How can you save hours each week on the most tedious tasks?
Are you just getting your startup off the ground? If so, your team is probably inundated with important tasks and lacking breathing room.
The startup life can be hectic, but it doesn't need to be. Many low-cost SaaS (Software-as-a-Service) tools and on-demand services are designed for small businesses looking to cut down on to-dos.
While it would be nice to have an extra weekday to get things done, the Gregorian Calendar tells us no. So for now, take a look at four time-saving tools for startups:
Julie Desk
www.juliedesk.com | Starting at $60/month
Conference calls and in-person meetings are probably a regular occurrence for your team as you meet with investors, partners and even customers. Marking these appointments on your calendar and sending invitations can become a full-time job in itself.
Julie,an AI-based virtual assistant, handles all of this for you. Simply CC Julie in corresponding emails, and it will send send your availability to whoever will be participating. After collecting responses, Julie will confirm the meeting, create a calendar event and send invitations.
Trello
www.trello.com | Paid version starting at $8.33/month
Are you having trouble organizing and delegating important to-dos? Trello is a simple project management platform based on the Kanban system. With Trello, you can organize tasks into lists using a drag-and-drop interface, and even assign them to specific people with due dates.
Outside of its many organization features, Trello is also integrated with third-party services so that you can do things like attach Google Drive or Dropbox files to tasks, or even connect timesheets to Harvest.
Buffer
www.buffer.com | Paid version starting at $10/month
Getting your startup off the ground requires effective marketing. Social media is an easy way to kickstart your brand by delivering relevant content to a targeted audience. Unfortunately, posting content manually can be very time-consuming.
Buffer is a content-scheduling tool for social networks. With Buffer, you can schedule content ahead of time to one or more social networks, and the service will automatically send posts out at optimized times. The service also features built-in analytics and RSS feed integration for easier content curation.
Zapier
www.zapier.com | Paid version starting at $20/month
How do you connect Google Sheets, Salesforce and Evernote? Beyond basic built-in integrations, the more specific tasks have to be done manually.
Zapier automates tasks between the digital services that your startup uses. It's the IFTTT (If This, Then That) for business - you connect two services together using an action (called a "Zap"), and when it's triggered, the process is automated in the background.
For instance, you can have Zapier save new Typeform entries to a Google Sheet, create Trello cards from GitHub issues, or even create Salesforce leads from Gmail emails.
Bonus: Minibar
www.minibardelivery.com | Pricing Varies
OK, maybe not the most important service on this list - but several studies do say that alcohol ( in moderation of course) sparks creativity. This might be why you see some co-working spaces offering craft beer on tap. Maybe not.
Either way, Minibar saves your startup time by delivering wine, beer and spirits directly to your office. At the very least, it's a helpful tool to order and deliver drinks to your startup's happy hour.