How to Take Your Business into the 21st Century

It’s a funny saying “take your ‘whatever it is’ into the 21^st Century.” We’re getting towards 20% of the way through this century already, and if you looked at a business back in 2000 and compared it to now, they’d be almost unrecognizable.

So, we will stick with the saying, but really, when we talk about bringing your business into the 21^st century, we want to be moulding businesses that are ready for the 2020s. Lots has changed since 2000, and more will change in the coming years, but there’s plenty you can be doing to bring your business into the 21^st century today.

Convenience for your Customers

You can’t just sit and hope that your customers will come to you. You’ve got to get out there and reach them in the places where they’re spending their time, and in the 21^st century, they’re spending their time online.

In the 21^st century, you need to make it convenient for people to find you, convenient to communicate with you, and convenient to buy from you. Think about Amazon, it’s hugely successful because everything about it screams convenience. You can get whatever you want, whenever you want, all in one place, and all without leaving your chair.

Smaller companies don’t have this kind of scope, but they don’t have to lack ambition when it comes to being convenient to do business with. Reaching people in the spaces where they spend their time most frequently is something any business can do, you’ve just got to try and make doing it a focus.

Convenience for your Employees

Making work as convenient for your employees as possible is something you need to be interested in, but it has to be balanced with them being able to carry out their work to the best of their abilities. In recent times though, technological progress has meant that there are a lot more opportunities for employees to work more flexibly without compromising the level and volume of their work.

The “virtual office” is an excellent way for companies to offer more convenience to their employees whilst still receiving the same level of commitment. In many studies, remote workers, have been found to be more productive than their in-office colleagues.

Not only does actively enabling the “virtual office” boost your employees’ output but it also allows you to hire the best workers from around the world, and offer them the extremely attractive proposition of flexible, convenient work.

Personalized Experiences

Everything and anything can be personalized in the 21^st century. Consumers want to co-create their experiences and granting them this ability can offer you huge financial gains.

Even our TV shows are starting to be personalized now, with the viewer making decisions as to what direction the plot takes, so how can you use personalization to further your business?

Security

With identity fraud being one of the biggest concerns for people throughout the world, you know that you have to take security extremely seriously in the 21^st century. As a responsible company, you have a huge responsibility to keep your customers’ data safe and they will hold you to that.

If your website doesn’t look secure and trustworthy, then you’re going to lose sales, it’s as simple as that. In the past, this wasn’t such a major issue, but today, you cannot afford to look weak and inexperienced when it comes to security.

Make sure your websites are safe and secure by getting them security tested regularly using a company like Digivante, and let your customers know you take their security seriously.

Social Responsibility

Corporate social responsibility is becoming more and more important in the 21^st Century. With issues such as the climate emergency and corporate greed garnering so much attention lately, it’s important that your company is taking positive actions.

A business has a responsibility towards its community, just as any individual does, and ignoring those responsibilities can have dire consequences for your business.

Consumers are placing more and more emphasis on social responsibility when selecting the companies they interact with so building a reputation as a socially responsible company is very important.

Not only does social responsibility benefit everyone around you, but it’s also great aspect to build your company culture around. The more you live these values, the better it can be for your business.