Transcription
In this video, I will tell you everything you need to know about automating your business. What will it give you? How does it work? And how to implement it? Watch until the end.
Yes, nowadays it is very fashionable to implement process automation, business automation. But what is automation in simple terms? It is the simplification of processes that occur in your business. For example, order taking, processing these orders. How can orders be automated? For example, a website, some web application, a Telegram bot that takes orders – this is all business automation. When a client comes in, leaves a request, this request automatically goes into some system where requests are processed, client data is stored, mailings are done, the client goes through the funnel. It doesn't matter if we sell services or goods, automation helps reduce the time spent processing orders. Thanks to automation, you can account for finances more accurately, plan sales, and consider the cost of goods. In other words, automation greatly simplifies the life of an entrepreneur. With the help of automation, you can scale very well because if done correctly, you can process many orders in the same period of time.
Very often, entrepreneurs face situations where a lot of orders come in simultaneously, something gets lost, something is missed. Or, conversely, there are no orders, but there is a client base. Previously, clients ordered. You need to analyze sales history, offer something to someone, someone was interested in something but didn't buy, and so on. With the help of automation, all this can be controlled.
In principle, we encounter automation every day. Whether you are traveling by metro, this is business automation. Yes, the metro receives money when we tap our card, money is automatically debited from our account. We have a personal account, so to speak, with this card. Everything goes through the turnstile to the central server, all this is processed, accounted for, money is debited, and we travel. Whether we are on a trolleybus, a bus, wherever we go, there is automation.
We come to a restaurant. Now, girls stand with tablets, with computers, entering orders. It automatically goes to the kitchen. She hasn't even finished walking away from you, and the chef is already preparing this order. This increases the speed of service and the quality of service. Automation in marketplaces is at a high level. Billions are invested there, which is why we receive our orders promptly and quickly and can track them in a timely manner.
Let's summarize briefly what has been said. Business automation provides:
First, the most important thing is saving the entrepreneur's time. With one button, you can generate reports, submit tax reports, see your money, calculate profit, and see the cost of inventory.
Second, minimization of errors, because modern accounting systems allow you to strictly restrict user rights with passwords and allow only certain operations. Consequently, this minimizes errors.
Efficiency is increased, at least, due to the correct analysis, storage of sales history, and analysis of seasonality and demand.
And one of the important aspects is improving customer service, the quality of customer service. Clients will want to return to you.
We had an example in one of the markets about 7 years ago. We started implementing an accounting system, and for this accounting system, we began to tailor the customer's business processes and employees' work. After 3 months of such effective work, some employees had to be laid off because they boycotted the system, and it was impossible to develop further with them. But then we conducted a case study, gathered feedback from clients, and all clients were delighted. They came specifically to this store because it was convenient for clients to interact and work. It was always known what was in stock and what was not, invoices were issued, there was an option to pay via SBP, and many other features, up to a price checker. You don't have to wait for salespeople because sometimes there's a rush at the market, a lot of people. You could take any item, scan it at the price checker, and see the price.
At the same time, this client had full automation in their warehouse, including address storage. Several cameras hung above the assembly table, and from the sides, this allowed precise control of which order was being assembled by which assembler at what time, as seen in the accounting system. This is because everything is barcoded, everything is done through a scanner. The automation system records the exact time when the order was assembled and when any changes were made to it. Consequently, if a client says, for example, that you didn't include something, you can look at the assembly time in the system and view the camera footage for that date and time, and see on the workstation what was put in and what was not. This video snippet is cut and sent to the client with the explanation: "We put everything in. You probably miscounted, or it was stolen at the post office. We put it in for you."
In addition to all this, it is easier to conduct investigations, i.e., any employee mistakes. This allows for cost optimization, meaning employees approach order assembly more responsibly. Factors like theft are excluded. It does occur where there are large turnovers, of course, it's impossible to exclude all of this 100%, there are always loopholes, but nevertheless, the business is 95% in order. And most interestingly, clients are absolutely delighted with this entire system. Moreover, this client was noticed in the market, and many investors came who, thanks to this systematic approach and accounting, wanted to work with him, expand, and invest money because he has a great, working, transparent business that moves like a tank. Consequently, a clear automation system in business helps attract investors. This is another significant argument because if there is already a working business, there are already figures, indicators, some historical chronology of sales data, systemization, and automated warehouses, investors will be very interested.
