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20 Software Tools I Use As An Online Entrepreneur

20 Software Tools I Use As An Online Entrepreneur

by | Planning-Organization-Productivity

Have you ever wanted to peep inside the toolkit of another podcasting entrepreneur? To see the different software tools they use and why? Let me guess, as a busy entrepreneurs, investing your time to research and implement new software is not at the top of your to-do list. That’s why I’m sharing 20 software tools I use weekly, either in my business or my client's business.

Appsumo: A Software Enthusiat’s Dream AKA Me

I'm curious: have you ever heard of AppSumo? Well, it's a software enthusiast's dream. Trust me. AppSumo offers fantastic deals on new and upcoming software for entrepreneurs at incredible prices. The best part? No monthly fees! Instead, you gain lifetime access to these software tools. I'll admit, that I've accumulated quite a collection of lifetime software. Some I use actively, while others rest in the “someday, maybe” pile.

After evaluating my spending a few years ago, I've learned to control my visits to AppSumo.

Enough of my rambling; let’s get into the software tools I use either as an online entrepreneur or for my content marketing and repurposing clients.

 

20 Software Tools I Use

Friend, I know you want to be intentional with your time and energy. Let’s imagine we’re sitting down for coffee, chatting about our online businesses. You ask the question, “I’d love to pick your brain about the software that you use in your business.”

Oh friend you just opened a can of worms with that question! Here are the 20 software tools, I would name off the top of my head. They would come spilling out of me.

1. Canva – All Day, Every Day

I don’t know about you, but I tried out Photoshop and quickly made the decision, I did not have time to learn it. Early in my business, I used PicMonkey and Canva. PicMonkey is a great tool as well for image creation, however, these days I keep it simple with Canva. Canva is used for the image creation for my business and for my client's business. 

2. Descript – Podcast Editing Made Effortless

Descript crosses off more on podcast editing on the to-do list. It creates your transcript, along with the ability to easily create audiograms for your social media as you're editing your podcast.

In addition, if you have guests on your show, it includes Squadcast. Squadcast is made for podcasting. Once your interview is down send it over to Descript seamlessly for easy editing.

3. WordPress – For My Online Store Front

Of course! You need a website.This is one of the first investments I made as an entrepreneur was in a WordPress website. However, WordPress is not for everyone. There are so many different options out there, be sure to check them out before making your decision. Especially, if tech is not your thing.

4. Notion – My Business Hub

If you’ve been around here for any amount of time you’ll know I’m starry-eyed over Notion. It is my business hub. Yes, I use Google. However, Notion is the hub.

What I love is each page is a blank slate to create and make your very own. It has my business hub, my goals, my meal planning along with recipes. There are so many things that I put into Notion. and I love the flexibility that it has. If you're one who doesn't like flexibility, this may not be the tool for you. Your data can be transformed into kanbana boards, galleries, tables, and calendar views. It lets you look at it in many different ways.

5. Asana – Project Management Simplified

Asana is the project management software my team and I rely on. It offers ease and flexibility for our projects.

6. Trello – Streamlining Client Projects

This project management software is used by one of my clients. I like that you can have boards and move cards around. It also allows you to duplicate templates easily.

7. Ubersuggest – My Go-To Keyword Research Tool

When it comes to keyword research for SEO, Ubersuggest is my go-to SEO research tool.  I’ve used it for the past few years, however, Faith Hanan, from Simple SEO & Marketing Podcast, helped me utilize it better. Here is a link to her podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/simple-seo-and-marketing-business-growth-organic/id1625600727

One more thing,  this has the option to buy it once-for-lifetime access software.

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8. Organize Your Digital Files

Google Workspace is my solution for email and Google Drive file storage. If your file storage is in chaos, grab my free resource: Google Drive Organization: Here is the link to sign up for this free resource and email series. https://misstask.com/organize-your-google-drive-sign-up

9. MetriCool – Simple Social Media Scheduling

Metricool makes scheduling Pinterest Pins and social media posts simple. It even allows for easy setup of recurring posts and automatic posting from your website. One more thing, I didn’t mention on the podcast, they have an integration with Canva. This means you can share your image directly from Canva into MetriCool for easy scheduling.

10. Grammarly – All Those Little Mistakes

I wish I was an amazing writer, I’ve come a long way. However, I still depend on Grammarly daily to fix all my grammar and spelling mistake. This was the second software I invested in as an online entrepreneur.

11. AI Tools: ChatGPT and WordTune

AI tools. We can't dismiss the AI tools because you know there are so many different options and I have a feeling they are here to stay.

ChatGPT has so many different ways in which it can be used. I love to use it to generate ideas and kickstart my brainstorming. It is called Chat for a reason, am I right? For this reason, is why I use it like I’m text messaging with my business bestie for inspiration.

