Systems are what drive businesses.  They are the tool which lets you hand over the reins to someone else and say "Here's how we do this".  They power our databases, they communicate with our clients, they keep the back-office stuff away from the shop-front of our clients.  So how do you create effective systems which work in your business?

1. Get into the habit of writing down the processes in your business.  You might feel silly doing this if you are a solopreneur, but it's useful to have the system clear in your mind, even if you aren't employing a team.  If you have a process of setting up a new customer, you can refer to the system and make sure each new customer gets billed correctly, and the support they need in order to use your product/service again in the future.  E.g. say part of the process involves adding them to your customer database and you forget to do that, you might lose out on a future sale.

2. Have a back up.  What happens if a vital piece of kit isn't working?  For example, say your email went down, how would you communicate with clients?  Make sure that there is at least one alternative back up for every system in your business.  For example, in our business all our files are stored centrally on line and this is also automatically backed up onto a mirrored server on a different web host.  Our email back up is a webmail address, which can be used to send and receive mail, twinned with secure hosting for files. 

3. Each time you do a task, document it.  It's hard to figure out where to start, but if you find yourself doing a task which you repeatedly do, write down the process and document it.  I keep a word document on my desktop for this purpose, but a pad and pencil would work just as well. 

4. Store everything all in one place.  Don't have your contacts in 12 different address books - keep them all in one place.  We work with a client who used to have one list of contacts for invoicing, another list for marketing, another list of people she had sent emails to and one for people who had visited her at her premises.  She's now got one list, which is kept up to date.  So keep it simple!  (And it goes without saying, refer to Rule #2 above, have a back up!). 

5. If it's not working, fix it.  Trial and error produces the best systems.  That's why software companies produce and release new updates and fixes, the trialling by the population at large shows them weaknesses in their system.  For each error your system produces, try and include a step that will eliminate the problem.  E.g. perhaps your system includes a step to stockpile all orders every day and check each one is correct.  We have a system which allows us to "road test" websites, consumer systems and processes at low cost, ask us for more info.

For low cost glitch checking, system building and process planning, contact Virtually Sorted on info@virtuallysorted.com or call 0845 867 8088.