And if you are interested in us coming to one of our clients in person, showing how one of his outlets was recently launched, how he went through automation, how his warehouse works, and how orders are processed, write in the comments, and we will make an episode about it in the very near future.
First and foremost, order acceptance automation always happens. Many, especially in the market, love to divide the most basic accounting into two branches, especially beginner entrepreneurs who start from scratch because they are afraid of accounting systems and are afraid to dive deep into them immediately. Some ask to automate only finances and inventory, selling at a loss and not controlling it because they are not interested; they care about money, income, and expenses. The second group, on the contrary, neglects finances and says, "I'll sort out the finances, everything is okay, but automate our inventory so we can see it." For what purpose is inventory? First, to exclude theft and shortages. Second, to accurately see the quantity of goods because a large wholesale buyer comes, and the entrepreneur doesn't know how much he can sell him and consequently loses money. Accuracy is needed. But in both cases, first and foremost, order acceptance needs to be automated. It is precisely based on the order that payment or shipment occurs. But it is best, of course, to automate both. Yes, we accommodate when entrepreneurs want to, for example, keep inventory in the negative, meaning control is turned off in the automated system, and you can sell at a loss. This is later, when the person is ready, it is easily leveled out; you can even switch to a clean system and launch it properly. Of course, we insist first and foremost that automation be comprehensive. But in any case, order acceptance from clients is the foundation for automation. It is the first step that needs to be taken to properly automate the same orders we started with.
You need to choose the right automation system. Today, there are very many on the market, both Western and our Russian ones. Any CRM system, AM CRM, Bitrix24, and their analogues. But it is important to distinguish: a CRM system is a system for accounting for clients and orders, issuing invoices, and managing sales funnels. MoiSklad and 1C are ERP systems, or rather, mini-ERP systems that allow you to do everything. And in this ERP system, there is a small CRM system block; it is present in any case. There are also our beloved Google Sheets, which might end soon.
I am currently looking at YouTubers who have a great automation solution on Google Sheets. Fully functional. "Go, buy, pay," and so on. That is, they popularize that Google is free, and accounting in spreadsheets is free, but to use this spreadsheet, you have to buy it. And where is this freeness? And to create such a system in Google Sheets, you need to spend months and essentially become a programmer. So why run a business? You can actually create these Google Sheets and then sell them. Buy courses on how to maintain them, and so on. The supposedly free Google Sheets turn into a huge application, and we return to the fact that only one specific person knows this Google Sheet. To find a specialist for these Google Sheets who can understand them, maintain them, and manage them, you need to spend a huge amount of time and money.
Let's take MoiSklad, 1C, Bitrix. There are millions of specialists for every taste and color. You can find them from 1,000, from 800 rubles per hour to 10,000 rubles per hour. A huge selection, and everything is solved for adequate money. Depending on one's budget, there are many specialists, they are all accessible, and they work excellently. So, try to find a specialist for an hour who will help you with your personal Google Sheet that you bought from some Uncle Fedya. Try to find one for an hour so that he fixes everything for you. Most likely, there won't be one. But for MoiSklad or 1C, try to find one. Yes, you will find a specialist in 15 minutes who will connect and help you. That's the whole difference. And in the end, owning such a Google Sheet will be more expensive because owning 1C or MoiSklad is comparable to two cups of coffee per month per user.
After we have decided, we would naturally stop at the topic of either MoiSklad or 1C. MoiSklad is for a very small business that does not plan to grow, will not have complex websites, applications, serious integrations, and modifications. Everything will work only in the cloud. If we consider, for example, 1C, it is a system that allows for very significant scaling.