WordTune is for when I'm not getting the right wording of a sentence. Because I think I've said before, I'm very wordy, and I do the same thing with my writing.

12. Style Stock Society – Stock Images For Female Entrepreneurs

Probably my favorite things is how they create image collections containing up to 25 images with the same theme. You know, because you've seen this throughout all the content that I create.

13. HoneyBook – CRM Software

Let me just say, wow, they have added many new features and rolling out new features every single week. This past week they announced SMS reminders for meetings. I love that.

I’m unaware of when you’re reading this, however here is my affiliate link. No pressure use it if you’d like. However, with this link at the time of the release, It will get you 50 percent off for your first year! 💰 Get HoneyBook for 50% off for one year with my referral link: https://share.honeybook.com/misstask

14. Flodesk – Email Marketing and Checkout

Flodesk is my email marketing software.In addition to email they have checkout pages, too. They are simple to set up and remind me of LeadPages.

The checkout pages, can be set up as the sign up and landing page for your freebies or free resources that you have for your email list. It gives you the option to include an upsell with your free resource.

15. Podbean – Your Podcast Hosting Solution

This is where my podcast, Content Systems for Growth is hosted. All my new podcasts will be distributed to all other podcasts via Podbean.

16. Let's connect

Back in the day, I bought this software from AppSumo. It is a chatbot on my website that you can use to ask questions, whether I am online or offline. You can send it there and I will receive it, and I can reply back to you.

17. SEMrush

Like Ubersuggest, SEMrush is an SEO tool. I use this for one of my content clients and it is recommend by their SEO Manager. Comparing Ubersuggest and SEMrush, two things stand out to me. The biggest is the price tag. While Ubersuggest is a one-time lifetime access for around $300. SEMrush plans start at $129.95 per month and doubles in pricing for the next tier. The second thing is Ubersuggest is easier to use. SEMrush has a lot going on and I personally feel it is very confusing.

With that said I would like to call out the feature that I absolutely love in SEMrush is their SEO writing assistant because it lets you write your whole post out there and then it gives you your score based on your readability, SEO, originality and tone of voice.

18. Social Curator

More than just images are included in this monthly subscription. It is pack full of marketing education with monthly marketing action plans. When Jasmine Star first launch this I did not hesitate to sign up. I’ve been a member since the very beginning.

19. Yoast SEO

For my website, I am using this SEO plugin. It is helpful by giving a SEO and Readability score for the post and pages on a WordPress website. Once the copy is added to the post or page it will give you your score. You may also utilize Yoast SEO online with their  Real-time Content Analysis. Here is the link: https://yoast.com/research/real-time-content-analysis/

20. TinyPNG or ImageOptIn for Mac

The final software that I use weekly in my online business, is an image size reducer. I personally use, ImageOptIn for Mac. For my client, they utilize TinyPNG.

Both of these softwares are for reducing the size of images on your website. The size of your images on your website should be smaller for speed. You want to have images size at 1200 by 800 with a file size under a hundred kilobytes when you upload it to your website.

That's something to keep in mind as well. Both of these tools help you reduce your image sizes and still keep that quality of the image.

My friend, I could probably go on and on about software tools and name more. However, those were the software tools that came off the top of my head.

It’s time to wrap this up!

Well, I think that's a pretty good list of 20 software tools that I use in my online business. Are any of these familiar to you?

Friend, I hope that you found this valuable. I appreciate you and I hope you have a wonderful week.

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3 Ways To Capture Your Ideas

3 Ways To Capture Your Ideas

by | May Contain An Affiliate Link, Planning-Organization-Productivity

Michele Duwe from Miss Task | 3 Ways To Capture Your Ideas For Online Business Owners

Stop letting your best ideas slip through the cracks! Stop it. I mean it. Stop scribbling down all your ideas on little pieces of random paper, sticky notes, in your planner, or in your notebook. If it was important enough to write down, it is important enough to ensure it doesn’t get misplaced. One simple way to do this is with a dedicated space that storages all those ideas. Here are 3 ways to capture your ideas for safekeeping.

Why You Need A Trusted Process to Capture Your Ideas 

Your mind has enough to do without having to deal with trying to remember where you wrote down your last big idea for your online business. I'm not sure about you, but I’m not a fan of waking up at 2 A.M. to the idea resurfacing in my brain again. Worst yet, if it never surfaced again. I think you’ll agree when I say it feels so frustrating.

All you really remember is it was genius, and it struck you when you had a clear mind. You have that inner knowing that you put it someplace, but where exactly?

Your mind begins to race, wondering what you were doing when the idea struck. That could help you figure out where you captured your idea. Were you out for a walk? Were you sleeping? Was it after your meditation?

