My 5 Favorite Tools for Small Business Owners
Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links, meaning I get a commission if you make a purchase through my links, at no cost to you. However, I only recommend products I use and love.
I bet you already know that running a small business can mean juggling a million things at once and wearing ALL THE HATS. That’s why I put together this list of my 5 favorite online tools for small business owners.. you know, the ones that have made my life so much easier! I hope you find them helpful too. 😊
For Design: Canva
Use this link to try Canva Pro for free
What is it: Canva is a template-based, easy to use, drag & drop online & mobile design & publishing tool for non-designers. It’s a great option for creative small business owners who don’t have the budget to hire a professional designer for their day to day needs, and enjoy DIY.
Investment: Click here to try Canva Pro for free!
Why You’ll Love It:
The ‘Brand Kit’ tool allows you to upload and apply your Brand Identity elements (including your logo, color palette, fonts, accents, icons) to your various design projects - to keep everything on brand & consistent AF. Contact me if you’re interested in discussing your brand identity.
You can create graphics and videos for social media, presentations, print products, photo collages, infographics and a whole lot more!
Start with a template (their options are gorgeous!!) or you can design from scratch.
They have some really beautiful options for fonts. Check out this blog post for 5 of my favorite Canva font pairings.
Pro tip: DO NOT use CANVA to create logos—for a ton of reasons including legal and otherwise—but it is a great tool for the things I mentioned above!
Use this link to try Canva Pro for free
For Accounting: Quickbooks
What is it: Accounting software by Intuit that makes it super easy to do your own accounting, including sending invoices and receiving payments.
Investment: Click here for current pricing info
Why You’ll Love It:
Quickbooks keeps my $ and business organized
It’s very user-friendly (notice that is a trend in this blog post)
I use Quickbooks to create & send all invoices, take payment, and record all my expenses
I never have to worry about doing any math correctly (thank GOD! ..I hate math)
I love their Profit & Loss reports, which make it easy to compare how I’m doing from one month, quarter or year to another
For Time Management: Toggl
What is it: An online tool for tracking your time, organized by client, project, date & time. Includes reports.
Investment: Free
Why You’ll Love It:
As a small business owner, you have to track your time.
One of the best things about being self-employed is getting to do things on your schedule, instead of answering to a boss. But that can also make it easy to get sidetracked, or accidentally take half a day off because you started cleaning the kitchen or binge watching the new season of Joe Millionaire.
If you don’t track your time while working, how will you really know how long you spent on anything?
Obviously you have to track time for projects that you bill for by the hour.
But it’s also important to track non-hourly work as well, so that you know how much time your various projects take you. By tracking the time I spend on my Custom Design Packages, I can calculate the average and use that data to confirm that my pricing is accurate, based on both the value I provide for my clients and how much time I spend on their work. This info also allows me to plan my schedule according to how much time certain projects usually require.
Pssst… Are you struggling to stay organized, be productive, complete your to-do lists… or do you just feel unmotivated or even pessimistic throughout your workday? I have something for you, boo! Click here to snag your free copy of The Best Day Ever Worksheet
For Lead Generation: Interact Quiz
Every small business’ website needs a lead magnet - aka a way to get people on your email list.. so that you can build a connection and eventually sell them your fabulous products / services.
Your email list is the most powerful marketing tool in your toolbox. Why? Well, unlike social media.. you own it, you have full control, and it’s wayyyyy more effective to show up in someone’s inbox than to *hope* they notice your latest post on social media.. (that’s if the algorithm even shows it in their feed to begin with!)
A quiz is my favorite lead magnet option, because they are fun to take, they only require a minute or 2 of someone’s time, and a quiz can be a way to get the taker excited about your products / services. That can take a lead from warm to hot! 🔥
In fact, I love Interact Quiz builder SO MUCH, I also wrote this blog post: How to Grow Your Email List with a Quiz.
What is it: A tool for creating fun quizzes and embedding them info your website
Investment: $17/month after free trial
Why You’ll Love It:
Interact Quiz Builder makes it super easy to create your own quizzes and add them to your website, social media or blog
You can have more than one quiz at a time, to target different niches (awesome)
You can start with one of Interact’s templates and tweak, or start from scratch
I was astonished by how many leads my quizzes collect, allowing me to rapidly grow my email list with warm leads that are interested in my specific niches
Use this link to try Interact for your small business!
For Websites: Squarespace
What is it: Squarespace is the all-in-one solution for anyone looking to create a beautiful website. Plus.. purchase domains, eCommerce, hosting, galleries, analytics, email marketing tools, and 24/7 support.
I am totally obsessed with Squarespace. It seems like every few months, they add another new feature that’s even better than the last one. Squarespace is the only platform I use to design and build websites for my clients, and myself (yes that includes this website & blog post!)
Investment: Click here for current pricing info
Why You’ll Love It:
Award-winning template designs make you look like a pro
Very user-friendly back end - which makes it easy for my clients to make simple changes to their websites, like swapping out text or images
Built in, easy to use blog
It has a BADASS built in e-commerce platform which is great for selling services, products, or digital products
Built in email marketing tools
Built in Analytics - also compatible with Google Analytics for more in depth info on how your site is performing
That’s it! My god, these 5 tools have made it SO MUCH EASIER for me to run MY small business. If you enjoyed this post, you’ll love my emails. Click here to subscribe.
x, gretchen
Psst.. are you sick and tired of figuring out what to cook or order for dinner every night?
I was so over it. I tried Blue Apron and Hello Fresh, and I loved the convenience of the meal kits... but they were so expensive, I just couldn’t justify it. Then I found Dinnerly.
Click here to get a free box from Dinnerly - on me!
Dinnerly has allowed me to take the guess-work out of dinner completely, and quit grocery shopping — which felt like a huge waste of my precious time. But what really sold me on this particular brand is the price. I still can’t believe that Dinnerly meals are only $4.99 per person per meal, and they are literally the exact same thing as Blue Apron and Hello Fresh. (I’m talking the same exact chicken with the same packaging from the same vendor.)
I’ve been using the Dinnerly kits to make dinner for myself and Ham 3 nights a week for the last year, since we started living together. So I can vouch for them that the quality is consistent. In addition to being super affordable, they have so much variety and the meals are incredibly tasty. They have options for vegetarians, pescatarians, as well as low-calorie and low-carb. The meals are pretty healthy and balanced too — you know we eat clean and are a very health conscious couple. Plus you can make them a bit healthier depending on what type of oil you cook with, how much butter or ghee you use, and how much salt you use.
You know I don’t recommend any brands or products that I don’t absolutely love, and I recommend Dinnerly to all my friends.
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I’m a Brand Designer and Strategist living in NYC. 9 years ago I quit my job to start this business, and now I’m here to help you do it too! I specialize in helping established female millennial entrepreneurs transform their brands.. to attract Dream Clients and grow their businesses, so that they can make more money, be their own bosses and live the life they deserve!