As an entrepreneur or a small business owner, you understand the relevance of selecting and investing in the right software solutions for your business. No matter if you’re a one-person show or count dozens of employees, everything from accounting, schedule maintenance, invoicing, all the way to communication needs a solid strategy, and preferably a tool or two at your disposal to make things simpler and more cost-effective. This is why the implementation of a project management (PM) tool can make such a difference for a business of any scope and size.
The fact that you might be handling tasks on your own, for example, is all the more reason to look for a digital tool to grant you a better overview of your schedule and get a glimpse of what you can change to become more efficient with your time and your workload. Choosing that software can make or break your presence and affect your company’s growth, so let’s break it down into a few essential factors to consider that can help you choose what makes sense for you and your business.
Consider your budget
While the quality of the service that comes with each software solution should be your top priority, you cannot invest the money you don’t have at your disposal. Before you even begin your hunt, look at the typical prices of a wide range of project management tools. Of course, you’ll come across free versions, too, some of which cover many useful features that you’ll definitely need, but it’s the upgrades, storage limitations, and collaboration capacity that typically determines if you can live on the free version or if you should aim for the monthly subscription from the get-go.
For instance, certain tools allow for up to 10 or 15 people to collaborate on endless projects, and they are typically cloud-based, simplifying your storage needs, too. Some software tools have a per-user fee, so consider if these make sense when you expand your team and employ more people.
Level of scalability
Customization and scalability are the two key features most modern businesses overlook when choosing their PM software. Alas, these two can be essential when your company starts experiencing growth, even if that means that you still remain a one-person show. Will you be able to have a clear view of multiple clients’ projects without losing track of deadlines and workload? Will you be able to collaborate equally effectively when more people are on board? Such finesses are the ones to help you lean towards one tool or another.
To make the right choice, you can look at different project management tools compared here, so as to see the features each tool provides, their potential drawbacks, and the extent to which you can scale your business with them. These comparisons serve to give you a detailed overview, to save you time, and to help you see exactly how these tools are designed.
Features and user-friendliness
Although project management is well-defined as is, the tools used for handling projects, tasks, assignments, and teams differ in terms of how you will accomplish your goals. Yes, every software you look into will have something of a task hierarchy, tagging options, email notifications, date-setting and deadlines, as well as a chat feature. But beyond that, each software can delve deeper into the process by refining it to a lesser or greater extent.
That means that some PM tools, no matter how versatile, can become borderline unusable because they are overly complex and not intuitive at all. On the other end of the spectrum, there are tools with seemingly simple libraries and work allocation features that actually work seamlessly. So, you should go through the features thoroughly and check out different tutorials to see if the tool makes sense for your brand.
Analytics capabilities
Although collaboration and task management are the key reasons for any business to choose software for managing projects, there are other, more comprehensive capabilities that these tools often offer – if you know where to look and to ask the right questions. For example, some of these PM solutions come with built-in analytics features to help you understand your project management processes, potential bottlenecks, issues, and workload distribution.
In recent years, small business analytics has become vital in increasing business productivity, security, and improving team collaboration across the board. So, make sure to check that your desired PM software comes with built-in, intuitive analytics dashboards that will ensure you have a bird’s-eye view of your team and projects at all times, and the ability to adapt and improve.
Not all project management tools are created equal, which is precisely why you need to take your time when revising your strategy and investing in such software solutions. Although you can switch to a different platform if you’re not satisfied, it’s best to take more time when selecting the initial one for your business, and that way allow your business to grow with a tool that is designed with your needs in mind without having to transition to a different solution. Keep these tips at hand when making this decision, and you’ll find what fits your needs.
Guest Author, Raul Harman, s a B.Sc. in Innovative entrepreneurship and has a lot to say about innovations in all aspects of digital technology and online marketing. While he’s not enjoying travel, football and great food, you can find him on Technivorz.com.
