Companies are increasingly outsourcing services to enable them to focus on their core business. At the same time, and in order to offset the cost of building and maintaining a robust and secure IT infrastructure, these organizations are embracing cloud-based and web offerings.
Presently, there are multiple web/cloud-based solutions designed to help businesses market their products and services online, provide better customer support, manage projects and tasks, automate business processes, and more. This article will detail modern web solutions that may revolutionize your business.
Modern Web Solutions For Businesses
As stated, there are multiple web solutions designed for every aspect of a business, from marketing and communication to accounting and task management. These solutions are classified into the following broad groups:
1. Â Â Messaging
Online collaborative messaging tools complement emails. They help to streamline communication. Unlike emails which have a more formal ring to them, messages sent via messaging platforms like Slack are less formal and can even include emoticons. Additionally, communication can be organized by department/team, project, and topic, among others.
2. Â Â Live chat tools
It is not uncommon for you to see a bubble pop up at the corner of modern websites asking whether you want to chat. This bubble enables you to chat with an artificial intelligence-powered bot. However, the correspondence evolves to include a real customer service agent once the bot drills down on what you want.
This is an example of a live chat tool businesses can use to enhance customer service. It helps boost customer satisfaction by providing an avenue through which users can easily and immediately reach customer care agents.
3. Â Â Proxy Products
A proxy server is an intermediary that intercepts all outgoing requests, assigns them a new, unique IP address, and directs them to the target website. The proxy receives all incoming responses before forwarding them to a browser or web-based application. Previously, proxy servers were not cloud-based and were hosted and maintained on-premise.
In contrast, most of these solutions are currently hosted in service providers’ secure data centers, with the maintenance being carried out by the providers’ employees.
Proxy products serve various roles in the business environment. For instance, transparent proxies block access to certain websites, boosting employees’ productivity. Additionally, reverse proxies can help balance incoming requests among multiple servers, preventing overload and cyberattacks such as distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks. At the same time, reverse proxy servers also cache frequently accessed files, freeing up the bandwidth and improving the loading speeds.
Moreover, proxy servers provide online anonymity, facilitating web scraping, which, in turn, provides crucial data on the number of competitors in a market, their products, and prices. These solutions also enable businesses to undertake international market research and ad verification as they are used to bypass geo-restrictions.
4. Â Â Web Crawlers and Web Scrapers
If you are in the e-commerce sector, you will appreciate the importance of maintaining an excellent online reputation as well as keeping tabs on your competitors. Against this backdrop, using web scrapers with built-in crawlers is crucial. These scrapers will collect vital information whose insights can help your business grow.
For instance, pricing data enables you to develop better pricing strategies. Moreover, reputation and review monitoring enables you to address negative feedback. This is a surefire way to improve customer satisfaction. It is worth pointing out that web scrapers are used together with proxy products to improve the chances of success.
5. Â Â Human Resource Management (HRM)
HRM solutions allow you to manage human resource data. For instance, you can use them to store performance assessment documents, health forms, and employee details. In addition to acting as centralized databases, you can utilize HRM solutions to delegate tasks among your employees.
6. Â Â Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP)
Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) software allows you to automate and synchronize (in real-time) business processes such as billing, inventory, and financial management.
7. Â Â Customer Relationship Management (CRM)
Customer Relationship Management (CRM) software enables you to manage communication with existing and prospective customers. Additionally, these tools enable you to monitor your sales activity, providing a basis to optimize your operations. Some solutions even have built-in email marketing functions to enable you to manage and track sales leads.
8. Â Â Project Management
Project management tools enable you to manage tasks and track communication on projects. Additionally, these solutions provide an interface that lets all the members of a team or organization view a project’s goals, timelines, progress, and workflow. These attributes ensure the timely delivery of projects according to the needs and requirements of your clients.
9. Â Â Accounting Tools
Bookkeeping is a fundamental part of any business as it ensures your books are balanced and that your operations thrive. Cloud-based accounting tools provide the ability to manage, record, and report your organization’s financial transactions remotely.
Conclusion
There are numerous modern web solutions that could revolutionize your business. From proxy products to web scrapers. From messaging tools to accounting software, not forgetting project management, HRM, CRM, and ERP solutions.
