To help celebrate November as a month of gratitude we’ve been asking small business owners to share things for which they’re thankful. We recently asked small business owners to tell us which tools make them say “thanks.”
Predictably, many business owners mentioned social media, specific social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter and specific social media tools such as Hootsuite in their thanks. As Kyle James, owner of Rather Be Shopping.com put it, “[Hootsuite] frees up A TON of time to do the day-to-day operations of running Rather-Be-Shopping.com … as a small online business owner, life would suck a little bit without it.”
Of course, at Groupon, we’re grateful that so many business owners are grateful for our services, and our products, including our POS system, Breadcrumb.
Many business owners are grateful for inventory management, content management, and project management tools such as Teambox. As Zachary Rose, owner of Green Education Services says, Gone are the days where sticky notes and crumpled lists are cluttering my desk, thankfully.” But, Reuben Yonatan of GetVOIP.com has a competing tool for which he’s thankful, “Post it notes, real and computer post it notes are my most favorite and most used tool for writing down important information immediately, like phone numbers, and reminders and keeping them handy/visible at all times.”
Cloud storage and video conferencing earn the thanks of small business owners with far-flung staff, or busy traveling schedules. As Dana Marlowe of Accessibility Partners says, “I am so grateful for cloud computing and mobile file storage! [Now] distance doesn’t mean our business files and work projects are also at the mercy of cross-country geography.”
Steven Sashen of Xero Shoes, has a decidedly different idea about what he’s grateful for, “I’m most thankful for our TV (and the couch we lie on to watch it). Seriously. My wife and I work long, hard hours, 6 days a week. And having an hour or two of down time with a movie or one of the TV shows we love, is a welcome break. Literally, every time we plop onto the couch we let out a sigh of gratitude, give each other a kiss to appreciate each other, and click ON!”
Marta Segal Block is a social media and content marketing consultant specializing in small-service businesses. You can read more of her work and random thoughts on Advice from Marta and Facebook and follow her on Twitter.
This is a re-blog; the original can be found at here