Office Equipment – The Only Office Equipment Your Business Needs

To create an effective and successful office environment, you need various types of office equipment. This helps you and your workforce get daily tasks done. You’ll need a comfortable, effective and productive base, from which to launch your business. Purchasing computers, software, office supplies and other items, can be a large start-up expense, but with careful planning and consideration, you can greatly reduce your expenditure by only buying the essentials.

So, let’s have a look at what bits of office equipment will actually help grow your business…

Laptop/Desktop Computer

Information has become the focal point of any successful organisation today. The key to leveraging this information/data and using it to your advantage comes down to purchasing and implementing the correct computers and software for your business. It is easy to reap rewards from core office software (word processors and spreadsheet creators) with some basic training.

However, it may not be enough to simply have a computer. If your business is larger than a one-man band, the ability to connect information and share resources with others, is something that’ll greatly increase business efficiency. Therefore, your computer needs to be able to connect with other computers and systems to increase its power and usefulness to your business. A local area network (or LAN) will allow you and your employees to communicate with one another, and share information and office equipment resources such as printers, scanners and fax machines.

Broadband/Connectivity

Connecting your business network to the internet is now a must. It will catapult the value of your business and without it, limits what kind of things you can achieve. An internet connection enables communication with suppliers, customers, prospective customers and employees, exposing your business to clients on a global scale. This can help you become truly competitive in the market.

Beyond giving your business access to websites and apps, an internet connection can also be used to provide employees access to the business network from remote locations. A virtual private network can facilitate employee access to the business network while working from home or on the move. This be a big factor in employee satisfaction and reflects a trend where employees are wanting more flexibility in their work.

There are some security risks associated with connecting your business with a network and the internet. Steps must be taken to protect information through backup systems, network and data security. If you are unsure what steps need to be taken, it’s best to talk to a specialist who can guide you in the right direction (click here to chat to one of our consultants today).

CRM – Customer Relationship Management

As a business, it is important to keep customers happy and to keep them coming back to you. This is where Customer Relationship Management (CRM) comes in. CRM systems, whether it’s an inhouse creation or commercial software, is needed to manage and analyse customer interactions and data. This helps deliver more effective sales which must be at the forefront of any business.

CRM systems can also give customer-facing staff detailed information on customers’ personal information, purchase history, buying preferences and concerns. On the backend, it can be used to incorporate machine learning into a business and learn what customers want. This helps to cultivate strong business relationships, resulting in customer retention and ultimately driving sales growth.

CRMs can automate lots of tasks and can provide a good ROI in the amount of time they save. Smart businesses will look at office equipment that makes the business more efficient as fundamental pieces of equipment for them.

Telecoms/Telephone Systems

Modern advances in technology and the onset of automated voice messages mean businesses are losing that personal touch. Many customers agree that speaking to a human on the other end of a phone can be very refreshing. This means the trusty old telephone could be a greatly underestimated tool for communicating with customers and vendors.

Sophisticated business phone systems can provide lots of benefits for businesses, however, must be used correctly and integrated correctly into a business, otherwise they could cause issues. For example, keeping customers on hold for too long, or failing to transfer customers to the right person, will cause communication breakdowns. It’s always best to get a telecoms provider to help set everything up for you so it runs effectively.

Understanding what services, features and options are available will help buy the right type of phone system for your business needs.

Breakout Space

In our current working culture, employees are spending more time at their desks, glued to computer screens. This makes the idea of an office breakout area increasingly attractive. Google and other tech companies have popularised creating fun and engaging office spaces.

Giving your staff a break from a computer screen will not only boost their productivity when they are at a computer screen but also complies with health and safety laws, which require staff to take frequent breaks from their work stations. Having a few minutes to do something else will make a big impact on your employees.

If you’re struggling for ideas, why not start with a fish tank! (but we would say that, wouldn’t we – check out our live fish cam).

Ergonomic Chairs

The typical office employee can expect to spend an average of 8 hours per day in a chair.  If this is not an ergonomically designed chair it can easily lead to back pain and discomfort. Although it may seem like a luxury, a good quality chair should be considered a must for every employee.  Studies have even found that worker productivity could be increased as much as 17.5% by simply providing workers with the right chair and training.

There is strong research indicating that quality ergonomic chairs can be the one key differences between happy, productive workers, and disgruntled employees and compensation claims.

Stationary

Although many offices are heavily digitised, an office still relies on stationary. Items such as pens, pencils, and notepads need to be available. Consider specific stationary needs, for example: if your employees are often on the phone, consider the type of notepad they might require that’ll make their life easier.

Customized and branded business stationery provides a practical use for your business, while doubling as an effective marketing tool. Whilst being an added cost, customized stationary can be a useful piece of equipment to have. Being able to use branded pens, coasters and notepads during meetings will create a noticeable impact on clients and customers. This is especially useful for SMEs who may want to be seen as more authoritative.

Conclusion

It’s clear that certain office equipment such as computers and various networks are crucial for business communications. This, along with a comprehensive CRM software package, will put you in good stead to achieve market accessibility. Combine this with a comfortable office environment and your productivity and sales will rocket – launching your business into success.

If you’re interested to learn how to fully utilise telecommunications in your business, why not talk to one of our experts today who can guide you on your journey to one of the key pieces of office equipment!