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What is business process automation?
Business process automation is the process of delegating routine work tasks to specialized automation services. According to a recent survey, 74% of Russian companies are actively implementing automation projects, indicating a growing interest in improving operational efficiency.
The most popular areas for automation include:
- Document management (e.g., Diadoc, Directum)
- Accounting (e.g., 1C)
- Interaction with clients and target audiences (e.g., Bitrix24, amoCRM, Megaplan)
- Project management (e.g., Jira, Asana, Trello)
The "Megaplan" service offers users the ability to choose templates for creating and automating business processes based on the specifics of their activities.
Why is automation needed?
The need for automation typically arises during company growth. For example, if processing 10 applications a day can be handled by one manager, then processing 100 applications becomes a labor-intensive task that requires additional staff. Instead, it is more efficient to use automation: it ensures that no application is missed and allows for reduced labor costs.
Automation provides a number of key benefits:
- Increased profits: Before implementing automation, it is important to analyze current business processes, identify weaknesses, and choose necessary tools. Although initial costs may be significant, long-term benefits often outweigh the investments.
- Optimization of employee work: Freeing up time for strategic tasks allows the business to grow and innovate.
- Reduction of errors: Setting up algorithms once eliminates the human factor from further operations.
- Establishing transparent financial reporting: Modern automation services help track business metrics in real time and generate reports based on current data.
Automation of marketing processes
Automation plays a key role in marketing, allowing for:
- Optimizing the processing of incoming requests;
- Collecting customer data and segmenting audiences;
- Managing advertising campaigns;
- Building effective communication with customers.
All these actions are aimed at creating an effective sales funnel that leads the user from product awareness to purchase. Automation tools assist in this process by replacing routine tasks of managers with automatic algorithms.
For instance, to automate the intake of requests, marketers use tools like pop-ups, online chats, and chatbots. Pop-ups are windows that appear on a website with forms or offers that help collect contacts for further interactions. Online chats and chatbots significantly increase the efficiency of managers by allowing them to communicate with multiple customers simultaneously and process more requests.
Automation of project management
Managing projects without automation tools can be a labor-intensive process. Modern project management systems offer many opportunities for automation, such as:
- Task assignment by template or trigger;
- Automatic reporting on completed and overdue tasks;
- Notifications for project participants about new tasks and changes in plans.
These features not only simplify task execution but also help the team focus on more important aspects of work.
How to implement business process automation?
For successful automation implementation, it is essential that it benefits both the business and its employees. Before starting the process, it is important to ensure the following aspects:
- Clear understanding of the goals and objectives that need improvement;
- Projected costs for tools and training do not exceed expected profits;
- Stability and clarity of business processes.
After this, one can move on to the planning stage. It is important to analyze the customer journey and determine which stages can be automated to increase sales. For example, if a company sells flowers through social media, implementing a chatbot with online payment functionality can significantly ease the work of managers and increase sales.
If difficulties arise during the automation process, it is advisable to consult specialists who can help analyze current business processes and develop a tailored automation plan.