Running any business in the service industry – whether you are the owner or the operator, or both, is highly pressurised – akin to juggling balls and firecrackers while walking a tightrope at the same time…..all the while dreaming of 10 mins for a damn fine cup of coffee!
So sometimes the most beneficial thing you can do is stop. Take some time to rejig and reorganise, and get on top of everything – particularly before the madness of busy times such as Christmas.
Not wanting to go down the cheesy ‘how technology can work for you’ road – but sometimes if you are in a business which is neither technical/office based, you can kind of forget that there are massively fantastic – and often quite simple – apps and tools out there that will make your work life so much simpler and smoother.
So we decided to give you a little behind the scenes sneak peak of what we use in Voucher Connect HQ to keep things ticking over and how they can be used day-to-day in your business.
Wrike
Wrike is about getting stuff done! Effectively. Efficiently. Everyone knows that list-makers are super productive people, and there is no greater satisfaction in life than digitally ticking things off and hearing that glorious little ‘ping’ to celebrate the achievement! Wrike allows you create lists, that can be shared between users, with tasks assigned to specific people if required, and with a reminder function to give you a ‘gentle push’ to get on it! And like all the best apps out there, you can’t escape Wrike as its available on every device imaginable to keep everything running smoothly.
How we use it:- We have a ton of folders created for things to get done in a specific month or in-house projects for example, for promotion and marketing, for individual/personal tasks to be carried out, and even for the office kitchen shopping list so we know to top up on Club Milks and Bagels when they run low. Seriously, you won’t be able to function without this once you download it!
Bizimply
If you haven’t already heard of Bizimply, we urge you to look it up right away. Again like all our favourite company management/operation tools, this is an online based system, and is used for managing employees. Every business owner knows that this can be a massive headache and time-eater, but with Bizimply your entire workforce is managed in one place. It allows you sort out shifts, monitor attendance (with a clock-in and clock-out function), make timecards for payroll, and run reports – and can be used for businesses with staff based in multi-locations, and those that pay employees by the hour, so is a super solution for the service industry.
How we use it:- Given that it has such huge application in the hospitality sector, we recommend it to all Voucher Connect clients whether they operate restaurants, spa/beauty businesses, and shops. And they are all singing from the roof-tops about it. Seriously. It is such a fantastic system, you won’t regret the second you Google it, and sign up (even if its just a trial initially). Do you think we’d recommend a 3rd party business to our customers if it wasn’t off-the-charts brilliant?!
Canva
Canva is a smashing little desk-top tool (but with mobile-device apps too!) that will act as your in-house graphic-designer for all web based and print jobs ranging from business cards, to presentation documents (such as menus), invitations, flyers/posters, and social media designs for Facebook and blog creations etc., all consistent with your brand identity. It is really so easy to use – making design jobs simple for everyone – so much so that over 40% of Fortune 500 companies use Canva in one way or another.
How we use it:- Canva is open on our desktops everyday, for creating new sales and marketing documents and web-content for broad-spectrum promotion of Voucher Connect, and for creating tailor-made documents when we are going into meet a potential new sign-up for example. Consistent brand standards are so important when you are trying to grow your business, so your business becomes easily recognisable and stands out from your competitors! Using Canva in-house for all our design jobs ensures that everything that is put out there for Voucher Connect harmonises with our corporate colours and brand identity, and keeps our content and design formats fresh-looking.
Slack
Slack’s tagline is Be Less Busy. Music to all our ears. Slack is an online ‘communication tool’ for your smartphones and desk-tops, and Apple Watch for any of you tech-geeks. Slack is absolutely brilliant as it allows you talk to your team in one place – less emails, less face-to-face meetings. You can message everyone, or different groups of your team for specific projects, and file share images and documents with everyone (for things like shift-rotas, new menu circulation etc.). We couldn’t operate without it!
How we use it:- Installed on everyones mobile devices and machines, we can all keep fully briefed on sales leads, customer service requirements, touch base with the finance and marketing departments, and let colleagues know if they missed anything. It really reinforces all of us as a ‘team’, and we can have a bit of fun on it too, which is just as important!
Voucher Connect
If you are not already au fait with Voucher Connect, you should be! We all know how important voucher sales are to restaurants, spas etc – given redemption rates – so therefore the sales and management of gift vouchers should be a priority.
Enter Voucher Connect! An online Gift Voucher sales and management system, fully integrated into your existing website, that sends instantly-deliverable uber-stylish printable gift vouchers. Not only that, it allows you fully manage redemptions from a personalised dashboard.
There are no upfront costs to your business. And as Voucher Connect has partnered with Stripe, you get full access to your voucher revenue as each purchase is made.
If you fancy signing-up or just want to know more, get in touch with us now!
