Whether you’re setting up a new local business or improving an existing one, finding new tools to help you with your job can sometimes be a bit of a pain, but there are literally thousands of resources your business can use to help with things like improving your invoicing, brainstorming new ideas, video conferencing, team management and much much more!
1. Grammarly – Spelling, Grammar and Punctuation Tool
Grammarly is an Artificial Intelligence-powered digital writing tool. It works as a browser extension for Chrome, Firefox, Edge and many other browsers as well as being a downloadable piece of software.
In essence Grammarly helps you with your spelling and grammar whilst typing online documents, emails and notes. Grammarly automatically detects spelling and grammar mistakes and uses a variety of algorithms to supply fixes and suggestions to how you can improve your writing.
Grammarly alis available in a free and premium versions, I personally use the free version as an extension in my browser and have found it to be an excellent asset to my digital toolbox.
You can get Grammarly here: https://www.grammarly.com/
2. Pexels – Free Royalty Free Stock Imagery
If you’ve ever found yourself in need of a photo for your website, Twitter feed, Facebook page, Instagram or any other platform then Pexels is the place to go.
Putting a photo on your business site or social media is a bit more complicated than just slapping the photo on there and being done with it. A lot of photos will require some form of payment to the photographer or a form of recognition otherwise you are technically just stealing their imagery and passing it off as if it was your own.
Royalty Free images are images where you are given permission to use an image in a specific way, however the copyright of the image is not transferred over to the person using it.
Pexels is a website where you can access a variety of completely FREE royalty free images to use for your website. You can use the images with no credit, however for each image you use there is the option to donate to the photographer or artist who produced it.
I have personally used Pexels for a variety of web projects including my own website and cannot recommend the service enough. You can download files for free up to a certain size without creating an account and to access the full sized versions of images (still for free) you just need to register and account on Pexels and then you’re able to download them!
You can view Pexels here: https://www.pexels.com/
3. Hubspot CRM
Hubspot CRM is an absolute lifesaver when it comes to keeping on top of a variety of things within your business. Hubspot is a browser-based CRM that allows you to keep a track of business cards and client contact information, LinkedIn connections, Content, Potential new business opportunities, sales pipeline management and so much more.
I’ve personally only just started to use Hubspot after having my email inbox and notepads cluttered with contact information, quotes and whereabouts in the sales process certain clients were. There is a really helpful guide that runs you through a basic step by step of how the service works. Although it takes a little bit of time to get the hang of in the beginning I can certainly say its a very worthwhile investment of time, especially if you are managing a growing business and currently aren’t using a CRM system!
You can check out Hubspot CRM here: https://www.hubspot.com/products/crm
4. Zapier – Integrate Different Web Applications
Zapier is a tool that helps you automate tasks by connecting apps and services together. Zapier works with a huge variety of different web-based applications including Gmail, Google Docs, Mailchimp and much more.
Zapier works by linking two different applications together using pre programmed “Zaps” meaning that there is no coding necessary! It’s as simple as using the service and allowing permissions for the two to integrate together. An example of this could be setting up a Zap to notify you via email when someone responds to one of your Google Forms.
I’ve personally been testing out different Triggers to use with Hubspot to notify me of new email events and have also been experimenting with using it to populate my google calendar automatically!
Zapier does require a bit of time invested to get to grips with it but once I started to get to grips with it I realized how much potential value it could add to my business.
If you want to check out Zapier you can do so here: https://zapier.com/
5. Bonsai – An Invoicing, Client contracts, Expenses and Accounting Tool.
Bonsai is a new tool I have been using recently. I recommended it when I was struggling to draft up specific contracts for my clients. Bonsai makes contracts, and proposals incredibly easy with its simplistic user interface and easy to follow instructions. It also offers time tracking services as well as a CRM system.
The app firstly allows you to track your time and progress easily using its web app, once you’ve finished work on a specific project or task you can then name it, date it and save it. You can also input your hourly rate to keep track of how many hours you have dedicated to a specific project allowing you to invoice for your hours easier.
Bonsai’s contract creator easily guides you through the process of creating a contract and has templates that apply across a variety of different fields! For example, I started putting together a basic web design contract. Bonsai makes it very simple to draft a contract and allows you to input the basics of how your business operates and from where e.g. Sole Trader in the UK before allowing you to add the project details, the money required, terms of the agreement and due date. Once your basic contract is complete Bonsai then gives you the option to send an automatic invoice with your bank details or Paypal information on to help make sure that you get paid for your work. You can also download all your contracts to keep for your files.
The only downside is that Bonsai’s contract feature is part of their paid subscription. You can access the contract templates and invoice free for the first 14 days allowing you to dip your toes into the contract creation tool and see if it works for you, however after this period you are billed at $16 USD per month. So if you’re looking to avoid the monthly fee, make sure you set up a reminder to cancel before then!
You can get Bonsai here: https://www.hellobonsai.com/
If you’re looking for some assistance getting your business set up online, with web design or social media management check out the rest of our site!
