I have watched the formation of several businesses and participated in it a little. They were connected with the Internet and advertising and still work in an environment with high competition, in a rapid flow of information and technology, and are distinguished by a fairly large turnover of personnel — young people come, study and build their businesses. Sometimes, when you are just starting out, you give yourself a break by explaining everything with a simple phrase: "I'm doing a startup," and you don't put the processes on the right rails. You do not set up a system of teamwork, do not implement CRM (customer service system).
If you study the Western startup market, attend presentations by young entrepreneurs, you will almost always hear that their business plan includes the introduction of an automated work system within the team and a system for monitoring relationships with customers and partners. From the first day, from the first task, everything is documented and systematized. We should adopt this experience for ourselves.
Often you don't have time for this, and you consider it trifles. But it is these "little things" that disrupt the first fateful sales, produce unproductivity of not too large a team and generate unnecessary mail chains in internal communications.
It was possible to postpone the introduction of such products a few years ago, when it was a matter of buying servers, software boxes, renting admin time. Today, the best systems for any Internet business are in the cloud, and you just need to allow yourself to try them. Using the example of a domestic Megaplan product, we will tell you how to start implementing automated work systems in a startup that you are building as a business.
You can set your first tasks using the Task Manager, which is available for use completely free of charge. The limitations for a startup are insignificant: 700 active tasks, 7 employees and 50 active projects. Your tasks and created projects will already be systematized from the first day. If your startup becomes a profitable business and grows beyond these limits, you can easily switch to a version that does not limit you in any way — 61 rubles for each employee per month. It's cheaper than coffee or a pack of cigarettes. And remember that you are in Megaplan from the very first day and you are not in danger of a painful move. There is no need to retrain anyone and distract yourself from the main thing — your goal.
Start leading clients from the first day. There are no unimportant orders, and no one will remember what that guy promised at your first exhibition. Don't rely on a business card and notes made in a bar. Lead your clients and they will take your business out of the startup stage faster than you can imagine. Start with free CRM from Megaplan, which allows you to conduct 200 open transactions, 500 active tasks and 7 employees. When you are ready to move to a more active level of working with your project's clients, a license for one employee will cost you 203 rubles per month. And remember, all customers are with you from day one, as well as all their relationships with your colleagues.
Megaplan also has other products — this is Collaboration (Organization of collaboration and management of employees) and Business Manager (Integrated Company Management system). They allow you to build joint communications within an expanded team and introduce modern financial accounting in the company. These tools may not be useful from the very first day, but they will be perfectly integrated with the data that your company will accumulate over the course of its life. Customers will be transferred to the finance department, and sales will not conflict with the product department, etc.
Try not to think of task management systems and CRM as something "corporate" and unnecessary. Implement them organically, starting with free and affordable solutions, and they will become a support, not a hindrance to the growth of your project, which inspires you and your young team so much.
