Digital tools and technology

What are collaboration tools?

These help people inside and outside your business to work together.

Collaboration tools can improve team communication and productivity. They also allow teams to stay in touch and up to date across different projects.

A business that has team members in different locations might use a video call tool for meetings.

For example:

• Zoom – Helps you hold video calls with several people at the same time.
• Microsoft Teams (MS Teams) – Helps you hold video calls and share files as part of Microsoft 365.
• Slack – Is a messaging app that works on mobile devices and laptops.

These tools can help you by:

• Reducing travel costs.
• Recording calls to refer back to details.
• Reduce the need for email exchanges.

Selecting collaboration tools

There’s no right number of tools. You should consider your business’s unique needs. Taking on too many tools at the same time could be confusing and costly. Not having all the tools you need can equally become an issue.

To get the right amount for you, you need to be clear on what you need to achieve. The best way to do this is by looking at your business goals.

There are also a few main features you need to keep in mind. Let's look at these now.

Compatibility

Things to think about:

• Are these tools part of a wider tool package?
• Will the tool work with your other systems?
• If your tool doesn’t work with your other systems, what other work will you need to do?

For example, Teams, Word, Excel and PowerPoint are all part of the Microsoft 365 suite of apps. This means they are made to work together.

Similarly, Google tools like Docs, Sheets and Slides are made to work together.

For these tools, it’s often better to get apps from the same suite or supplier. This can help solve any compatibility issues up front.

Pricing

Consider both the upfront and ongoing costs of the tools you select. It may be that you get a free trial but you still need to think about the long-term cost.

What are productivity tools?

These tools can help you manage tasks and projects more efficiently. They do this by ‘automating’ tasks. This means using technology to carry out tasks that a person might do. This means you can focus on other work and impacts.

These tools also help with collaboration and management.

Select each heading to learn more about the benefits.

What are security tools?

These tools keep your data safe and protect your business.

There are laws and regulations that need you to keep your customers data safe. Security tools are key if any part of your business is digital.

Some examples are:

• Antivirus software – These protect your device from viruses that try to steal your data. Examples include Norton, McAfee, Bitdefender and Avast.
• Firewalls – These protect your network from unauthorised access. Examples include ThreatLocker and Sophos.
• Two-factor authentication – This is where people use two methods to log into websites or digital tools. So, if one is compromised, you still have protection. Examples include Authy, 2FAS, Google Authenticator and Microsoft Authenticator.

What are analytics tools?

Analytics tools give you data on customer behaviour and market trends.

They visualise the data through dashboards and customisable reports. This can help you see what’s happening on your website or social site. They can even tell you how customers reach your business.

Here are a few examples of analytics tools:

• Google Analytics – Shows you how customers use your site and how you can improve it.
• Meta Insights – Used to track the success of your social media posts.
• SEMrush – Offers tools to show you how your website ranks.

What are the benefits of analytics tools?

Understand your customers

Using analytics you can get to know your customers and how they connect with you online. This can help you can make more informed decisions across your business.

Focus your marketing efforts

See what people search for to get to your site. This can help you target your marketing more effectively. It could also save you money, as you’ll be able to focus your efforts on the areas that have impact.

Get alerts

Analytics tools can alert you to issues. For example, Google’s free Search Console will tell you if your site has gone down or has been hacked.

Understand trends

Looking to understand trends better? Analytics tools can help you with this too. Free tools like ‘Buzzsumo’ or ‘Answer the Public’ tell you the most talked about topics in your sector right now. This can help you create content.

What to think about when choosing analytics tools

Customisation

Most analytics tools will offer some form of customisation. This could be the level of data you get or the features. Think about what you need from your analytics. How can data help you measure and meet your business goals?

Cost of analytics tools

There are free tools available, others may have basic and premium options. Paid analytics tools can be costly, but can offer more.

If you want to use a paid tool, make sure your team will get plenty of use out of it. Make use of free trials to test them out.

Ease of use of analytics tools

As with any new tool, you’ll need to train your team on how to use it. These kinds of tools can be quite complex. Learning how to read the data is as important as knowing how to use the tool. Look at each tool to see what kinds of skills they need.

Summary

No matter which tools you decide to use, there are a few general things to consider. You’ve seen all of these before, but here's a useful summary of the considerations that apply to all tools.

Think about:

• Your industry – If others in your industry use a tool, it may mean it will work for your business too. It suggests the tool is well suited to the nature of your business. This might not work every time, but it’s one way to start your research.
• Ease of use – You need to find the right balance between ease of use and what the tool needs to achieve for you. Think about the time and cost of training.
• Compatibility – Will the tool work with your existing systems and processes.
• Cost – Balancing cost and impact will be one of the main things you need to think about. Think about your goals and the short and long-term costs.
• Security – You need platforms that are strong on cyber and data safety.
• Compliance – The tools you use and the processes around them need to be compliant. Think about laws, regulations and data protection.
• Sustainability – Think about your ability to keep the tool running long term. You should also think about the environmental impact.
• Business goals – The most important thing to think about is what the tools can achieve for your goals and customer.

