Ten Ways to Reduce Costs in your Company through Automation

As new business models emerge, investments in digital transformation continue to increase. Organizations have realized they can no longer rely on traditional business methods, as they are becoming obsolete. As a result, they are turning to technology to remain competitive.

The current economic situation is also causing companies to tighten their belts and look for new ways to reduce costs without compromising the quality of their products or services. Process automation is one of the tremendous technological advances that will help companies to achieve better numbers in as many areas as possible. We’ll tell you how!

Why should businesses use technology to reduce costs?

The business advantages of automating processes through technological solutions are numerous. The most important are:

Optimization of employee time

One of the main benefits of automation is that it takes care of repetitive, time-consuming tasks such as entering information into databases or invoicing.

Because of that, many workers are overwhelmed by these tasks and unmotivated to perform them. Automation allows them to focus on more meaningful and engaging tasks.

Process acceleration

Speeding up processes is directly reflected in cost reductions. At first glance, this may seem like a small figure, but when you see a 250% reduction per invoice (according to NextProcess), the savings are indeed considerable.

The less time spent on a given process, the less impact it will have on the bottom line.

Get more accurate data

Without an accurate view of the state of a company’s finances, you can’t make sound financial decisions in the future.

Automation works much faster and keeps records for every project, invoice, report, etc. This translates into instant access to the most accurate data available, allowing for more accurate financial forecasting and efficient management of capital projects.

Increased mobility and Efficiency

In many industries, employees perform their tasks from the office. One of the reasons is that they need a specific machine to complete certain tasks manually. However, with automation, this changes.

In line with the first point, employees no longer have to perform tasks manually, allowing them to work from wherever it makes the most sense and access the information they need from any location and/or device.

In addition, customers are looking for quick solutions, and being able to complete a project more efficiently translates into more significant benefits for your company.

Improved customer experience

Automation is also synonymous with flexibility in working with customers. These processes open the door to greater customer involvement and more transparent and direct communication.

How does automation reduce cost

We have listed the advantages of how automation can have a positive impact on your business, as well as help you reduce costs. But now it’s time to look at how you can implement it in your company.

1. Sending automatic updates: is one of the best ways to keep customers involved and communication more fluid. In addition, they can be programmed in the way that best suits the needs of each case.
2. Online software: many companies use online platforms such as accounting software, analytical reporting, etc. This makes it easier for workers to find the information they need from anywhere and without wasting time.
3. Additional reporting functions: many systems have reporting functions built into the automated processes, making it easy for this program to create reports that allow you to track project timelines, accounting, or any information.
4. Review capabilities: by adding reviews at each checkpoint, you will have a greater chance of success, as you will have more tools to find where failures have occurred and correct them in the future.
5. Create indicators: this is one of the most valuable tools since, if a project is over time or the numbers do not match the correct figure, you will be notified of the error through an alert. This avoids both human and system errors.
6. Embedded customer portals: this allows customers to log in directly and provide input through discussion forums or add files or comments necessary for project completion.
7. Transform the back office: automated solutions applied to accounts leverage AI and optical character recognition (OCR) to replace manual invoice processing and payment tasks. This enables real-time visibility into payment status and better payment flow and decision-making management.
8. Chatbots: these automated response bots are one of the great allies for a company’s website, whatever the sector. They can provide 24/7 service, capture leads, optimize the human team and improve the brand image, among many other possibilities.
9. Mobile applications: with smartphones so ubiquitous in our work and personal lives, getting what you need is just a click away via an app. Time and process control can be easily updated via mobile, making them the best alternative to traditional pencil and paper.
10. Smart laying walls: mainly aimed at the retail and manufacturing sector, it is a very efficient way to reduce handling when processing orders requiring picking, packing, and shipping items.

How can technology reduce costs in a business

Automation and technology are crucial to helping companies optimize their processes, employee productivity, inventory, and relevant information.

By increasing your company’s productivity, you eliminate non-value-added activities, reduce errors and increase the speed of operations. This change translates into a positive impact for companies, which are faced every day with serving more demanding customers who expect competitive prices and faster delivery times.

In addition to facing this challenge of increasing service demands, companies are also encountering an even more significant economic challenge: rising labor costs, high staff turnover, increased rent and electricity costs, security requirements, etc.

Process optimization is a crucial weapon in meeting these challenges. However, to take advantage of this opportunity, you must know how and when to apply them. At Plain Concepts, we help you discover which solution best suits you and how you can improve your productivity while reducing costs.