Emails have been a great means of communication over the last decades. But there’re other communication tools for small businesses that can make email unattractive.
As a matter of fact, writing and reading emails is one of the essential parts of our daily activities. To some people and businesses, email is a better option.
They would rather send emails than make telephone calls because of the cost and time factor. You have to be aware of the time factor if you are making an international call. This is because when you are in the office others are out on the other side of the Atlantic.
But with email, no need to worry about time and cost as most email providers don’t charge. Emails have contributed immensely to the ways businesses communicate with customers.
Communication tools for small business
So, how many businesses still use email today? Has email outlived its usefulness? Can businesses and individuals survive without email? The fact is that email seems to have outlived its usefulness as technology becomes more advanced.
Businesses and individuals are still communicating via emails today. In fact, email marketing is still relevant and stylishly thriving today and businesses are using it to reach out to their customers.
However, most of the email inboxes are full of junk and automated emails from email marketing campaigns to receipts nowadays. Some inboxes are full of notifications from social media sites like Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, and others. People are wasting a chunk of their productive time checking, replying, and deleting emails.
Having a smartphone has opened up windows of opportunity to explore and discover new ways of getting things done. Below are some of the essential communication tools for small businesses that can make email less attractive.
#1]. Cotap
With Cotap, you have an all-in-one communication platform that can easily replace your business email. It is a simple, secure mobile messaging app for fast, easy workplace communication. However, it is more than a messaging app; it does text, voice, video, and file sharing with ease. It targets office workers and their employers as clients. Note: Cotap is no longer accessible.
#2]. Glip
Glip is another great productivity app that helps you simplify and manage daily tasks through in-built chat. Also, it features tasks, calendar, file sharing, video conferencing, and other tools. It offers real-time messaging with integrated task management, video conferencing, shared calendars, and other great stuff. Note: Glip is now part of RingCentral.
#3]. Yammer
Yammer helps businesses to work more efficiently by improving how they communicate with each other. This is an enterprise social network that lets employees collaborate across departments and business applications. It’s more of a private social network for businesses helping them create groups to collaborate on projects and share and edit documents. Note: Yammer is now part of Microsoft tools.
#4]. Convo
Convo is another private enterprise social network for real-time collaboration. It is a platform for work conversations where teams easily come together. The tool helps fast-moving teams to centrally share, organize, and archive information securely. It perfectly combines Asynchronous and Synchronous communication.
#5]. Asana
Asana is a web and mobile application designed to help teams track their work. This business tool proud itself as the easiest way for teams to track their work and get results. From tasks and projects to conversations and notifications, Asana helps teams to move work from start to finish. It’s simple to get started, but powerful enough to run your entire business.
#6]. Slack
Slack is another great communication app for small business. This tool aims to replace email by providing companies with more nuanced ways to share information. It’s a multi-platform app that helps businesses work more efficiently by improving communication and collaboration methods. It allows you to connect all the tools you use in one place and avoid all that constant switching between apps.
#7]. Bitrix24
Bitrix24 is a complete suite of social collaboration, communication, and management tools for your team. This tool helps businesses to be more efficient by improving how communication is done. You can view contact details of your co-workers and read the news in your activity stream. Also, you can manage files, schedule events, monitor tasks, post comments and ‘like’ things that are being discussed, etc.
#8]. Flowdock
Flowdock is your team inbox with chat. It is a great team collaboration app for desktop, mobile and web. It replaces Skype, IM or IRC chat in your team’s workflow and frees your mailbox from automated emails. The tool lets you chat with your teams, browse your team inbox, upload images, and keep up with discussions. Integrate your team’s workflows into Flowdock and you’ll have one place for discussions.
#9]. Chatter
Powered by Salesforce, Chatter is another great enterprise social network that can improve productivity. It connects employees with files, data, and experts within the organization regardless of role or location. It helps businesses to collaborate on sales opportunities and service cases. You can also use it for campaigns, and projects with embedded apps and custom actions. It lets you connect, engage, and motivate employees to work efficiently across the organization.
#10]. Flock
With Flock, you can easily get work done faster with groups and 1-on-1 chat. Make decisions quicker by discussing ideas, sharing files, and getting instant feedback from your team. This is a simple messaging app built especially for teams and small businesses. It allows you to invite clients and chat with them to get instant approvals.
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I can confirm, Bitrix24 is absolutely amazing. And it’s now free to unlimited users.
We have another solution that you won’t believe until you see it. Our system controls everything.
E-mail marketing, SMS, marketing, ring -less voice marketing as well as a CRM telephone system so you don’t need 3 or 4 software’s. You only need one.
This is one awesome blog. Really thank you! Really Great.
Good list by it is missing my favourite tool [ Binfire ] which has chat, message board, and interactive whiteboard.