5 Small Business Tools for Running Your Business Smoothly
Over the years I’ve learned a lot of lessons. And one of the most important lessons is that running a small business isn’t easy, yet it doesn’t have to be as hard as it is when you first start out.
I’ve been crafting my ideal small business toolkit with the help of apps and websites that help us run our business more effectively. I’ve found what works for us, and always have an eye out for other tools to bring into the fray.
For today, I’d like to help you run your business a little more smoothly with these 5 small business tools that you’re going to want to check out, well, asap.
5 Small Business Tools To Add to your Toolkit
Trello
Funny story, I used Trello a few years back when I was the Boston leader for The Lady Project, a non-profit women’s organization, and I couldn’t stand it. Trello, not the organization, I loved Lady Project! 💛
It simply wasn’t for me; I abandoned it after just a few days. And instead, I stuck with my outdated list apps because that’s what I felt comfortable with.
Gosh, I did not realize what I was missing. I live by Trello now. It’s how I keep all of my work and passion projects straight. I also use it to communicate and collaborate with my Literary League team; our Well Kept designer, Mariellen; and Janet, my Idlewide co-founder. I use it to track my daily deliverables, monthly goals, and client work (and a whole bunch more that I won’t bore you with).
Our favorite function:
Checklists! Gosh I love being able to create easy checklists where I can list out what’s due and when, and where I can mention my team members so that they’re notified about any changes, too.
Try it out with your team, I’m curious to hear how you like it.
Flodesk
Flodesk has the most beautiful email builder out there, hands down. It looks like you’ve hired an email marketing expert the second you send one of these babies out. Plus, they have different (customizable!) templates available depending on the type of email you’re sending out.
I encourage you to play around with them, too. Perhaps explore a little automation with an immediate welcome email, or maybe queue up your monthly emails in advance using their scheduler. This one’s perfect for folx who are new(ish) to email marketing and want to step up their game without increasing the amount of time spent on email marketing each month.
In fact, this one will most likely save you time.
We also love Mailchimp and ConvertKit (CK is best if you’re looking for something with a little added customization and automation options), if you’re not totally sold on Flodesk.
Our favorite function:
The existing templates are great if you’re looking for something even easier, and more beautiful than, a drag-and-drop template. They look unique, especially when you pop in your own text and images. It may take some playing around with but you’ll pick it up in no time. I love how customizable they are to your brand - switch up the fonts you’re using and import your color palette.
Check it out here, you’ll save 50% on your monthly subscription fee.
Demio
With nearly everything going digital these days, Demio has been a saving grace. We’ve used Demio for everything from private client trainings to digital photography workshops. The tool is easy to use for both the host (you!) and your attendees.
Demio allows you to host virtual workshops, webinars, etc. right from the comfort of your own home. They boast a customizable sign-up page where you can share exactly what your event is all about. You can collect sign-up details like name, email, social media handles, and anything else that’s important for you and your business to have a record of.
And, you can share or sell replays to your events - simply copy and paste the replay link that populates in your event builder and voilà, it’s ready for you!
Our favorite function:
The chat window is great for connecting with your attendees. Aside from being able to welcome your attendees by name and respond to their questions directly, Demio’s chat also allows for live surveys, action items, and downloads. This means that you can set up a survey to ask your attendees’ opinions on the topic you’re discussing, create a clickable pop-up link to your website, and share a downloadable guide for your attendees to follow along with all before you even hop on the webinar.
Ready to try out Demio for your own business? Check it out and let me know what you think!
QuickBooks
Accounting isn’t glamorous, though it’s necessary. It’s easy for bookkeeping to be daunting and scary; QuickBooks makes it a little easier. Better yet, I highly recommend working with a local CPA on tax-related items while you handle the day-to-day. QuickBooks allows you to give your CPA access to your account so they can hop in to your “books” without you having to send documents via email. It’s going to be MUCH easier and more time-effective for you.
It’s a win-win. If you’re ready to tackle those mounting receipts and expenses, try QuickBooks out here - you’ll receive 50% off your subscription and a $50 Visa Gift Card if you subscribe via our link.
Our favorite function:
I love that we can work with our accountant, Leslie, right in QuickBooks. I categorize our expenses and she takes care of the rest. It’s SO much easier than all the messy spreadsheets we used to keep!
Planoly
We get it - there are tons of Instagram scheduling tools out there. In fact, we’ve tried lots of them - the free ones, the larger listening and reporting platforms, and everything in between. Yet, there’s one that we’ve consistently stuck with over the years - Planoly.
Planoly allows you to:
Map out your upcoming posts
Upload posts you’ll want to share eventually
Save hashtags to “clouds” so that you can place them in your posts with one click
Queue up in-feed posts and stories
Does that sound like what you’re looking for? Try it out here.
If you’re looking for something that includes Twitter and Facebook scheduling, check out our other favorite, Buffer.
Our favorite function:
I love that I can create a repository of sorts right in Planoly. I can upload photos as I edit them and then come back and share later. It’s perfect for saving for a rainy day, as they say.
Have you found any tools that work exceptionally well for you? Let us know in the comments so we can check them out!
- Gabriella
*Please note that this post includes affiliate links.
