There are a lot of apps and services out there aimed at startups and small businesses. But how can you know which ones are really good?
Well, I have tried quite a few of them, and some were great while others were disasters. In this article, I’ll share some of my favorite tools, an arsenal to which I arrived via a lot of trial and error. I hope you’ll find them beneficial, too!
123FormBuilder
You know how sometimes you are working on your website and then you run into something that requires the coding skills that you don’t have? It’s incredibly annoying!
It also feels silly to have to hire a developer for every little thing, even something as simple as contact forms. In fact, hiring developers for small tweaks will add up in cost quickly. But what other options do you have when you can’t code yourself?
123FormBuilder is an app that allows you to build online forms and collect accurate data in a few easy steps. If you want to create an online form, there’s no need to spend money on a developer!
WPKube
You will also need a blog. WordPress is the best content management system for that. It has an amazing ecosystem of plugins, add-ons, themes, and much more. However, it’s also quite complicated, and setting up your first blog might be confusing. So how can you speed up your learning process?
WPKube is an excellent resource for anyone who is new to WordPress. You can start by reading their guide on how to start a WordPress blog. They also have articles on pretty much anything you can think of related to WordPress, from picking the domain name to WordPress security. WPKube really is a treasure trove of information.
ActiveCollab
Working with a remote team? Then it’s extremely important to make sure that everyone on your team is on the same page no matter where they are located. It’s also crucial to keep all the communications and data in the same place – otherwise things will get lost all the time. If you fail to stay organized, things simply won’t get done on time and your clients will be very unhappy!
ActiveCollab is the software that you need. They’ve been around for 10 years and have been trusted by 200,000+ users. ActiveCollab allows you to collaborate with your team, track tasks, track time, and even create invoices.
Undsgn
Okay, so you set up your blog, but how can you make it look great without spending a ton of money on a web designer + developer?
Undsgn can help you. They are a ThemeForest Power Elite author team that has been doing creative WordPress development since 2008. They have also received multiple international awards.
Their theme Uncode is both functional and beautiful. It was designed with flexibility and performance as top priorities. It’s also one of the top 6 creative themes out there!
MeridianThemes
Want more design options for your blog? Check out MeridianThemes!
MeridianThemes is a creative WordPress development team that offers fast, reliable, and functional themes which look gorgeous. They are also very affordable.
DepositPhotos
You might be surprised by how many photos you need to run your online business. You will need them for your homepage, for your blog, for your marketing materials, you name it. But how can you get great photos without having to pay through the nose for a professional photographer?
The easiest way to get them is through DepositPhotos. It’s a leading stock photography website with over 60 million files in their library. You will definitely find what you are looking for!
Crello
When you run an online business, there’s always some design work that needs to be done, and the costs can add up quickly if you hire designers for every little thing. But what can you do when you don’t have any design skills yourself? Is hiring expensive designers really your only option?
Crello is an app that allows you to create great graphic designs yourself. It’s a very simple 3-step process. And the best thing about it is that you don’t need any prior design skills to use it. Simply follow the process and you’ll be producing great designs in no time!
Viraltag
Marketing is a crucial part of any business. After all, if people don’t know you exist, how will they buy anything from you?
And social media marketing is especially important for online business because social media is where your customers hang out. But how can you reach them when you are already juggling many tasks and simply don’t have that much time to spare?
Viraltag can help you stay on top of it. It’s an app for sharing visuals that allows you to post updates, schedule content, and recycle evergreen posts, all from a single dashboard. It will save you a lot of time!
Instagrowth Ninja
Instagram is a social network that has a lot of potential and being active there is beneficial for any online business. But again… what if you simply don’t have the time?
There’s always the option of outsourcing it. Instagrowth Ninja is a monthly organic Instagram service that can help you with growing your Instagram profile. You will be amazed at the results!
Salesmate
Did you know that many online entrepreneurs overlook the importance of sales in their businesses? Sounds silly, but it’s true! Think about it… have you optimized your sales process already?
Salesmate is a customer relationship management system that allows you to manage the sales pipeline, track sales activities, and automate sales tasks. And all that means more sales!
Conclusion
When you run a startup or a small business, you don’t have any time or money to waste, so use these tools to become more efficient and to cut costs. They pay for themselves!
