5 ways Cloud tools can help SMEs boost productivity

Boost customer engagement; enable smarter collaboration and increase document efficiency with Oystor

SMEs that embrace new technology can often set themselves ahead of their competitors. Your business depends on working with a lot of documents. So you need a tool to facilitate smarter collaboration, connect your teams internally and externally with customers and partners to keep business processes moving fast. The result: a productive environment where it is easy to securely share information, ideas and documents.

Here are five ways that cloud-based data management solutions like Oystor can help small business tackle everyday challenges.

1. Handling Resource Constraints
With many businesses under pressure to conserve cash, investment in new technology is often put on hold because of the upfront capital investment required.? Additionally, small businesses usually employ fewer people and therefore need staff to work at peak efficiency.

An intelligent document management system, offers a centralized location for all documents which is searchable and accessible, anytime. Being cloud based, remote workers or salespersons that are constantly on the move, will still have secure access to these documents without being constrained by the lack of expensive, complex software and networking tools

2. Reducing Turnaround Time On Document Workflows

In an increasingly global, outsourced and multi-party business environment, a cloud based collaboration platform becomes essential for document transactions.? Conducting important business processes relating to sales, marketing, finance, legal and HR on an email or fax platform is no longer efficient.? Every business process ? from invoice management to employee recruitment? requires documents.

A cloud based application provides a powerful way for businesses to reduce turnaround time and increase efficiencies.? Document-centric business processes can now be performed on a common platform with various access rights management that can be easily set. External and internal groups that you set can find, share, and manage documents based on business processes unique to that group.

Businesses no longer need to send emails laden with large attachments to the client, not knowing if the client has actually read the documents, let alone open the attachments. Simple to use cloud workflows enable teams to access, update documents like contracts and notify the client for review. The client would have access to the most recent versions of documents, without having to wade through multiple emails.

3. Long Term Growth Path
As small businesses succeed financially, it will need a sustainable system that can grow with it.? Cloud-based applications will support current needs and future growth with a scalable, on-demand model that allows businesses to maintain the right level of IT.? The pricing model and licensing structure is best suited for your budget and requirements today and into the future.

Choose a document management system that can scale as the operation grows, to prepare for future expansion without a large upfront cost. In future, when the business calls for research, feasibility studies, or other situations arise that require compiling, managing and sharing large amounts of information, the right document management software is already in place to help manage this workload, saving both time and effort.

4. Reducing Complexity
With cloud applications, not only is storing documents made easy, securely sharing them with relevant parties becomes simplified.? Businesses need no longer have to worry about the ongoing maintenance of on-premise hardware infrastructure, which is ?both expensive and complex for smaller organizations.? Cloud based applications help small companies perform key functions without the complexity of purchasing and maintaining elaborate IT hardware systems and applications.?? Businesses can therefore focus on what they do best.

5. Becoming More Competitive
The cloud has now made it possible for small businesses for competing effectively with larger competitors by giving them access to technology solutions at affordable rates.? Apart from operating efficiently to compete with rival brands, using the latest technology in information management can give SMEs a winning edge. Being able to share product catalogs, invoices, receipts, and contracts can smooth workflows, for greater efficiency and higher levels of customer satisfaction.

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About Oystor

Your customers and partners are always demanding that document processes become more efficient and quicker. Business data is growing and data accessibility is an issue. Oystor?is the ultimate solution for you and your business. It brings together collaboration features, secure sharing, networking, workflows and management of your documents in the cloud.

Through a secure online portal, businesses can store and retrieve documents, route them to speed up receiving and approval business processes with simple workflows. Reducing the time and manpower needed to receive, file and retrieve contracts, invoices, as well as process them for approval, is a significant cost saver. What?s more, Oystor?is an online software service. So, there is no extra hardware equipment to buy, no software to install or update, and no IT staff needed to maintain the application. And all features are available with one predictable annual subscription.

Oystor is now available through SingTel?s myBusiness portal. Click here to find out more.

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Tagged as: Cloud Computing / SaaS, Small Medium Enterprises

Source: http://mybusinesstechblog.com/archives/blog/5-ways-cloud-tools-smes-boost-productivity

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