You’ve heard the hype surrounding business automation, but are these claims true? As a small business owner, you’re always looking for ways to save time and streamline your operations. It’s no secret that automation can be a powerful tool in achieving this goal.
In this blog post we’ll bust some of the most common myths about business automation and shed light on how it can help your business grow. Let’s get started!
Myth #1 – Automation will take away jobs from employees
Not true! In fact, automation will free employees from the mundane parts of their job to give them time to focus on things that directly contribute to your business’s success.
Empowering employees with automation has a number of benefits, including :
- Giving their role more value, enhancing their future prospects.
- Reducing the time they spend on administrative tasks, which allows them to focus more of their efforts on client-facing work.
- Giving them new skills, which will help them grow professionally.
- You don’t need to hire expensive developers and can use the people who actually understand how the business operates to build automations.
So many businesses are already experiencing the advantages that automation brings to the workforce. According to the CIO, 78% of workers say that automating manual, repetitive tasks would allow them to focus on the more interesting and rewarding aspects of their jobs.
Myth #2 – Automation is expensive
False again! Automation is affordable for businesses of any size and can save you time and money in the long run. For example, when correctly implemented, automation reduces the number of human errors in your business process. Also, the time saved from staff performing mundane, repetitive tasks can be spent on landing more leads, making more sales and therefore increasing your profit.
The best part? It’s really easy to configure automations using no-code tools such as Zapier which has a free starter plan so you can get up and running really quickly.
Myth #3 – Automation is only for programmers
Definitely not true! Automation can be used by non-technical staff to easily configure workflows that streamline their business processes.
Using the right automation tool allows you to create recurring tasks, track key metrics and monitor progress on tasks – all without requiring any code or technical knowledge of IT infrastructure or webhooks.
Using a no-code tool for connecting your business apps means you can transfer data from one software system to another and trigger key activities and events, without needing a single developer.
Myth #4 – Automation eliminates the human touch from your business
Automation tools allow you to initiate activities when events occur in your business apps, making it easy to send out reminders, emails and updates based on the information received. This means that rather than having a fully-automated solution, automation allows for a mixture of manual input and pre-configured steps in the process.
Therefore, your employees can concentrate on the tasks that require their personal skills and expertise – your business will still benefit from improved efficiencies, but without removing the human touch.
Businesses even report improved customer service levels following automation implementations, simply because of the improved communication and human interaction.
Myth #5 – Automation is only available to big companies
Definitely false! Business automation has become an affordable and accessible solution for even the smallest of businesses. With no-code automation tools like Zapier, you can take advantage of automation even if you have limited budget or resources.
Solvaa works with many small and medium-sized businesses to connect their workflows and streamline their processes. In some cases, these efficiencies meant that they could significantly scale their operation without needing to take on an army of new staff.
Zapier has prebuilt integrations with over 6,000 apps which allow your staff to configure workflows and data feeds without any coding experience – saving time and money.
What is the reality of automation in the workplace?
Automation is a game-changer because it allows you to complete tasks quickly and more efficiently. You will save time which you can then invest in growing your business.
Using the right tools will allow any company – large or small, technical or nontechnical – to take advantage of automation. The best part? No-code BPA tools like Zapier are affordable to implement and gives you access to thousands of integrations to supercharge your business.
How to get started with automation in your business
So, there you have it – five of the most common myths about automation debunked. So where do you begin? We’ve got you covered. Check out our free resources below to learn more about automation and how to get started in your own business. Thanks for reading!
Find out more
If you’d like to find out more about no-code workflow automation, then we have plenty of free resources:
- Our free e-book is the perfect introduction to business automation.
- Our YouTube channel features Kelly showing you how easy it is to automate various business processes.
- Our Zapier functions cheat sheet delves into the powerful inbuilt helper apps which can supercharge your automations
- Kelly’s new book, Automate It with Zapier, is out now and is the most comprehensive Zapier guide on the market. It will get you up and running and to the stage where you can build and debug advanced automations. Buy your own copy today direct from publisher Packt using this link. Or here are links to Amazon (.co.uk) and Amazon (.com) if you prefer.
Other helpful articles
These articles will help you understand more about how automation can benefit your business:
Check out our automation training programme
And finally, if you’re really keen to transform your business using automation, then visit the Solvaa Automation Academy. Our signature training programme, ‘Simple Automation Blueprint: Zero to Hero’ is aimed at anyone who wants to learn the fundamentals of business process automation from the experts – a sure-fire way to recession-proof your business.
It’s an 8-week blended learning course with on-demand videos, templates, resources and weekly group coaching sessions. And it’s more than just a Zapier course (although we do show you how to use Zapier like a pro) as you’ll learn about Process Mapping, Business Process Improvement and Business Process Management too – principles that can be applied to other areas of business too!
Whether you are a complete novice or have been using Zapier for a while, our programme is for you. It’s perfect for individuals and teams in micro, small and medium-sized businesses, including solopreneurs, consultants and freelancers. You’ll have access to our experts and can participate in live calls where you can ask all your burning questions, as well as hands-on workshops to keep you on track with implementing your new skills. We run regular cohorts so there will be an opportunity for everyone to participate.
Our head trainer, Kelly Goss, is a specialist in business systems, process improvement and automation, and one of less than 100 Zapier Certified Experts in the world. Kelly has many years’ experience in optimising systems and processes, and implementing automations for clients and is now passing on her knowledge to students through our trademarked ‘4-Step Solvaa Automation Methodology®‘.
Find out more via our dedicated Solvaa Automation Academy website.
Read more about how our certified experts use Zapier workflow automations to simplify processes and increase efficiency.
Solvaa is a process and automation consultancy specialising in improving sales, operations and financial administration workflows. We help you to simplify and streamline existing processes, integrate your business tools to make data transfer more efficient and automate manual tasks to increase productivity. We are Zapier Certified Experts, Pipedrive Certified Experts and Xero Certified Advisors.
Contact us today to discuss how Solvaa can help you simplify, improve and automate all aspects of your business with Zapier to save you time, reduce costs and keep you agile as you grow.
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