As a small business owner, you understand the struggle to both get the tools you need to scale your business while also making sure you are bootstrapped and profitable. Don’t worry, we’re here to help you out! Take a look at some of these top Mac applications for small business owners.
Applications for Small Business: Productivity
We want to tell you a few popular productivity apps that can be helpful to any business size before we discuss more task-specific apps. Here are a bunch of apps that can be used personally and professionally that can help you. Bonus: if you are unsatisfied with the product, learn how to uninstall apps on Mac!
Evernote
Evernote allows you to copy and paste pieces of information you find online while searching. You can also tag and alter any of your findings by adding, condensing, or embedding. You can embed anything such as pictures, tables, audio, and video. Evernote can also be used to develop organic notes and journaling, to-do lists, recipes, contacts, and storage. You can store social media posts and emails you want to keep on hand.
All of the tools mentioned above are available in the free basic version. Evernote’s other option is a business version that costs $12 per user, per month. The business option includes several added features including administrator controls and unlimited space for uploads.
Wunderlist
To simply define Wunderlist, it is a to-do list, but a very productive one. You can create any number of tasks and share them with whoever you want. There is a list syncing options so that whoever you share the list with will see which items have been completed and have not.
A high power business app has been launched by Wonderlist that allows you to delegate tasks to team members. You can even break down these tasks into subtasks, add notes, set deadlines, and program reminders. A basic version of Wonderlist is free and the business version is $4.99 per user per month.
See an article you want to read, but you don’t have the at the moment? Well, pocket makes it easy to save videos, articles, and whatever else you find on the interweb, so you can look at them later. This is great if you think Evernote might be too overwhelming or you are looking for a simpler version.
If social media is getting to you, Pocket could be your best solution for that nighttime winddown. The best part is that you do not need an internet connection to view what you saved during the day. Pockets are simple to use and they’re all free.
Customer Relations
If you have mastered the to-do list, businesses still need a good system to keep track of their customers. Customer relationship management apps (CRMs) help keep track of everything that has to do with your customers. These following apps can help keep customer information, past and pending purchases, and anything else essential-have great customer relationship management.
Streak
If you use Gmail or Google Apps in your small business, Streaks is an awesome little CRM that integrates with both. Streak lets you keep track of where you are in your business relationships, instead of organizing customers by contact.
For example, maybe you just started to create a presentation or you are about to finalize a deal. You can view all emails related to each client using Streak. The news feed feature can keep your team updated on your status and everything else on the app.
The basic version of Streaks is free for up to five users. To enhance the basic plan, it ranges from $50 to $99 a month per user.
Insightly
Insightly is also a relationship manager that contains a lot of project management features, which makes it a one-stop-shop for small businesses.
Some of their features are categorizing contacts with tags, integrating their social network profiles, and managing leads. You can also create tasks for your team, set up what they call pipelines, track the status of tasks, and create email reminders to remind them of deadlines.
There is a basic version, but again, if you want to up the features on your version, the price can range from $29 to $99 per user annually.
Nimble
Nimble might be the right CRM for you if your company has a prominent social media presence. It extracts data from your contacts’ social profiles, updating automatically, so you do not have to. Nimble will analyze shred interest and will connect with Gmail, Outlook, Hootsuite and many other services.
Nimble can also learn what relationships you value as you interact with the program frequently. This will allow it to likely highlight future opportunities. There is a starting price of $12 a month per user.
Accounting
You get paid but you still have expenses. You want a way to keep track of expenses going in and out. It’s especially important when tax time comes around. Here are a few accounting apps that will let you know what’s going on with your money.
QuickBooks Online
Like many small businesses, you are probably using QuickBooks or your accountant. QuickBooks has lots of things going for it, which includes its familiar, easy-to-navigate interface and integration with other services. Features include sending invoices on the go, viewing balances, approving estimates, and linking to many other services including PayPal.
It is $15 per month for the base version of QuickBooks Online, including invoicing, check printing, and bank integration. If you want more advanced features, such as bill payment schedule, purchase order management, and inventory tracking, it will cost $35 to $50 a month.
FreshBooks
If you are looking for a less high-powered accounting solution because you are more service-oriented, then you may want to look into FreshBooks. It is an easy-to-use option that offers functionality on the go. You can track hours, log receipts, and send invoices from your personal smart device.
The tools offered are highly visual and intuitive. Freshbooks integrates with several accounting tools, such as Basecamp, PayPal, Google Apps, and ZenPayroll. Keep in mind that FreshBooks doesn’t offer double-entry bookkeeping.
A base plan of FreshBooks starts at $15 a month and allows you to manage up to 5 clients. A more fully-featured version allows unlimited clients for up to $50 a month.
Wave
So, you are on a tight budget and the last thing you want to do is to give more money up to keep track of your money. There is an app you can use, it’s called Wave.
If you have fewer than 10 employees, Wave can take care of invoices, expense tracking, receipt scanning and more. Wave is easy to use, you can add links to your account and you can integrate with PayPal and other services, too.
The free version of Wave does have ads, so I would keep that in mind when going to use it. You can also pay for certain added features like payroll or premium customer support. They both start at $20 per month.
Final Thoughts
If you’re struggling with your small business, there are plenty of apps that are available to make it easier to keep track. The right combination of tools can streamline your business processes and simplify finances. You will save time and money. What could be better?
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