Let’s assume that you’ve got the basics. You’ve launched (or are about to launch) your startup, and already have those basics in place.
The tools that most startup operators consider the basics are:
- A productivity suite such as Google Drive or Microsoft365.
- An eCommerce website.
- Social media management software.
The problem is that while those are vital, they’re just the start when it comes to using the right tools. There is a wealth of technology-based resources and tools available to a startup, and they can be transformative. If you want to cut costs, boost revenue, and improve workflows, here are the essential tools for startups in 2022.
Email Marketing Tools
Email remains one of the best marketing options available to a modern business. Email marketing continues to outpace social media in terms of impact and is estimated to generate around 4,200% investment return. It’s useful for sharing content, which is excellent for building brand awareness and may even help with your search engine optimisation.
The problem is that too many inexperienced entrepreneurs will fire up an excel spreadsheet and save a list of email addresses and names of customers. This is about as big a mistake that you can make with email marketing. That’s because using a specialist email marketing software means that you can:
- Capture email addresses easily
- Segment target audiences for more advanced marketing
- A/B test email content to see which options boost open rates
- Direct targeted customers to product pages.
The fact that you can automate these processes adds to their value. Any startup that isn’t using email marketing software is limiting its potential, which can be fatal in the highly competitive startup space.
Cloud-Based Accounting Software
Balancing the books is, of course, always going to be necessary. The tighter your budget, the tighter a control you need over your finances. That’s where accounting software comes in. Now, you can use desktop-based accounting software, but this is less valuable, especially as some big names have started to stop support for desktop accounting tools.
Cloud-based accounting software is next-level accounting. It’s simply capable of doing more and delivers practical benefits such as:
- Being accessible from anywhere (ideal for those startups with a remote team)
- It is constantly updated (so there’s no need for manual updates as tax rates change or when cybersecurity measures need to be kept up to date)
- Ensuring easier tax compliance
- Being always scalable so that it grows with your business.
Cloud-based accounting software is simply more accessible and delivers a single source of financial truth. That will be indispensable when preparing a cash flow forecast, creating a profit and loss account, and managing your opening and closing balances.
Cloud-based accounting software is essential from creating invoices to producing financial reports that can help guide brand growth. Your accountant will be able to easily access your financial records, which alone can make a massive difference to your startup’s potential.
Keyword Research
Search engine optimisation (SEO) is a big subject that covers a lot of necessities for a modern business. However, despite being such a broad subject, most SEO comes down to using the right keywords correctly. Your website can be as slick and shiny as you like, but you will get fewer visitors if it’s not showing up on search engine results pages.
Keyword research is one of the first things a startup should do, preferably before launch day and even before you’ve built your website. The industry and product keywords that you use will need to be added to your content wisely, but you need to know what those keywords are.
SEMrush and Ahrefs are widely considered the best tools available for keyword research. They can be a little pricey, but both have free trials available if needed. There are also various free keyword research tools, with options like Keyword Generator and Keyword Sheeter delivering the best value.
The Chatbot Revolution
Quite a newcomer to the list, chatbots are fast becoming one of the most valuable tools for any business in the digital age. If you’re thinking back to the early chatbots of 2016, think again. Those chatbots have evolved, and they are now capable of doing a lot more than you might think.
Chatbots are simple to use, and they are also highly scalable. As your startup grows, your chatbot grows with it. Not only that, they can help save money too. You no longer have to hire large teams of customer service reps because they can dramatically reduce their workload via chatbots which can handle large volumes of basic queries. These include tracking deliveries, guiding customers to product pages etc.
Customers get immediate solutions to their queries, boosting their satisfaction and the likelihood that they will return to your brand. They’re available 24/7, never get tired or irritable, and use conversational marketing to boost brand engagement and sales.
And they do all of this without you having to do anything. Once installed, chatbots direct customers to what they need and transfer to human team members when necessary. And the fact that they can do all of that while working across various channels and in multiple languages makes them indispensable for a startup hoping to grow.
Using the Essential Tools for Startups
Technology evolves constantly. Keeping up to date with the tech tools that will improve your business and how it operates can only benefit your potential. When more startups fail than succeed, it’s more important to identify the tools that will deliver the most value to your operation. Take your time to research each, and ensure that you choose the right tools for the job.
The right tool used in the right way could make all the difference when outpacing your competitors.
