6 ways to automate your business and stop controlling every step of your employees

1. Switch to electronic document management

Paper documents take up a lot of space. It is not always convenient to look for them, besides, the necessary contract may be lost or accidentally fall into the wrong hands. In addition, you have to spend money on office equipment, printing paper, mail or courier services. Automation can help avoid these problems. Any employee can quickly find the desired document in the program, work with it and send it to the addressee, who will instantly receive the file.

Workflow services allow you to keep track of changes made to a document and store several versions of it in case you need the original. You can also configure access for specific employees to each file.

You don't have to worry about the legal side of the issue. For a document to be valid, tune qualified electronic signature. Her receive in an accredited certification center.

2. Try chatbots

When users write in messengers, they

ready wait an average of 45 seconds for a response. A delay can result in the loss of a customer. But maintaining a staff that will process requests around the clock is expensive. A chatbot will help out - a virtual interlocutor who will answer common questions. For example, he will tell you the office hours or orient you by price.

With a chatbot, you won't miss requests coming in after business hours. And save time for employees who do not have to constantly process the same type of requests. Answers to them can be added to the bot script. When the client writes a standard question, the program will recognize the keywords and return the answer. In addition, you can set up the bot to ask for the client's e-mail. So you replenish the base for advertising mailings.

A special constructor, such as Botmother or Salebot, will help you create a chatbot. They are suitable for all popular social networks and instant messengers, including Telegram, VKontakte‎ and Odnoklassniki‎.

3. Automate sales

Even a small sales department needs a CRM system. If each employee maintains a list of clients in a separate document, you can easily lose contacts when the seller leaves. In addition, it is more difficult to check the work of a manager - there is nowhere to see information about the number of calls and meetings, agreements with clients.

A CRM system will allow you to build a sales funnel and control the client's path from his first contact with the company to closing the deal. You will understand what guides a person when he decides to buy a product, and you can gently stimulate his interest. In CRM, you can store all the data about the client and fix the communication process - calls, letters, messages in instant messengers. If an employee goes on vacation or sick leave, it will not be difficult for another manager to restore the information.

In addition, the system is easy to plan work. For example, set a reminder to call at the promised time or issue an invoice. So you and your employees will be sure that they will not lose customers due to non-compliance with agreements.

4. Set up integration between applications

It will help not to enter the same information in several programs. You will know for sure that nothing will be lost, and it will be easier for employees from different departments to work together.

You can automate the process of data transfer using special applications, such as the Albato service. It allows you to set up integration between the CRM system, instant messengers, analytics programs and other applications. You can select the desired services from the list and specify what data you want to transfer. Let's say you set it up so that it sends leads from social networks to the CRM system.

5. Implement a PLM system

PLM stands for Product Lifecycle Management - product life cycle. It refers to the entire set of processes from the study of customer needs to the disposal of a used product. The PLM system allows you to combine the maximum of data about the product - its creation, promotion, sales. All departments in the enterprise will work in a single environment, and it will become easier to transfer information. In addition, through the PLM approach, it is easier to see the losses. For example, overproduction or excessive movement of materials between departments.

Such programs will soon appear in Russia. For example now is under development the project of the first IT platform for business management, which will allow establishing a PLM approach. The program is designed for companies operating in the consumer goods market - manufacturers of food, clothing, perfumes or haberdashery. The launch of the first stage is scheduled for 2023, and the platform will be fully operational in 2025.

6. Use applications for recruiters and HR

The search for specialists can also be automated. Suppose an algorithm based on artificial intelligence can handle the analysis of resumes. He will select suitable candidates according to the parameters set by the company and conduct an initial interview by phone or even video. In the latter case, the program will record the applicant's answers on video and evaluate them using a machine learning model. In addition, she can check the personal qualities of the candidate: goodwill, openness to new experience, and others. Such a task can be entrusted, for example, to the program “North. AI".

Some programs are suitable for onboarding employees. On the first day, a beginner gets a lot of information, and he can easily get confused or forget something. To prevent this from happening, use a chatbot that will answer common questions. Thanks to him, a new employee will not feel awkward asking for a Wi‑Fi password or trying to find out in which department to take a work laptop.