How to Be a Tech-Savvy Business Owner on a Budget
Being up-to-date with technology doesn’t have to blow your company’s budget. In fact, the more adept you are with current technology, the more you will be aware of opportunities to save and make money. Technology is a tool for a business owner, the same way a cordless drill for a carpenter. Sure, there is a price, but that price is less than the cost of going without it. The following are affordable ways to be tech savvy.
Free Online Education and Tutorials. The Khan Academy is one of the best resources for free, online education. The company offers excellent content that includes videos, challenges, and assessments on practically every subject that you’d find at a major university. Another education site, Academic Earth, presents videos of college courses taught at major universities such as Stanford, Harvard, and MIT. You can expand your knowledge watching classes that run the gamut from graphic design and information security to computer programming and art history.
The main difference between Academic Earth and Khan Academy is that most of the course materials for Khan Academy are designed for online education, whereas Academic Earth repurposes classroom content to share it with a greater audience online. Khan Academy also offers badges and other gaming elements that tends to make the site more popular with children.
Tech Blogs. Online courses are a great way to build a base of knowledge, but to stay current with the latest news and tech trends, you will need to follow a fair amount of industry blogs. If you don't have a lot of extra time, there are ways to stay stay up-to-date with what's going on in your field and with the latest tech trends. On Twitter, for example, you can follow the thought leaders in your field. This will give you a stream of information you can quickly scan for new or interesting information. Another source, Feedly has taken the place of Google Reader and will collect recent posts of your favorite blogs, so that you can quickly scan the latest headlines for relevant news.
Free Software. Save money on technology with alternatives to popular software:
Microsoft Office Suite alternatives: There are several free options available as alternatives to Microsoft’s Office Suite. Google Drive, previously known as Google Docs, provides cloud services for programs with functionality similar to Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. Apache OpenOffice is open-source software that can be downloaded for free as replacement for Microsoft’s Office Suite, as well. Prezi is another free option for creating presentations similar to PowerPoint but with a different visual appeal and more fluid movement.
Adobe Photoshop alternatives: Although the alternatives may not offer everything that Adobe’s Photoshop can do, free solutions like Picasa, Gimp, Pic Monkey, and Aviary, among others, offer photo-editing software that may meet your needs.
Alternatives for everything else: For the rest of your software needs, check out CNET. They offer a large database of free software downloads with reviews and easy navigation to find the right solutions for your business. Downloads are available for iOS, Android, Windows, and Mac.
Refurbished Computers. Refurbished laptops, desktops, and printers are an easy way to reduce costs without sacrificing functionality. Most refurbished products start out as customer returns or off-lease returns and then are inspected, upgraded or repaired as needed, and then sold at a discount. The machines still operate as you’d expect and often still come with a warranty.
Refurbished Phones and Tablets. Just as you can save with refurbished computers, you also can save on refurbished mobile devices. This option can be particularly appealing if you want to stay current with the latest devices but still want to keep costs down.
Cloud Services. Free document storage is available from a few major players. Amazon’s Cloud Drive and Google Drive allow 5 GB of free storage. Microsoft’s SkyDrive allows up to 7 GB. Dropbox is another option and starts out at 2 GB for free but rewards you with 500 MB per referral to a maximum of 18 GB for free. SkyDrive also offers very reasonable rates for significantly more storage for backing up all your files.
Software as a Service (SaaS). SaaS has become an incredibly popular option for small businesses to purchase premium software at an affordable rate.
Sales on the Go. If you sell on the road, you can take credit card payments with your smartphone. Services like GoPayment, PayPal Here, and Square will provide you with a small card reader you plug into your mobile device to swipe cards and take payments. Each company charges a different fee, but all are very reasonable, and the reader is free.
Don’t Spend, Invest
Don’t think of tech updates as an expenditure. Consider them to be an investment that will make or save you money in the long run.
About the Author
Post by : Jared Jacobs
Jared Jacobs has professional and personal interests in technology. As an employee of Dell, he stays up to date on the latest innovations in large enterprise solutions and consumer electronics buying trends. Personally, he loves making additions to his media rooms and experimenting with surround sound equipment. He’s also a big Rockets and Texans fan.
Company: Dell Financial Services
Title: Marketing Manager
Website: www.dfsdirectsales.com
