| |
| |
|
Small Business Information |
|
|
|
What is Business Process Automation?
Business Process Automation or BPA for short. This was a buzzword a few years back with anyone and everyone claiming they were experts in this area. Maybe so. But to really realize its true potential you need to understand what business process automation is and why you will need it? If you own/run/manage a business, take a look around yourself at the daily activities you perform to run your business effectively and efficiently. If you do observe closely, you will quickly notice that you (or your staff) do perform a lot of tasks that are generally repetitive in nature or they may be administrative tasks; tasks that you have to perform and are necessary to run your business. Let me elaborate that with an example. A customer calls and enquires about a product you market. You tell the customer you will send a product brochure. You take all relevant information like prospect name, address etc. and walk over to your secretary. Your secretary takes the information, chooses the appropriate brochure, creates a covering letter, puts it in an envelope and mails it to your customer. Sounds familiar, right? Well, what if I told you that process automation automates the entire process above using the Internet? And all with zero involvement from you? Or anyone else from your organization? Would that be cool? Let me help you visualize it. Your prospect comes over to your web site, browses and is now seeking more information on a specific product. You have the prospect fill in all relevant information from within your web site. When the prospect submits the information, your web site will automatically save the information electronically in a database and send a personalized email to your prospect (i.e. thanking him/her for the enquiry and providing instructions to download the brochure). Your system can also follow up automatically after a few days with that specific prospect asking if they have any other questions or if you could be of any help. This is, in essence, business process automation. You are automating the different business processes within your business. The beauty of automating this is the zero-involvement from your business. Let's take this a step further. If the prospect does decide to buy the specific product, they can purchase it directly from your web site (via a shopping cart). Your web site will already know what your prospect had received so you can "speed up" the process by simply collecting payment information over a secure line, process the transaction and then send new shipping details to your customer. The prospects details now go into the customer database (because you have converted a prospect into a customer). The order details automatically get sent to your order-processing department for order fulfillment. When the order is shipped, your order-processing department updates the "system" with ETA for the product. Your customer can now automatically track the status of their order. And you can actually get an overview of how many orders were received, shipped, transacted; all through a browser. Even if you were holidaying and were miles away from home/office. Can you think of all the costs you have saved by automating routine, mundane tasks that have typically needed human intervention in the past? That, in essence, is the power of automation. Elvin Picardo
MORE RESOURCES:
Small-Business - Google News |
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
How to Start a Paper Shredding Business Paper Shredding Business Opportunities are blossoming up everywhere because in recent years, privacy concerns and new policies have forced companies all over the country to invest in paper shredding services. Large corporations and small are in need of shredding services. Consistency with Janitorial and Cleaning Businesses Consistency is a huge word when operating your business. I believe it is one of the key ingredients to success. The 5 Habits of Highly Successful Small-Business Owners Have you ever wondered what the difference is between a business that consistently grows and another that struggles just to make ends meet? Or why a business that was started in a basement of a home can outperform some of the best-run "big" companies in sales and profits?Two businesses, operating in the same marketing arena and selling the same products or services, can have extraordinarily different results. How can one business continually grow and prosper, while the other struggles? How can one business owner run a highly successful business while still spending a good portion of his or her time away from the business on trips and vacations with the family, and another owner work day and night only to see his business fail?Such questions have always intrigued me. The Wrap on Ag Plastic While driving through Pennsylvania farmland, you have probably noticed an increased amount of white plastic bundles stacked in lines or piles along farm buildings or edges of farm fields. Sometimes referred to as "marshmallows" or "long white tubes", etc. Get Out Of The Rut And Back On the Track Do you sometimes find yourself just going "through the motions" of your business from day to day? Has the excitement gone out of your daily routine?What happened? Remember way back when you began doing this? You were excited and enthusiastic about what you were going to do. What went wrong? Where did the excitement and enthusiasm go? More importantly, how do you get it back?Of course, this may be a signal that it is time for you to make some changes or to "move on. The Misconceptions of the Value Of Disclosures in Franchising Disclosure laws in franchising are suppose to help the consumer. They don't. Small Business Owners - They Owe You The Money Why Dont They Pay? Doesn't it frustrate you when you've given good service, sometimes super service, and the customer doesn't pay you?Some of them aren't doing too well and are struggling for cash, but, gee, so are you. In the time they take to pay they could have paid off a little each week and the debt would be gone. Credit Repair Business Opportunities - Huge Profit Potential! In the world today, many people are further in debt than they realize. When they finally come to understand they need help, they are on the brink of bankruptcy. There Are No Dumb Business Questions, Not! Q: I'm curious. What is the dumbest business question you've ever been asked? -- Norris W. 7 Cash Flow Secrets Your Accountant Never Told You Looking for ways to boost your cash flow? As a small business consultant, I make these recommendations to my cash strapped small business clients:1. Shoeboxes are for shoes, not business records. Small Business And The Ability To Find Market Place Opportunities Marketing is one of the four corner-posts of a solid business. Knowing a few marketing tricks is great, but to be really successful you must be able to assess market place opportunities. What Your Small Business Can Learn From The Doctor Most doctors never distinguish the difference between customers and patients. That's why they have waiting rooms instead of reception areas. Shortcuts Will Kill Your Business Think of your business as a living, breathing, organism. It requires you to give it a large portion of your time and effort in order for it to grow and flourish. FTC Adding to the Franchise Rule Last summer the FTC put forth a report and then asked for comments on modifications of the franchise rule. There has been no real significant changes since the 1970's, but lots of opinions and case law along the way. Increase Productivity and Business Success - Take Responsibility Are you responsible for your results?What comes to mind when I say that?When you hear that you're totally responsible for the results you produce in your business and in your life---you might jump to a conclusion. You may think that I'm suggesting that you should take the blame for your results. When to Say NO! When is it a good thing to say no to a request?Balance in one's life is perhaps the most important goal for busy people. They can take on many more projects that most others. How to Give Informative Talks Why should you do informative talks to smaller groups?Informative talks to smaller groups allow you more intimacy with the audience. You will be able to more closely connect with their needs and their responses to your speech. Pressure Washing and Hospital Accounts Most pressure washing companies never look into some of the best niche markets. One, which you may not have thought about is Hospitals and if you run a pressure washing company it can mean good steady income. The Game Plan - The Difference Between Small Business Success And Failure It is an American dream to own a business. But sadly, according to the U. Firing Underperforming Employees in Your Small Business Here are a few tips on how to hand out pink slips when it comes time to terminate an employee.As a small business owner with employees, you will likely find it necessary one day to terminate an underperforming employee - if you haven't already.
|
| home | site map |
| © 2006 |
