customer service.

To that end, there are plenty of reputable online programs and software that can help you become fluent in a foreign language.

As you plan to upgrade your business in 2017, don’t forget to explore all of the ways technology can help you grow, whether it’s by providing better customer service, keeping your employees connected, improving your logistics or helping you communicate with your customers.

The post 4 ways technology can help you grow your international business in 2017 appeared first on Trade Ready.