Mastering Productivity: Improving your workflow and processes with OnceHub automation

Human error seems to be the last frontier of optimization. Throughout history, we’ve been hard at work creating tools and processes that help us to conquer our environments and emerge victorious over any obstacle that may come our way. 

Now, we’re at a time when our own inventions, you know the one, seem to be running away with us and showing us the ropes and how to work better, write better, create better, and be better. This slippery slope of fine tuning and configuring our outputs to perfection to make it seem as if we were never there, as if human fallibility has been removed from the equation, is interesting to say the least. 

While complete AI oversight and intervention is still a way away, it is nonetheless a precarious time to be a person with goals and ambitions, as the chances of a piece of software achieving those goals in a way that is better than any of your hypothetical attempts, is rather likely. 

Does that mean that we shouldn’t try? That the aggregate human effort to improve is a waste of time? Not at all. In fact, you might even say it's more important than ever. 

When process hampers progress 

The way in which we conduct our affairs and go about our days is tantamount to what we view as our human contribution, what our perception of self is and how we define our worth. We are intrinsically iterative creatures and by learning and optimizing continuously we are able to improve and make provisions so that others may similarly benefit from a better way of doing things. Before scheduling apps and digital calendars, human error often resulted in things like scheduling conflicts, erroneous application of time zone calculations and no-shows. Now, we’ve mostly learned from those mistakes and enabled ourselves to remedy them by way of technological intervention. 

Human error is thus essential as very often it is the genesis that spurs steps to remedies and recourse. 

Something that is of particular interest to us at OnceHub is this learning from failure and optimizing how we do things. The age-old warning about repeating the same mistakes and expecting different results is all the more urgent when there are such clear and simple ways to avoid them in the first place. There really is very little reason to keep bumping your head on persistent problems when there are a wealth of resources to consult to help you not to. 

At the core of our operations and product is the desire to upgrade the way in which people work and refine how they engage and interact with others. Business processes, or workflows, are the golden thread that undergirds our professional efficacy. Without them, chaos. Processes that are messily applied without much thought or consideration? Also chaos. 

Finding method to madness and creating order from chaos can be a tiresome and arduous task. They are pursuits that could take lifetimes to realize and more often than not, we simply don’t have the capacity to adequately do so. Luckily, we have those inventions we spoke of. 

Why business process automation is more important than ever

At first the concept of process automation faced much derision, as many felt that it was a blatant attempt to replace human labor. What people slowly realized was that automation was intended to enhance human labor. Automation, in essence, is a way to win back time and free ourselves from many of the mundane tasks and processes that have characteristically made the working world a bit of a slog. 

For instance, by employing some of OnceHub’s digital process automations and unleashing them into your workflow, you can rest easy knowing that you don’t have to:

• Send reminders. 
• Send meeting links. 
• Send follow up emails. 

While these may seem like simple, casual, almost automatic items for your own to-do list, imagine not having to do them at all and how much different your workday could look if you were allowed to focus on what really matters. 

That being said, sometimes the adoption of these simplification or streamlining strategies can be slow and unwieldy, and extra work is required to establish the idea to do so as a solution in the first place.

Now, even the way you plan for meetings can be automated. By making use of routing and qualification automations, you’re largely able to create an infrastructure for yourself that allows you to get the information required to turn a bad meeting into a great one. In doing so, you’re also negating opportunities for no-shows and missed appointments, as if there is relevance to the engagement all parties are more likely to attend it in the first place. 

Influencing people to make your job easier

A big part of working with others is getting them to bend to your will a little bit. You have to negotiate some buy-in and approval in order to get the ball rolling. This business process can assume a variety of forms, whether it be via an intriguing USP, a clever call to action or a sense check that your way of doing things is the right way for the task at hand. 

