With streaming services providing films, television and music as well as cloud storage and the rise in the functionality and accessibility of smartphones, more and more of us are spending a greater portion of our lives online. The same is true for businesses as well, and most companies now have an online presence in some form; websites, online shopping portals, apps, and of course a social media presence.

There are, however, more and more services that are provided to businesses or indeed sole traders that can both streamline and bring online more of your day-to-day business activities.

Online Accounting

Most of us have by now, heard of the big players in this area, such as Sage. Previously, installing Sage onto individual computers was both painstaking and slow. With the improvements to the speed, security and storage capacity through the internet, however, these large companies are now able to provide solely online capabilities allowing companies, often with multiple users, to access and manage their accounts anywhere in the world with an internet connection.

This has also meant that smaller companies, such as KashFlow for example, have had substantial growth using the internet to provide more competition to users.

Many of these online accounts providers also allow instant access to accountants, by using specific log ins or portals. This further takes the time and hassle out of the yearly accounts audit, saving you both time and money.

Online Sourcing/Procurement

Of course, the obvious advantage to taking your business online, as companies like Amazon show all too well, is that by having an online presence, you are opening up to sales channels across the world, not just in your local area or even within your own country.

Imagine if, simply by taking more of your business’ administration online, you could similarly open yourself up to a world of opportunity. Well, simply, you can. Just like the accounting companies we mentioned, other providers too have now started to offer services to assist your business, and they’re all based online. From HR solutions to procurement and contract management, there are a wealth of platforms out there waiting for you to expand your reach with.

Scanmarket.com, for example, offers a range of services for your esourcing needs including auctions, spend analysis, supply base management, and crucially; contract management. This means that Scanmarket really does offer a one-stop service to not only procure and source new suppliers online but manage them too.