Why is data important?

Let’s start with a look at your business.

• What’s it doing right now?
• How about others in your sector – what are they doing?
• Can you spot a gap in the market?
• Are you aware of new or changing consumer needs?
• What do you want to do next?

Once you know what you want to do, data can help you do it. Let's look at some examples.

Deepen your data skills

Get started with related learning on Skillsoft Percipio that can help assess or take your current knowledge to the next level.

Tools to help

So you’ve got all this data – now what? The right tools can help you make the most of it. That may be finding patterns in your sales data that you can use to upsell or cross-sell. It may be a safe place to hold your financial data. Want to know how effective your latest email campaign was? There are tools for that, too.

Let’s look at the different tools available and what you can use them for.

Analytics tools

This includes spreadsheets, plus tools to view and report on your data. These tools can be simple or complex. It all depends on what they do. So think about what is going to help your business.

These tools can:

• Track and measure – From stock levels to customer ratings.
• Predict performance – Like a forecast of sales based on last year.
• Give ‘what if’ information – Explore how price changes may affect sales, for example.
• Diagnose causes – Did that review harm sales last week?

Examples of these tools include: Microsoft Excel, Google Analytics, SAS and Looker.

Data storage tools

With all this data, you need somewhere to store it.

Here are the options:

Deepen your analytics skills

Get started with related learning on Skillsoft Percipio that can help you with function specific analytics and analytics tools.

What is ‘the cloud’?

So far, we’ve just talked about cloud as a way to store your data. There’s so much more to it, though.

Do you use Google Docs or OneDrive to share your files? Slack or Discord to keep in touch with your team? Salesforce or HubSpot to check sales? Point of Sale (POS) systems like Shopify or TouchBistro? Then you’re using cloud right now.

With cloud, you don’t need to buy or rent hardware. There’s no software to maintain, either. Cloud lets you manage your sales, your team, your bookings and more – all through the internet.

Benefits and considerations

Let’s look at the pros and cons of cloud.

Cloud platforms

Cloud products and services fall into one of these four areas:

What is Artificial intelligence (AI)?

AI is how computer systems mimic human intelligence. So computers can take on tasks that only people were able to perform in the past. AI tools include everything from voice assistants to content generators.

In business, we can use AI to help analyse data and predict trends. It speeds up day-to-day tasks and can be a valuable business resource. There are many free or low-cost AI tools.

A recent Forbes survey of business owners found that:

Deepen your AI skills

Get started with related learning on Skillsoft Percipio that can help you with understanding AI and machine learning.

How can AI tools help your business?

Let's look at some examples of how these tools could help.

Streamline your business processes

In the last chapter, we touched on process automation as part of AI. Automation in general is one of the main ways you can use technology to help streamline your business' processes. To find out more about AI and automation and hear from some real business examples, watch our video on AI made in collaboration with WIRED.

Plan how you want to use this

We’ve given you some ideas on how you can use technology and data to help your business. Now it’s time to reflect on these. Take time to make notes to follow up and explore further.

The overall benefits

We’ve talked about what a CRM system is. But why should you spend your time and money on one?

First, let’s look at the overall benefits to your organisation.

Using a CRM can help you:

Benefits in more detail

Know your customers better

With a CRM, you’ll have all your customer details at your fingertips. So you can stay connected to your users in a more tailored way. They’ll get info and offers that they want, based on their earlier activity.

And as you get to know your clients better, you’ll find more effective chances to upsell or cross-sell.

The key features of CRM tools

Every CRM platform is different. So think about what you want from this kind of tool, before you decide which one to go for. We’ll talk more about this in the next chapter. For now, let’s look at the key functions that most of them have.

Customer-focused features

Contact management

You can store user data such as names, email addresses and social media accounts in a searchable database. This helps you build a more complete picture of the customer and view all their details from one place.

Quote and order management

Create and send quotes, invoices and receipts. The CRM keeps all contact between you and your clients in the same place. This helps you avoid losing orders or contact with different colleagues, so you can give better customer service.

Case management

Incident-based tracking helps you to sort and manage user issues. So you can deal with questions promptly and avoid complaint escalation.

Sales-focused features

Conversion management

CRMs can simplify the process of converting leads into sales. You’ll get to know the users in your pipeline better. And this leads to a more tailored approach, so you can sort leads based on business potential.

Sales automation

Manually emailing, scheduling or digging through files for info - all these take up valuable time. A CRM can do these necessary but repetitive manual tasks to improve productivity.

Sales forecasting

Data analytics let you build a more detailed picture. You can generate forecasts for future sales and revenue, based on captured data and trends. This makes it easier to be more precise in your forecasting and set realistic targets.

Efficiency-focused features

Task management

Keeping track of tasks helps the whole team work more efficiently. Plan and sort tasks, assign them to team members, and create reminders that sync with your calendar.

