Tools & Systems for your Creative Business in 2021
Every business needs to utilize systems and tools to keep running at full capacity. Read this full post for links to the tools you can use in 2021 to help streamline your small business.
Note: some of these links are referral links. I may receive account upgrades or extras based on signups.
Email:
Boomerang: schedule when your emails are sent through Gmail
Loom: embed videos into email for a personalized touch
MailChimp: one of the most popular email list management tools
Constant Contact: another popular email list management tool
Flodesk: a top email list management tool
Social Media:
LingoJam: bold font within your social media message
Canva: create beautiful designs for posts, stories and pins
Unsplash: free high resolution images
Later: one of the most popular social media scheduling tools
Tailwind: popular with Pinterest users but isn’t free
Meetings & Appointments
Calendly: A free tool to show schedule and allow for appointments.
Session: A scheduling tool meant for photographers who need different types of bookings. It isn’t free but provides more capabilities than just scheduling.
Zoom: At this point, isn’t everyone using zoom?
Google Meet: A built in feature for an GSuite / Gmail user. Very similar to zoom
Feedback
Interact: a quiz maker to get feedback from your client base or as a lead magnet
Typeform: create beautiful feedback forms for past clients/customers
Work Management
ClickUp: My preferred work management tool! Schedule work, create goals, use as a simple CRM, make checklists and documents. Get a discount if you sign up for a paid version using this link.
Asana: A popular work management tool and one I used prior to learning about ClickUp
Trello: A board style tool which isn’t as robust as ClickUp or Asana
CRM
Hubspot: By far the most popular and free forever
Zoho: Gaining traction in certain industries but definitely not free
Dubsado: New popular tool and definitely not free. I’ve heard requires a large learning curve
Honeybook: The CRM I’m currently using. Get 50% off using this link and code lunimae.
Other Business Tools
PandaDoc: Send documents for signature or initial for free with a workflow email process
Miro: Brain dump, online whiteboard for visual collaboration
Google Analytics: If you haven’t already, you must set this up for your website
Zapier: I rave about Zaps and use it for both my personal life and business. Connect many of these tools through the automation of Zapier
Square: Payment processing option for those not using Shopify
Google Drive: A place to store all your business files so you don’t panic when your computer crashes
