The responsibilities of Business consultancies have become multifaceted so much so that they have to go through a million directions every single day. While working towards getting new clients, they have to look at various aspects of their existing clients. While doing so much, things can get mind-boggling. In such a scenario, the only thing that can ease the work and make them more efficient is the usage of the right tools.
While there are a plethora of tools available, taking a prudential call is very important. It is not only for the sake of easing the work but also for ensuring a better relationship with the clients by using the right technology and thereby maintaining an upper hand in an industry that has too many competitors already. This article will discuss some of the best tools that business consultants can make use of.
Tools for Client Relationship Management
Tools for Communication
Tools for Project Management
Tools for Finance
Tools for Social Media Scheduling
Tools for Client Relationship Management
Capsule
Client Relationship Management CRM is one of the most important aspects of business consulting. Keeping track of the client information, vendors, contacts etc, Capsule is an excellent application used by both individuals and businesses. It is an all in one stop to maintain a record of deals, bids, proposals and all other relevant information about the client.
It is designed specifically for growing businesses and thereby gives different levels of access to different kinds of clients. This feature becomes extremely useful when it comes to situations wherein different team members work at different phases of the respective project. The app is also mobile-friendly.
Keap
Keap provides a centralised system that is integrated to collect, assemble and manage information of the customer. Along with the CRM facilities that it provides, Keap goes the extra mile by providing a platform for sales and marketing automation.
Additionally, email automation, appointment scheduling, sales pipelining, invoicing etc are some other features that Keap offers. Thus, Keap becomes a single stop for a number of activities that would have otherwise required more than twenty apps.
Tools for Communication
Ring Central
Communication with clients in a professional setup goes beyond emails. Today, with the hyper integration of technology into our daily lives, instantaneous responses have become a basic norm that the client expects the business consultancy to follow.
RingCentral is a multifunctional collaboration tool that helps the client gain access to the respective consultancy in any manner. The best part is that you don’t have to ask the client to download any app since it can be accessed via browser as well. It helps you share your screen, shift from different forms of calls and so on. They have designed their services to be compatible with both iOS and Android so that the team members can work from their personal devices.
Slack
Slack is a communication platform that helps you send instant messages to your team through a messenger. It helps you create specific groups for different purposes of communication between the group members.
They have specially curated archives that keep an eye on every detail of the discussion that has ever been made through the platform. With more than a thousand app integrations, Slack is an excellent platform that helps you streamline your business communications and progress.
Abinaya Arangarajan
Tools for Project Management
Accelo
Managing a project and delivering it to the client at the right time without exceeding the budget is what sustains and attracts more clients to the business. Accelo adds value to this vision by helping the consultancies to manage time through automation of various tasks which would otherwise need manual inputs.
It has the additional facility to integrate the functionalities of already existing apps like Gmail, Microsoft office etc into their domain. They also generate automatic invoices by making use of projects and timesheets. Based on the client requirements, the app lets you collaborate with their respective products and thereby keep a track of the progress of the same.
Trello
Project Management being a cumbersome task demands an efficient app to keep track of the progress of the project. Trello is an excellent app in that regard. It has a very user-friendly interface that provides en number of options for customisation.
It helps in managing, organising and capturing details of the project into completion. To further increase the efficiency of the work done through the app, Trello has also integrated itself with many other apps.
Tools for Finance
Xero
Tracking account details, reviewing bills that are to be received and payable, payroll management etc are important activities that should be managed properly for all your efforts to bear fruit.
Xero is an excellent app that is made in this regard for business consultants. It gives you an exemplary dashboard view of all your finances that comes along with various features for expense management.
They have designed the app in such a way that, it is capable of handling international businesses at a multi-currency level. By automatically tracking payments and backing up relevant data, Xero has gained the attention and interest of business consultants over a short span of time.
QuickBooks
It is another app that is specifically made for filing taxes. It is a single space where you can manage money and expenses. Very similar to Xero, it allows you to track your expenses, create invoices and keep track of the inflow and outflow of money.
Tools for Social Media Scheduling
Hootsuite
Social media marketing has evolved as one of the primary factors for brand building and publicity. An app like Hootsuite steps in time to understand and adapt to the nuances of the industry.
It helps you maintain all your social media marketing in a single place. The users can create content and share it across whichever social media platform they choose. Considering the fact that a firm will need multiple accounts on various platforms, an app like Hootsuite will be handy.
Conclusion
There is a number of apps that offers you to make everything look easy. It is important to look at the details of every app before depending on it completely.
One thing to be mindful of is that, no matter how automated things get, it is advisable to have manual supervision of the overall process in itself so as to ensure a better quality of work and to avoid any technical mistakes which could have otherwise been avoided. Being a business consultant is not easy. However, using the right tools at the right time can make a big difference.
FAQs
What are some of the best business consultant tools?
Trello, Slack, Keap, Capsule, and Hootsuite are some of the best consultant tools.
What work does a business consultant do?
A business consultant advises businesses and helps them reach their goal. The business consultant also helps companies overcome any challenges.
