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Top 6 time saving tools and apps – Leveraging technology to really save you some time

Top 6 time saving tools and apps – Leveraging technology to really save you some time

by | Dec 6, 2013 | Business Tips

As I am essentially a “One Man Band” with some external support, I am always on the lookout for how I can use technology to improve my productivity.

I’ve focused on some key areas that I know work for me:

•    Reduce travel
•    Reduce document preparation time
•    Improve your concentration

1. Reduce travel time and/or improve the quality of telephone communication

For many of us travel is a big challenge as it can consume a large part of the available day. My motto with flying is “Time to spare – go by air!”. So how can we reduce the amount of travel we do?

You can make more phone calls, but the quality of interaction is usually much less than a face-to-face chat.

I’ve found that there is a compromise that allows you to reduce travel and improves the quality of remote communications – Video Conferencing.

A few years ago,systems and speed were inadequate without dedicated hardware but now, you can use the power of the internet faster and mobile broadband to improve this communication.

video

Video Conferencing Solutions: These abound are available on most of the devices that we use in business – desktops, laptops, tablets and smartphones. The ability to quickly video conference from your phone or iPad is a very handy feature and the quality is excellent.

•    Skype.com – Skype is the most common solution as its free and available on most devices, however regular users will complain of a high level of drop outs and poor quality.
•    VSee.com – I’ve recently started using another solution VSeewhich appears to have a lower bandwidth requirement and has a very easy screen sharing feature so you can make your calls really interactive. Its also free and has IOS apps as well as a desktop application.
•    GoToMeeting.com – GTM is a geat tool for when you have more than 3 or 4 people to participate in the call as it will handle up to 25 attendees and has great webcam and screen sharing. The other big advantage is that you can record your sessions for future reference. More than 25 people and you can use GotoWebinar.com. Both these services are premium services so you pay a monthly fee for access and they have mobile versions for your phone and/or tablet.
•    FaceTime – IOS users can also use FacetTime, an Apple product, to have a one-on-one video chat. It has the advantage of tracking the person down on a range of devices. It is also free as long as you have an internet or Wifi connection.

2. Reduce your time preparing memos, instructions and providing feedback

I find that email can consume an enormous amount of time when preparing a document as we need to check spelling, grammar and make sure that we have actually conveyed a clear concise message.

For many tasks, not all, there is a simple, quick and effective solution – video or voice memos. A short message is quick and easy to produce and can contain far more information than an email and can be instantly emailed or transferred from your device to the appropriate people.

I need to thank Will Abbott in the UK for sending me regular coaching updates via video for opening my eyes to the power of this simple tool.

So, if you can’t make an important internal meeting where you need to make a report. Video record it and send it in.

voiceVideo and Voice Recorders – Given our access to computers, tables and smartphones it is reasonable to expect that you will have a plethora of devices at your fingertips for this task.

•    Smartphones & Tablets – depending on your preference for operating systems there are plenty of tools to assist you here. As an IOS/Apple User, I use the Camera app on my portable devices for short video messages. For voice notes, I use the Voice Memo app on my iPhone. There are equivalent apps for use on Windows and Android devices. The advantage of using these devices are that they are portable and you can use them to take video in the field to illustrate real problems and issues, which improves understanding.

•    Desktops – As a Mac User, for short video messages I use Photo Booth and I believe that Webcam 7 is a good Windows option. For longer more complex messages and updates where I might want to include screenshots or PPT presentations, I use Camtasia (both Windows and Mac versions) and I also believe that Screenflow is very good.

•    Evernote.com – Evernote is a great tool for disseminating your video and voice memos. You can record audio and camera images directly in Evernote and you add text and video to notes as required. The beauty of using Evernote is that you can instantly share these notes via email or you can share the entire Notebook automatically as they sync to all devices and can shared with multiple people. Every note is also available on all your devices: web, desktop, tablet and smartphone.

3. Reduce your time typing up meeting notes

Too often we need a copy of our meeting notes that we can share with others. I see that there are 2 options here: transcribing your notes or sending them out electronically. Remember: many reporting functions do not require a typed report and a handwritten facsimile is often good enough. Decide and agree what is required in advance.

