Make Use Of Technology To Go Virtual

Get a decent laptop

Getting a decent mobile workhorse is probably the first task at hand when you want to take your business virtual. A couple of things that you should think about when choosing that mobile workhorse is the type of processor that it has on board, how much RAM it has, how much storage it has and how up to date it's wifi card is. In relation to the processor, it is important to find one that has enough grunt to run all of the software that you will be loading on to your laptop. There is nothing worse than underspecing a laptop and then finding that your brain runs faster than the computer and you are having to wait for it to complete tasks. Always spec it with a faster chip than you think you need as the likelihood is that in 2 years time you will be running software that needs that chip. In relation to RAM, if you are looking at using multiple programs at once then you will need more RAM, also, if you are looking at using design software or CAD software you will need more RAM. Similar to the processor, spec it to have much more than you actually need. Hard drives are relatively cheap to purchase these days so it doesn't cost a lot to upgrade to a bigger drive. If you are looking at saving some time though, you should look at getting yourself a solid state drive (SSD). Solid state drives are significantly faster than your regular drives however cost a bit more up front. If you can afford it then it will make a significant difference. Lastly, make sure when you get your laptop that it has a wifi communication card that will work with the latest technology. If your card is outdated then it will stop you from transferring data at high speed.

Make Use Of Wireless

Wireless technology is getting better every year. Gone are the days when you would have to have a separate wireless mobile that connects your device to the world. These days the majority of smart phones can act as a hotspot to the internet and can then hook up to as many devices as you want. With mobile phone companies now giving away huge amounts of bandwidth on some of their business plans it is now feasible to hook your phone up to your laptop and actually get quite a bit of work done. If you are concerned about using too much bandwidth or you don't have a particularly generous phone company then it is always possible to tap into some free wifi and get your work done that way. Lot's of cafe's, shopping centres, libraries and airports offer free wifi these days so if you look hard enough you should always be able to find a connection.

Use cloud storage and backup

You may not always have your laptop with you and may just want to use a friends computer, a home based desktop, a borrowed computer at a friends office, a tablet or even a computer at an internet cafe. To be able to work on your documents at any time that you like, you need to have your data available in the cloud. There are a whole range of services available these days that will allow you to store your documents in the cloud, Microsoft have a sophisticated offering with Office 365 as does Dropbox. It is important however to make sure that you always have an offline version of your documents stored locally (either on your laptop or on an external drive) to ensure that you can keep on working even if you don't have an internet connection available.

Use cloud accounting

When you have a virtual business you don't want to have to go back to an office or your home office to input info into your accounting system or to get reports out in terms of your monthly or quarterly performance. Fortunately all of the major accounting service providers have developed online versions of their products which will allow you to work remotely. When selecting a package you should pick a product that integrates well with all of the other software that you are using and with your bank/financial services provider. Also, try to pick a package that allows for easy migration from your current offline service to the online service. It could save you a serious amount of time in the setup stage.

Get a virtual assistant

If you are going to be working virtually and doing everything through the cloud then it probably makes a lot of sense to get yourself some virtual staff as well. Virtual assistants from Virtual Office Melbourne can work on a whole range of tasks including maintaining spreadsheets, dealing with customers, maintaining online systems and a whole variety of other tasks. Virtual assistants don't necessarily need to be offshore. The virtual assistants that we provide at VirtualOffice.Melbourne are all located on the Gold Coast in Queensland and have a good understanding of Australian business conditions and business practices.

Video conference your business associates

When video conferencing first came onto the market it was slow and really expensive. Nowadays it is the sort of package that you can simply install onto your laptop and take wherever you go. A great option for video conferencing is Skype for business. Skype runs quite seamlessly and is really quite cost effective to run. With the Skype system you are also able to conference in other people to your video chat. In total you can have up to 10 people included in your video chat however if you are operating off a small laptop screen the 10 people may be a little too much.

Find a virtual office with meeting rooms

Unfortunately, you can't be totally virtual and there will be times when you do need to meet someone face to face. If you are stuck in the situation where you need to meet with external people but you don't have a physical office in which to do so then you should consider the idea of getting yourself a virtual office where you have the ability to use meeting rooms. These offices are quite often located in premium grade A CBD buildings and will definitely impress your visitors. The cost of renting a meeting room is really quite minor when compared to what you would need to outlay for a city office and you are not liable for any of the upkeep or maintenance.

Get a virtual receptionist

Once you get everything working virtually the last thing that you want to be doing is sitting there answering all of those incoming calls. Why not get yourself a virtual receptionist to take the load off and give you back the time you need to make more money. The way that it works with virtual receptionists from Virtual Office Melbourne is that you sign up for a free trial and then get allocated a telephone number. You divert your existing number to the number that we have provided and this is then the number that we answer. You can have any greeting that you want when we answer your calls and your messages will be emailed to you within minutes of us answering that initial call.

Now that you know all of the ways to take your start up virtual, why not make your virtual dreams come true and set yourself up with a virtual business life. Business will never be the same again!