I wanted to share my top 3 tips for automating your admin tasks with you because it seems to be a real pain point for business peeps right now.
Every single business owner has a giant pile of administration tasks that need to be done at some point (no matter how much you try to avoid doing them sometimes). And as someone who does this for my clients my admin could very easily fall onto the backburner if I let it (and truthfully, sometimes things do) but it’s thanks to my automations I have worked into my business that on a whole, things don’t. And let’s be honest, I therefore look way more organised than the average bear.
Tip #1 – Start with the easy wins
Automating your admin tasks doesn’t mean you have to implement an entirely brand new system that does all of the things in your business.
Take a look at your day to day tasks that either a) drive you up the wall having to do them, or b) you find yourself doing day in day out and it’s the same thing every time.
Here’s some examples of what I consider ‘easy wins’ –
- Set up email filters on emails you instantly delete from your inbox or move to folder to read later – both Outlook and Gmail allow you to do set these up to auto tag and auto move them to a specific folder.
- Create a template for emails you send regularly, to save you doing the going back to sent items and doing the copy+paste thing every time.
- Do you ask all of your leads to book a time with you for a call to see if you’re a good fit? Set up an autoreply on your FB page messenger to give anyone enquiring through your page a link to book a call with you.
- If the above has you going but that’s my messages backwards and forwards with them – save the backwards and forwards and set up an appointment scheduler that’s linked to your online calendar that gives your clients the ability to pick times that are available and suit them based on your availability.
- Set up an autoreply on your inbox – if you’re finding you’re running out of hours in the day to manage your communications – just a simple auto reply acknowledging the email has been received and a rough timeframe for when a reply can be expected can be a huge win for your own stress levels and create a good feeling with your clients and potential clients.
- Set up a process where any files saved within your Accounts folder in your document filing system are automatically uploaded to your accounting software (your bookkeeper/accountant will love you).
Tip #2 – Don’t go out buying the new shiniest bells and whistles apps / software
Again, automating doesn’t mean you need to upend everything you’re doing (are you sensing the theme here?). Blindly going out and throwing money at the app that says it does all the things for you isn’t the answer to automating your business.
Look at the tools you are currently using – is there an opportunity for you to use a feature that it has that you haven’t been using – eg, schedule emails feature, templates, using the power of Zapier to connect your apps. There’s many a hidden features in the apps and software that you’re already using that you may not have twigged on to.
Tip #3 – Prioritising Income Producing Tasks vs Nice To Do Tasks
This is one I have spoken to a number of clients about – what are some of the tasks you can automate that will help you to bring in more income?
So rather than you spending time doing the backwards and forwards in setting up consultation times with your clients, how much time will you save by implementing an online calendar booking process for them to go pick their times? Or, what happens when they sign up with you, are you manually then replying to say thanks and then sending out the next steps and materials / goods to them – how much more time would you have if you automated those replies, created templates for the emails, or connected the dots between your payment gateway and your email system?
Then there’s also the nice to do – so having those acknowledgement emails going to new clients after they sign up or they offboard with you. Right now, if they’re not happening because you’re too busy or they fall off your radar – look at how you could automate that. They’re not necessarily income producing but they are a very nice touch if you get them right and down the track could very well bring more income to your business.
Bonus Tip –
If you’re feeling like I have so many tasks I don’t know where to start, start with a massive brain dump, pen on paper or fingers into an online document. Get them out of your head, onto the page and then run them through the filter of the three tips I’ve given you and I guarantee you’ll get some instant clarity.
PS. If you’d like to dig deeper into automating your admin tasks with ease, then join me on my first LIVE online workshop, Friday 4 March at 10am AEST. If you aren’t able to make it live, then that’s aok, I’ll be sending out the recording. The session is 2 hours long and I’ll be going into more depth about these tips and more (with a side of jargon-free tech nerdery).
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