The use of Computer Software, Web, and Mobile application in business is as essential as getting customers. Software is a part of the business.
No business can create, manage and deliver products and services in scale, faster, accurately, and transparently, privately without the use of software.
- If you start a graphic design business you need graphic design software to create and edit logos, business cards, flyers, website design, user interfaces, and various other branding and marketing content.
- If you start a digital marketing business you have to use graphic design software and video recording and editing software for content creation.
- For keyword research and competitive analysis, you have to SEO software and you have to use collaboration and communication tools and CRM, Lead generation, productivity software as well as accounting software.
- For data analysis and reporting, you have to use business intelligence and predictive analytics tools.
- Even if you run a small shop still you have to use at least accounting software or spreadsheet.
So, the use of software, the internet, and computers is essential whether you start an online or offline business.
Top 5 types of software most essential for small business:
The widespread use of technology tools, digital media, search engines, social media, digital content, and eCommerce by consumers, coupled with ever-evolving consumer expectations, behaviors, habits, knowledge, and business competition, has made it imperative for businesses to adopt these five types of software
1. Financial Management Software:
To manage business accounts, payroll, investments, billing, cash flow, income, and expenses and for planning and balance sheet such as intuit quick books, tally, Microsoft excel, Freshbook, Zoho books, mybillbook, marg, Xero, and similar accounting software are essential to use.
2. Productivity Software:
For document writing, editing, data management, calculation, presentation, charts, communication, file sharing, and cloud-based data storage the use of Microsoft 365 or Microsoft Office Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Google Drive, Zoom, OneDrive, Monda, Clickup, Slack, Jira, Asana and many other are popular and have to use at least 2 to 3 apps for productivity.
And this software and productivity software such as Microsoft 365, and Google Drive are almost essential for all types of businesses.
3. Project Management software:
It’s essential to use software for web development, digital marketing, branding services or SaaS providers and non-technology companies, telecom, and real estate construction services providers.
Using software such as Trello, Wrike, Zoho, GanttPro, ProofHub, Asana, Microsoft Teams, and others can help businesses effectively plan and execute tasks, manage time, coordinate teams, streamline billing, schedule meetings, and automate repetitive tasks.
This cloud-based project management software and mobile apps are essential tools for running and managing projects successfully.
4. Graphic Design Software:
Graphic design software is used for logo design, photo editing, marketing, advertising content design, banner designs, websites, and software UI/UX design.
Not only is graphic design software mandatory for graphic design, logo design, product/package design, video thumbnail design, digital arts, video gaming arts, branding, and marketing content creation and design service provider and businesses but also for web development, photo studio, media, corporates and various other types of businesses.
Some of the popular graphic design software are Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Illustrator, Adobe InDesign, Canva, Beacon, Corel Draw, Affinity Designer, Sketch, and many others.
5. Digital Marketing Tools and Apps:
Digital Marketing software and tools is a group of various small and specific web application that is used to create websites, landing pages, SEO, and email marketing campaign, and help in various other marketing and promotional tasks.
This also includes keyword research tools, competitive analysis tools, website builders, data analytics and reporting tools, marketing automation tools, social media marketing tools, and web apps.
Some of the popular digital marketing or online marketing and SEO tools or web apps are following such as
- WordPress, WooCommerce, Shopify, Wix, and Squarespace for blog, eCommerce, portfolio, and business website creation.
- MailChimp, Sendinblue, Omnisend, and Convertkit for email marketing.
- Google search console, Google Keyword Planner, SEMrush, Ahrefs, Spyfu, etc. for keyword research and SEO.
- Microsoft Clarity, Google Analytics, SimilarWeb, SEMrush, and Hotjar for website data analytics, heatmaps, and user behaviors statistics and tracking.
You can see that there is software available for almost all types of business works and projects. Imagine if you have stopped using any one of the above software types in business from tomorrow or do not use any software in business, what you will do tomorrow or today?
Imagine if you do not use the software how the business will work or how you will manage the customer or grow your business.
For example, without the use of software in your business, you have to do the following things:
- You have to maintain a register for the attendance of each employee.
- You have to use another register for billing.
- You have to outsource all technology services to others.
- You have to pay more for each task.
- The work will become complicated.
- Employees have to spend more time in manual work which decreases productivity.
- No one will work with you it’s because the way you’re running a business will look like you’re living in the 18s’ or 19s or before the invention of the computer.
- No client will be interested to hire you because you’re outdated.
- Customers will not buy your product because the branding, quality, consistency, and speed in production are slow and not accurate.
- You have to do lots of paperwork. And you can’t save papers, accounts books for a long time. Getting details from paper is a slow and more tedious task than using the search, filter, and find options in the software.
I even can’t imagine how business can work without software. If you’re not using the latest technologies and software in your business for finance, productivity, marketing, content creation, user experience, delivery, data management, and communication then it means you’re still time-traveling to the 1980s or even before that. Instead, you have to look at future technology evolution and changes that will happen in the business.
