Let's say you start a business from scratch.
You get on the phone. Put on your Sunday's best. Get some meetings. Acquire a couple great Clients. Bring in some green. Everything is peachy.
Then after a bit....
Money starts rollin in and out before you even get the chance to caress it.
Clients start emailing you random ideas.
You have no idea where the latest copy of your proposal is.
You start forgetting about meetings until an hour before.
Clients email you more random ideas.
Your ziplock bag of receipts has evolved into a Uhaul Box.
Your inbox becomes the bane of your existence.
This apocalyptic nightmare can and should be avoided. When you decide to start your own business, there is an implied level of due diligence that is required. You have to research the most prudent incorporation method, file any trademarks necessary, get a bank account (or buy a jar at Target to put under your desk like I do), and make the epic decision between mechanical pencils or the "real" kind.
However, with the advent of affordable online business applications, there are now a litany of new considerations.
Which brings us to the SaaS. A SaaS is an acronym for "Software as a Service". A SaaS is a software developed for a specific purpose, usually business related. They are typically exclusively online, incredibly easy to use, and affordable for even the newbie entrepreneur.
A SaaS application is a form of cloud computing, using technology solutions that are online as opposed to device/hardware dependent. There are SaaS's available for every conceivable business process, and at our company we use quite a few. Taking the time to research and test SaaS applications that could help you run your business more effectively and efficiently should be within the first things you do to organize your venture.
Here are a couple of SaaS applications that I feel can be useful to every entrepreneur at any level no matter what type of business. These apps have completely evolved the way I do business. They have made our company more efficient, collaborative, and flexible...like the Delorian at the beginning of Back to the Future Part I, which I think we can unanimously agree is a good thing not matter what you are trying to accomplish.
Process
Bookkeeping
Price
Free to $24 per Month
Some Cool Features
You can create and send Invoices & Proposals
Handy dandy Mileage Log to record mileage deduction
Perform super easy Bank Reconciliations
Multiple types of Sales Tax
Set up Bank Accounts and import all of your transactions, yes, it's less accounting
One reason they kick SaaS
If Quickbooks and LessAccounting were in a fight, I'm pretty sure Less could pull an old school "Head Lock n' Swirlee" move.
Less Accounting is by far the most comprehensive, intuitive, and sleek accounting SaaS on the market. They certainly have competitors, some that get much more press, basically because the others are VC backed. But Allan Branch and Steve Bristol (CoFounders of Less Everything) have decided to build their flagship app the old fashioned way, one happy user at a time!
In a former life I was a was a nerdy, green visor and pocket protector wearing bean counter...yes, friends, I was an indeed an Accountant. I have degrees in both accounting and finance, I worked at PricewaterhouseCoopers and as a Financial Controller for a few years, so it is with a modicum of authority that I can deem Less Accounting the best accounting SaaS on the face of the planet.
Process
File Sharing & Collaborative Working
Price
Free to $15 per User per Month
Some Cool Features
Store ALL your files online
Create Online Workspaces
Mobile Access to Files
File Commenting, Group Discussions & Online Documents
Within Box edit files online in Zoho, ConceptShare, or Picnik
Create tasks associated with files (ie "to review")
Access files from anywhere in the World with Internet connection
One reason they kick SaaS
They have launched a scrappy campaign to usurp the Goliath Microsoft's file sharing service.
No more fuddling around with flash drives or frantically excavating your Inbox to find the most current version of a document, presentation or spreadsheet. Box makes it possible for a company of any size to store, share and collaborate online with anyone that has internet access. I am definitely a power Box user, storing close to 1,000 files online.
To give you an idea how powerful Box is, we have two full time employees abroad, are currently working with developers and designers in three continents. We have three active client projects. We are within a month of launching our own application. We are leading a campaign to build a school in South Sudan, and we will be leaving to Europe for the next 4 weeks. Not to mention we are a tiny, amorphous little company.
Box affords us with the ability to seamlessly collaborate with our team no matter where we are in the World. By committing to Box you can make your business truly agile, which in the evolving landscape of our tenuous economic era, I consider an invaluable asset.
Okay, so those are two of my "to die for" SaaS apps for WorkShifters. What SaaS's have you found that are useful to your life as a WorkShifter? Are there any online business apps that you would not recommend? Why?
