5 workflow automation examples that make life easier

We’ve talked about workflow automation a lot in the past — it’s a modern way to improve, simplify, and manage day-to-day tasks.

However, many companies are quick to write off workflow automation.

It seems like such a big undertaking, and it’s easy to assume technology like that is unattainable.

But in all reality, that’s far from the case.

Workflow automation is not only easy to attain … but it can improve processes you never even thought to improve before.

Here are 5 workflow automation examples that are bound to make life easier.  

Organize documents

You might work with OneDrive, but that doesn’t mean your clients or partners do. They might work with Google Drive or even Dropbox. Because of this, file sharing and organization can sometimes be a pain.

However, an automated workflow can solve that problem.

For example, if a client uploads a new file for your team into Google Drive, an automation can automatically copy that file over to Dropbox (or whatever file-sharing solution your team uses).

Create tasks

Many of our tasks come to us inside an email. And while that might be completely normal, it doesn’t mean that it’s okay. This can lead to confusion, miscommunication, and missed tasks altogether.

Workflow automation can promote task management by creating to-dos out of emails. For example, if someone sends you an email in Gmail, that email can then be repurposed into a task inside Basecamp — automatically, of course.

Create invoices

Most people who aren’t accountants try their very best to stay as far away from accounting as humanly possible. But as a business professional, this isn’t always an option.

With workflow automation, many traditional accounting processes (or even sales-related activities) can be automated.

For example, let’s say you make a sale through PayPal. A simple automation can build a bridge between PayPal and QuickBooks — which can then lead to an automatic invoice inside QuickBooks every time a sale is made with PayPal.

Manage leads

Lead management is a beast — especially if you’re the type of company that is expected to manage hundreds or even thousands of leads.

At this point, it can transform from a beast into an unbeatable demon.

But again, automation can help. For instance, if you use Salesforce to create and manage leads, you can rely on a simple automation to transfer all new leads to a list inside MailChimp.

Support customers

Right up there with lead management is customer support. Customers expect their questions to be answered quickly and their requests to be handled immediately — which, obviously, isn’t always doable.  

But what is doable is automation.

The proper automation can close communication gaps, reduce the amount of time it takes to find resolutions, and eliminate human error.

An example of this could be form entries on a website. Each time a form is submitted on your website, a task in Basecamp can be created.

This process can ensure that every form is transferred correctly (with no typos) and that all forms actually receive follow-up (no more forgotten entries).

 

If you’d like to learn more about workflow automation, take a look at 4 invaluable benefits of robots in the workplace.