12 Best Tips for Better Skills for Small Business

Let's face it. Running a small business can be fun but hard work. You have used your positive feedback and it works. However, you may not be able to afford more staff. This means that many business items, such as accounting and marketing, can be ordered by you. In turn, this means working longer and wearing lots of hats. Lack of knowledge in some of these areas can lead to delays or errors.

According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, many small businesses fail within their first three years. Is it What if having a good understanding or expertise in unfamiliar areas can help your business continue to grow, ensure a good cash flow and reduce costly mistakes?

Here is a list of free (or cheap) tools to improve the skills of small, complete business owners:

1. Free Courses - While you may not have enough money to hire new staff or seek a full diploma or certificate yourself, there are alternatives. There are many free or low cost courses available. For example, the General Assembly offers online courses and courses for people in Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney. A wide range of topics from web development, data, design, business and more!

2. Direct Council - The days of entering customer information in books and best papers are over. It is important to invest in customer relationship management (CRM) software as it will help your business manage customer data, interaction and other important information. Many platforms will provide training and support. There are also platforms for managing email marketing such as Mailchimp and social media, such as Hootsuite.

3. Listen to Podcasts - Podcasts are a free and easy way to learn new skills or advice. The best part? You can do a lot of work while listening. Podcasts are available on any topic you can think of. A quick Google search will reveal the best sound for digital marketing, business to business and more.

4. Audio books - Similar to podcasts, you can also listen to best sellers along the way to work, during practice or when doing your daily commutes. Software like Popular, makes it easy and affordable too.

5. HubSpot College - Web-based applications, landing pages and must-have promotions for business owners as they try to grow their business and online presence. This free certification program offers courses on all these essential skills.

6. Moz is a great resource for SEO - If you don't already know, SEO makes the world go round when it comes to making sure that your site has visibility in search. Moz offers a free online course, web site, SEO starting guide, and building integration guidelines.

7. EdX - The site offers over 300 free courses on a variety of topics in various industries. From financial analysis with the Association of Certified Qualified Accountants (ACCA), to business management courses, there are any skills courses you need to acquire or improve.

8. Freelancers - Do You Need a photo editing job you did or do you just need to update your site with a new copy? Sites like Airtasker, Freelancer.com and Upwork are great opportunities to find talented people to shine. You can also check Facebook as many communities and cities have their own groups for the purpose of posting redemptive work. For example, the Search-for-Search (secular) group on Facebook is a great resource.

9. Ted Web Sites and Conversations - A quick YouTube search will give you access to Ted's inspirational conversations and webinars. Whether you want to learn new skills, tips, industry news or just feel empowered, these are great resources.

10. Blogs and websites - Another quick and easy way to stay on top of industry changes and knowledge is to subscribe to relevant blogs, newsletters and their related channels. For examples, Digital Marketer is a great resource for recent marketing and technical tips.

11. Accounting Software - Platforms like Xero or MYOB, can make the accounting process easier and coordinated. Manage payments, customer lists and more! Additionally, link to your CreditorWatch account and check your contacts to see the risks to your business.

12. Credit Management - If you manage accounts, sales, sales and more, when do you have a good time to accurately assess your customers / vendors for the risk to your business? You will not be able to track them regularly and as a result, bad steps can slip through the cracks. With CreditorWatch, you can review your database and receive notifications of important information such as court action or payment defaults. Additionally, you can register bad debt, run credit reports, check credit scores and gain access to debt collection tools.