If you’re like most of the entrepreneurs I know (small business entrepreneurs, solopreneurs, book authors, writers, speakers, coaches and consultants, designers, etc.), you’re running your business with zero to limited support. You need to find the most efficient ways possible to achieve your business goals. I most definitely relate, and over the years I’ve come across some tried and true resources that help me take care of business and marketing tasks so I can focus on what I do best. These are the resources I recommend to help you run you business smoothly, save time and money:
Legal + Paperwork
Rocket Lawyer – All of your legal documents + advice from attorneys who specialize in small and online business entities in one place. From creating legally binding agreements to incorporation–it’s all there. Simple and affordable. Not too much and not too little–just right for the busy creative entrepreneur.
Adobe Echosign – Get contracts signed, sealed, and delivered in minutes. Quickly prepare estimates, contracts, agreements, and other documents to be legally e-signed in your web browser or favorite business application. Click and deliver the file to one or more signers. Done and done!
Freshbooks – Accounting made easy for the non-accountant. Simple, easy-to-use, and painless. Send invoices, receive payments, and keep track of it all in one place.
Organization + Planning
Google Calendar – Keep track of business appointments and life events all in one place. Easily share with others by the event or the whole calendar, and use it when you want to invite others to events.
Evernote – Stay organized with this free app you can access from your computer or any mobile device. You can add text, images, audio, scanned documents, files, and pretty much anything else you can think of to your notebook, and sync it across all your devices. Things are easy to find with it’s robust search tool. It’s like your brain, only better organized.
Project Management
Basecamp – Manages all of your projects including client notes, internal and client communications, to-do lists, file sharing, time-tracking, and everything else in one place. Invite team members and clients to projects for communication and collaboration, and easily reference whenever needed.
Google Drive – Keep your documents in one place and easily share them with anyone.
Social Media + Content Marketing
Lazer Focus with Sarah Von Bargen – Get clarity on your content. What blog posts should you be writing to attract your ideal clients? What social media strategy should you be using to help get the word out? Ideas, clarity and focus are Sarah’s specialty and she has the online success to prove it. I can’t recommend her highly enough. If you want more inspiration and ideas than you know what to do with, Sarah’s your go-to.
Trello – Use this tool to schedule your blog and/or social media posts out visually (you could also use Evernote for this, or simply use Google Calendar). Whatever works best for you is the best too, but the main idea is to plan your content out in advance so you don’t have to scramble at the last minute tying to figure out what to post (which is the bane of every busy creative entrepreneurs existence!).
Buffer – Manage all of your social media accounts at once. Schedule all your posts a week or more ahead of time, so you can move on to what you do without having to worry about it on a daily basis. Buffer also has statistics to show you how your posts are performing, so you can adjust as you go to maximize their effectiveness.
Business Coaching
Provendus Group – If you feel stuck, consulting with the experts at Provendus group will help you get unstuck. Learn the strategies taught by Mike Michalowicz and his team that will help you build automatic growth.
Productive Flourishing – Maybe you don’t want automatic growth because you’re not even sure if you’re on the right track? Charlie Gilkey and his team at Productive Flourishing will help you figure it out, as well as guide you through developing the systems and strategies you need to succeed once you’re on the path that’s right for you.
I know there’s more I could add to this list–but this is a good place to start! What are your favorite resources? I would love for you to share them in the comments below!
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By the Way… If you like what you read today, you’ll love this post: How to Turn Your Website into a Rock Star Sales Machine!
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