Outlining the tools I use and love to help streamline your business, save you time and make you money! This list is LONG, but I want to share info on each tool and tell you why I love it. I hope to give you some insight into the trial and error that it took to create this toolkit and the importance of finding the right tools for your own process.

Well, well, well here I am two years after taking MD Creative from a side hustle into a full-time business, writing my first blog post! Only 2 years after I said I would share a blog post, but hey, it’s been hard enough starting a business and doing ALL THE THINGS.

I finally feel like I am getting the hang of it (touch wood) and have been growing my team, services and becoming more proactive than reactive! Lately, I have been fortunate enough to participate in some pretty amazing networking groups online and in person and I am feeling INSPIRED. As I continue to build these connections I realize that the power of sharing is pure magic and I want to contribute to this community. So, here I am, starting something new, equally scared and excited, sharing insight into my world of design, business, personal growth and creative living through this new blog!

Although, I do plan to share some personal insight, this first post is more practical than personal! Clients, friends and colleagues ask me, “What do you use for…” and because there are a lot of moving pieces that come into running a business, I thought it might be nice to share my top tools.

Through trial and error, I have learned what works for me and my business and I know that finding the rights tools will help you with your side-hustle or full-time business. As a disclaimer: I am not advertising for any of these providers, I personally use and LOVE every one.

So, let’s get to the point and talk tools! HERE. WE. GO!

BEFORE YOU START A NEW PROJECT/BUSINESS:

The Startup School Podcast: This podcast was created by Seth Godin, an absolute legend. He is a thought-leader in marketing and business world-wide. Listening to this podcast, changed my life and I’m not exaggerating. Listening to how he led 30 entrepreneurs through a workshop on how they can build their dream business led me to use the tools he shared and it gave me SO MUCH CLARITY. This podcast is something that a former boss told me about right before I left the corporate world and started my own business! <<< Another story for another blog post…

The Ship It Journal: This FREE workbook is part of the previous tool by Seth Godin and referenced in the podcast. If you’ve ever had a big idea that you want to make into a reality, the Ship It Journal is dynamite in helping you get clarity before you go down the wrong path! It’s a free pdf download that you can print and fill out, or fill it out in Acrobat to save paper/printing 😉

WEB HOSTING, BUILDING AND SELLING:

Bluehost: I’ve used Bluehost for almost a decade for my own hosting and have never had an issue. I’ve always been able to get amazing service and highly recommend them to all of my clients. They’re reliable and affordable for your website hosting needs.

WordPress: By far my favourite CMS platform for websites and blogs. Unlimited customization and you can update/edit your own site! Oh, and Beyoncé’s website is built on the WordPress platform, soo….enough said! I have built over 30 custom websites on WordPress and have A LOT to write about it, but will save that for another post! As a quick disclaimer, I should say that at MD we also offer websites built on Squarespace and always chat through the options with my clients before their ideal platform is chosen! It all depends on the client’s goals and needs!

Shopify: Big shout out to this Canadian e-commerce software company for bringing the ability to sell online to ANYONE! You can sell online, on social media or in person using Shopify. If you have a retail based business or are looking to open one, this is the site to use. You can build your own site using a template and going the DIY route or have a custom branded site for you. At MD we use the Shopify Development backend and share your site throughout the process. Once the site is finalized we transfer the live site to your account and before that you don’t pay anything to Shopify! How cool is that!?

ACCOUNTING, CONTRACTS AND PROJECT MANAGEMENT:

Quickbooks Intuit: Easy accounting software with an intuitive design for both the desktop and mobile apps! I LOVE being able to do this on the go! For my first year of business I used another software and it ROYALLY screwed up my books! Whether you use Quickbooks or not, find something that makes sense to your accounting needs. If you find that within the first month or two you’re not happy, switch gears! Don’t invest a full year of inputting data into a software/app that doesn’t fit your needs…Also hire an accountant that you trust from the get-go…Can you tell I’m speaking from experience here!? UGH! Another one for another blog post…

SignNow: (Formerly CudaSign) I used to send a PDF to my clients to sign, thinking that most people could sign a pdf online! I was SO wrong. This actually was a road block in my client on-boarding and made more work for my new clients, SO not cool! So, I searched for alternative options and have been using SignNow for the past year. I love that my clients can sign their contract, secure their project start date and feel confident that my process is defined and easy to participate in from the get go!

Asana: I use Asana as a complete project management system. I’m able to organize individual projects, delegate tasks, share attachments, organize project calendars and even have a conversation with those I am working with on each project, whether that be with a client or team member. At first, it was almost like there was TOO many options of what this tool can do, but now I’m not sure what I did without it. A little fun fact about Asana: it was created by Facebook co-founder Dustin Moskovitz and ex-engineer Justin Rosenstein, who both worked on improving the productivity of employees at Facebook, so they may know a thing or two 😉 Did I mention that Asana is also FREE!?

