Running a small business often means juggling a million tasks at once and feeling like you have 100+ tabs open on your mind! Managing client interactions, tracking projects, and staying organized can quickly become overwhelming.
Thankfully, Notion continually rolls out updates designed specifically to streamline your workflows, enhance productivity, and simplify daily operations.
In 2025, there are five essential Notion updates that every small business owner should take advantage of. Let's dive deep into each one, exploring how they can practically enhance your business processes!
1. Visual Charts: Instantly Turn Data into Actionable Insights
Small business owners know that data drives decisions — but who has time to interpret endless spreadsheets?
Notion's new visual charts are here and take the visualization to a new level!
These charts convert raw data into clear, intuitive visuals such as bar charts, pie charts, and line graphs, all updating in real-time. You can quickly grasp key insights without getting bogged down in data overload.
In my workspace, I like to use a Blog Planner to manage my blog posts. I use two databases - one for tracking my content and a second one that pulls in info from the blog content and ties in the Analytics. I like having seperate databases so it's not too much information in one. I then use click through rate's, engagement rate averages, and the number of blogs I'm publishing.
This is an example of a Notion database powering a charts view for your content analytics so you can see performance at a glance.
- Use separate databases for content and analytics, then connect them for cleaner reporting.
- Track CTR, engagement rates, and total published posts in one simple dashboard.
- Click any bar or segment to open the underlying database pages instantly.
Pin this so you can recreate a simple Notion charts dashboard for your leads, revenue, and content performance when you’re ready.
How to Leverage Visual Charts:
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Revenue Trends: Use line charts to clearly see monthly revenue fluctuations.
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Customer Acquisition: Bar charts provide an easy way to compare customer acquisition costs across various marketing channels.
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Project Management: Progress charts visually track project completion, allowing you to spot bottlenecks early.
Visual charts simplify complex data analysis, making it accessible even if you're not naturally a "numbers person." Plus, you can now click on the graph, and open the pages to the data that it connects to. Charts now reduce the friction of exporting data to external apps, keeping everything centralized in your Notion workspace.
2. Custom Page Layouts: Organize Your Workspace Exactly How You Think
Every entrepreneur works differently, and Notion’s customizable page layouts embrace this individuality. With options for multi-column setups, grouped content blocks, and dedicated sidebars, your workspace can finally match your workflow intuitively.
This screenshot shows a Notion database with multiple tabbed views so you can flip between layouts without duplicating your data.
- Use one database and create saved views for clients, projects, or sales stages.
- Keep your core properties consistent while changing how information is displayed.
- Surface only the most important fields for each use case so pages feel lighter.
Practical Applications of Custom Layouts:
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Client Dashboards: Create dashboards with key client information, project statuses, and recent communications visible at a glance.
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Project Hubs: Organize resources, tasks, and timelines in columns or sidebars, eliminating the need to scroll through endless content.
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Sales Pipelines: Visualize your sales process step-by-step, providing clarity and ease of use for your entire team.
A customized layout means less time searching for information and more time actually using it effectively. If you're unsure how best to set up your layouts, consider scheduling a quick workspace audit session to tailor your Notion experience perfectly to your needs.
Pin this when you’re ready to design multi-column client dashboards and project hubs that actually match how you think.
3. Automations & Webhooks: Seamless Integrations and Time Savings
Automations are essential for freeing up your valuable time, and Notion’s new automations now include frequencies + webhooks! Connecting seamlessly with apps like Zapier and Make, you can automate routine tasks effortlessly, dramatically reducing manual workloads.
Set up Notion automations to handle repetitive work
This panel shows how you can choose triggers and actions in Notion automations to keep your databases and external tools in sync.
- Start with simple triggers like “when a page is created” or “when a status changes.”
- Use actions to update properties, create new pages, or send data out via webhook.
- Pair automations with tools like Zapier or Make for more advanced workflows.
Pin this GIF so you can come back and build a simple “set it and forget it” automation flow inside Notion (especially if you manage clients + projects).
Effective Ways to Automate:
- Client Intake: Auto-fill databases with client details as soon as they book an appointment, removing repetitive data entry.
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Follow-ups: Automatically trigger personalized emails based on database status changes, improving your client experience without lifting a finger or set it up with a confirmation.
