Business owners wear A LOT of hats (but I don’t need to tell you twice 😉 ) and it can be hard to keep track of everything, which is why it’s so important to have the right tools set up for your business. From client onboarding and work to marketing and task management, there are so many tools out there to make things your day-to-day easier.
But, which tools and resources should you be utilizing and which ones are worth the price tag?
Learn more about my favorite tools and resources to use in my business!
My Favorite Business Tools and Resources
Client Management
A client relationship management (CRM) tool is a must in any business and is how you’re going to stay sane and keep all of your client information organized. I personally use HoneyBook and love it for contracts, invoicing, proposals, workflows, and scheduling. It’s user-friendly and the HB team is so helpful if you have any questions! I also love that it has an easy-to-use app so if I’m not at my computer, I can still take a quick look at what’s coming up.
A few other options for client management are Hello Bonsai, Dubsado, and Wave!
Task Management
Don’t get me wrong, I am alllll for writing out my to-do list on a piece of paper to easily access throughout the day but when it comes to running a business, this doesn’t always cut it. To keep things more organized and productive, having a centralized to-do list is key and that’s where a task management tool comes in.
I love Asana for this! The interface is awesome, there’s an app, and it’s easy to collaborate with team members. A few other great options are Trello, ClickUp, and Monday.
Social Media Scheduler
Content creation is a big part of what I do for work, whether it’s for the Studio 37 website and social media accounts, or for clients, making a social media scheduler a must!
I personally like to use a few different tools to plan and schedule content, so that I can see the big picture. I first start with Airtable to brainstorm, draft, and create content before scheduling it out. I use Hootsuite to schedule content for Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn, and Planoly to schedule Instagram so I can get a feel for what my feed will look like!
For Pinterest, I use Tailwind!
Expense Tracker
Finances and budgeting are two of my least favorite things in the entire world, but they’re necessary when it comes to owning your own biz (BRB while I cry). Even if you have a bookkeeper or accountant, an expense tracker is an absolute must for keeping your income and expenses straight and to make tax season a whole lot easier.
Quickbooks and Gusto are my faves for keeping everything straight and for paying myself and contractors!
Email Marketing
I’m a firm believer that you should never put all of your eggs in one basket (*ahem* Instagram) and building an email list is just one more way you can connect with your audience. Email marketing can be used for a lot of different reasons and some of my favorite ways are for recycling content, driving traffic to a recent blog post, sharing free content, and announcing new services!
I’ve been using Flodesk for a while now and absolutely love it. The templates are all really great and it’s just a beautiful platform!
Web Hosting, Content Management & Email
Web hosting, content management, and email aren’t necessarily tools you utilize for your business, but are what keeps a business running!
Web hosting is crucial for having a website and domain. I am a huge fan of SiteGround – their downtimes and customer service are great, plus it’s affordable and includes a free SSL certificate!
When building a website, a content management system (CMS) will be the platform you use for your site. With so many great systems out there, it can be hard to choose but I love WordPress. There’s so much more flexibility and room to grow and improve your site as your business grows.
And finally, having an email to communicate with clients and potential clients is a must. Gmail makes it easy to set up a professional email that doesn’t cost you an arm and a leg. Plus, who doesn’t love Gmail!
Need to overhaul the tools you use within your business but don’t want to deal with it yourself? Learn more about how we can support you through our virtual assistant services!