SOCIAL MEDIA AND APPS TO HELP YOU USE THEM:

Hootsuite: Social media management for almost all of the social media options out there! Schedule content on Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, Google+, Linkedin, Twitter… I personally focus on Instagram and some Facebook, but also have Pinterest and Linkedin, which in all honesty, I haven’t had the time to build! I believe in choosing a few platforms and focusing on those to start. Not only is this an amazing tool to organize and schedule your social media posts, but it’s an incredible tool to review your engagement. Hootsuite also offers an insane amount of free resources and they even offer free training programs, so it’s totally worth signing up!

Planoly: This one is for anyone who wants to take their Instagram to a new level. I love using this app and mobile dashboard to plan and curate my Instagram feed, plan ahead and schedule posts. Like I just mentioned… I make Instagram my focused social media account (at least at the moment) so this app makes sense for me! The app also continues to evolve and add new features and the desktop version is a huge timesaver!

Facebook for Business: Facebook keeps evolving and expanding it amazing resources to help small businesses generate sales and gain exposure. To get started I suggest having a branded page set up and start to get familiar with the analytics your business page provides. Then work out what you want to get out of using Facebook for your business and take some time to read through some of the amazing online resources they offer! If you’re not wanting to take the DIY route, get in touch to find out how we can help you reach your goals online.

Mailchimp: I will admit, I haven’t been using this for my business for very long because I didn’t have this blog set up until…well just now, BUT I have used it for various client projects and marketing campaigns. It’s a genius tool to gather email marketing lists so that you can build your online community. I highly recommend starting to build your email list at the START of your business! Unlike me… who’s totally going to ask you to sign up to my email list at the end of this blog post… #guilty 😉

Bit.ly: A free URL “shortener.” Track your website traffic, great analytics for your clean, customized urls. This is something you can use for campaigns, contests or really anything online that you want to track, not to mention, it also looks A LOT nicer having a custom url instead of a massive extension. Beauty and purpose, is there a better combo?

Snapseed for IOS: A free photo editing app that operates as a mini Photoshop on the go.. This is really the only photo editing app that I use! If I’m on my laptop I am using Photoshop, but sometimes I don’t have that option and this app continues to impress! If using Android, you can download the app here.

DESIGN TOOLS + ONLINE PRINTING:

Creative Market: Digital assets like graphics, fonts, templates and new FREE goodies every Monday! This isn’t something I typically would use for my business, but it’s something I have recommend to my clients for a while now and I know how helpful this site is when you’re getting started!

Upsplash: Beautiful, high quality, FREE stock photography that you can do whatever you want with, can’t get any more simple than that! And, if you’re interested in reading an inspiring story about how Unsplash started, read on here.

Moo Printing: This is my favourite online printer and I use them regularly! The quality of the printing, paper stock and the service are amazing. They offer pre-made designs or the ability to upload your own! If you use the link in the title, you can get 25% off your first order 😉 #score

*** This is my fave online printer option, I work with some amazing local printers that I’d love to share with you if you’re interested just let me know!

ADMIN:

LastPass: The app that remembers your passwords for you, because there’s enough going on! If you’re not using this yet, start! You don’t need to have a business to find this tool useful in your day-to-day!

Google Drive: As soon as my clients are signed on I get a google drive folder set up to start the project kickstarter doc, collaboration docs and image library. Being able to collaborate on documents, gather written and visual content, make comments, edits, all in one organized folder. Winning!

WRITING + MUSIC – Because these two things are not mutually exclusive…

Hemingway: Online writing app that highlights lengthy, complex sentences and common errors. Great design, intuitive and HELPFUL, especially when writing for the web.

Spotify: Music!!! <<< I can’t get enough of this app. I actually don’t know what I would do without it! I make playlists based on tasks, mood, season….. If you want to follow me and check out what tunes I’m listening to, hit me up!

When I started writing this first post, I set out to pick my top 10 tools, but it left me feeling restricted and that’s exactly what I don’t want to feel when sharing info. To be honest, this list could be longer and future posts might be really short or mostly images… I am not going to try and define this, I’m just going to go with it! My goal is to share, start conversations, connect and hopefully add some value to your business and day-to-day.

As a final thought, picking up a new tool and investing a bit of time to learn how to use it can be a bit of work up front, but it can also save you a lot of time in the future, so put in the work! Like most things, it works if you do! I know personally how much finding the right toolkit helped me streamline my business and I hope the same for all of you! If you have a tool that you use and love, please share in the comments below! I would love to hear about it!

Thanks for reading and like I shamefully plugged above 😉 you can sign up for my email list here or simply leave a comment below and check the box to receive future blog updates from yours truly!

All my best,
Megan