Companies or organizations started before the invention of computers such as Cocoa Cola, Asian Paints, State Bank of India, Boeing, Harley-Davidson, and many others still in business for the last 50 or 100 years.
Why?
Why because they changed their business strategies, process, management, production, products, branding, marketing, and various other things as per the changes in technology, consumer behavior, demands, and business competition.
All types of medium and larger companies are paying or investing thousands of dollars in building their own custom software or investing in custom software development. Along with that they also pay for SaaS-based tools on a monthly or project basis.
Do you think these types of successful companies can survive for a week without the software?
No! Even any big or larger corporation or trillions of dollars companies can collapse within 24 hours without the use of software and the internet.
Technology has changed business. Every small and big economic activity in business today is digital, businesses are technology-dependent, health, human resource management, law and order, and transportation, and each type of infrastructure planning, creation, management, and monitoring is technology-dependent.
There are various uses of Computer in Business and it’s only mainly because of software. In one business computer, you can install, access, and use various types of financial, management, productivity, and marketing software or web applications.
Computer Hardware such as RAM, HDD, SSD, and LED (monitor) remain the same but each time software is different. Such as any human being can become a designer, writer, web developer, scientist, politician, actor, entrepreneur, and anything just because of their data, information, and knowledge (Software).
Similarly, in business, you can use 1 or 100 computers for various works. Think or imagine, if one computer is so much more powerful for you then think if you use 100 computers in business then where it will take you and your business? Obliviously 100 computers will be operated by 100 users or employees.
All or each of your employee or team members are on a computer or laptop using a particular software. HR departments or management teams use management and productivity software. The marketing department uses digital marketing tools + productivity software. Accounts departments use accounting software + productivity software etc.
What are the top 2 main components of any business technology, IoT, or computer?
It’s Software and Hardware. There is no use of hardware without software built and configured for that. And you can’t run any software without hardware.
Software is used to receive input from humans or objects through input devices such as a keyboard, mouse, sensor, camera, and many others.
Computers perform the task or process as per the software. If a software program or class logic is 2+2 = 5 written in the code then it will show 5, not 4. It’s because each software is created by humans and based on logic. If humans or software engineer do any mistakes during software development then it will cost millions of dollars for businesses and even create disasters for the life.
That’s why each software goes through the software testing phase. So that businesses can use it with full confidence and security.
Now let’s understand, how software helps business.
How software helps businesses in Management and Growth?
Every human who uses software or apps on mobile, computer, or tablet surely noticed or analyze or learn these top 10 things about software such as:
1. Increase the execution and decision-making speed:
You can access data and information at a speed. Whether you’re looking for traffic analytics, employee attendance, project progress, and a business loan account you will get information within seconds. It is because each activity is stored or logs are stored in a software database or in the backend.
With the use of DBMS (Data based management software) such as SQL, MYSQL, Mongo DB, and Oracle you can manage and filter data through database queries.
2. Accuracy and quality:
Accuracy in data entry, calculation, charts, and small or bigger data is very important. Any wrong details of customers or credit cards or employees and inventory can cost millions of dollars. That’s why each software is tested for bugs, updated regularly, and created with logic so that when you use the software in business, you will not get any errors or if you get an error it is solved through exception handling.
Each business logic in the software code is built and tested based on various conditions. The effective use of data types, Boolean, data structure, algorithms, and loops in the code for a particular input, process, and output makes it mandatory for the users to enter and get the correct details.
For example, if the software is instructed you to enter the name of the customer then it’s mandatory for you to enter the name of the customer in the alphabet. And obviously, the names of the people are not in numbers. And that’s why that option is programmed only to get the string value instead of integers or numbers values. Even if you enter numbers wrongly, you will get a warning to please enter the name in the correct data types (alphabets or charts or strings).
And that’s an example, of why software is so much correct and useful to use in business and almost any complex, repetitive, and high-risk work. It’s because people can do more mistakes than the software.
Any software goes through various development processes and lifecycles. Software is not built by common men or common computer operators but by software engineers, software developers etc. Most of them are highly intelligent and skilled. And there are various types of technologies and teams of developers involved in software development.
Most software is not built by one person but by a team of people. The software development project or steps is divided or delegated to each team member as per their expertise and creativity.
For example, if the software is needed to use Python for the backend, then python experts are hired. Similarly for front end, database, software testing, marketing, management, and maintenance.
That’s why software is so much more accurate.
3. Transparency:
Transparency in financial and business transactions is more than essential. No business or organization can survive without transparency. For example, you can’t make transactions without OTP in a bank account.
No one can change the details of your documents on software without your permission. No one can access your email, social media, and web application account without a user name and password. No one can change banking or payment transactions. It’s because they are immutable.
For example, if each detail of the transaction data is declared as a tuple object then you can’t modify the values tuples.
You will get the transaction time, amount details, source of the sender, and various other calculations. The transparency and quality also depend on the way software is planned, built, tested, and based on the intelligence of the software development team and leaders.
