Navigating growth as a startup founder can be tough. This is especially true if you're in a fast-paced industry like technology or finance. Trends move quicker than you can imagine, and if you're not careful, you'll find yourself in an uncompetitive spot in the industry. Of course, no one wants that.
Struggling to keep up with the fast-paced nature of the industry is only compounded by the widespread exodus of talent, otherwise known as the Great Resignation. More companies than ever are having trouble attracting or retaining talent, meaning founders have to handle a lot of the difficult tasks on their own — tasks they might not be an expert in. Instead of focusing more on the different ways to run the company better from the top down, founders are stuck looking for how best to do everyday tasks.
And what is at the root of all of these problems? Productivity — or the lack of it. This is why many startup founders have sought out and relied on technology to not only support productivity — but increase it. So, how can startup founders harness technology to optimize their company's operations?
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Outsourcing work
If you're strapped for talent, one of the best ways to maintain your company's trajectory is to outsource some of the work you do. This means you could take critical tasks and move them off your table by finding the right, skilled people online to help with them.
Freelance platforms have become especially popular for this very reason. Companies understand the benefits of outsourcing work — including the fact that you get to enjoy access to a skilled labor pool without necessarily paying the same benefits as those you'd give to full-time employees. Undeniably, this is a big deal.
For a growing startup looking to save money, outsourcing can be a massive boon. You don't spend money on training or onboarding as the freelancer or contractor already understands the requirements of the job. Instead, all you have to do is agree on the job's parameters and your financial obligations, and everyone's ready to go. In the short run, at the very least, outsourcing allows you to maintain operational and financial growth.
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Customer relations
Growing as a business would be impossible without a system that allows you to relate with customers and keep them. While you work to get new people to patronize you, it's also important that the ones who do have a reason to come back.
This is where customer relationship management (CRM) comes in. You need a system that helps you attract leads and guide them down the sales funnel, which helps to take a bulk of the work off your shoulders. Fortunately, technology has also come in handy with this one. With Pipedrive, you have a singular effective CRM solution that allows you to nurture leads and maintain a stable sales funnel efficiently.
With CRM automation, a significant amount of customer retention work is done for you — by technology. And Pipedrive provides a strong and resilient platform for you to get this task settled once and for all.
Research optimization
Market research is one of those tasks you can't just skip if you hope to lead your company to success. When done right, research allows you to understand the pain points of your target audience and build strategies that help you outlast the competition. Optimizing both will enable you to easily build a brand that people want to associate with and be a part of.
Most companies conduct this research step manually. But, as a startup, there's no doubt that extensive research will take a great deal of time and effort. And as you work out how to succeed in your field, you might realize you don't have time and effort to spare.
This is why we have proxies. With a proxy, you can scrape millions of websites at the same time and collect treasure troves of data. Then, you can parse and analyze this data to find areas of interest for yourself and your business.
Combined with the power of outsourcing, you can harness market research in a way that no one else has. In a world where data means so much to companies, this is an underrated benefit of technology for you.
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Scheduling and organization
It might seem like a small thing, but it's not. Having a proper schedule allows you to break your time into different tasks and plan more appropriately. You get ample time to interact with customers and prospective employees, and you don't need to worry about things like meetings and other overlapping appointments that you would have initially had to handle.
As a business leader, being organized is one of the most critical parts of the job. It is essential to get it right to maintain your mental and physical health — and if you hope to optimize productivity in the long run.
With scheduling systems and calendars, you can easily track and manage your time more effectively. You can also schedule tasks to be handled by specific members of the company, fostering efficiency.
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Security and privacy
Finally, we have the benefit of security. As explained earlier, we live in a world where data is everything. And as your company works out, it will generate massive amounts of data through its operations or research.
All of this data will be valuable to the market and your competitors, and keeping them safe is highly important. From virtual private networks (VPNs) to specific security-focused apps, technology ensures that you can keep your data safe and away from unwanted eyes.