What I Learned About SmallBiz Tech From Washing My Car
I believe that there are certain rules all men must abide by. Three of these rules are that their shoes must shine (if they are wearing shoes that can shine), they must always carry a pen , and their cars should always be clean and shiny.
Recently I was giving my car its weekly bath and instead of using the towel I normally used, I decided to use a towel that was actually a glove that fit snugly over my hand. A gift from my sister that had been sitting around my house.
Guess what? I could clean the car better and faster. For several months I had looked at this cloth glove and thought "how silly – I’ll never use that.". I’m glad I gave it a try -- my car-washing experience is now so much better.
What is the lesson for you in regard to technology?
So often we get used to using the same tech tools over and over that we never take the time to consider a) if the technology we are using is the wrong technology for our needs or b) if there are other technologies that could be better for us than what we are currently using.
20 years ago, before “cloud computing” and Software as a Service (SaaS) became popular, the only way to really try out new software was to install it -- and maybe even to do a limited roll-out into your company. If it didn’t work – or didn't work right for your company -- you ended up wasting lots of time and money.
But today's “cloud” software is remarkeably inexpensive and easy to try out and use – because it’s all Web based. It's already installed and running on the vendors' servers. Pretty much all you have to do to try it is log onto the service with a Web browser. Wanna roll it out to your entire company? Just have each user repeat that process.
Instead of buying it all up front, you pay a monthly fee. So iIf you find the software is not working the way you want – just switch to another vendor.
Of course, you don’t want to drag your staff to try new software every week. It’s still important to critically review the software tools you use – no matter how low cost and easy to try they are.
The point is, though, that there's real value to regularly challenging yourself and your staff to uncover new software (and hardware) solutions. Even if you think everything is fine, this process will help you determine if what you have really is best for you. It can also help reveal whether or not you are using your tools properly and what training might be needed. Best of all, you might discover something new that can make a big difference in how well your company operates.
Regardless of what technology decisions you make, it's a good idea to work in consultation with a reputable technology advisor. Your technology advisor should have your best interests at heart and can guide you into the technology choices that are best for your company.
Just don't wait. I’ve been washing cars for years and only recently discovered the cloth glove. Imagine how much cleaner my car could have been all these years if I would have switched to the right tool for the job sooner.
