Running a small business no longer means settling for “low-tech” solutions. With the software, online services, and tools available to businesses of any size and budget today, technology is in fact, the smartest solution to many small business limitations. The thing about small businesses, is that your team size is small. You don’t have as many hands on deck to do the variety of tasks that larger companies have. But you do have the ultimate multi-tasking ability of computers and software.

This is exactly why automated marketing techniques have been such a big hit in the small business ecosystem. The more work the computer can do for you, the more you can accomplish with a small team. Here are four clever ways to make use of automated systems to boost the marketing and sales capabilities of your small team.

Chatbots for Website Live Chat

Live chat is an incredibly powerful tool when it comes to online customer service and lead conversions. Live chat can answer customer questions, guide customers to the right products, and help to build positive rapport with leads and customers alike. Of course, small businesses often lack the floor of chat techs ready to engage with customers, and that’s okay!

With a well-programmed chatbot, you can leave the initial conversations and even the FAQ-like questions in the hands of a capable chatbot. A chatbot can be programmed with answers to predictable questions, a helpful site search function, and of course the ability to flag a real chat agent when the time is right. Your human team need only get involved when a customer has a really tough or complicated question or when they’re ready to talk to a human. All other live chat interactions can be handled by a bot that can talk to hundreds of different customers at once.

Charming Lead Qualification Pop-Ups

Lead qualification through automated marketing is tricky. Using the stock-standard methods can annoy customers who’ve seen identical pop-ups and requests for their email addresses time and time again. The trick to successful lead qualification is not just to have great content, forms, or email requests. The