How To Use Microsoft Access For Your Small Business

Kasia Mikoluk

Keeping your small business operating smoothly and efficiently can sometimes be challenging. As your company grows, it can become harder to stay on top of things and keep track of your data. A good data management system is important. When it comes to professional business applications, Microsoft Access is relatively inexpensive, flexible and quick, making it an excellent all-purpose database and a powerful tool that no professional should be without. Access can help your company store information and manage large amounts of data. Your information management can be streamlined and your data organized for clear analysis and reporting.

Unfortunately, many small businesses do not use Microsoft Access. They may try to manage with Excel or a mix of other methods, while avoiding Access. Although Access is part of Microsoft Office Suite and part of most small business software packages, it continues to be the most underused. You may be among those who believe that Access can’t do the job or that it is too difficult to use and maintain. You may have heard that Access is complicated and requires IT expertise to set up. Although it is true that Access may not serve every business need, in reality it is not difficult to learn and use and may well be the perfect database management system for your company. But you won’t know until you try! To do that, you need to learn how to use Microsoft Access and unlock its capabilities. Don`t let fear of the unknown prevent you from using this helpful tool for your small business. There is plenty of help for beginners, starting with these tutorials, designed for both the individual user and for training employees:

Is your company still using older software? Even if doing a complete software update is out of your budget, there is no need to worry. Older versions of Access will still allow you to build an efficient database that may suit your purposes. Take this Access 2007 introductory course and learn the basics. Once you’ve constructed your first database and have decided that it’s exactly what your company needs, you can easily move to the next upgrade, with this course on Access 2010. If you want additional features and are ready to update your software for the latest version, you can easily learn the basics of Access 2013 here.

Once you have become familiar with Access, you will find that it can handle large quantities of data, keeping your clients organized even as your business grows. It can recognize similar and different data, and has custom interface capabilities so that it can be modified for every employee user in your company. You can embed additional information in the data, such as important client details, and incorrect information can be easily sifted through and removed. Updates and global changes can be done easily across all database items. Access also has endless possibilities for customization. You can even link to a supplier database to access information from other sources.

In short, Microsoft Access can keep your small business organized and help you stay focused on growing your company and developing your client base. Once you’ve mastered the basics and become proficient, you can move on to more advanced training and learn even more tricks and features with tutorials like this one:

Learn Advanced Microsoft Access 2010 – Advanced