Last month I shared time-saving hacks for small businesses. I'll cover two points in more detail: delegating and automating tasks. I have already written about task delegation; you can read that blog post here. This month I will talk about how to automate tasks.
Delegating work is assigning your team tasks that do not require your expertise, like writing up reports or handling customer service. Task automation uses technology to do simple, repetitive tasks, such as posting on social media, sending due date reminders, and scheduling meetings. This way, you and your team can focus on completing bigger tasks, like launching a new product or developing other systems.
There are many benefits to automating tasks. Essentially, task automation reduces the number of things for you to worry about in your day-to-day operations. It reduces mistakes and increases productivity, reduces operational costs, and makes scaling up easier. Task automation frees up your time so you can focus on the things you love in your business.
There are four steps that go into automating tasks.
Audit Your Daily or Weekly Tasks
Go over the tasks that you complete in a day. You could follow your client journey or review your typical day. Or you could do both, if you want to be extra thorough. Look for simple, repetitive, time-consuming tasks. Things that do not require a lot of detail or are prone to error. Write these down and choose a task that you would like to automate.
Choose an Automation Tool
The next step is to find a tool that can complete the task you have chosen. Sometimes there are existing settings in your tools. For example, Gmail has a function that automatically sorts and flags emails. Also look for tools that can be integrated into your existing setup. Focus on tools that are easy to use and maintain.
Set Up the Automation
Then you are going to program your tool to complete the task. Typically, there is a trigger that sets off the action. For example, let’s say you are automating your invoicing and billing system. One task is sending a receipt once an invoice has been paid. The trigger would be receiving the payment in your invoicing platform. The task is then to generate and send a receipt.
Review and Refine Your Task
Once you have finalized your task automation, you can then do a few test runs. This way, you avoid mistakes while dealing with customers or clients. Usually two or three runs are ideal. It gives you time to poke around and smooth out details.
There you have it. A simple outline to automate your tasks. The next question is: what do you automate? Here are some suggestions for simple and repetitive tasks that you can offload.
Emails- sending onboarding emails, welcome emails, sorting your inbox, email campaigns
Social Media- scheduling posts, pulling data
Finances- sending invoices and reminders, reporting expenses, compiling month-end and year-end reports
Team Management- assigning tasks, reminding the team about due dates
Data Entry- populating your CRM, compiling inventory, updating subscription lists
Calendar Management- scheduling appointments, sending reminders, rebooking
It is best to start small and scale as needed. Test your tools before launching, and be patient with yourself. It can take some time to automate, and mistakes are common in the early days. Remember, tasks that require creative or complex thinking are best done by a person. Automation tools cannot understand nuance.
If you are overwhelmed with daily operational tasks, or are finding automation a challenge, please reach out! I would be happy to help you sort things out.
