5 Powerful Code And Automation Tips For Any Business

In the modern world, there is a massive statistical range regarding technological use between businesses. Personally, I have noticed this among many of my clients and it is almost entirely sporadic. Businesses either have a very good understanding of digital practices, such as, automation and software development. This article will be slightly longer than the previous due to the nature of the topic. This article does not target larger companies who use expansive software systems for POS, Order Systems, and Security.

You can visualize what I’m referring to, a company like Best Buy is a great example. Corporations similar to Best Buy have massive internal teams dedicated to creating this software for their cash registers, service centers, and delivery services.

Most smaller businesses either have no knowledge of how these concepts may help them, or they invest a large amount of time into building - using these systems. So how can automation or software development help your business?

I. Where Can Automation Help You?

Automation is an excellent way to relieve personal, or personnel workload - stress, increase revenue streams, and decrease costs for your business.

How many daily tasks can you recall, off the cuff, seem outrageously inconvenient or time-consuming. What is this task? Are you putting aside an entire day to reach out and email potential or existing clients? Every email is painstakingly high in effort and detail, yet you are following some sort of pattern to finish this deadline by the end of the day, maybe even the week.

Emails are one of the many tasks that business owners know may take up an entire day to finish. But did you know that you could personalize all your emails down to industry, portfolio item, and even first name? You can even send all your emails in a bulk automated process that auto-populates your email scripts from previous snippets. These scripts can be as personalized and detailed as you decide to make them!

Most if not all businesses have some room for automation to make their lives easier. Take a few hours to brainstorm some ways you could automate your business! Maybe it’s your KPI’s? Quota’s? Social Media Outreach?

II. The Golden Rule: What is the Cost-Benefit?

Cost-Benefit. We have all heard this term before and most understand what it entails. Therefore, most should be weighing, or analyzing the cost-benefit of new and old ideas in their business.

Why have most companies switched from traditional time-clocking methods to digital timestamps? Technology allows us to easily manipulate tasks that can be consuming, inaccurate, and expensive. Every company would utilize technology and automation practice if the opportunity was clear and concise in front of them. However, the technology can be overwhelming and the languages to begin creating your solutions is difficult!

A quick and easy way to immediately begin your automation journey starts with finding your clients.

Download Google Chrome and take advantage of the free business tools saturating the browser.

• Hunter.io (Email Hunter by Domains)

• NoScripting (Advanced Site Safety)

• Google Analytics (Personal Site Tracking)

• StreakCRM (Gmail Extension Mass Emails/Client Pipelines

• Social Media Accelerators

• Programs that build follows and likes!

• Instagram - Soundcloud - Etc

• Invoices

• Automate Social Media Posting

• Marketing Campaigns

• Track Emails - If Opened - Location - Device

• Loyalty/Rewards Systems

• Audit Website

• Audit Internal Documents

These are a few quick ways you can automate your business and save yourself some money!

III. Lead Generation

I have chosen to single out lead generation as I believe it is fairly simple to set up, if you have surface level knowledge of HTML.

Above is a screenshot of the popular GMail Extension StreakCRM. I highly recommend you go research this tool if you are a business owner and haven’t heard of it before. This tool allows you to import client information from spreadsheets. This can include notes, emails, first and last name. How about favorite food to eat? Well, that’s the benefit of it.

Now your entire batch of emails are incredibly detailed and personalized to each individual address. Using snippets, or HTML.

All you need to do before this step is to create personalized snippets with their respectable variables assimilated into them. Your imported spreadsheet will have a corresponding value for each variable. <box_Company>, would be values underneath the Company column in your spreadsheet!

There are hundreds of tutorials online, as well as on YouTube. I provided a link to one below by Alex Berman at X27 but definitely jump around and learn through every resource you can find! Streak has seperate videos that teach you every step of the setup process.

IV. Python Programming and Friends!

I frequently use Python to complete most of my automation tasks. If you are unfamiliar with Python. “Python is an object-oriented, high-level programming language with integrated dynamic semantics primarily for web and app development.

It is extremely attractive in the field of Rapid Application Development because it offers dynamic typing and dynamic binding options.” Quick notation that I personally think helps understand it’s impact. “Python is relatively simple, so it's easy to learn since it requires a unique syntax that focuses on readability. Developers can read and translate Python code much easier than other languages. In turn, this reduces the cost of program maintenance and development because it allows teams to work collaboratively without significant language and experience barriers.”

How this affects different levels of business

The majority of businesses understand how important social media activity and influence have become. Our society is ever-expanding and determined to discover new forms of expressing ourselves. At this time, Instagram is the key to reaching our younger and audiences. What does that mean to you and your business? While on Instagram you begin to wonder how other users have such high engagement, or likes and followers in general. Why is it difficult to create that influence in your pictures, or stories?

Organic growth and influence can be achieved by implementing automation into your social media accounts that already provide your online community with great content. Now, there are thousands of methods to achieving these instagram goals. But, I am going to highlight how this process happens and what it could mean for you!

How it works: You design an integrated and dynamic bot using the Python language with help from various resources. Upon execution of your program, your code will utilize a server, or method to automate the most efficient patterns and methods to build your organic base. This is done by a process of targeted Likes and Follows that are connected to input. Input is understood as executable functions, or definitions within the Python script. Other forms of input include: what hashtags to incorporate, user interactions, and complex Instagram API specialization.

When executed correctly, your business will build an authentic base - following on your Instagram account that is fully customizable. This can save you thousands of advertisement dollars and increase revenue for your business while also creating a great network of genuine followers that serve well to further validate your position in the market! This is an aspect of my business that I really love selling because it works. Lead generation comes back full circle within automation when these tools often generate 3-4x the page hits on your website.

V. Creating and Utilizing POS Software Systems or Other Solutions

Several methods of automating this process have become available by modern companies already. Square is a simple representation of this technology.

If you still require checks as your only form of accepted payment into your accounts receivable. You are throwing away money! It is that definitive now! There are no excuses against POS automation (Point-of-Sale), or internal finance automation. Business owners now have an endless stream of efficient and mistake-free systems.

• Brilliant POS

• Square

• TillPoint

• Shopify

• Revel

• Vend

• ShopKeep

This is a simple amendment for any business that will decrease cost and immediately benefit your auditing systems. Time, as explained in Einstein’s theory of special relativity, is connected to space in physics. Ultimately relative as SpaceTime. To further this metaphor, I believe most businesses understand that time (in business), is connected to spending and money. Always relative as MoneyTime.

Automation and Technology are powerful tools that you can use to greatly generate revenue and reduce workload and cost. Think of some ways your business could utilize these tips to grow!