Opinion: Boosted by cloud technology

A common opinion is that cloud technology is becoming a necessity.

Some of those businesses are rapidly growing and becoming global superstars.

So can cloud technology help you to be one of them?

It’s become common opinion that cloud computing – or online software – is a necessity when running a business today. According to the annual Vanson Bourne cloud computing study, some 78 per cent of UK organisations have already adopted at least one cloud-based service.

Every time you update your Facebook status, check your bank balance online or receive an email, you’re pulling data from the cloud.

So why not use it for other areas of your business? Deciding to adopt cloud technology has helped small businesses, right around the world to transform into more agile entities with the ability to take on giants in their sector.

Today’s technology means that the UK’s small businesses now have the ability to service not just local markets but national and even global markets from their dining table.

Technology has revolutionised the way we work, creating more opportunities for the self-employed, shaking up entire industries by streamlining and automating tasks.

It’s also connecting businesses with completely new customer bases.

Here are three quick tech tips that could help you boost your small business growth:

l Use social media to support your marketing strategy and build your brand.

Social media is one of the best forms of free advertising.

There are plenty of free tools out there that can make social media more manageable such as Hootsuite or Tweetdeck.

l Look to cloud technology to automate in house processes and increase your capacity.

Using products such as Xero will allow you to have a daily feed of your bank transactions direct into your accounting software.

You can couple this with business solutions that will feed through your sales or OCR technology, such as Receipt Bank, that will read your purchase invoices and populate your purchase ledger.

l Build your online presence, Google is the new high street.

When looking for products and services, how often do you search from your phone or from a tablet?

Search your business from your phone – how does it look? Is it mobile responsive? Would you buy from you? If not, consider investing in a review of your web page.