How to Give Your Business a Needed Upgrade with Simple Tech Solutions Just getting started on a digital transformation of your business can pay off exponentially.

Over the past few years, small businesses have been confronted with the need to adopt new technologies to remain competitive in their respective markets. But there is a seemingly endless array of solutions out there for companies to explore which cater to their specific business needs.

While it might be intimidating for small- and medium-size businesses to undergo a full "digital transformation," PNC Bank says there are several key benefits of going digital, and you can start with a solution that meets you where you are right now. Here, are some ideas you can start putting into action today.

Increase your visibility and credibility.

Think about the last time you made a purchase or began to research a new retailer for a desired item. Often, you opened the web browser on your mobile phone or laptop and did a quick online search. Even further, consider the top options that populated from your search: these businesses most likely had a website or links to social media pages for you to not only browse the product but to peruse photos, explore use cases, and, even, check out reviews from existing customers. Simply being able to view the product and some reviews may have helped solidify your decision and trust that a certain brand will deliver the exact product you need.

This process is a perfect example of how businesses can position themselves amongst competition by undertaking a digital transformation.

At the most basic level of building your digital presence, you can increase your business reach via marketing and brand awareness through a social media presence. This can be a great way to test the waters since social media is free.

Simplify your financial processes.

One of the most difficult aspects of running a small business is money management. While a small-business owner or operator may be fully capable of manually managing their bookkeeping and accounting processes, it does become exponentially more difficult to stay on top of as a business enters a busy season or continues to scale.

By adopting digital solutions and automating some of these financial processes, owners will not only free up their own time to focus on other areas of the business but also gain visibility to avoid unnecessary financial risks. Digitizing your finances can also provide critical insights into the health of your business. If a digital solution can provide comprehensive, graphical evidence of spending, you can start to analyze those trends.

For example, the data may show you that you're spending too much on marketing or inventory. Having this information will allow you to make critical business decisions to adjust.

Solid digital solutions can also provide historical data to help you forecast and plan better for the future of your business. Overall, adopting technology that can serve up all this information to you will eliminate the need for you to do all this work on your own.

Liberate your most important asset: Your time.

There's a reason that the aphorism "time is money" is so often repeated—especially in the case of a small-business owner or entrepreneur. Time is your most valuable asset because when you have it, you can think about the next best steps for your business, you can get to know your customers better, and you can even begin to grow your business. One of the best ways to avoid getting in the weeds and help free up your valuable time is to audit the areas in which you find yourself repeating the same task ad infinitum.

Going digital can make you efficient in several ways. Many processes that you're doing repetitively can be automated through a digital solution, and, ultimately, help you reduce costs. Using technology can help free up your time and will allow you to grow in ways that you couldn't otherwise.

While all of these are strong motivators to begin your digital transformation, we understand that it can be intimidating to take that first step. PNC provides several solutions that can help your small business make the move to digital, as well as grow alongside your increasing business and technology needs. From online and mobile banking and bill pay to Cash Flow Insight®, PNC can provide you with the tools to collect business critical financial insights, help protect your business from fraud, and more.

Click here to read more about PNC's Digital Financial solutions geared toward small-business owners.

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