29 January 2012
How you can use website and on-line tools to bring other business benefits other than sales and marketing.

Try throwing in the words ‘online’ and ‘websites’ in a business conversation. More often than not, discussions are based around ways of achieving higher sales and getting more customers. Therefore, it is no surprise that most businesses would regard sales and marketing as the main purpose of their website strategy.

Nonetheless, websites can do more than just 'bring in the dough'. Back operation processes can also harness web technology to create many business benefits, and these positive effects can either directly or indirectly impact your business’ bottom line. Some of these benefits include:

Reduced operating cost

Minimised human error

Scaling of existing systems to meet demand

Better accessibility and control over systems

Enhanced after sales experience

Improved internal communication

It doesn’t matter if you’re a large corporation with 20,000 employees, or a student attempting to start a business in a basement. Website tools and web applications have benefited organisations of all sizes.

To get you started, here are some examples of popular business tools.

Online Business Accounting

Keep your account books and client invoicing tasks up to speed. Some providers offer online support, which lets you solve most accounting problems without appointing an accountant. Suitable for start-ups and small businesses.

Main Features: Accounting, Bookkeeping, Client Billing
3rd Party Tools (UK): Crunch, Clever Accounts, Sage, Kashflow

Customer Service & Support

Customers nowadays expect great service even after purchase. Online customer support tools such as ticketing & FAQ system enables you to keep costs low while meeting customer support demands. Extremely useful for businesses with high volume of customer queries.

Main Features: Customer support & ticketing
3rd Party Tools: Zen Desk, Zoho

HR & Employee Management

From hiring to managing, these tools keep your employee management tasks to a minimum. The essential tools let you calculate payroll, record working times and track working performance. For hiring duties, place job adverts and manage CVs with ease.

Main Features: Manage payroll, automate hiring process
3rd Party Tools: Clockspot, Intuit, Job Mount

Conference & Meeting Tools

Using online tools, it’s never been easier to communicate with your clients and colleagues, wherever they are. Use them to host web meetings and conferences with the convenience of presenting digital materials such as slideshows, audio and video clips.

Main Features: Host web meetings and conferences
3rd Party Tools: GoToMeeting, Webex, Mega Meeting

Collaborative & Sharing

Manage, share and collaborate digital media via the web. Great for groups working on a single project, as well as general collaboration amongst work colleagues.

Main Features: Team collaboration and file sharing
3rd Party Tools: Huddle, Camp Fire



These are a few common online business tools that companies have used for everyday business tasks. To implement any online tool on your website, you can either hire a web developer to build it from scratch or from a template, or purchase ready made solutions from a 3rd party supplier. Both of these options have their pros and cons. Remember to do the required research and make sure the provider you choose meets all your business needs, such as cost, size, tool features and support.