Time-Saving Hacks for Company Owners and Bosses

If you speak to any company boss or owner and ask them what is the biggest challenge they face, chances are you will get the same reply again and again – namely the sense that there is never enough hours in the day to get everything done.

The old saying, “Time is money”, really does apply when it comes to running a company and every minute lost on tasks that take you away from your main focus or role can have a hugely detrimental effect on the overall health of your firm.

If you find you are constantly running out of time at work, below are some tried and tested time-saving hacks that could see you freeing up precious hours and improving your overall productivity levels at work.

Employ a virtual personal assistant

In recent years, there has been a burgeoning demand for virtual assistants to look after everything from appointment scheduling to writing personalized emails – in other words, all the stuff that can become a serious drain on your time during workdays.

A virtual personal assistant can be charged with pretty much any task that does not involve you appearing in person. Depending on their level of experience or willingness to learn the finer details of your firm, an assistant can quickly get up to speed with your current practices and work methodology, meaning you can allocate more time to more important and profitable responsibilities.

Partner with a web marketing and SEO firm

Today’s fast-moving digital marketing landscape requires firms to be constantly proactive online, but maintaining and updating your company’s website and making frequent social media updates will soon prove to be a massive drain on both your time and energy. Moreover, if you accidentally make mistakes with your digital promotion, you run the very real risk of seriously damaging your firm’s reputation or image.

Rather than taking chances with your online marketing, you should consider outsourcing the work to a skilled service agency that possesses the experience and expertise to promote your company in the best light – both on and offline.

Also bear in mind the importance of Search Engine Optimization (SEO) as a way for your company to expand its reach and build its customer base. These days, it is estimated around 70% of all consumer journeys start with a search online – most commonly on Google which now accounts for approximately 92% of all search engine-generated traffic.

However, successful SEO is not just hugely time-consuming – it also takes knowledge and skills far beyond those of most casual web users. Rather than trying to pick your way through the murky and confusing world of web marketing, you would be well advised to save yourself both time and stress by working with a professional SEO firm that will handle all aspects of the work – everything from making regular social posts to updating and optimizing your website to be more search engine friendly. 

Use a document repository for frequently-used digital marketing assets

Whether you decide to take on your web marketing yourself or (as recommended above) you employ the services of a specialist marketing firm, you will frequently find you need to use the same images, artwork and resources over and over in your promotions. Most commonly, companies will have a range of digital assets that are used in their marketing – everything from logos and images at different resolutions and sizes to royalty-free audio files or video footage.

Rather than constantly having to search for these files time and time again when they are needed, you should consider investing in asset management systems to organize and store your brand assets in one easily searchable, central location. Not only will you save yourself time – you will also make the marketing firm’s job considerably quicker and easier when it comes to devising new ways to promote you.

Prioritize your responsibilities with a daily to-do list

Sometimes the simplest ideas are the most effective and even just listing down your goals and responsibilities can have an appreciably beneficial effect on your time management. Just spending a few moments at the start of each day noting and prioritizing your aims will help you keep focused on your most pressing and most important tasks – regardless of whether you end up getting distracted by other duties (which is almost inevitable).

Rather than looking at the whole, split tasks into chunks

While it is important you keep focus on the end goal of projects, often looking at a job as a whole can be off-putting, demoralizing and distracting – sometimes to the point you will end up delaying even getting started.

It is important to realize every journey starts with a first step so, rather than taking a macro view of larger projects, try dividing them into achievable chunks – perhaps split on a daily basis – to avoid becoming overwhelmed by the prospect of the job as a whole.

Think about tackling non-urgent tasks in batches

It is a familiar story for any boss – you have just started getting your teeth into the most important task of the day when you get that familiar ‘ting’ of a new email hitting your inbox. Suddenly, hours have passed and you are left wondering where the day went.

Instead of reading or replying to new emails immediately, think about putting them off until later in the day then batch-processing them all at once. In most cases, the emails you receive can likely be left until later anyway so try and resist the temptation of being sidetracked by each new message. Instead set aside time at the end of your day to reply to them all at once. The same approach can be applied to other distractions that might be eating your time.

Reduce the time you spend in meetings

Clearly, some meetings are essential if progress is to be made in a job but, equally as frequently, many meetings could be avoided by discussing topics by email or over the phone. If you do decide you need to have a meeting, try and limit the time to half an hour, write a clear and concise agenda beforehand (and email it to all attendees) and be sure to invite only personnel that are essential to get the job done.

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