15 Items For Your Business Toolbox
Most large scale organisations, streamline their work by utilising some of the most powerful tools available in the modern digital era.Â
The 15 tools below may be useful for:Â starting a business, updating your current toolset, becoming organised, experiencing increased productivity and possibly reduce stress.
15 Useful sites to keep under your toolbelt
- Namelix.com
Are you stuck for business name ideas? Even if you’re expanding and creating a different branch of your business and need a catchy and memorable name idea that gels well with what your project is about, Namelix may be able to help. Simply enter a keyword or two and answer a few questions to generate visually stunning logo ideas and business name possibilities. - Softwaresuggest.com
Need software and apps to streamline your business? Software Suggest is one of the most resourceful online websites to search for paid and open-source software. - Plutio (CRM)
Small businesses can take advantage of one of the world’s best Client Relationship Management apps out there on the market. Voted as one of the best by Forbes. Starting from $15 a month for their Solo option, this gem is ideal for small business owners and freelancers as it is not only affordable, but provides heaps of options, including white labeling as an add-on. For the growing business,  For those looking at keeping track of their clients, you can’t go passed this feature-packed tool. They offer an obligation-free 14-day trial. - Gmail for Business
Access your business email (e.g. info@yourdomain.com) from anywhere with a paid business account and get 30GB of cloud storage and GSuite included in the price. Multiple users can be added as your business grows. Check their site for prices. - WordPress.org
Up to 30% of the world’s business websites are powered by WordPress. Using the downloadable WordPress version from WordPress.org, websites can be built locally from a desktop, or on a web server using your paid web hosting account. Being self-hosted, WordPress websites can be migrated to other web-hosting providers. WordPress websites are scalable, meaning they can grow and expand with your business. You can start off with a simple website and functionality can be added at a later date. No coding experience needed to add, update and remove content. There’s an abundance of searchable documents and videos for do-it-yourselfers. WordPress.org has a huge resourceful online community and help forum. - Zapier.com
Zapier is designed to save time and money with automation, allowing a massive variety of apps to be integrated, such as email, social media, websites, CRM, and more with this robust application. Zapier also enables the collection of data from multiple sources. Each connection is known as a Zap. Have a look at what can be zapped here. - Survey Monkey
Take surveys to learn more about your demographics, products and services. Get actionable insights and fresh perspectives. - Paypal Checkout Express
Use this service to add a payment option on your website, offering secure payments via different card types. Clients do not have to have a Paypal membership to proceed through checkout. - MilanoteÂ
A tool for organising creative projects into beautiful visual boards. By design, it feels a lot like working on the wall in a creative studio – visual, tactile, and sometimes a bit messy – Milanote is a great fit for designers who work in teams remotely.
Key Features:
– Write notes & to-do lists, upload images & files and save things you find on the web
– Organise visually using the flexible drag and drop interface.
– Boards by default are a private place to think, but with a single click, you can create a shared workspace for collaboration with your team.
– Milanote is filled with hundreds of built-in templates to help you get started with a variety of different projects, from creating a mood board to writing that perfect creative brief.
Pricing:
– Free version available with no time limit.
– PRO version $9.99 per month (monthly and annual plans). See their website for details. - Canva Free & Canva ProÂ
With its vast array of free images and templates, Canva offers an abundance of resources for creatives and it is especially excellent for beginners as it is easy to use and offers excellent support. Individuals without any graphic design skills will be able to use Canva. Upload an unlimited amount of your own images for use on design projects. Free and paid membership options are available. Ideal for Non-profits. Canva Pro, the paid account offers a wider selection of features and Free or paid images from as little as $1.00 each. Now offering video and Effects to apply on images. Just awesome. 10/10.
“With features like brand kits and team templates, give a voice to your mission and reinforce your brand across the web and social media”. Canva
Non- Profits – The user gets access to Canva Pro’s premium features for up to 10 people (including you) in your organisation for free. Premium elements will still be charged on a per-element basis and are paid to outside contributors. - Social MedioPolis
A rich vastness of marketing information for the growth-minded business owner. Get social media marketing advice, news and more. - Semrush.com
Keyword searches enable you to find out where you rank among your competitors. Analytic tools provided by Semrush are very useful to see your competitor’s best keywords and to find the right keywords for your SEO. - Facebook Blueprint
Learn how to market your business online with free short courses. Get free digital marketing training from Facebook. - We Transfer
We Transfer by far, my favourite easy to use tool for sending large files over the internet. There are two plans for any size business.Â
Free Plan – Up to 2 GB of data can be sent in the form of files or folders. The recipient then gets a link to download the files onto their desktop or device. The link expires in 7 days.
Paid Plan – Send up to 20 GB of files or folders (no zipping required) You get 1 TB of storage, and the download link does not expire. - Ubbersuggest by Neil Patel
Get some business insights to help you market your business more effectively with this Free Keyword Search Tool. Simply add your domain name and location and press search. Get SEO insights, backlink data, keyword suggestions and content ideas.
By Sandra Ciminelli
Web Developer at ACT Websites
Note: I stand to make a small commission from Canva Pro plans sold using the link above.