Since its emergence, Technology has transformed the manner in which human beings live their lives. It has impacted almost every section of human lives, including the manner in which Brands and companies are performing their functions. This means that brands have had to transform the entire manner in which they function, including their relationships with clients, customers and employees. In addition, smartphones and laptops have transformed the manner in which customers view and experience their brands.

Since 2000, the music industry in the America has lost more than 42 per cent of its value. Companies like Apple have taken benefit of this technology advancement and generates more revenue than even box office sales in America. Additionally, the US iOS app industry provides a number of employment opportunities that crosses even those provided by Hollywood. WhatsApp has more than 600 million users, a number that is increasing every single day.

Today, technology is allowing brands and companies to expand their horizons and establish their roots in countries that they never thought of before. In other words, technology is a single defining factor that is changing the manner in which brands functions across all sectors and categories.  The explosion of the net and smartphone have further fuelled the manner in which companies are conducting their work and have changed the structure of brand functioning, which were in initially in use for more than a century.

What is even more interesting is that the manner in which brands are functioning is changing rapidly. This is because technology is changing at a rapid pace and if brands are to be successful, they will have to adapt to this changing pace in an effective manner.

Both large and small operations of brands and companies have been affected by this changing pace of technology and that is why staying updated in the latest trends is what can help brands to get ahead of their competition as well. With major advancements in mobile technology, almost all the functions of brands and companies are now being conducted on these small devices.

When people can shop, advertise, read, purchase and bank mobile devices, it can impact the manner in which companies in multifold manner. By challenging traditional Business models, the internet and mobile devices have delivered multiple benefits for brands and companies across all sectors.

Today, mobile technology is changing rapidly and is providing customers with endless choices across services and products. By integrating old business models with new technology, brands can transform their business and provide unlimited choices to consumers, whether they have access to the internet or not. By unlocking the full potential of mobile technology, brands can discover the next stage of growth and development in an effective fashion.

All in all, this means that technology has the potential to completely transform the manner in which brands interacts across all their platforms. But while it is easy for big companies to adopt technology as they do not lack resources in terms of human power or money, the same cannot be said for small companies.

According to a study, many managers feel that munging evolving technologies is a major concern for small companies.

This is because if companies fail to keep up with the technology trends, it becomes very easy for them to fall out with the rest of the sector and this can eventually lead to the failure and closing of a company.

Further, small companies are very vary of investing resources to adapt to this change and generally depend on the IT support team and product lenders. At the same time, small brands and organisations must understand that investing in such technology will only help them get ahead in the long run.  For the very first time, small brands have the opportunity to implement technology that can transform their brand while at the same time level the playing field for brands across categories as well.

Here are some key advantages about how brands can be transformed as a result of technological advances:

• Technology can help companies to reduce business costs: A business has multiple costs from investing in hardware to payment of dues. Many functions of a company like record keeping, accounting and payroll can be done through tools and apps, which will effectively reduce the workload. Technology has enabled many companies to go paperless and conduct many of their functions and transactions on the internet/computers/mobile devices. In addition, by creating a secure environment brands can conduct their function in a safe, reliable and effective manner.
• Technology can help companies to communicate and connect in a better manner: Business technology can help companies that are small in nature to improve their communication, both internally and externally. On one hand, the use of emails, texts, websites and personal digital products applications called as apps,  have made it easier for companies to connect with their employees and share their workload as well. On the other hands, business technology can help brands connect and communicate with their customers in an effective fashion as well. By using different methods and platforms, companies can connect with consumers in an innovative and creative manners, increasing brand loyalty and connect. Additionally, these technologies also allow customers to connect with brands and companies, especially on social media platforms. By interacting brands in real time, consumers and brands can engage in communication that is indeed a two way street.
• Business technology can help companies go global in the true sense: Earlier brands were restricted by region because to expand brands needed a lot of resources. With the advent of internet and smartphones, it has become possible for brands to expand their reach, using just these resources. Rather than seeing products and services in their local region, brands can now sell the same to a global audience using the power and reach of the internet. Retail websites are one of the most popular and common ways in which companies can reach global audience in a simple and effective fashion.  A low cost option, websites allow consumers to access a wide range of products and services at all times. By using different resources like web banners and websites, even small brands can effectively expand their reach and customer base.