That’s why software engineers and developers get paid the highest level of salary due to their intelligence and software development skills. It’s because each project manager and companies expect to build the best and most transparent software for business and financial transactions. Any single-digit mistake can make or break the business.
4. Ease of use:
10 to 20 years ago software was not that easy to use. People were busy learning software or basic computer skills. Even today, you have to learn any complicated software new software or web application. But generally, if any software is difficult, today people alternate or another software. Making software easy to use for customers or users is mandatory.
Also due to the increased use of mobile apps and software in business and daily life, now people are used to the software. People are used to technology or software vocabulary. Such as most people now understand the meaning or use of options like open, new, close, exit, move, enter, filter, scroll, submit, enter, send, attach, download, upload, share, like, add, reload, search, crop, click etc.
And you can find these types of words or similar English words in the software. That’s why people are familiar with technology and software. And if they do no able to understand, they can learn and use search engines to find the uses and also join online courses to become skilled.
5. Saves time
When something is easy to use, responds quickly to user queries, is transparent, and is trustworthy then that will consume less time. Also, if the web application is hosted on the cloud server or managed hosting server then it will respond faster.
Each software is designed based on research and planning and business goals. For example, accounts software is fully designed and has all the options that are important for account management. Similarly, to create a website, you will get templates, themes, and drag-and-drop options in website builders.
To edit a photograph, you will get the option to select, crop, move, erase any part of the photo or make color changes.
And that’s why there are various types of software for each type of business work such as for email marketing campaigns there is email marketing software. For website creation, there are website building platforms or website builders. For data management, there is database management software. For SEO, SEO tools. For video editing, video editing software.
So each software is built based on the business goals. And when you get all the options to create, edit and publish content, and data with the use of software then it saves time.
There are various all-in-one software and packages for various works such as SEMRush for All SEO works, Microsoft 365 for All-in-One productivity software, and Creative Cloud for all-in-one design works.
6. Saves Money or Decrease Cost:
As you learned above software used in business increases and improves speed and transparency, reduces complexity, and saves time. When you get these benefits obviously you have to spend less money on the project or business cost or project cost gets reduced.
For example, think about if you do not use video meeting software or conference software or online video calls or webinar software then how much time and money do you have to spend on conducting the meeting?
If you do not use a website builder or WordPress to create a website then how much time and money do you have to spend on hiring a website designer?
Think, if you do not use presentation software to create presentations or videos then how much time, quality, the money do you have to compromise?
7. Freedom, Capability, and Capacity:
You’re free to access any business software especially SaaS-based business applications in your business anytime through any device. They are hybrid application that works on each device. You do not have to visit the office to know the business data, and project process or to work on the business. You can manage everything from home through the internet and software.
And you can generate and store an unlimited amount of data through web applications.
8. Business Data Security and Privacy:
Your business data is secure. And each team member or client needs access from the administrator to use the particular option. Such as in CRM tools, and customer support software no one knows the contact details such as email, and phone numbers of your business customers still, they use calls and interact with customers.
Also, through software, you can take a backup of your business data on the cloud. And you can also save your business data on cloud-based data storage options.
Each data storage or application input and output is protected through encryption, firewall, and malware within the application or through third-party antivirus applications and backup tools.
9. Helps in monitoring the progress:
You can monitor your business, workplace, project process, marketing, and website traffic through software and monitoring tools. And you can monitor business activities through mobile from anywhere and anytime. Modern software’s location and device-independent or hybrid.
For example, you can track product delivery through delivery apps. You can monitor Trucks and transportation through GPS + software, google maps. You can monitor website traffic through data analytics apps.
Else, without monitoring and analytics tools you have to depend on other sources such as phone calls, fax, and the signature of the receiver or shopkeepers. Everything is digital and software is available for everything. Even if you’re starting a new business, you can build software to automate your process and system from the start.
10. Generate reports for data analytics and decision-making:
Having reporting system is common and important to have in software. Reporting can be about sales, websites, calls, transactions or any other. But getting and managing those reports automatically within the software is so much useful.
For example, you can use excel to create sales reports, you can use SEO tools to audit your website, and you can use social media analytics tools to know the performance of your marketing strategies and activities.
And these days the use of AI in business helps to not only generate reports but also helps you to analyze or provide suggestions automatically.
Conclusion: We can say that desktop software, mobile apps and web application, and all types of software helps business in document writing, data management, accounts management, website creation, competitive analysis, collaboration, training and teaching, and almost everything as per the software.
It means whether you built custom software for your business processes or sales, or marketing or use any available other popular SaaS or desktop-based application, CRM, Marketing, and Business management software. But one day or time you have to use the software no matter the type of business.
Every business and activity is technology, software, and internet dependent. And it’s increasing day by day. If you start using the software today in any area of business such as customer relationship management, you will get competitive advantages, more conversion, and sales.
So, I believe and am 100% sure that the post helped you to learn more than 100 things about software’s importance in business. If you liked this post, please share it with your followers and friends.