Digital Productivity Tools for Startups

Updated: November 14, 2024

Original Publish Date: July 17, 2020

Live Twitter #StartupChats Discussing Productivity Tools for Startup Business Owners

Q&A with Startup Canada Guest Advisor Christine Whone

In this edition of Startup Canada’s #StartupChats, we discussed Digital Productivity Tools for Startups.

What is Digital Productivity? What are the tools used for it? It’s communication, collaboration, managing and organizing tasks with digital tools like software and technology to keep your job organized, and efficient.

The event had 33 contributors and 31.6 million impressions. The wakelet can be found here.

Q1: What are the best ways to increase your productivity with digital tools?

A1: Build productivity to distribute tasks using digital productivity tools. So design and build for the possibility of working remotely, or automating tasks.

Q2: Are digital tools necessary if you want to increase productivity?

A2: Yes! For example, streamlining time-consuming business operational tasks such as filing quarterly or annual sales tax, and software to help bookkeeping reconciliation. Automate account receivables with automatic emails, or answer support questions with automated emails with common answers.

Q3: What are some of your favourite digital tools? List them below!

A3: Adobe Creative Cloud for all and all design needs, Quickbooks for managing finances, invoicing, estimates, and managing client accounts. Squarespace for everything website related, plus email marketing, and analytics. OpenPhone app for a business number.

Q4 What tasks are digital productivity tools best suited for?

A4: Any operation or task that requires automation to help a large group of people or shorten long time-consuming or convoluted processes that a person performs regularly.

Q5: What questions should you ask before investing in a digital productivity tool?

A5: Question overall annual costs or monthly costs versus profit to consider using it. For example, compare the cost of using a digital productivity tool to the profit from using it.

Q6: How can Startups get the most out of digital tools?

A6: Consider monthly option versus annual fees. Usually annual have large savings but when you consider all software costs, sometimes it makes sense to pay for it monthly to start. Once you’ve validated its use and cost, usually you can switch to annual fees.

Q7: What are some common pitfalls with digital tools?  

A7: Buying all kinds of software without researching if a single platform includes many of the required digital software product features. Read the product reviews!

Q8: How can a Startup discover what tools will work best for them?

A8: Use a trial. If no trial is available, commit to a one or two-month payment to see if it’s a fit. I like to test software for bugs, learn how to use it, and see how easy the tool is to use before I commit to it.

Q9: When is the right time to introduce digital tools?

A9: When you can do it with ease: integrate it carefully, gradually, or gently so decision-making is less serious or severe. If possible, do it offline in a testing area before introducing it online.

Q10: How can you ensure your digital tools are accessible and practical for your whole team?

A10: Create master-level account access for digital tools that can be shared using password management software for business. This can reduce onboarding and offboarding hassles.

Q11: What are your final pieces of advice for entrepreneurs using digital productivity tools?

A11: Test out productivity tools before you decide. It is possible an aspiring entrepreneur or new business owner won’t be aware of the benefits of a digital productivity tool until they try it out or explore using it. That is because the benefits might not be initially obvious.