Analytics tools

No more sifting through mountains of data - analytics tools compile the data and give the details you need. You get routine summaries and reports based on factors you select. This gives you a good understanding of processes. Plus it makes troubleshooting more effective.

Customised features

Every organisation operates differently, so it's important to tailor your CRM tool so it works for you. Add or remove features to build a tool that fits your organisation.

Integration with other tools

Most CRM tools integrate with existing software, reducing the need to go back-and-forth between systems. CRM doesn’t need to be yet another platform to juggle. Using these tools, you can connect existing apps like your calendar, social media, live chat or eCommerce platform.

Finding the best fit

With CRM software, there’s no one-size-fits-all option. Luckily you’ll find plenty of choice out there, and a tool to fit every business.

Think about whether your focus is analytical, on sales, service or social media. You might want an all-in-one platform, or software that you can tweak to meet more niche requirements.

To help you match your needs with a CRM, look at the types of CRM tools available. There are three main types of CRM: operational, analytical and collaborative.

Top tips for selecting your CRM system

Identify the issue you’re trying to solve

What are the specific issues you want your CRM tool to help with? Note down what you need to solve these issues. And do this before you start to look at CRMs. If you define your needs upfront, it helps you find the right tool.

Lay out your processes

The CRM you pick needs to handle your organisation’s unique set of processes. So be clear about what these are, before you select your software.

Look at product mobility

Think about how important it is for your team to have mobile access to the system. Will they use it on mobile phones or other devices when they’re out and about?

Is it compatible?

Check which CRM tools are able to work with your current systems. So if you rely on email and phone for client contact, seek out tools that talk directly with your email system. If your customers are active social media users, look for easy integration with these channels.

Reporting capabilities

Customised reports can make a real difference and give you a competitive edge. If you can tailor reports based on your unique data, you might find ways to grow.

Research the supplier

You’ll be relying on them for customer support while you’re using the software. So it's important to do your research and make sure they’re reliable and trusted.

Ask around

Part of your supplier research might be looking at online reviews. Look at similar businesses to see what they’re using. It might also be worth thinking about your own user experiences and what tools your preferred companies are using.

How much does it cost?

Consider the cost of the software and its roll-out. If you’re a smaller business, you might want to start with a free CRM.

Involve your team

No matter which system you pick, you may meet some resistance. If you involve your team in the selection stage, it can help them feel part of the process.

Take your time with the demo

When you check out the demo for a product, make sure to push it to its limits. Taking time to test it thoroughly will save you time and money in the end.

Planning for a smooth launch

Rolling out a new CRM needs some planning. And you can start planning once you’ve picked your tool.

There’s lots to do before the launch. You’ll be looking at your data and preparing to move it to the new system. Your team will be learning how to use the tool, and testing it out.

Here are some key points to think about when you’re putting together your roll-out plan, including top tips for the safe migration of data.

Prepare your people

Train your team

A successful roll-out relies on buy-in from all your team members. So it’s important to spread awareness of the new CRM at an early stage, and give them time to get to know it.

Allow a large chunk of time to train your team, before the ‘go live’ date. This way, you’re giving people the chance to test the software and learn how to use it, before they rely on it. If you don’t do this, you could have unhappy teams and costly mistakes.

Factor in a period of adjustment after the launch, too. It’s good to have a system in place so people can report snags and give feedback, for a smooth transition.

Share with your stakeholders

Key stakeholders need to know why the roll out is happening and what it means to them. It’s important to let them know the positive impact your new CRM will have on them.

Show that this tool will make jobs easier and operations more efficient, while driving sales and boosting the organisation’s reputation.

Map your data

Plan for data migration

Data migration can be complex and time-consuming, so you’ll need a clear plan. Most CRMs have apps to help with this, but do check. Before the actual migration, you’ll need to spring clean your system and remove old data that could clog up your new CRM.

Make sure you also have a plan in place for the migration day itself. Think about team scheduling, data backups, and how you’re going to let people know about system downtime.

Analyse your info

As you get ready for a new CRM, you have the chance to audit your data. Now’s the time to look at what data your team use, and how they use it. This will highlight any redundant info. It can also help guide your focus when you test the new system.

Maps and flows

At this stage, your focus is on what data needs to move, where it’s going, and how it will get there.

Here’s a couple of ways to do this:

Test the process

As part of your launch preparation, you’ll be testing the system itself. But it’s also a good idea to test the data migration, before you make this move.

Talk to your tech team

Fully brief your IT team so they’re ready to carry out testing. Allow plenty of time for this before ‘going live’. This gives you time to follow up any issues with your CRM vendor and make any changes that you need.

Testers should cover:

• System testing
• Functional testing
• Stress testing
• Performance testing
• Usability testing
• Acceptance testing
• Integration testing

Data migration tests

Moving your data to the new CRM can be scary. To reduce the risks, test a small set of data first.

Always back up your data before you move it. Run the migration process, then compare the migrated data with your backed-up data. Check that everything you sent across has reached where it needs to be. And once it’s there, make sure you can see and use it in the way you want.

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