Electronic handwriting images: There are many options here. The first thing you need to do is understand that other people reading your handwriting is an eventuality. This will help you to focus on writing legibly and structuring the layout to make in comprehensible. The tools that I use here are:electronic

•    Livescribe Pen – www.livescribe.com – this is a smart electronic pen that captures your handwriting and can also record audio as you go. Depending on the version you get, the images sync with Evernote for recall and distribution. You need to use their notebooks and stationery but this is not onerous and is relatively inexpensive.
•    Photos – you can simply take a photo of your pages and send them via email. I mainly use the Camera app in Evernote for this function as it compiles all my pages into one Note.However, I also use the Camera app on my iPhone but also use Scan-2-PDF app (IOS) to create a PDF. If I am taking notes from a whiteboard I always use the Whiteboard Capture Pro app on my iPhone. It is excellent.
•    iPad– for notetaking on my iPad, I use a special stylus – AdonitJotpro – and the Penultimate app which also syncs with Evernote – a great combination. However, for annotating PDF documents for review, I use the Goodnotes app. I am not aware of similar products for other tablets.

Transcription Solutions – there are a limited number of solutions that will either transcribe your handwritten notes to text or will transcribe your voice to text, even from recordings. You can train some of them to learn your voice and handwriting. You can also use a transcription service and there are many of these on the web or through freelancer.com or similar sites.

•    Handwriting transcription: I do not currently use any of these services. Most of the newer programs centrearound transcribing from your iPad. Writepad app gets lots of good reviews.

•    Voice to text transcription: Again, I no longer use any of these apps but have used Dragon in the past. It is very popular and now has a range of options and learns your speech patterns so accuracy is good. You can also use Google Voice, which is especially good on Android phones.

4. Reduce your time collaborating on documents with colleagues

It is really easy to waste a lot of time and energy when collaborating on documents with colleagues. You waste time emailing versions around and collating feedback from lots of people. The solution is to use a familiar tool that is purpose built for live collaboration.

•    Google Drive – (previously Google Docs) is an online suite of document tools that most of use are familiar with: Word processor, Spreadsheet and Presentations. The difference is that Google Docs are completely on-line and allow for real time “live” collaboration with multiple users. You decide who has access and you even restrict access to “View only”. So, no messing about with versions – it all happens live and onscreen. Best of all – it’s free.

5. Reduce your time compiling travel itineraries and checking on flights

As a frequent traveller, one of the frustrating things with the modern world (where it is so easy and convenient to book your own travel) is checking and compiling your itineraries for flights, accommodation, car hire, etc.

The best solution I have found for this is Tripit.com. This is a great service that masquertrip-it-freeades as an app (web, IOS, Blackberry, Windows and Android).

Tripit collates all your travel details by scanning your Inboxes and extracting the details from your confirmation emails (provided your supplier uses a recognized standard for this – most airlines, major hotels and car hire companies use the standard). I usually have to add a few hotels and services apartments manually.

Tripit then automatically compiles your travel into “trips” (based on dates), which you can then manage. This is a simple process and allows you to see your booking sequentially (and find errors). Tripit Pro will also keep you up to date with flight delays, directions and maps, etc.

You can easily share your Trips with interested parties, spouse, colleagues, etc. It is a great app.

6. Maintain concentration on the task at hand

As I mentioned in the Productivity webinar, there is neat trick for improving your time management. It involves using a “count down” timer to keep you focused on the task. It is much more powerful that I could have imagined.

I have found that setting a count down timer for 25 minutes (followed by at least a 5 minute break for emails, phone, etc) does the following:

•    It keeps me focused on the task with a sense of urgency. There’s nothing like that “ticking clock” to maintain the focus.
•    I am not as distracted by phone calls, emails, unexpected visitors, etc as I know I can back to them in x minutes (when the timer has run out).

So where can you find a timer?

•    Smartphone – most smartphones have a clock app, which includes a countdown timer. My iPhone and iPad have one. Set it up in a prominent place and let it loose.
•    Pomodoro timer – On task management website, kanbanflow.com there is an app called the “Pomodoro Timer”. This is a great timer and it’s where I started first using the technique.

There you have my Top 6 time saving tools and apps for improving your productivity.

What are the tips you have for saving time with technology?

Russ

Taking Control of Your Time

Taking Control of Your Time

by | Dec 6, 2013 | Business Tips

In our recent webinar, I highlighted some of the key tools and concepts that I use to manage my time. You can watch a short 3-minute summary here or watch the full 30-minute webinar and explore the resources.

The key tools that we discussed relate to getting rid of the waste and inefficiency in your day. My experience is that you need to do a couple of things:

  1. Define a daily schedule for the 3 to 5 things that you must do if you are going to be effective in your role and then allocate some time for them.
  2. For everything else, you need to run your “To Do list” through my “Stop Doing Matrix.”

Develop the Daily Schedule

Brainstorm the 3 or 4 key things that you must get done in every day. You may want to cross-check this list against your Position Description for better clarity.

In my business they are: client work, sales and marketing activities, strategy and development (me and the business), and communication with the team. You notice they are all big areas – large in scope.

