How to Choose Productivity Apps for Your Small Business

When you started, staying on top of everything was relatively easy. But now, with a growing team (and client list), you need some extra help to keep everything running smoothly.

Time to implement some productivity apps - and get some help managing your projects, communicating with your team, and handling your clients.

But where do you start? Which ones do you pick?

I often see business owners either just pick the first one they see or spend forever in analysis mode. It’s not easy but hopefully this guide will ease the pain a little. And leave you with the productivity gains you hoped for when choosing productivity apps for your small business.

First, Understand Your Needs

First things first: what are your pain points? Maybe your team struggles with keeping track of tasks, or perhaps communication gets messy with so many emails and messages flying around. Identifying these challenges will help you figure out which tools will be the most beneficial.

What are your goals? What do you want to achieve with these tools? Better organisation, improved communication, or maybe more streamlined client management?

Write this all down and consult with your team. These are the challenges we are facing, this is what we would like to do better and this is why we want to choose productivity apps.

Next Take a Step Back: Is it an App You Need?

Wait, hear me out. Probably thinking yes I am reading this article because I want help choosing apps, Rebecca Duh! BUT I want you to ensure that implementing an app will solve the problems you have.

I have seen too many businesses implement apps thinking this will resolve low morale or get people to change their communication behaviours or magically fix a bad process. Alone it won’t.

An app undoubtedly will aide in many of these problems but if there is a more pressing root cause to fix please look at that first. But that is outside of the scope of what we are discussing here. Let’s assume that it is an App we are after.

What Can Productivity Apps Help With?

Let’s dive into some of the popular types of productivity apps and see how they can help you:

Project Management Tools:

• These tools are great for keeping track of who’s doing what and when it’s due. You can assign tasks, set deadlines, and see the project’s progress at a glance. No more sticky notes all over your desk!
• When it comes to choosing productivity apps this is probably the core one to pick.
• Some examples: Asana, Trello, ClickUp, Notion, Monday.com

Communication Tools:

• These apps are perfect for team chats and quick questions. You can create different channels for different projects or topics, making it easy to keep conversations organised. Plus, they support video calls and file sharing, which can be super handy.
• The project management apps have communication built in so if you are going for one of those you may not need a separate tool
• Some examples: Slack, Microsoft Teams, WhatsApp

Customer Relationship Management (CRM):

• If you’re finding it hard to keep track of client interactions and sales pipelines, a CRM system can help. These tools store all your client information in one place, making it easier to manage relationships and follow up on leads.
• These custom tools can be very expensive and you can do a lot of this in a project management app so it really depends on what your goals are with your app choices.
• Some examples: HubSpot, Salesforce

Time Tracking and Productivity:

• These apps help you see where your time goes. By tracking how long tasks take, you can find ways to be more efficient.
• You can also begin to assign labour costs to projects and understand exactly how much they cost to deliver. Again many of the project management ones include time tracking.
• Some examples: Toggl, Harvest

Document Management and Collaboration:

• These platforms are perfect for creating, sharing, and collaborating on documents in real-time. Whether it’s a proposal, a report, or just meeting notes, everyone can work together seamlessly.
• Some examples: Google Workspace, Microsoft 365, Drop Box

Marketing Automation:

• Managing email campaigns and social media can be a lot of work. These tools automate many of those tasks, saving you time and helping you reach your audience more effectively.
• Some examples: Mailchimp, Marketo, Brevo, Mailerlite

Evaluating Tools – What Should You Pick?

You’re probably feeling a bit overwhelmed, so many areas to choose from… but circle back to your goals and objectives. What are you trying to achieve right now? Focus on that first.

A lot of the well known tools will do pretty much everything that you want so if there is someone on the team that has used one before or there is one you just like more that is probably almost enough to go with it. Ultimately it is how you embed it that will make a difference over which one you choose.

When choosing the right tools, here are a few things to keep in mind:

• Integration: Check if the tool can work with the other apps you’re using. Integration can save you a lot of time and hassle.
• Scalability: Your business will continue to grow, so pick tools that can grow with you. Especially relevant to pricing which is often per seat.
• Customisation: Look for tools that you can tailor to fit your specific needs. Although be warned as a general rule of thumb the more it can be customised the more complicated it is to set up.
• Support and Training: Good customer support and training resources are crucial. You want to be able to get help when you need it. At least check out the help area and if there are readily available tutorials. I would also generally suggest going with a well established one; they will tend to have a lot of people doing YouTube how to videos which save a lot of faff.
• Budget: Your particular use case can make a big difference in the overall cost of an app. Some of them “do everything” at a basic level so may be more than enough. The more separate ones you have the more you will need to integrate them with each other.
• Automation: You want to make use of built in automation and/or ensure that it is compatible with an automation platfrom like Zapier or Make.com
• Set Up: Do not underestimate the set up time and complexity. I have seen businesses have to undo hours of work because they delegated to the boss’s PA to set up an entire system on Asana. Get in a professional to do it right or keep it super simple.

In my experience you really want to involve the team in the selection process. Getting them to use the tools is going to be critical for success. And it is a big change. Often you are asking people to reorganise how they work, reorganise where stuff is, reorganise how they think about work. Don’t underestimate the implementation.

Is there a tool that someone on the team has experience in already? Do you need to implement them all at once? Go back to your original goals can you achieve them with fewer tools?

Implementation Strategy: Let’s Get it Set Up Right and People Using It!

Once you’ve chosen your tools, it’s time to implement them. Here’s how to do it smoothly:

• Define the process or protocol: Define how you are going to use the tool before you start building anything inside it. Easier to move ideas around on paper than it is to redo custom tags or whatever
• Start small: Try the new tools with a few team members or on a single project first. This way, you can iron out any kinks before a full rollout. Redefine your process after the test phase. Use this starter team to garner buy in from the others
• Positioning: Make sure you are communicating with the team and they feel involved, too ofter i have seen people revolt against new apps just because… lets get them onboard from the get go.
• Training: Make sure your team knows how to use the new tools. Hold training sessions and provide resources so everyone feels comfortable. I find a champion is a good idea, one identified person who is tasked with knowing the ins and outs and finding answers to everyone’s questions.
• Monitor and Adjust: Keep an eye on how the tools are being used and gather feedback. Be ready to make adjustments based on what works and what doesn’t. Put a date in the diary for when you will review it.

Watch Your Productivity Rise

Integrating productivity apps into your business can seem daunting, but it’s worth the effort. By understanding your needs, researching your options, and implementing them strategically, you can boost your efficiency and keep your business running smoothly.

Need Some Help?

If you want to bounce some ideas or have a chat about how I could help you implement the right apps successfully please hit that schedule button above or contact me the old fashioned way and shoot me an email [email protected].