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Task Management: Sync tasks due dates within projects automatically with one button automations with due dates calculated with formulas, ensuring accuracy without manual assigning.
By automating routine tasks, you significantly reduce errors, save hours weekly, and gain more time to focus on strategic, growth-oriented activities. This powerful feature alone can transform the efficiency and accuracy of your business operations.
4. Apple Shortcuts: Connect Your Digital Life with Notion
Apple Shortcuts integration takes productivity beyond the Notion app! This update is ideal for small business owners who are constantly on the go and don't have time to open up Notion. Apple Shortcuts enable quick and easy access to your Notion workspace directly from your iPhone or Mac without having to create long sequences with the Notion API!
Use Apple Shortcuts to send info to Notion quickly
This view shows the Apple Shortcuts editor with Notion actions so you can create one-tap buttons for your favorite workflows.
- Connect to the Notion actions and choose which database or page you want to use.
- Pass in fields like task name, due date, or client name directly from your phone.
- Save the shortcut to your Home Screen for fast access during your day.
Pin this if you want one-tap capture for tasks + client notes — perfect for on-the-go business days when you don’t want to open Notion.
Top Apple Shortcuts for Notion:
- Instant Daily Planner: Create a shortcut that opens your daily planner in Notion with just one tap.
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Quick Client Notes: Automatically add notes to a client database from your mobile device, making sure no insights are ever lost.
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Rapid Task Entry: Quickly jot down new tasks directly into your Notion task list while on the move.
Apple Shortcuts not only save time but also ensure critical information and ideas are always captured immediately, no matter where you are without opening the Notion app!
Looking to up your Apple Shortcuts game? Learn how to add in Notion tasks with other properities filled in!
5. Notion Forms: Streamline Client Intake and Boost Internal Collaboration
Client onboarding and internal team collaboration can be cumbersome without proper systems. Notion Forms revolutionize this by streamlining how you collect and organize information. Forms created in Notion automatically populate your databases, reducing manual data entry errors and administrative overhead.
Collect client requests and feedback with Notion Forms
This example form shows how clients or team members can submit a support request or revision straight into your Notion workspace.
- Use required fields to collect the details you need the first time.
- Send responses directly into a support or client database instead of email.
- Filter and triage requests by priority, type, or status.
Powerful Uses for Notion Forms:
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Client Intake: Create professional, branded intake forms that clients can easily fill out, instantly populating their information into your workspace.
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Project Requests: Quickly collect and organize new project requests or feedback without sorting through emails.
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Internal Surveys: Keep your team aligned and informed by using forms to gather team feedback, preferences, or updates.
Forms simplify your workflows significantly. They ensure data accuracy, reduce back-and-forth communication, and centralize critical information, enhancing productivity and organization. Forms have also been upgraded, enabling business and enterprise plans to utilize conditional logic.
Pin this as a reminder to turn your client intake, project requests, and feedback into Notion Forms that feed straight into your databases.
About Me & How Biz Strtga Can Help
Hola — I am Jen, the Biz Strtga (strat·e·gista)! I help small business owners and freelancers build Notion workspaces that truly support their goals, with a special focus on service providers.
Through my brand Biz Strtga and my shop, Sip and Bloom, I support entrepreneurs and small teams who are ready to turn scattered workflows into a custom Notion ecosystem.
How we can work together
- Ecosystem Build : A full custom Notion workspace for your entire business. We design a complete operating system around your actual workflows, with optional migration, advanced automations, and team training.
- Growth Formula : Deep optimization of an existing Notion workspace. I refine your databases, navigation, and automations so your current setup finally matches how you work.
- Workspace Nurture Package : Three targeted improvements delivered in one week. Ideal when your workspace mostly works but has a few pain points that slow you down.
- Cultivation Session : A 90-minute 1:1 Notion consulting and implementation call. We focus on one big challenge (with room for a couple of smaller ones), then you get a recording and a personalized Bloom Growth Guide with next steps.
- Digital Products – The Apothecary : Ready-to-use Notion helpers and Apple Shortcuts, including Quick Input to Notion and 10 Essential Apple Shortcuts, so you can streamline capture and everyday workflows without a full custom build.
Based in Los Angeles, I am available for Notion workshops, speaking, brand partnerships, and done-for-you builds. If you are ready to make Notion easier to use on your phone and across your whole business, reach out and let us design an ecosystem that actually supports you.
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