What is Business Process Automation?

Business Process Automation or BPA for short. This was a buzzword a few years back with anyone and everyone claiming they were experts in this area. Maybe so. But to really realize its true potential you need to understand what business process automation is and why you will need it?

If you own/run/manage a business, take a look around yourself at the daily activities you perform to run your business effectively and efficiently. If you do observe closely, you will quickly notice that you (or your staff) do perform a lot of tasks that are generally repetitive in nature or they may be administrative tasks; tasks that you have to perform and are necessary to run your business.

Let me elaborate that with an example. A customer calls and enquires about a product you market. You tell the customer you will send a product brochure. You take all relevant information like prospect name, address etc. and walk over to your secretary. Your secretary takes the information, chooses the appropriate brochure, creates a covering letter, puts it in an envelope and mails it to your customer. Sounds familiar, right?

Well, what if I told you that process automation automates the entire process above using the Internet? And all with zero involvement from you? Or anyone else from your organization? Would that be cool? Let me help you visualize it.

Your prospect comes over to your web site, browses and is now seeking more information on a specific product. You have the prospect fill in all relevant information from within your web site. When the prospect submits the information, your web site will automatically save the information electronically in a database and send a personalized email to your prospect (i.e. thanking him/her for the enquiry and providing instructions to download the brochure). Your system can also follow up automatically after a few days with that specific prospect asking if they have any other questions or if you could be of any help.

This is, in essence, business process automation. You are automating the different business processes within your business. The beauty of automating this is the zero-involvement from your business. Let's take this a step further. If the prospect does decide to buy the specific product, they can purchase it directly from your web site (via a shopping cart). Your web site will already know what your prospect had received so you can "speed up" the process by simply collecting payment information over a secure line, process the transaction and then send new shipping details to your customer. The prospects details now go into the customer database (because you have converted a prospect into a customer). The order details automatically get sent to your order-processing department for order fulfillment. When the order is shipped, your order-processing department updates the "system" with ETA for the product. Your customer can now automatically track the status of their order. And you can actually get an overview of how many orders were received, shipped, transacted; all through a browser. Even if you were holidaying and were miles away from home/office.

Can you think of all the costs you have saved by automating routine, mundane tasks that have typically needed human intervention in the past?

That, in essence, is the power of automation.

Elvin Picardo
Delivering Net Results to Small Business
Author of numerous articles on Web Development and Internet Marketing
10723 159th St, Surrey, BC V4N 3J1 Canada
http://www.netmedian.com

Contact me

---

Data Loss - Can Your Company Survive? (Most Do Not)

Data. Most people think it is a term relegated to... Read More

Promote Yourself More Successfully

One of the great challenges for independent professionals and small... Read More

Franchise Sales and Use of Online Franchise Directories

Franchising Directory Sites-Paid Advertising, Lead Generation for FranchisingFranchising Directory Sites... Read More

Collaborative Negotiating: A Win-Win Strategy

COLLABORATIVE NEGOTIATING:Collaborative negotiating is a win-win strategy that can focus... Read More

6 Steps to a Successful Medical Spa Expansion

According to the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery, since... Read More

How to Find A Group that Needs Speakers

How do you find groups that are in need of... Read More

Small Business Opportunities And The Tens

You may find this Newsletter a little long winded but... Read More

Buying a Business

Start thinking about buying an established business if you want... Read More

Consistency Builds Trust

You know your prospects need what you sell. You know... Read More

Smart PR Tactics for Small Businesses

Small businesses need Public Relations, possibly more than large corporations,... Read More

Build Credibility with Expertise

As an Investment Representative you've worked hard to build trust... Read More

Doing Business With Friends: Five Tips for Preserving the Friendship... and Your Sanity!

My colleague, Jane, recently lamented to me an all too... Read More

How to Start a Carpet Cleaning Company

Opening a carpet cleaning business is a great way to... Read More

The Key To Success - Choose The Right Partners

Do you promote yourself as offering prompt, reliable and quality... Read More

7 Tips To Improve Your Cash Flow

Cash is King?That is what everyone tells us and it... Read More

Looking for a Business to Run in the New Revitalized Downtown Area?

Looking for a place to add a Quick Lube away... Read More

Marketing Your Small Business - The Top 10 Brilliant Ideas

A Brilliant Marketing Idea... sounds great but what is it?... Read More

Earn More Money in Your Small Business by Creating a PIG

If you really want to earn more money with your... Read More

Entrepreneurs Go Virtual!

With the massive explosion of start-ups and home businesses developing,... Read More

Small Businesses With Work Trucks; A Warning

If you are a non-operator owner of many work trucks,... Read More

Hispanic Small Business Advantage

One thing I have noticed in my travels to different... Read More

Home Based Franchise; What About Future Expansion?

As a franchisor I am always asked by new and... Read More

Take a Break - Have a Pity Party

Pity parties are nothing new. In fact, we do it... Read More

The Care and Feeding of Your Small Business

While I was hard at work last week, an everyday... Read More

Window Cleaning Business Case Study

How do window cleaning franchise businesses start? It is a... Read More

Encouraging Your Customers to Pay On Time

Nothing can drive a business down faster than customers who... Read More

Expanding Franchisee Advice

Franchisor expansion policies are not as simple as one might... Read More

Boston Market; Mobile Auto Detailing

Boston itself covers 50 square miles of concrete and traffic,... Read More

Online Search: Small Businesses Level The Playing Field

Seventy percent of US households use the web when shopping... Read More

How to Give Informative Talks

Why should you do informative talks to smaller groups?Informative talks... Read More

Cabinet Refacing Business Opportunities

With all the cabinet refacing business opportunities out there, you... Read More

Lawyers Everywhere Telling Regulators What Laws to Make

The Federal Trade Commission decided to sit down and revamp... Read More

Small Business Planning -- Three Myths

Are you -- like 70 percent of small business owners... Read More