Business as usual is no longer business as usual. Things have changed and a lot of it has to do with the smartphone. According to mobiThinking, there are over one billion smartphones in use around the world. This means there are even more apps in the Play Store and the App Store and on these one billion devices. For entrepreneurs and business owners, business has become more mobile and more fast. Entrepreneurs use apps to accept payments, scan business cards and more.
Rescue a CEO asked some entrepreneurs what phone apps they use that are best for their business.
Whats App, Evernote & Dropbox
I rely on my smartphone heavily – no matter where I am in the world. Iwould say my top three apps are: (1) WhatsApp – It allows me to communicate with my partners, employees, and my wife and children at times when I am unable to speak on the phone. A powerful short message in the right time goes a long way. (2) Evernote – this free app allows me to takes notes of anything I need, and syncs to all my devices automatically. Then, when I return to my office or my home, it's waiting for me on my computer. Easy to use, and very powerful. (3) Dropbox – Having access to all my files on my phone is remarkable. I have the reputation of having everything at my fingertips, because I have access to everything literally at my fingertips. Easy to retrieve or forward files and information, it enables me to carry the equivalent of multiple filing cabinets with me wherever I go.
Thanks to Steve Zeitchik, Focal Point Strategies!
Logmein, Swann & Brivo
I own a small gym in a neighborhood surrounded with bigger shinier gyms. I had to find a way to work smarter and yet stay in control of my business. My main business apps are logmein, Swann & Brivo. (1) Logmein allows me to control the computers in my workplace. This allows me to interact with my member sign in and computer that plays the music. (2) Swann controls my video surveillance system so that I can see and record the who, what and where during the gyms opening and closing hours when I am not physically there. (3) With Brivo, I can shut down or open the door from anywhere I can receive internet access. I can also monitor who has been in and out of the gym throughout the day.
Thank you, Cynthia Phillips, ABSolute Body Symmetry!
Evernote, Trendslide, & WordPress
Here are my top 3: (1) Evernote – Flexible app that allows me to create to do lists, clip web content for later reading, save notes from meetings and conferences, and much more. (2) Trendslide – Get my business trends from anywhere anytime. Securely connects up to data sources that businesses use like Salesforce, Shopify, Google Analytics and more and provides analytics on the go. In full disclosure, I'm the Co-Founder of Trendslide. (3) WordPress – Our website runs off WordPress so being able to make quick changes anytime from anywhere is key, especially in the constantly changing market.
Thanks to Jeffrey Vocell, Trendslide!
Evernote, Car2Go & Twitter
I am an Apple fangirl, and I use the following 3 apps on a daily basis that I would die without: (1) Evernote – I keep notes and sync to all of my devices (2) Car2Go – I live in Portland, OR and I do not own a car. I use this app to find nearby cars in the Car2Go car sharing service. (3) Twitter – I stay up to date and communicate with other entrepreneurs on Twitter.
Thanks to Kathryn Hough, Huedio!
Harvest, DropBox & Sendible
(1) Harvest -Harvest lets me and my staff track time and send invoices from one integrated application. This way even while away from the office I can track my billable time as well as keep tabs on the staffs productivity. (2) DropBox-We have staff all across the US and even world therefore we use DropBox to share files, so all parties involved in a project can see the most updated document regardless of location. (3) Sendible-This is a social media management application. Not only do we use it to manage our own social media, but all of our clients as well. This app allows me to keep tabs on all clients at one. For example if they are talked about or mentioned on social media I will be notified.
Thanks to Jamie Pritscher, nuphoriq!