Here are the tools that help me organize my life and grow my business.
NOTE: I want you to grow in every aspect of your career and life. I maintain affiliate relationships with some of these companies (meaning I make a commission when products are sold), but I will always and only recommend products I know, love and trust.
My Tool Rating Guide
B – Beginner, Best for Beginning Entrepreneurs, usually low cost or free
I – Intermediate, Best for more experienced entrepreneurs, usually moderate cost
A – Advanced, best for very experienced entrepreneurs looking to scale and grow..
Tools to Sell and Promote Products
Gumroad: Sell Physical and Digital Products Easily (B)
One of the most important things you need as a creative is the ability to offer your products, art and music for sale – without the headaches of dealing with banks and technical issues.
Gumroad is an easy to use solution, and they are dedicated to helping creators to get paid quickly and easily. You can upload both digital and physical product descriptions, connect your bank or Paypal accounts, and easily create an online storefront that will attract customers and help you get paid.
Tools for Designing, Branding and Marketing
Canva Pro: Create Professional Quality Graphics and Logos (I)
Almost every graphic and photo that you see on my website has been created or edited on Canva. It helplike me to make high-quality social media posts, images, print materials and more. There are literally thousands of templates for any kind of post or design you need.
There is a free plan available, but I highly recommended joining Canva Pro. By joining you get unlimited access to over 2 MILLION stock photo files – which is more than worth it instead of paying for every single image you use over time. Plus you can create a library of unlimited folders to create templates you can use again and again. It’s an incredible tool for creatives in any field, and you can try it out for 30 days risk-free.
Tools to manage social media
MissingLettr: Automate your Blog Post Promotions (B, I)
If you blog regularly, you probably don’t have enough time to promote your blog posts across your social media channels.
MissingLettr helps solve that problem by creating a full 12 month social marketing campaign for your blog posts. All you need to do is review their suggestions (making edits if you need to) and that’s it. Your blog post is then marketed across your social channels for the next year – driving traffic back to your site.
Use my link and get 50% for the first three months of your subscription!
Hootsuite: Automate your Social Media Posting (B, I)
For creatives that have to manage several different social channels, a ‘social aggregator’ like Hootsuite is extremely beneficial. By using one app, you can post to multiple accounts across platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest without having to spend hours on each site.
MeetEdgar: Automate and Recycle your Posts ( I, A)
I’ve just started using MeetEdgar and it’s been a HUGE time saver. Edgar is a social media management tool that automatically shares and reposts your status updates, taking the busywork out of scheduling and saving you hours a week. I’ve found it extremely useful to make sure my best content doesn’t go to waste when it’s posted only one time.
Use my link, and if you decide to become a Edgar customer, you’ll get $10 off your next invoice!
Tools for Managing your Home
Instacart: Get Groceries Delivered to your Front Door (B,I,A)
I never would have realized how much time I spent in the grocery store…until I didn’t have to.
My wife and I now swear by Instacart as the best way to keep our kitchen stocked, and more importantly, give us back the time we desperately need to actually enjoy meals together and spend more time at home. Instacart deliveries are reliable, the deliveries are easy to plan, and we get access to all of our favorite local grocery stores. It’s a total win for any busy family who wants to focus on the right things and not on running errands.
Tools for Building your Audience
ConvertKit: Create Landing Pages and Build your Email List (B,I,A)
Social media has all the buzz, but trust me- your email list is your biggest asset. ConvertKit helps you use that list to grow your business through attractive forms, trackable data, and simple but powerful automations.
ConvertKit can help any level of creative, from the novice who hasn’t ever started an email list, to the advanced marketer who is emailing their audience frequently. Plus, they have perhaps the best set of resources for creative entrepreneurs to really help them get started with email marketing.
UPDATE: ConvertKit has launched a FREE email management plan that allows you to build unlimited landing pages AND manage up to 1000 subscribers. It’s absolutely the perfect way to get started with no initial investment….No need to invest loads of money or waste valuable time figuring out how to start your business at the beginning. All you need is a platform and the ability to grow your audience. Tap our link below to take advantage of the Free Plan!
Bluehost: Host and manage your website (I, A)
There are plenty of ways to build a website quickly, but the best way is to have control of your hosting – the place your website is actually stored. Bluehost is a leading hosting platform and allows you easily load your site and manage it without technical headaches – and if you need help, they provide extremely responsive customer support.
I’ve used Bluehost since the beginning and have had only positive experiences. Tap the button below to try out building your site for a special low monthly rate, exclusive to my community!
Tools for Outsourcing and Hiring Help
Fiverr: Find and hire quality freelancers (B, I, A)
Today’s creative entrepreneur is asked to do so many tasks that we aren’t trained for, or just don’t have the time for. How can you find the right help – at an affordable price?
Fiverr is the most comprehensive site for hiring freelancers in nearly every possible field – from web designers, to social media managers, to copy editors, and everything in between. I’ve found all the help I need by talking to freelancers all over the world and getting exactly what I was looking for every time.
Tap below to search their huge marketplace of freelance service providers.
Tools for Business and Task Management
Todoist: Manage projects and daily tasks efficiently (B, I)
Todoist is a task management app with both a simple, intuitive interface and a wide variety of integrations with other apps (Google, Zapier, etc) which allow you to keep your projects and tasks in front of you at all times.
The free version contains all the integrations, but to get features like labeling, assigning tasks and other productivity hacks, a monthly subscription is required.
Dropbox: Manage Your Digital Storage (B)
Dropbox offers up to 2 GB of free storage before you have to pay a monthly fee. You can access your files anywhere, and share them instantly via email even if the recipient doesn’t have an account. It’s a lifeline for musicians, graphic artists – anyone who has large files they need to share quickly.
One note- make sure you pay attention to how many shared folders you have with others -it can quickly eat into your allotment of storage space.
Rev: Generate Accurate Transcriptions and Captions (I, A)
Rev is a transcription service that helps freelancers to seamlessly transcribe, caption, subtitle, and translate content in one simple interface. If you have to transfer audio or video files into text, Rev offers you both professional transcripts done by real people and automated, computer-generated transcripts that are highly accurate.
Use the button below to find out more about how Rev can help you create captions, repurpose content, and build your business!
Headliner: Create Video Clips for Social Media
Headliner is an AMAZING app for podcasters, video producers – anyone who needs quick, well-designed social media clips in video format. It can take clips of audio, video or still photos and make video clips to share on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter, all already formatted to the correct size and length. It’s a great tool that also has free plans available.
Tools for Podcasting
Buzzsprout: Produce and publish your podcast (B, I, A)
Podcasting is a great way to share your art and your message with more people. I’ve started using Buzzsprout to host my podcast, and it’s been a great fit for our show. They really support you, whether you’re a beginner or a seasoned podcaster.
You’ll get a great looking podcast website, audio players that you can drop into other websites, detailed analytics to see how people are listening, tools to promote your episodes, and more.
Tapping this button lets Buzzsprout know I sent you, gets you a $20 Amazon gift card if you sign up for a paid plan, and helps support our show!