If you run a business, chances are you use apps to make sales. With 83% of the United Kingdom’s population owning a smartphone and spending an average of 148 minutes on it daily, apps are a clever and convenient way to tap your market.
But apps can also benefit a business internally. Recent data showed that over 84% of UK employees used their smartphones at work. Interestingly, though, this same study indicates that only 44% of employers permit “reasonable” smartphone use. Today, with more aspects of business transitioning to the online sphere, it’s about time that more businesses start incorporating apps in their business processes. So, to better your internal operations and empower employees, here are some apps to consider:
For Communication: Slack
Slack is one of the most popular real-time chat apps, and for good reason. Companies and departments can create their own Slack team that can only be accessed via invite, ensuring privacy and security. Once on the app, users are greeted with a clean and simple interface that makes navigation easy. Slack also allows you to share documents, links, and files via the platform. To keep things streamlined, employees can create different channels to avoid flooding older chats. And thanks to Slack’s login and status bar features, employees can indicate when their business hours are, and whether they’re busy, in a meeting, or on leave. This makes it easy for others to determine, at a glance, who is available and what they’re doing.
For Marketing: VSCO
Studies by 3M corporation highlight that the human brain processes images 60,000 times faster than text. Therefore, businesses need to focus on the quality of their marketing visuals. Rather than having your team use complicated time-consuming software, try using the VSCO app instead. In Later’s post on marketing applications for businesses, VSCO is described as a free but powerful image editing app that’s compatible with iOS and Android devices. With VSCO, you can add filters and use photo packs to improve any photo, regardless of the subject. Many of VSCO’s filters are also designed to be particularly striking on social media, which is an added bonus since a lot of modern digital marketing is done on these platforms.
For Cloud Accounting: Xero
If you have a leaner team, you’ll want to optimise as much production time as possible. Rather than producing individual invoices and manually tracking billings, you can use an app like Xero. This cloud accounting software is accessible through all Internet-connected screens, and the interface is easy to navigate. With Xero, you can create personalised invoices, arrange automatic billing, and record real-time expenses. These features make the whole accounting process much quicker, allowing your team to focus on other aspects of the business.
For Employee Wellness: Headspace
Stress is unavoidable, even in the happiest of companies. In fact, a survey by Indeed shows that 67% of Brits feel burnt out. And with work pressure, societal circumstances, and personal issues, this comes as no surprise. To support employees, a wellness app is a good initiative. According to Inc’s list of top mental health applications, Headspace provides users with meditation tutorials as well as calming stories and songs designed to relax. Such a wellness app will not only help employees cope but also communicate your care as an employer.
Of course, down the line, you may find that you need to add or reduce the apps your business uses. Thankfully, another advantage of apps is that you’ll never run out of choice. Forbes notes that over 8.93 million mobile applications exist as of 2020, with Google, Apple, and ApkGK among the top resources to find them.
To fine-tune your app selection process, check out our ‘What Apps Can Do for You’ post, which highlights how apps can help with branding, communications, and lead generation. Once you’ve determined the function you need, it’s easier to discover the app best suited for your organisation. Sooner or later, you may even decide on creating your own bespoke app, like the ones we create here on PocketApp.
