Didn’t get enough buzzwords last week? Not to worry, I am here to fill the big gaping void in your week! Here are more buzzwords that every small business owner should know.
Lets get started!
- Business intelligence – CIO.com defines business intelligence or BI as “… an umbrella term that refers to a variety of software applications used to analyze an organization’s raw data”. So what does that mean? Generally it means going beyond straight transactional reporting to using data to improve decision making, cut costs or identify new business opportunities. It generally entails merging data from various sources and looking at data over time to identify trends, etc. You use BI to answer questions like “who is my most profitable customer” or “which is my costliest route”. I talked about BI in this post.
- Cloud computing – there are lots of definitions but mine is this: any computing resource that you use that isn’t on your desk or in your office. For example, this blog is physically stored on a server that I think is in New Mexico. Heck, I am not entirely sure where it is. Where it is NOT is in Dunwoody, GA – hence it is in the cloud. If you use Gmail, Evernote, Dropbox or any other software as a service (SaaS – another good buzzword) program you are “in the cloud”. You can read more about the cloud here and here.
- CRM – stands for customer relationship management. It is a business function, usually supported by technology, designed to improve interactions with customers. It allows a business to, in one place, keep track of interactions and communications with a customer like inquiries, complaints, phone calls, emails, and transactions. It can help marketing, sales and customer service stay on the same page when dealing with customers and prospects. I wrote a few posts about CRM you can read here and here. If you go beyond traditional CRM that and start to keep track of a customer’s online behaviors thru social media like Facebook, Foursquare, LinkedIn and the like you are dabbling in Social CRM (see, another free buzzword for the price of one!). There is a great article that describes social CRM here.
- ERP – is the acronym for enterprise resource planning and it refers to an integrated system that manages most of the business functions of an organization. It can include finance and accounting, HR, supply chain management, project management, CRM and more. ERP solutions for small businesses include NetSuite, Microsoft Dynamics and a plethora of smaller niche applications. There are so many choices it can be confusing – Laurie McCabe has a good article on how to choose the right business applications.
What does all this mean?
All of these buzzwords should be in your technology plan - if you aren’t using them now you will want to use them in the near future. If you aren’t sure how to get started or don’t even have a technology plan, get help. These are all tools to help your business grow and be effective. And who doesn’t want that?
Patti Bunker is the president and founder of Clearly Simple Solutions, a technology advisory firm located in Atlanta, GA. She is an executive with over 25 years of technology experience in corporate America, as a consultant and in commercial software development. She understands both business and technology. Her broad background and varied experience enables her to see easily see the big picture and apply technology creatively to support business goals. Because it is about the business, not the technology. Now she applies that experience to help smaller businesses to benefit from technology. The result is Clearly Simple Solutions.
