Top Business Apps to Accelerate Small Business Growth in 2016

There’s a good reason why business growth is one of the most popular topics online today.

It’s the #1 goal of most business owners. After all, business growth means more money, and just about everyone wants to make more money.

But what actually makes a small business grow?

Things like good management, good employees, a solid marketing plan, and…

Mobile apps?

That’s right.

And I’m not just talking about creating a cost-effective mobile app for your business (although that’s a great idea too). I’m talking about downloading apps to your smartphone and using them on a daily basis. Who knows – you might even want to recommend certain business apps to your employees too!

Bottom line:

By using apps to boost your productivity or otherwise improve your business, you can propel your business to greater success than ever.

So today, we’re going to discuss 14 business apps that’ll help you do just that.

Let’s get started.

 

1. Evernote

Have you ever felt frustrated after losing an important notebook or document? Or wished for a more effective way to take notes at meetings, organize your thoughts, and plan your content (like blog posts)?

If so, you should consider using Evernote.

Simply put, it’s a digital notebook you can use to quickly keep track of your ideas so you can revisit them later and avoid forgetting the important stuff.

But don’t dismiss Evernote if that benefit doesn’t make it sound useful – you can use it for so much more than jotting down random ideas. For example, you can use it to take notes on client calls, outline blog posts, and organize all of your business information.

Best of all, Evernote Business (the $12 per user per month version) allows you to easily collaborate with everyone on your team. You can invite co-workers to join specific notebooks and leave their own notes on what you’ve written.

And you don’t have to worry about not having access to your notebooks when there’s no WiFi nearby – you can access them any time. No internet connection necessary.

2. Square Register

Imagine what your professional life might be like if you had to haul around a clunky cash register everywhere you went to accept payments. What if that was literally the only way you could accept customer payments when you’re out of the office?

It’d be ridiculously difficult – so much so that you’d probably avoid accepting payment altogether.

Fortunately, you can use the Square Register app to easily turn your phone into a credit card reader so you can accept payments without invoicing or using a physical register.

Want to offer a discount of accept a gift card? No problem – the app allows you to do both.

On top of that, Square Register app allows you to send digital receipts to customers, track your inventory and sales history, and download previous transaction information as an Excel file. You can even use the app to allow merchants and customers to give each other feedback if an issue arises with the product sold.

3. Wunderlist

Paper to-do lists are a thing of the past. In today’s business world, it’s often better to go digital. That way, you can reduce paper clutter (and go green!), keep track of your lists more easily, and access your lists conveniently from anywhere.

Interested? If so, download the Wunderlist app.

Not only is it great for creating digital to-do lists – it allows you to share those lists, sends you reminders for tasks that need to be completed soon, and let you re-arrange your list items as your priorities change.

Worried that your many to-do lists will get lost and start to overwhelm you?

That won’t happen if you use the Wunderlist features to their full potential and filter your tasks by due date (or other specifications).

And guess what? The app is free to use. But if you want more functionality, you can download the premium version, which allows you to assign unlimited to-dos, upload large file sizes, and more.

4. Slack

If you’re researched communication apps for your small business at all, you’ve probably encountered Slack. It has become wildly popular for its simple, intuitive interface and useful collaboration features.

But don’t think that you’ll be able to use Slack to its full potential right away – there’s a bit of a learning curve, so you and your team might need to devote a week or two to figuring out the best way to use the app based on your business operations and customize your Slack experience.

Don’t let that stop you from using the app though.

Once you and your team figure it out, there’s a good chance you’ll notice improved productivity due to the way the app streamlines the way you collaborate.

For example, instead of digging through your emails for a conversation/document, you can simply use the Slack search tool to find what you need. You can also create multiple groups for different departments, projects, etc.

You can get the Lite plan for free if you want to try Slack out. From there, you can always upgrade to the paid plan, which starts at $8 per month per user.

5. HipChat

Similar to Slack, HipChat is an app that makes it easy for you and your team to collaborate using group messaging, instant messaging, and file sharing.

Feature	Slack	HipChat
Free Plan	Lite plan available	More features in free plan
Paid Plan Cost	$8 per user/month	$2 per user/month
Collaboration Tools	Extensive	Comprehensive

One of the biggest differences?

The price. HipChat offers more in the free plan, and the HipChat Plus option is only $2 per user per month. A perfect option for a small business on a tight budget.

If you’re not sure whether HipChat or Slack is the better option for your team, consider checking out this study that examines the pros and cons of each app based on employee responses.

You can always try the free version of both apps. Once you’ve done that, you should be able to see what works best for your team and choose one app or

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334b2da1c”>social media marketing, much like content marketing, requires some time and effort before it pays off. But fortunately, you can use the Hootsuite app to majorly cut down on the time you spend posting to your social media accounts.

Hootsuite allows you to schedule your posts ahead of time, which means you can get all of your social media marketing done at once rather than having to constantly worry about it. You can even post to multiple social networks at once and shorten links (this really helps when you’re working with Twitter’s character limit!).

You can use Hootsuite for free, but you also have the option to upgrade to a paid plan if you want other features, like premium app access, multiple users, real-time analytics, and priority support.

Plus, they’ve got an amazing app icon.

 

13. Pocket

Have you ever come across a blog post or website you wanted to look at, only to get sidetracked by a more urgent business-related task?n problem for busy business owners. If you’ve ever experienced it, try Pocket.

This easy-to-use app allows you to save videos, articles, blog posts, and pretty much anything else you’ll find online so you can view it later.

And you don’t need an internet connection to view your saved items – all you have to do is open up the app, and it’ll be there waiting for you.

That means no more missing out on the things you’re most interested in that can help you power your business forward. It’ll all be stored in your digital Pocket.

14. Swype

If you didn’t grow up using a smartphone, you might find typing on your phone tedious to the point where it significantly slows down your productivity.

With Swype, you can make typing on your smartphone easier than ever.

Feature	Normal Keyboard	Swype
Input Method	Tapping individual letters	Gesture-based input
Typing Speed	Slower	Faster
Accuracy	Standard	Known for accuracy
Additional Features	None	Emoji keyboard, customizable layout

That might sound like a recipe for disaster as far as accuracy is concerned if you’ve never used the app before, but Swype is actually known for its accuracy. On top of that, the app includes an emoji keyboard and allows you to customize your keyboard layout for easy use.

It’ll cost you 99 cents to download in the app store, but it’s completely worth it if you find yourself regularly frustrated with typing on your smart phone.

There you have it – 14 apps that’ll help you grow your small business.

Start downloading, and take note of how much each app helps you. Who knows – you might be surprised at the huge difference a simple app can for your business.

Which of these apps will you plan to download? Share in the comments!

Frequently Asked Questions

• What is Hootsuite used for? Hootsuite is used for scheduling social media posts and managing multiple social media accounts from one platform.
• Can I use Pocket offline? Yes, Pocket allows you to view saved items without an internet connection.
• Is Swype available for free? No, Swype costs 99 cents to download from the app store.
• What are the benefits of using Swype? Swype offers faster typing speeds, gesture-based input, and customizable keyboard layouts.
• How can these apps help my business? These apps can improve productivity, streamline social media management, and help you save and access important content easily.