Business

Slack app frees me from my desk

I’ve written about using third-party apps on my Bigcommerce store. But there are many apps that merchants can use regardless of their ecommerce platform. One of my favorites is Slack, which is a team communications app. You may be thinking, “I’m a team of one, why would I need a platform built for teams?” But don’t stop reading just yet.

Using Zapier, I can integrate Slack with my Bigcommerce store, PayPal payment gateway, and Zendesk help desk. Besides being able to talk to my colleagues, I have a 360-degree view of my store in the palm of my hand. I no longer constantly check my email, log in to individual websites, and otherwise sit at my desk. Instead, I now simply open my Slack app.

Sure, there are still times when I use a native app to respond to a customer service ticket, or issue a refund. But the very nature of the Slack environment I’ve created allows me to spend more time with things that increase the quality of my life, rather than continually putting out fires.

Besides having an advanced notification tool on my phone, I also save time with automated Zapier triggers. For example, when a customer creates a new account on Bigcommerce, the Zapier trigger will create a new record in my Base customer management system and tag it as store customer. By creating these automated workflows on the front end, my digital administrative work is nearly self-sufficient.

Another favorite integration is Slack and Trello, the task-management app. For example, with a few simple clicks I can have Trello tell Slack any time an inventory item is marked done or a customer posts a comment.

I share a Trello board with the lady at our screen-printing company and it makes both of our lives easier. I can add Trello cards to our board and she moves them along the production cycle. I know exactly where any order of shirts is at any given time. Slack will instantly alert me the moment the Trello board is updated. Using this workflow, we both save a ton of time, avoiding back-and-forth communications.

I’ve tried many apps and platforms over the years and it took me a long time to figure out which one was right for my business. That is not the case with Slack and the integrations that I’ve described in this article. They are easy to test, which is the best part.

Kenny Kane
Kenny Kane
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