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6 Best Small Business Software

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The GoCardless content team comprises a group of subject-matter experts in multiple fields from across GoCardless. The authors and reviewers work in the sales, marketing, legal, and finance departments. All have in-depth knowledge and experience in various aspects of payment scheme technology and the operating rules applicable to each. The team holds expertise in the well-established payment schemes such as UK Direct Debit, the European SEPA scheme, and the US ACH scheme, as well as in schemes operating in Scandinavia, Australia, and New Zealand. See full bio

Last editedJun 20222 min read

Small business software should help you manage your business more efficiently, through saving you time and resources. While accounting and small business inventory software are a must for streamlining accounting and simplifying stock counts, there are a number of other software types that can be a real asset to running a small business.

So, if you’re on the hunt for quality small business software, you’ve come to the right place. In this post, we’ll run you through some of the best software out there for small businesses.

6 best software for small business

1. Microsoft 365

If you’re looking for an office software suite, you’ll struggle to find better thanMicrosoft 365.

A key advantage of Microsoft 365 is the fact that it’s familiar to nearly everyone. And even those who only have experience using rival platforms will recognise a lot of the features since Microsoft is the exemplar others try to imitate.

Another benefit is that this software works in the cloud, which means it can be accessed on all devices from anywhere with internet connection. It also automatically saves documents online with OneDrive, meaning there is little chance that important documents will be lost.

Plus, as Microsoft 365 is so ubiquitous, you’ll find it easy to share or swap files with suppliers and contractors, further helping streamline business operations.

Prices range from £4.50 per user per month for a business. basic plan, to £16.60 per user per month for the business premium version.

2. Sage50

Sage50 is an accounting software which has features for handling quotes, invoices, taxes, cash flow forecasting, automatic bank reconciliation, among others. Despite having a wide range of functions and solutions, it remains easy to navigate. There are also video tutorials and 24/7 phone and email support to help guide users through the software.

Sage50 comes with 3 product plans: Sage Business Cloud Accounting (£12/month), Sage50 Cloud Standard (£72/month) and Sage50 Cloud Professional (£145/month). At the time of writing, Sage Business Cloud Accounting is available with the first 4 months free, while the other two plans come with free 30-day trials.

3. Slack

Slack is a communication platform used to streamline and facilitate teamwork and discussion. Increasingly valuable in the age of remote working, this software tool allows for real-time messaging across web browsers and apps.

With a range of integrations, plug-ins and easy to use shortcuts, conversations can be carried out efficiently. Files can also be sent over the platform, and video calls are possible.

While Slack does offer a free version, it is rather limited, especially concerning the number of team members it can support as participants. However, in the paid versions, more users can be added, and more features accessed — including 24 hour customer support.

4. Zoho

Zoho provides a suite of software solutions for small businesses, including finance solutions, help desk functions, business emails and sales and project management software. These solutions all seamlessly integrate with each other, and other popular business software platforms, such as GoCardless payment software.

Plans range from £12/user/month for the standard version, all the way to the Ultimate version which is currently priced at £42/user/month.

5. Salesforce

As a CRM software for small businesses and medium to large businesses, Salesforce offers quality sales, commerce and marketing solutions. It is an all-in-one platform which combines online and offline marketing, phone and email sales, and is specifically tailored to uniting customer sales and customer relationships. It also offers functions for revealing key performance metrics linked to sales and marketing, along with advice for optimising performance therewith.

Prices range from £20/user/month for small businesses, all the way up to £240/user/month for the unlimited plan.

6. GoCardless

GoCardless is an integral payment software for small businesses looking to streamline their payment collection and eliminate late payments.

Powered by Open Banking, GoCardless enables businesses to collect payments directly from customer accounts, either on a recurring or a one-off basis. The Success+ solution is tailored to collecting late payments on a business’s behalf to help efficiently recover more revenue.

As for pricing, the Standard plan comes with no monthly fee, while the Plus and Pro plans are priced at £50 and £200 respectively.

We can help

GoCardless is a global payments solution that helps you automate payment collection, cutting down on the amount of financial admin your team needs to deal with. Find out how GoCardless can help you with one-off or recurring payments.