The entrepreneurial landscape is changing.
Today, if you want to build and manage a company, you don’t necessarily need a brick-and-mortar office or a store where you can sell physical goods. These days, everything is becoming increasingly mobile and flexible, thanks to the growth of cloud-based software, and the possibilities provided by disruptive technology.
With nothing more than a smartphone and a handful of apps, you can update your online store, manage your staff, assign tasks, and so much more. It’s no surprise that 90% of all our time on mobile devices is spent perusing apps.
If you’re hoping to follow in the footsteps of countless entrepreneurs, using apps to launch companies from dorm rooms and coffee shops, we’ve got you covered.
Here are the 6 best mobile apps for small business owners:
1. QuickBooks
Cash flow is essentially the lifeblood of a successful business. If you don’t know how much money you have entering and leaving your business, it’s impossible to be profitable. Fortunately, you don’t need to spend your life with your accountant on speed-dial. Instead, you can track your revenue, receipts, and other crucial details from QuickBooks instead.
You can upload images of receipts straight from your mobile device, send an invoice from the QuickBooks app, or just check that you’re sticking to your budget.
QuickBooks is available for $10 per month for self-employed users, or you can get their handy “tax bundle” for $17 per month with a federal and state tax filing included. There’s also a free trial you can use for 30 days to get started.
2. Square POS
From managing your finances to taking payments. Square POS is a point of sale solution designed specifically for your smartphone or mobile device. You can transform your tablet into a checkout register or use your phone to manage payments with a handy card processing tool that reads cards or can even take Google Pay.
This handy credit-card-reading app also integrates directly with QuickBooks, mentioned above so that you can keep a closer eye on your payments. One thing that makes QuickBooks unique is the fact that it doesn’t charge a monthly fee. Instead, you pay a percentage for every swipe you take.
Payments vary depending on the kind of POS you want.
3. Slack
Communication and collaboration are at the heart of any successful business. When people can’t interact effectively, your workflow crumbles, leading to missed deadlines and lack of innovation. However, it can be tough to keep a team connected when you don’t have a physical office space. Fortunately, with Slack, all of your team members can access the same collaboration environment on their phone.
Slack allows users to send instant messages either into group chats or 1-on-1 conversations. You can also host voice and video calls, share files, and search through messages for more information.
There’s a free version of Slack for when you’re just getting started. However, if you want unlimited search and archiving features, Slack Premium is also available starting at $6.67 per user per month.
4. Time Doctor
Speaking of teams, when you’re running an agile and modern business, you might not have traditional employees to deal with. Instead, you might decide that it’s easier to work with freelancers and contractors instead. The only issue is figuring out how much time you should be paying them for.
The Time Doctor application records the amount of time a contractor spends on a project or task while taking constant screenshots of their performance. This means that you can make sure that you’re paying your contractors for the work they’re doing. Time Doctor also integrates with tools like Slack and QuickBooks.
There’s a 14-day trial period available for free; then you can upgrade to a premium account for $9.99 per month per user.
5. Asana
Making sure that you’re paying your contractors properly for the work they do is excellent. However, you also need a way of keeping track of all of those projects too. Asana can help with that. Offering a simple way for companies and individuals alike to organize employees, projects, and assignments, Asana makes collaboration simple.
You can assign specific tasks to certain members of your team, give them a deadline, and even send automatic reminders to ensure that you’re not going to miss a deadline.
If you have 15 users or less, then you’ll be able to access Asana for free. Alternatively, if you’re looking for something more comprehensive, the Premium version is available for $9.99.
6. UniTel Voice
Don’t want to worry about getting business calls on your personal number? No problem. You can create a professional image for yourself and your business by using a second number on your personal smartphone.
How? The UniTel Voice’s app turns your cell phone into your office phone by allowing you to answer your business calls on your company’s phone number, without having to carry separate devices wherever you go.
You can choose to use a local number with an area code that your customers recognize or get a toll free number that gives your business a nationwide presence. Plus, you’ll be able to see instantly whether your call is coming from a personal number or a professional one. UniTel Voice even lets you set non-working hours so calls can go straight to voicemail.
For up to a month, you can try UniTel Voice risk-free; then it’s only $9.99 per month (unlimited users).
Are Apps The Way Forward For Entrepreneurs?
For decades, we’ve relied on apps in our personal lives. We use them for entertainment, to manage our calendars, and even to help us stay connected to the things that matter. Now, it’s time to start exploring what mobile tools can do for the business environment too.
Apps like the ones mentioned above can give small businesses the freedom to run from anywhere, with mobile and remote employees all around the world. You can even build your own app for your team without much hassle, thanks to the latest innovations in developer tools.
Today’s mobile apps, allow small business owners, to succeed without having to spend time and money on physical real-estate, equipment, or hardware. A company can start anywhere – even on your smartphone.
Editor’s Note: The article is part of the blog series Run Your Business brought to you by the marketing team at UniTel Voice, the virtual phone system priced and designed for startups and small business owners.
