It’s 2021, and as the year-long mark of the pandemic arrives, we’ve taken some time to note what resources have helped out small businesses the most during this continued time of uncertainty. So many apps exist to keep our work-life organized and cravings satisfied, all from the comfort of our couches or home offices.
From apps that have eased remote team communication, to apps that provide contactless delivery, we’ve narrowed it down to a list of the most popular ones from last year, but don’t hesitate to check out our more extensive list of helpful small business management apps.
Here are some tools that have helped us survive remote-work life in the past year that continue to support your small business team.
For Team Wellness
Your team’s performance can be greatly impacted by their individual health and wellness needs. If you and your teammates are feeling more stagnant while working from home, consider creating a workplace fitness challenge. While these have been popular on-site activities, a fitness app makes it just as accessible while working remotely. Plus, friendly competition could be the morale boost your coworkers need to feel invigorated and more focused.
Even if your team isn’t necessarily interested in a collaborative competition, encouraging yourself and each of your teammates to take breaks, stay hydrated, and making an effort to stay active will not only increase morale it will allow all of your collaborators to stay healthy, which can only benefit every facet of your business, remote or otherwise.
Picture this: you pull yourself out of bed and your head is pounding. Sitting in front of your computer screen for countless Zoom meetings starts to feel like an impossibility. You realize the bathroom cabinet is out of your much-needed pain relieving medicine. You don’t have time to run out and buy more, and you’re really trying to hang on to those sick days. What do you do? Try using an otc drugstore item delivery app to have your necessities brought right to your front door. You can even order supplies for your on-site team and have them delivered to your business. A last minute delivery of essential supplies could save you time and money. No matter how you use them, delivery apps have become a part of our daily lives. Why not utilize them for the benefit of your team?
For Staying Organized
Sticky notes can fall down and appointments scribbled on hangable calendars are frequently illegible. We recommend you check out this simple mobile app that lets you organize all your “aha” moments, to-do lists, and calendar reminders in one place. There’s even a space where you can share your ideas with your team at work, so you can get out of that creative rut you sometimes find yourself stewing in from time-to-time.
This app allows you to scan and edit documents wherever you are. As long as you have your phone on you, you can access features like HD Scanning and file-editing. The coolest feature?— Optical Character Recognition (OCR). OCR software can be used to convert a physical paper document, or an image, into an accessible electronic version with editable text. Additionally, there’s a digital-signing function, so you can get whatever you need signed without having to ship documents through snail mail, or having to travel to see your co-worker.
For Team Management
If you’re not on the Slack bandwagon, yet, what are you doing? This app has made communicating with your remote team that much easier in this time of work from home, especially for tight-knit small business teams. Use individual “chat rooms” for quick updates on tasks related to a specific project you’re on, or chat with other team members about your latest pandemic-hobby. You can even hop on a quick phone or video call right from the Slack platform. The cost for small-medium businesses starts at just $6.67/month, so you don’t have to worry about it digging into a large chunk of your budget.
This program is another life-saver for teams looking to streamline project management. Create goals, coordinate tasks and set deadlines all in one place. As each individual goes through their respective tasks, they can “check off” the item, offering the opportunity for everyone to see where other team members are at with their pieces of the project. A perk — It’s free for teams of up to 15 people.
For Bookkeeping and Accounting
It’s coming up on everyone’s not-so-favorite time of year, tax season. This is probably one of the most difficult parts of the year for small businesses because it can be fairly pricey to hire outside help. The following are some top-rated apps that provide both web and mobile solutions to keep you in check—even on the go.
QuickBooks has a mobile app that allows you to manage everything from invoices to payroll, and expense reports to taxes. At $20/mo you can access the “essentials” and test out if it’s something that will work for you and your small business, although we’re pretty confident that it will.
Kashoo gets that being a small business needs small-business-specific solutions. It’s ideal for freelancers, contractors, and digital professionals looking to take the stress out of everyday accounting tasks. There’s even a built-in safeguard that automatically categorizes transactions, so you're compliant with the IRS or CRA, and another safeguard that blocks you from accidentally duplicating entries.
For Managing Your Small Business
Managing schedules—whether it be that of your employees, or for services you provide—can be a nightmare for small business owners who wear many different hats. Thankfully, there’s a whole host of apps that will assist you in those efforts.
This platform offers a wide range of solutions for your small business. Square provides POS systems for your retail or food & beverage company, tools for growing your audience, and live help when you need support. Additionally, you can run internal timecard management and payroll through their platform. They’re always running product updates, so you never have to deal with slow and outdated systems. Square also functions as a one-stop shop for all your business needs including web design and management through SquareSpace, their website builder platform.
This appointment-booking software is a popular add-on for small businesses looking to maximize their ability to schedule clients for individual services. Gigabook can integrate with popular 3rd party platforms like Office 365, PayPal, and Quickbooks. It can also connect to popular site builders like Wix, Weebly, and WordPress. Subscriptions start at $12/month if paid in a full-year installment plan—otherwise it’s a flat $15/month. Looking for other options for booking appointments and scheduling important meetings or other internal dates? Try these 7 top scheduling apps for businesses.
Inventory software is a must-have for any business trying to sell products as a retailer, or as part of a service. Be gone the days of hand-counting each individual item. Sortly lets you track items using QR codes or barcodes through your computer, tablet, or smartphone. You can also allow controlled access to any employee, so you don’t have to worry about falling behind when you take that much needed vacation.
Conclusion
Managing a small business takes a small army of dedicated, driven and passionate individuals willing to give their all for the common goal. As challenging as this undoubtedly is, thankfully, there are plenty of tools out there that can help you with some of the weight.
