We all need an array of productivity tools to help us work, share and survive our hectic marketing life.
What’s on our list? 19 Things we can’t live without!
1. Buffer. Okay, refer to our story on Buffer. Buffer allows us to post content to multiple social media platforms in one easy click. There’s even a handy browser tool that allows you to post while you are reading. Link all your social profiles and share immediately or schedule posts for later. Also Buffer has a beautiful social media image creation tool called Pablo.
2. Socialoomph.com. Our secret tool. Socialoomph also allows us to post and schedule content as far in the future as we want, and as often as we want. When friends say, “I see you on social media all the time; I don’t know how you do it,” I just smile and say thank you!
3. Latergramme.me. This tool allows you to schedule your Instagram posts in advance. Once your posts are scheduled, you only need to publish from your phone.
4. Feedly is a news reading app that delivers news from RSS feeds. I am still missing Google Reader but this is a good way to harness quick access to articles.
5. WordPress is the blog platform I use for both LipstickEconomy.com and our website. We have used WordPress for six years and often use it as the platform for websites we are building. You can’t beat its open source platform and easy-to-use content management system.
6. Google Analytics. There are great new demographic and behavioral features in reporting now.
7. FreeConferenceCall.com. Yep, it’s free. Conference calls for up to 100 people for six hours, although who would want to be on a call with that many people. You can also record calls with MP3 playback. Recording is helpful when you do interviews or don’t want to take notes. We also use UberConference which has similar features and document sharing, also free.
8. DropBox and HighTail. Dropbox is used for storing and sharing files and photos with clients and partners. HighTail is great for storing and sharing large files easily. We use HighTail for transferring large graphic files quickly and easily.
9. Google Drive. I use Google Drive for several organizations and clients where we need to easily share documents and files. And you know, it’s free and awesome.
10. Timetrade.com or ScheduleOnce are great tools for setting appointments online. Excellent tools when you are scheduling interviews for groups of people.
11. Grammarly or Hemingway. Great tools for checking your grammar, your verbosity and your penchant for run-on sentences.
12. Basecamp. We use Basecamp for managing large projects with our clients. Basecamp is considered the most popular project management software.
13. Emma and MailChimp for Email. Why two? Well, they offer different things for different clients. Emma is changing constantly with great new features. One of the things they offer is beautiful templates and custom creative. Emma’s reporting is easy-to-read and they work well with franchise organizations. Besides, they are a Nashville company! Mailchimp is free for lists up to 2,000, good reporting, easy-to-build templates and cute illustrations of chimps.
14. Canva and Pablo 2.0. Both build amazing graphics for social media. We love and use them both. Powtoon is also a great resource for quick little videos with templates ready for customization.
15. SurveyMonkey. Research is important for all businesses. SurveyMonkey is good for informal research, formal research and even collecting contact information.
16. LinkedIn is both social media and a contact resource. Download your connections to start your contact or newsletter list.
17. Evernote. Free note-taking app that is perfect for someone who saves everything.
18. My iPhone. My phone, my camera, my lifeline. What else can I say? Also a portable charger for traveling.
19. Hubspot, Salesforce or Contactually. CRMs for the real world based on the size of your business and pocketbook.