Having chosen a system, the first thing we need to do in any case is likely that we kept records somewhere, either on paper, in Excel, or in the same Google Sheets. At least some basic goods, services, money, balances, something we have done. First, accordingly, what we need to do is set up this system and upload our data from the spreadsheets. In any case, everyone has spreadsheets. If not, then on a notepad, then everything needs to be entered manually. So, first, we focus on setup. But this setup needs to be done not just like that, but specifically for the business direction, for the accounting system. Some need characteristics, some need serial accounting, some sell iPhones, for example. There are many different types of accounting, and this mini-ERP system allows you to do all this. And, accordingly, the more settings, the more complex the program naturally becomes. And if we want to do the minimum, then we need to make minimum settings. That is, these modern systems are very scalable, and accordingly, it can be small, tiny, put a few checkboxes, and the system starts to grow, including different settings, and accordingly, the logic of some system behavior can change. Therefore, correct setup is very important at the initial stage for the type of activity, for the business. Creating new users, differentiating rights, loading from Google Sheets – all this is called implementing an accounting system. This is the implementation of automation in business.
At times, it may seem like a very complex, long, and tedious process, but when you do it every day, three times a day, it becomes ordinary routine that is done simply automatically with your eyes closed. Because no matter how much we want it, plus or minus, if we sell iPhones, the problems are 90% the same. If we sell vegetables, we also have the same problems. Accordingly, specialists who implement the system have likely done a business like yours before, and not once, and they know the problems. They will even suggest some ideas, some features. Therefore, if you need to implement a system, even if it already exists but is not implemented, we often encounter that large companies sell cool systems, for example, a full-fledged ERP, but the implementation for the customer turns out to be unaffordable because buying the program is one thing, but launching and automating treasury, budgeting, implementing document flow can turn out to be very, very expensive, comparable to tens of millions of rubles. And, accordingly, naturally, everyone thinks that 1C is expensive. But in reality, a manager just decided to upsell, decided to profit. In fact, either UT or UNF might be suitable here: 1C Trade Management or 1C Our Company Management, which are very simple and quick to implement.
Therefore, clients come to us who may have this ERP box that needs to be implemented, but it is not launched, it does not work for the business, it does not bring any value, and it cannot be returned by law. This is the main difficulty. But if you turn to friendly, reliable contractors who correctly assess and select an accounting system, you can save tens of millions of rubles. Therefore, if you need accounting, if you are already keeping records, if you need to automate some processes, it is not necessarily 1C. It is creating a website, integrating a website with an accounting system, implementing 1C, training, consultations, support. The link is in the description. Leave a request, subscribe to our social networks. We will be very happy to help you. Moreover, this year several people have approached us for an exchange of 1C for a website, and we helped them completely free of charge as our respected subscribers.
It is not necessary to dive into this story completely, abandon everything, stop the business, and fully engage in automation. In fact, this is a very correct decision because some business owners or managers send their employees to courses on 1C, programming courses, consultant courses, and this is correct. But these are already established enterprises that use 1C, that have been working for a long time. There are, of course, small ones too. Just recently, we sent one of our client managers to 1C UNF courses in person in Moscow. This is normal practice, there is nothing wrong with it. By sending your reliable manager, you can save money on consultations and on implementing third-party contractors. Of course, you can't do without them because some things need to be programmed. But it's not necessary to start with that. It seems that everything is very complicated. It is enough to start with small, simple steps: order acceptance and receiving money and shipment. That's enough for the first stage. And we reviewed this system launch in 9 minutes in the previous video. Watch it, and you will understand how simple it is to take the first step and start basic accounting. And as you develop, as money appears, you can turn to professionals or study new features, for example, implementing a balance sheet, P&L in UNF. There is competent financial accounting, cash flow, balance sheet. That is, you can configure all indicators and see your finances and your financial result very flexibly and transparently, manipulate them by projects, by departments, and manage the company's activities. You can do this step by step, gradually, and you don't necessarily have to invest millions of rubles right away. It's enough to start with two cups of coffee for all accounting.