We like to think that getting people to make use of your booking page, digital assistant or routing forms and understand the novelty of the digital process automation is achievable by reinforcing the idea that doing so is as beneficial to them as it is to you. When you’re trying to engage with others and create meaningful reasons to meet, you’re essentially attempting a very difficult balancing act between making good impressions and establishing relevance. No one feels like they have enough time to waste it, and meetings and sales attempts are some of the more egregious time wasters we encounter in our daily lives. So what if you could find a way of tackling those digital process automations and interactions in a way that is borne from context and connection?

By making efficient use of the steps required before a meeting takes place, you’re putting yourself in the driver’s seat and setting the course for the rest of the journey. You’re also doing so knowing that the person you’re meeting with knows that you understand their needs. Context is everything, and if you’re able to procure it by asking people the right questions so you can assist them in the right way, everybody wins. 

Faster business processes, faster results 

Sometimes, expediting a business process is as simple as the reduction of the manual tasks it takes to perform it. We have an uncanny ability as humans to complicate things and add redundant steps to give us a false sense of accomplishment when undertaking tasks and activities that are actually quite simple. 

We think there’s value in curation and there's nothing quite like taking a good, hard look at your processes to spot the problem areas and realize you really could’ve done it in a better way all along. For instance, a prominent OnceHub user was experiencing frustration at the lack of direct interactions he was having with potential clients when scheduling meetings with them in advance. By making use of our live engagement feature, he was able to pivot this process from an unsuccessful one to an interaction that led to conversions. Knowing how and when to trust the digital business process automation and when to strike while the iron is hot can dramatically change the way you engage. 

Perhaps the most critical aspect of speeding up your processes is getting the small talk out of the way. There’s usually a lot of time being spent on getting to the crux of the matter and finding some middle ground in a conversation that allows it to progress to where you need it to go. Maybe you’re trying to figure out what kind of advice someone needs, maybe you’re trying to find an angle that helps you hawk your wares. Playing catch up with clients can start to feel like a cold reading pretty quickly and crystal balls don’t have a great track record when it comes to sales and marketing. 

With qualifying questions, you can ascertain crucial bits of information before the meeting takes place and give yourself a running jump in securing someone’s attention and consideration. Structuring your information acquisition in a way that empowers you to learn more and provide a more detailed and tailored service helps to build trust and gives you peace of mind that you’re talking to specific needs. 

Upgrading your business processes automation

By automating repetitive and time-consuming tasks, businesses can streamline their operations, reduce human errors, and increase efficiency. For instance, automation can be applied to tasks like data entry, document processing, and inventory management, allowing employees to focus on more strategic and creative aspects of their roles.

In terms of routing and qualification, automation can play a pivotal role in optimizing workflows and decision-making processes. Using automated digital processes, businesses and organizations can route customer inquiries, sales leads, or support tickets to the most suitable people for the job based on predefined criteria. This ensures that tasks are assigned to the right individuals, reducing response times and enhancing customer satisfaction.

By leveraging technology to handle repetitive tasks, businesses can optimize resource allocation, improve decision-making, and enhance overall productivity. Embracing digital process automation empowers businesses to adapt to an increasingly competitive landscape, providing a strategic advantage to thrive in the modern business environment.

So where does your business process automation go from here 

If you find yourself in an engagement intensive profession or need meetings in order to make a living, why not approach them from a different angle. It stands to reason that if you focus on nailing a given meeting and making sure you’re providing information and services in the best way possible, that that should be your sole focus. By implementing time saving mechanisms and automating redundancies, you allow yourself to do exactly that. Your processes might seem sacrosanct and maybe the thought of messing them induces anxiety, but upon closer inspection you’re likely to learn that there is a better way to do it, and that it probably isn’t as out of sight as you may think. 

How OnceHub can help your digital process automation

By making use of OnceHub to streamline, automate and improve the way you meet with others, you’re essentially hitting the upgrade button on your existing business processes. Integration is seamless and using it is intuitive, so if you’re looking for a way to manage your booking process, click here. If you’re in the market for a way to qualify visitors and add context so your next meeting gets off to a great start, click here and if you’re looking for a digital assistant that can help you with all of the above, click here.