Integrations and How To Use Them For Your Business
Integrations are a great way to help automate and streamline processes in your business. They can help you save time, money, and resources by connecting different tools and services to each other. That said, it’s important that we still keep the human connection in our businesses. The integrations should facilitate ease versus getting rid of the human touch. No need to duplicate our work, right?
For my clients, I like to look at what software they are using and then make suggestions to streamline. Our post on CRMs a while ago mentioned the importance of integrating with your accounting software. Another one to integrate is payment options. The faster that you can get paid the better, right? Would you rather wait 30+ days for payment or get paid in 3-7 days?
Now, when you start looking at integrations, you should think about your software integrations as a wheel that keep your business running. At the center of the wheel is your accounting software (We always recommend Xero). Then we branch out from there.
Connect to payment services
Connect to your CRM (if you want. I still manage my CRM by hand)
Connect to Payroll
Any other legal systems you might have - contracts, proposals, etc
Of course, some of these things can also integrate with each other. For example, integration between a CRM and an email marketing platform can help make sure that customer data is up to date and that customers are receiving the right messages.
For us, I have my scheduling software integrated with my calendar and integrated with my Xero account. My Hubdoc is only integrated with Xero. My Squarespace is integrated to Xero and scheduling. Xero is integrated to Stripe and GoCardless.
With the right integrations, you can increase efficiency and productivity in your business. And trust me, it’s so worth it to get things working together.
Some of my favorite software that I use in my business (and my clients use these, too!):
If you have any questions about how to simplify your tech stack or integrations, you can book a call to review together. Sometimes having an outsider can help with perspective.