How to Get the Best Value from Your Software Tools

When you think about implementing new software tools, consider that software is 30% tool and 70% how it’s used in your organization.

If you’ve worked in a corporate organization and had the pleasure, aka “misfortune,” of implementing new software tools, you probably understand that the consultants employed to implement those tools usually cost more than the software itself in the first year.

There’s a good reason for this. The best software is worthless. Unless it is being used well and in alignment with the processes and goals of the organization.

This actually happens more often for more companies now that there are SO. MANY. software options available. It typically goes a bit like this: an executive or business owner hears that someone else is using this thing that is life-changing and the best thing ever. And now the department or company signs up for an account and does the two-week trial, but no one ever really figures out how or why to use it.

It can feel worthless, like one more thing, or seem too complicated to set up. And this is why the value of software is 30% about getting the right tool and 70% about how it is used.

Listen to Season 2: Episode 5

The Goal of Adding Software Tools

The whole point of introducing another piece of tech in business is actually very similar to the point of hiring experts: to accelerate growth and improvement. The best software will make it easier for the humans to do the human part of their job. It will take the burden off them doing all the things that could be done (and usually done better) by software.

And even what’s possible with software tools is changing. The purpose of software is not to be just another fee that gets paid for something that doesn’t get used.

When considering or implementing new software, I highly recommend booking 2–3 recorded training sessions with an expert to have them show you how to set up and get a foundation started for your needs. To be valuable, these training sessions need to have specific goals and defined outcomes.

To elevate the value of your software tools even further, talk to an expert or external agency. Do this as you consider specific software solutions. Talk to them to figure out how to go about addressing challenges or problems you’re currently having. Specifically, the ones that make you consider adding software. Sometimes software is the solution. Sometimes it’s not. And sometimes it’s a part of the solution.

Why Software Support Is So Vital

Often, we can’t see how to use software until we have a specific kind of problem. We have to see how other people are using it before we can envision what it might look like for us.

We have a client who also runs a marketing agency and wanted her team to be more effective and efficient but had no idea how to go about addressing that. She and I started discussing some of the ways the FieryFX team is set up and the tools we use to make our work most effective.

Leveraging Software

During one of these sessions, I showed her a tool called Workona. It’s a Chrome extension, a piece of software that runs in the browser. It allows us to create workspaces that we use for internal processes as well as for client work. Every client has a specific workspace where there are links to all their information and assets. For internal processes, such as running reports or marketing activities, there is a separate workspace with links to all the needed websites, information, and assets.

Now this might not sound revolutionary to a person who doesn’t switch between multiple clients or projects and only has one function they’re operating in every day. For a person

• who works in a marketing department or an agency,
• who’s constantly switching between projects or clients,
• who’s working on a project up until there’s a meeting,

and then needs to switch gears and go into the meeting, having separate workspaces is almost priceless. It means that all the tabs you have open are preserved (no panic about “losing” a tab). All the resources for any client or project are all together. Tabs open with a single click when needed.

For this client, Workona really helped—at least once she had the support to know which software tools were right for her.

Experts Unleash the Power of Software Tools

When you harness an expert to help use software tools correctly, you actually get the full benefit of having the software. An expert helps with the critically important setup. Then the expert can get an understanding of the entire lay of the land so that your needs can be effectively matched up with the available features and the full value of the software can be experienced. It’s the shortcut from “How do I use this?” to “This is life changing!”

Wondering how an expert could help with your tech or software? At FieryFX, we’re experts in strategy, websites, analytics, smart business, and technology. Plus, we know a thing or two about getting the most from working with experts. Find out how to fire up your effectiveness by joining us at the next Tech Roundtable! Come with questions about your software tools!