Five online tools your small business can't live without

1. Online document sharing

Gone are the days of emailing multiple revisions back and forth (and wondering which one is the most up-to-date). Online word processors make creating documents and sharing them online easy. Whether you are working with a team member or need to present something to a client for revisions, online documents are the way to go.

Google Docs is a leader in this field, thanks to its simplicity, flexibility, and integration with all other Google offerings (such as Gmail). However, its not the only pony in the show. Zoho puts out a very nice suite of online products, including document sharing. You can also work on documents together within some popular collaboration programs, like Basecamp and MemberHub.

When Microsoft releases their new version of Office, they will also be releasing a free online office suite. This will be worth checking out, and should become a strong competitor, especially since so many people are already familiar with Microsoft Word.

If you are sharing a spreadsheet online, you can do it through Google Docs, but a better option is SmartSheet. SmartSheet focuses on just spreadsheets, and loads up some great options, including calendar view and SmartSourcing. With SmartSourcing, you can crowd source information for your spreadsheet for a few cents per answer.

2. Online CRM

You should be hosting your CRM online. Accessibility is the name of the game when it comes to customer information. With an online CRM, you can ensure that each of your employees is working with the same data, and when one person updates, everyone will see the update. As far as security and safety goes, online CRM companies are actually a lot better than you at keeping your data safe and keeping it backed up. If you have a computer go down, you can quickly switch to a new one and be up and running with your CRM instantly.

There are a lot of options for online CRMs. One of the most popular is Salesforce. Here are two others to consider. The first one is Highrise, from 37 signals. It is a very nice and easy to use CRM, with lots of great features. The one down side is that it is not very customizable and doesn’t provide reports. That’s where CRM number 2 comes in. BatchBook from BatchBlue Software is much more customizable. It has a "super tag" structure that allows you to organize your data in unique ways. You can also track your customers social media activity and you can easily integrate your data with other online software companies, such as MailChimp and Freshbooks.

3. Email marketing software

One of the best ways to keep customers and get new ones regularly is through an email newsletter. With the newsletter, you can stay in front of customers and prospects very inexpensively. Do it right, and you will build loads of trust and even add on new prospects regularly.

There are a ton of email marketing software companies out there, and most of them offer a free trial and are very inexpensive. Which you choose will depend upon your specific needs. Check out these two companies.

The first company is MailChimp. This is an extremely easy to use email marketing program. You can sign up and use it for free if you have a list under 100. MailChimp makes it easy to create lists, campaigns, and even autoresponders.

The other company is Big Response. It isn’t as fun or easy to use as MailChimp, but it has some functionality that really shines. The one thing in particular that Big Response offers that many email clients don’t is triggers. With Big Response, you can trigger emails to go out based on certain dates. This is different from an autoresponsder, which spaces emails out a certain number of days or by certain events. You can use the date based triggers to send emails out on custom dates for each client. This is not a feature that everyone needs, but it makes customization very easy for those that do need it.

4. Social media

If you want to be online with your business, you need to be involved with social media on some level. The big three places to be right now are Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.

It is free to start an account at each of these sites. However, don’t just start accounts and do nothing with them. Spend a good month or so with each social media tool that you want to use, until you really learn what you can do with it.

Social media is all about communication, or more specifically, conversation. This is not where you blast your marketing message. Instead, you will want to use social media to build your email list, to help you establish yourself as an expert, and to soft sell your business.

5. Email

You are already on email, but you can’t ignore the tool which is still the lynch-pin of the online business world. You are probably already moving more and more of your business communications to email. If this is the case, be a little careful. Email is convenient for all parties involved, but a personal phone call from time to time is still in order.

The best email service by far is Gmail. This free email service is very flexible and very organized. You can easily sync with a calendar, online documents, and more. You can even use your business email address through Gmail. If you don’t have a custom email address, such as you@yourwebsite.com, you can easily set one up using Google Apps.

Once you master these five essential tools, you will be able to increase your efficiency and reach online. These are a good base for your online business efforts.