If you are in an operations role it could be: team management, reporting, departmental strategy, personal development, and stakeholder engagement (this would include others who are not direct reports).

Once you have the categories (these will be broad) then decide the proportion of your day that you would like to spend on these things then allocate times. My recommendation is that if you work on an 8 or 10-hour day, then don’t allocate the full day – leave some time for adhoc activities.

Area Proportion Hrs/Day
Client Work 40% 4
Sales & Marketing 20% 2
Strategy & Development 10% 1
Team Communication 10% 1
Adhoc allowance 20% 2
TOTAL 100% 10

Using the Daily Schedule

Once you have your schedule, then you need to look at your Task List and decide what tasks fit with your schedule and what tasks are outside the schedule.

For the tasks outside the Schedule, run them through the “Stop Doing Matrix.”stop-doing-matrix

•    Stop Doing it (completely)
•    Delegate it to someone inside your organization
•    Outsource it to an external provider
•    Re-engineer the process/activity  – so that it takes 10% of the original time

Work through the list, applying the Matrix and try to eliminate as much as possible.

Then on a daily basis, look through the tasks and activities that you need to do and make sure that you do at least one activity for each area of the Schedule. Use the adhoc time to put more into specific areas.

My experience is that you will rarely stick to the schedule in it’s entirety on every day.However, I’ve found that by making sure I “tick off” activities that would normally get bumped (like personal development, etc.) that my productivity and outputs have increased significantly.

Where possible, I stick to the schedule. My recommendation is that after a couple of weeks on the schedule, review your progress and modify the schedule to suit what is really happening.However, make sure you are doing something in each category every day.

Once you have the schedule working, then you can start to think about the other elements we discussed in the webinar like using the available tools to give you leverage.

I’d be interested in your experiences with the Daily Schedule.

Russ

7 Tips for Social Media Success

7 Tips for Social Media Success

by | Dec 3, 2013 | Business Tips

With devices such as the iPhone and iPad taking homes, offices and almost all places by storm, browsing the web and connecting to sites like Facebook, Google+, Twitter is such an easy thing – making social media the newest and hottest technique for marketing.

Most businesses today have invested their marketing efforts into pushing their way into social media because that’s where people are. It makes a lot of sense but does it work and is social media an effective marketing tool?

Many businesses are not reporting a lift in sales from social media but it is widely acknowledged that there are a range of benefits from creating a stronger dialogue with the market.

So how do we measure these secondary benefits?

According to an infographic initially created by Pagemodo – Facebook’s marketing company, their initial research led them to conclude that the ROI of social media as a marketing tool was not measurable in monetary terms.

Instead, the kind of ROI that companies got from using social media for marketing was measured by the impact it creates.

But today, the Pagemodo study says that it looks like companies using this technique can now get an ROI both in monetary and impact terms.

Aside from these benefits, a Chief Marketer survey has also noted that marketers who used social media were using the following measures to determine the impact on the business:

•    +60% numbers linking as friends, followers, likes
•    +30% visits or time spent with brand social content
•    +39% sharing, forwarding, retweeting, posting brand content
•    +25% incremental sales attributable to social media
•    +35% qualified leads from social media
•    +18% brand awareness/favorability

With these statistics, you should be able to get a strong picture if the impact of social media on your business. But the tricky part here is how to get your social media audience engaged, how to grow their numbers and convince them to act on that engagement or interest.

With that said, here are some tips on effective social media marketing:

1.    Find a platform that is used by your target market and focus on it. Don’t try and be “all things to all people”
2.    Be active – log into your social profiles every day.
3.    Be discerning with your connections and try to build a network that reflects your business, target market and personal values.
4.    Interact with your followers – respond to direct messages and any effort made by people who are interested in engaging with your business, good or bad.
5.    Post content that encourages conversation – post meaningful and interesting status updates about your business, encourage your social media audience to interact with your business.
6.    Build market transaction – gain new followers, grow your audience.
7.    Put some simple measures in place to track progress on a number of fronts.

So have you started a social media campaign for your business yet? If not, I encourage you to do so but make sure you are measuring the impacts to determine where you need to focus next.

What are you measuring and why?

Russell

Making the best use of a Virtual Assistant

Making the best use of a Virtual Assistant

by | Nov 15, 2013 | Leadership

In previous posts on this blog, we have highlighted the reasons why you might want to engage a VA and the detail of the process you might use to find one. In this short video, we highlight the Why, How and What of engaging a Virtual Assistant for your business

This video is a short summary of our 30 minute webinar on the topic. You can view the webinar at http://www.sbdbusiness.com.au/webinars/virtual-assistants/