One of the perks of having your own business is owning your time. Entrepreneurs can go on long vacations and business trips without needing to ask permission. In the Philippines, where there are so many beautiful island destinations to explore—and now that overseas travel is becoming increasingly more accessible—this is the dream for many.
That said, entrepreneurs with small businesses or startups have a lot more responsibilities on their plate than others. On an everyday basis, you may need to wear several hats to run your business—as the lead marketer, sales executive, customer service representative, and more. This is especially true during the first few years of your operations, when you’ll need to watch your spending and actively supervise your business staff. For this reason, even if you’re looking forward to flying out of town or out of the country, it may be harder for you to be at ease while you’re on the trip.
The good news is that it’s easier than ever to lead your business from several miles and time zones away, and that there are concrete strategies you can implement to ensure your business still runs smoothly without your physical presence. To help you accomplish this goal, here are some tips for managing your small business remotely:
1) Set Clear Goals and Priorities
Before heading off to your travel destination, you’ll need to set up a meeting with your team to discuss your business priorities and goals. Knowing that you are all on the same page can help set expectations and give your team direction even while you’re not around.
For instance, you should set sales targets and marketing goals that are clearly defined and measurable for easy business tracking, and set a benchmark for what you and your team should be able to achieve in the days, weeks, or months that you’ll be away from business headquarters. This will keep you from micromanaging your team unnecessarily and is a good way to entrust them to use their talents and skills to the fullest.
2) Take Advantage of Digital Financial Solutions Available to You
These days, there are digital solutions for nearly every aspect of your business. In terms of financial management, for example, you can open a business deposit account through a digital bank that will provide features often not available in traditional banks. The most obvious advantages these solutions have for a traveling entrepreneur are their accessibility and their availability round the clock.
Aside from providing higher interest rates on deposits, a digital bank can also offer you opportunities to access business financing that you can manage remotely. You can turn to Maya Bank for a business loan Philippines entrepreneurs can pay remotely from wherever they are in the world. It won’t be hard to make your loan repayments on time and avoid penalties for late payments.
With the same business deposit account, you can also funnel payments from your online and physical store. What’s more, you can also open a payroll account to simplify this essential aspect of your business. Consider setting these solutions up before you travel and using them for your business long after your return from your trip.
3) Inform Customers or Clients of Your Absence
If your absence may affect your company’s operations, you’ll want to be transparent to your clients or customers so that you and your staff can properly manage their expectations. Don’t be remiss in informing them of your travel plans in advance, and provide alternative contact information if needed. Send out emails to whoever needs them, and turn on your email vacation responder with a message about who to contact in case of an emergency.
It may also be prudent to appoint a second-in-command and introduce them to your clients beforehand to further assure them that their business is being taken care of. This proactive approach will demonstrate your professionalism and ensure a seamless experience for whoever will work closely with your business staff.
4) Delegate Responsibilities to Your Team
While it’s understandable to want to take on multiple roles at the start of your business venture, this is not sustainable. In light of your travels, it would be a good idea to practice delegating your responsibilities and to see which aspects of your business can be left to your deputies and other staff. In the future, this will allow you time to continue traveling and to pursue other goals.
Ideally, your team should run your business operations like a well-oiled machine even before your scheduled travel. Do a practice run at least a couple of weeks before your departure so that you have time to troubleshoot and to readjust team members’ responsibilities as needed.
5) Implement Automation Whenever Possible
Automation can be a game-changer for small business entrepreneurs looking to maintain a certain level of consistency while traveling. These solutions can improve your business efficiency by a great deal, leaving your workers to focus on the most critical tasks at hand.
Consider setting up a phone attendant system to answer queries over the phone or take orders. Queries coming from your social media pages, on the other hand, can be answered immediately if you activate and configure the automated response of the messaging app. Meanwhile, for financial management, you can set up automated payments through your digital disbursement account. Pay for recurring monthly bills or supplies automatically to avoid late fines.
Automation tools and solutions can save your business time and resources. Identify repetitive tasks that can be automated, use the technology to streamline your workflow, and save your energy while you’re traveling for tasks like decision-making.
6) Migrate Your Systems to the Cloud
Cloud-based solutions offer unparalleled flexibility and accessibility for managing your business on a remote basis. Through cloud-based platforms, you can access important data and applications from anywhere with an internet connection, which will allow you to be up-to-date about the most integral parts of your business at any time.
Do you need to collaborate with your team using spreadsheets? Use tools like Google Docs or Microsoft 365. Do you need access to your company’s in-house apps? Move these apps to the cloud via hosting services. This ensures that you have the information you need at your fingertips, regardless of your location.
It may make you nervous to manage your business remotely for the first time. But the tips above should make you more efficient as a remote business leader and, most importantly, free you up to enjoy yourself, learn new things, meet new people, and make the best of your travels.
