How small businesses can better organize physical tech

Image by Trang Le from Pixabay

By Brooke Chaplan

If you’re running a small business in today’s world, technology is almost certainly a big part of your enterprise. This can be a problem, though, if your main passion is something other than technology. Fortunately, one of the most common problems, keeping the physical tech gear organized, can be easily overcome with just a few simple steps. Label everything, use unique shelving solutions, untangle wires, consolidate your technology, and be careful about disposal. By following these tips, your business will be able to better organize its physical tech assets.

Label everything

While this may seem basic, labeling everything properly can vastly improve efficiency and training. Technology can be quite confusing, even for the experts. One of the biggest problems is when you have cords running to multiple devices and mysterious pieces of equipment with unknown functions. To prevent any mystery in your tech setup, an important tip is to label everything. Even if it seems silly, try to label power cords, outlets, pieces of equipment, and anything else that could possibly be confusing. This will help you find and solve problems more quickly so that you can focus on your business.

Use shelves in unique ways

Wire shelving is great for organizing. What you may not realize, though, is that wire shelving is particularly well-suited for organizing electronics. That’s because the gaps between the wires are perfect for running different types of cords through to make it easy to connect your various devices together. Plus, you can keep all of your electronics in one place, since each shelf on a shelving unit can be adjusted. Using the right kinds of shelves can make a massive difference in your organization.

Untangle those wires

If you don’t do anything else as a result of reading this article, at least do this one task: untangle those wires. You know, the wires that look like a rat’s nest that are distracting and potentially dangerous. Yes, those wires. Turn off your electronics, carefully label and unplug each wire, then untangle the wires and wrap similar wires together using zip ties or Velcro straps. While it will take a lot of time, it will greatly simplify your physical tech moving forward.

Try to consolidate

The easiest way to organize your business’s electronic devices is to purchase devices that can multi-task. If you can find a device that can perform the same functions as two or three devices, that’s a good investment to make. Going this route will help you save on costs and will ensure that you have fewer devices that you have to keep organized.

Be careful about disposal

As you work to organize your business’s devices, you’re likely to come across a few that you no longer need. If that happens, be sure to dispose of your old devices properly. Instead of throwing them away, try to partner with a reputable electronics recycling company to ensure that the harmful materials in your devices don’t end up in the wrong place.

These simple tips can boost the efficiency of your business and help you better organize your physical tech.

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Brooke Chaplan is a freelance writer and blogger. She lives and works out of her home in Los Lunas, New Mexico. She loves the outdoors and spends most of her time hiking, biking, and gardening. For more information, contact Brooke via Facebook at facebook.com/brooke.chaplan or Twitter @BrookeChaplan.

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