Is this you?
“I wear a ton of hats and would LOVE to reduce some of the operations
that I have to do in my business so I have more time!”
There are so many business platforms, softwares and apps out there and it can be quite overwhelming to pinpoint exactly which ones will work optimally for you and your business.
Over the years of running CBP, I have figured out what I need and what I don’t to simplify and automate my operations. Which is the entire goal of business software…to take manual tasks off your plate and create repeatable, automated systems that work FOR YOU.
Can I get an amen for simple and automated?
I often get asked what programs and apps I use to run my business, and today I am sharing not only what programs I use everyday, but how much I pay for each one. Let’s dive in.
Programs
● GSuite Email, Calendar & Cloud Drive ($16/monthly per user): Best multi-use platform to manage emails, templates, calendars & cloud storage.
● Insightly Customer Relation Management ($348/yearly per user with tier options): Extremely easy to use CRM that you can customize to manage contacts, leads, sales & projects. (I learned how to use it with one tutorial.)
● Quickbooks Online Invoicing & Billing ($270/year): Send invoices & receive payments with this online cloud-based platform that connects directly to your online banking.
● MailChimp Email Campaigns ($52 monthly with free options): Create all your marketing emails & custom templates as well as manage your entire email list right from this one platform. I have an upgraded plan to access automation functions. #worthit
● Later Batch Posting For Instagram ($9 monthly with free options): I use Later to do Instagram posting one month at a time (and I do this the same time every month so it’s never a surprise). Never worry about having to post on the fly again.
● Linktree Multiple Links for Instagram (Free): This is a great way to embed more resources within your IG profile other than just your website. (I use this not only for site links, but doc links as well.)
● Creative Cloud Suite Image Processing Photoshop, Bridge, Lightroom & Lightroom Classic ($10 monthly): These softwares are used everyday to batch process photos, edit & tether the camera to the laptop on shoot day.
Apps
● Canva (Free with paid options): Canva is the best graphic design templating app out there with thousands of customizable options for every type of marketing. Can be used in the app as well as on a desktop.
● VSCO ($20/year): This is a great photo editing app for whenever I mix in iPhone photos on our Instagram account.
● Asana (Free): I use Asana daily to delegate & communicate tasks between me and my assistant.
● Waze (Free): Best map app for driving that is updated by its users so it’s always the fastest route.
● Stride (Free): I use Stride to track all my mileage for photo shoots to know exactly what to write off at the end of each year. It tracks in both miles as well its correlating dollar value.
● Whatsapp (Free): Great free text & talk app to communicate no matter what country you’re in.
● Chase (Free): To make easy check deposits right from my phone & manage all my business accounts.
● Social Media Apps Instagram & Pinterest (Free): There are lots of great social platforms out there but these are the top two for the design industry that I stick to using almost daily.