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A major aspect in which technology can help companies is to enhance and improve Productivity levels within an organisation. That is why productivity is one of the most important elements in any organisations and mergers across sectors and organisations know that consistent productivity is the only way to ensure sustainable results, especially in the long term. It is managers and the top management who have to introduce such processes that will help employees to be effective and productive in a sustained manner. Whether a business organisation has been set up to produce a product or render a service, they will always try to pool their resources so that can develop a better product and service, so that they can increase their market share and brand loyalty as well. When companies have a bigger market share, they will effectively increase their sales and in turn their profits. That is why productivity is one of the one the main focus of all brands and organisations. Higher productivity will in turn also bring about other benefits like higher salaries, improved work environments, enhanced morale, better working conditions and better employee-employer relationships.

Business technology can therefore help organisation to boost or sometimes can even cause hindrance to employee productivity. In some cases, technology can distract employees from performing their functions in an effective manner, but when employed in a proper manner they can boost and increase productivity across all sections. By helping employees to collaborate, work remotely and mange time in an effective fashion, companies must know how to implement technology in such a manner that tasks can be performed in a simpler and faster manner. This helps companies to reduce their resources and make use of opportunities that were till date hidden.

In fact, according to a study conducted by O2 Business and CEBR, productivity has increased by 84 per cent during the last 40 years, only because of advancements in technology.

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At the same time, it is important to understand that implementation of new technology requires the support of the top management of an organisation. Selecting the right technology softwares and training of employees in the usage of these mediums is extremely important. All this will require good level of investment, in terms of human resources, time and money but it has long term benefits and potential as well. Here are some ways in which companies can ensure better productivity among their employees and staff:

1. Companies must give their employees access to secure and consistent information: Bigger companies take a much longer time to adapt to the changes in the market, mainly because they are bigger in size. It is here that small and mid-level companies can use technology to adapt quickly to these trends and changes. So when companies have a secure and reliable network that is based on intelligent routers and switches, employees can take benefit of the multiple opportunities that exist in the market. By giving employees access to valuable information they can help to boost their productivity and give them tools to help succeed in a competitive environment.
2. By being in touch with consumers, technology allows brands to expand their reach and power: Brands must be productive so as to stay ahead of their competition and this means that they must be connected with their target audience at all times. That is why brand owners must provide employees with tools and techniques that allow them to connect and communicate with their customers, irrespective of where they are at the current time. With tools like virtual private networks, employees can work at any place and still enjoy safe access to business networks as well.
3. By connecting with clients and customers, business technology make it easy for brands to expand: In order to expand, brands need a smooth collaboration between their partners, customers and suppliers.  An intelligent network allows brands to share the various tasks, thereby increasing effectiveness and growth.
4. Make mobile phones an important aspect of growth: Today mobile phones have immense reach and power. They allow people to connect in an instant manner. But sometimes missed calls can lead to project delays, missed opportunities and lost revenue. With a networked voice and data solution, employees can have one phone that rings on multiple devices, so customers can reach the right person, By allowing the staff to check their voicemail, fax and email with just one phone, brands can rediscover the manner in which they function.
5. Use technology to monitor business productivity and progress of employee goals: There are many online business productivity software solutions available in the market that can enable managers to not just track progress during each phase of goal completion but also offer immediate reinforcement or coaching, so as to keep performance and deadlines on track. This will help companies to achieve greater business productivity because this helps employees to learn new skills while at the same time perform to the best of their capability. Track work goals and reward employees with monetary and non-monetary incentives, so that they are always encouraged to perform to the best of their ability.
6. Develop a long-term technology plan: Technology is constantly changing and evolving. That is why it is important to replace obsolete hardware can hamper employee productivity and bring the office to a standstill. Minimize such disruptions by carefully determining short and long term business objectives and work with network vendor so that they can deploy such technologies that can meet the said goals.

All in all, ensuring continuous productivity is the only way in which companies can stay ahead of their competition. Increased productivity brings with itself a host of benefits and allows brands to capture not just the loyalty of the customers but also the market share as well.  That is why investing in business productivity is one of the best way in which companies can make use of the opportunities that exist in the market and be a place for learning and growth for employees as well.

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