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The new business owner's guide to small business technology: Working smarter

Author: Nick Reese

Date published: January 27, 2025

For a new entrepreneur, technology is much more important than just having the latest gadgets. Small business technology provides the tools you need to enhance operations, improve customer service and stay effective.

How does technology help small businesses succeed? We're glad you asked. Verizon delivers a range of solutions, devices and tools you can use to streamline your business and boost productivity, even with a small team and limited resources. As part of our guide to starting a small business, we've created this resource to help you understand your specific options when it comes to technology for small business, so you know exactly where to start. Whether you're just starting out or looking to take your business to the next level, this guide to small business technology is here to help.

SMB FAQs: Working smarter

Mobile edge computing (MEC) overview

Mobile edge computing (MEC) can help build a foundation for your digital transformation. By hosting applications at the edge of the network, MEC can help reduce response time and improve performance. Learn more about mobile edge computing, how it works and its key benefits.

With traditional cloud computing, processing happens in a data center, which can be far away from the physical location of the application that needs the data. The time needed for transit and processing can cause high latency and delays, which could interfere with the ability to deliver a near real-time experience.

Mobile edge computing hosts applications at the edge of the network, putting them closer to the user, devices and endpoints. By decreasing that physical distance, mobile edge computing can reduce application response time, which means faster performance. Mobile edge computing also can make it possible to support many applications across multiple locations, helping to enable innovation and market opportunities.

Businesses typically use mobile edge computing for a combination of mission-critical, low-latency applications and the regional cloud for general-purpose, latency-tolerant applications. The applications leveraging MEC are located nearest the users' devices and can send the data through the network at a higher throughput speed. Massive amounts of data travel even more quickly to 5G-compatible devices. With a thin client, which runs resources centrally rather than on the computer hard drive, the technology can help enable lower cost and longer battery life.

5G edge services, provides an integrated set of tools that helps your organization grow by building, deploying and managing the apps that can improve both your customer and employee experience. Because you can monitor performance across your infrastructure from a single dashboard, you have easy visibility into the analytics you need to ensure consistent performance for all users, while creating a simpler management experience for your team.

Adopting 5G and MEC can open up many possibilities for improved efficiency, productivity and experience. It can help optimize network performance by using edge discovery capabilities, which results in a lower cost with faster speeds. Organizations could realize the following MEC benefits:

  • Low latency: The biggest difference organizations see with MEC is the significantly lower latency. Because there is less physical distance between data processing and the user, users have an experience that's as close to real-time as possible.
  • Simplified Internet of Things (IoT) deployment: With traditional cloud computing, the processing of IoT data occurs on the device, which can drain its battery. The MEC device performs the processing in the cloud, helping to eliminate the latency between the cloud and the device. Organizations can use devices longer, which can make it easier to scale IoT device usage.
  • Visibility: Organizations can see a full picture of the entire distributed infrastructure from a single dashboard. Data silos can be eliminated as organizations have access to holistic, timely insights, delivering higher levels of efficiency backed by more reliable connectivity.
  • Quicker decisions: Business leaders can access near real-time data and insights to help make faster decisions. They can also act on the data where it's created, which saves additional processing time. Using simple low-code or no-code technology, teams can create dashboards with the exact information they need.
  • Improved security: By using a self-service 5G edge platform, organizations can improve control of their security, such as by implementing a zero trust security policy. At the same time, enhanced device capabilities increase both security and end-to-end performance.
  • Increased efficiency: MEC can help make it possible to increase automation through cloud computing and reduce manual processes. With automation, organizations decrease errors while freeing up employees to handle tasks that require a human touch.

MDM solutions can offer you what you need to monitor, manage and secure your devices so you can help protect your business against cyberattacks. Tracking software also can enable businesses to monitor the location of their entire mobile business assets. Learn what you need to start and grow a small business.

Small business technology can be a lot to manage. But you don't have to do it alone. Mobile device management (MDM) solutions give you everything you need to easily monitor, manage and secure devices so you can help protect your business against cyberattacks. For example, Verizon Mobile Device Management allows you to track all the devices your business uses and how they connect to your network, helping you ensure:

  • Security: Verizon MDM helps protect business data by controlling access and usage on company devices, preventing unauthorized access and potential data breaches. If a device gets lost or stolen, you can lock or wipe the device remotely so data stays safe.
  • Efficiency: Verizon MDM allows for centralized control of security policies, managing how devices connect to applications and websites, and how your employees leverage things like mobile hotspots and USB devices—all from a single portal.
  • Compliance: Many small business industries have specific requirements for how data is protected and controlled. Verizon MDM helps you ensure and prove that your business is meeting the standards set by local, federal and industry regulators.

Many small businesses rely on vehicles, heavy machinery, trailers, cargo boxes and other movable vehicles and assets in order to operate. Whether you're running a plumbing business or starting a new construction company, GPS fleet tracking software allows you to monitor the location of your vehicles and assets in near real-time; this helps you monitor if they are being used productively, efficiently and safely.

Verizon's GPS fleet tracking provider, Verizon Connect, enables businesses to monitor the location of their entire mobile business vehicles and assets at a glance from a single screen. Benefits include:

  • Near real-time tracking: Knowing the precise location of each vehicle at any given time helps your transportation coordinator or fleet manager improve route efficiency and decrease fuel consumption.
  • Driver performance: Monitor driver behavior and performance to understand how speed, idle time and other factors contribute to fuel efficiency and vehicle wear and tear, allowing you to provide additional driver training to modify behavior and improve performance.
  • Equipment security: Keep a close eye on valuable vehicles and assets such as trailers and heavy machinery to help prevent theft and loss.
  • Predictive maintenance: Gain insights into vehicle health based on mileage, enabling you  to predict and schedule maintenance, avoiding unexpected downtime and expensive repairs.
  • Alerts: Get SMS or email alerts for critical events such as speeding, harsh driving events, or excessive idling, allowing you to contact the driver and take immediate action.
  • Reports: Leverage scheduled and on-demand reports to analyze daily miles, speeding events, arrival times and more.
  • Route replay: Review the exact route a driver took to address any questions about their performance.

To learn more, check out this series of demo videos to see Verizon Connect Reveal in action.

Delivering leading technology for small business owners is just the beginning. Verizon works hard to support small businesses by delivering the valuable insights and expertise they need to stay competitive. Our resources include:

  • Webinars: Join our Small Business Webinar Series for educational presentations by industry experts on topics like social media strategies, wireless field solutions, customer experience and industry-specific issues.
  • Online courses: Verizon Small Business Digital Ready provides free valuable resources you can use to start and grow your business. This online offering gives you tools you can use to help overcome your business challenges, including 40+ free online courses, 200+ live and virtual events, 1:1 coaching, $1 million in available grant funding and the chance to network with other entrepreneurs.
  • Podcasts: The Verizon podcast series Encrypted: The Small Business Security Podcast helps you stay ahead of the ever-changing digital threats that can take down a small business. Hosted by a member  Verizon’s cybersecurity marketing team, this podcast is designed to help you understand the tools and strategies you need to help secure your devices, network and data.

From technology to expertise to support, Verizon has everything you need to start and grow a small business. Check out our small business solutions to learn more.

The author of this content is a paid contributor for Verizon.

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