Rethinking Your Idea Capture Strategy: From Sticky Notes to Digital Organization 

Are you often surrounded by a pile of sticky notes, random pieces of paper, or notebooks filled with ideas, tasks, and reminders? If this sounds familiar, you're not alone. Many of us start with these quick-fix methods for capturing thoughts. I, for one, have a deep love for sticky notes. They're my go-to when I'm in a hurry. But let's face it, these methods have their downsides.

While sticky notes and scribbles in notebooks might feel convenient at the moment, they often lead to a bigger issue: the endless search for that one brilliant idea you know you jotted down somewhere. This scattered approach can be more of a hindrance than a help, causing you to spend more time hunting for ideas than actually bringing them to life.

To tackle this, I've developed a simple yet effective process. My sticky notes and any other paper-based ideas go in one spot – piled neatly by my inbox. But they don't stay there. Regularly, I transfer these ideas into my digital idea bank. For my ideas, I use Notion. This system ensures that no idea gets lost in the shuffle and everything is easily located when I need it

Transform Your Idea Capturing: 3 Ways To Capture Your Ideas 

Imagine, friend, never losing track of your brilliant ideas again. I’m here to walk you through 3 ways to capture your ideas in a digital method that will keep you organized. No more spending your precious time looking for your ideas!

Say goodbye to the days of frantic searching and hello to a process where your ideas are always at your fingertips – because, let’s face it, as busy entrepreneurs, our phones are practically extensions of ourselves.

All 3 of these digital solutions are not just convenient; they’re game-changers in the way you manage and capture your ideas.

Michele Duwe from Miss Task | 3 Ways To Capture Your Ideas For Online Business Owners

One: Notion 

Starting with Notion, this tool might seem a bit advanced at first, but it's incredibly useful. I use Notion as a central hub for almost all my ideas for business and personal use. It's versatile, allowing for project management, task tracking, and more. The best part? You can customize it to your liking, adding a personal touch to your idea organization and making it pretty. If you’ve been around here for any amount of time, you’ll already know I like pretty.

For inspiration on how to organize your life and ideas with Notion, Muchelle B's YouTube video is a great resource. You can check it out here: https://youtu.be/4WDspvXDKSg 

Download Notion for free to try it out. Here is the link: https://www.notion.so/product

 

Two: Project Management Application 

You guessed it, the second recommendation is in your project management software.

I can almost hear you thinking, that's great. Which one? If you’ve tried to implement a project management software in the past but failed, maybe it wasn’t the right one for you. Book a Content Creation Simplified Session; we can figure it out together. Here is the link: https://misstask.com/mini-session

As an Online Business Manager, I’ve used a wide variety of Project Management apps. The three most common have been Asana, Trello, and Teamwork.

In my experience, if you’ve not used a project management application, Asana, Trello, and Teamwork are fantastic options.

If you already have project management, a great place to add a space for ideas is under your company dashboard.

And now, in case you’re wondering what is a company dashboard, this is one central location for all your company resources, such as brand guide, mission, core values, offers, workflows, link bank, story bank, the list goes on and on. It is the information hub of your business.

 

Three: Note-Taking Apps – GoodNotes, Apple Notes App, and Google Keep 

The last on our list of idea-capturing tools are note-taking apps, each offering a unique way to store your thoughts digitally.

GoodNotes is an amazing app that you can use across multiple platforms. Create an Ideas Notebook that syncs across devices. It’s a great way to keep all your ideas in one place; plus, if you have an iPad and Pencil, you can use this app as a digital notebook. Create an ideas notebook and start to capture your ideas electronically.

Apple Notes App for simplicity and convenience. The Notes app is the go-to app for all Apple users. Try creating an ‘Ideas' folder within the app for easy retrieval of your thoughts from any of your Apple devices. A quick tip: on your Mac, moving your cursor to the lower right corner instantly opens a new note – a feature I find incredibly handy. I love simple things.

Google Keep is another simple application to capture your ideas.

One way Google Keep is a huge time saver for the Duwe household is that it is the central location for your shopping lists. The feature I love is that it stores all the items from previous checklists. Once you begin typing, it pops up for easy addition. For this reason, I prefer Google Keep over Notes for our shopping list.

Whoever goes to the store knows exactly what we need to buy. For us, this works awesome. It's much easier than the paper list hanging on the side of the fridge.

Remember, the key is to find what works best for you. These tools are all about working smarter, not harder, and keeping all your valuable ideas in one easily accessible place.

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Time To Wrap This Up 

So, there you have it – three digital tools to streamline your idea-capturing process: Notion, a Project Management Application, or a note-taking application such as GoodNotes, Notes on your Apple devices, and Google Keep.

Each offers a unique way to ensure your brilliant ideas are organized and easily available, transforming the way you manage and execute your ideas. Remember, the goal is to work smarter, not harder. With these tools, you're set to capture every spark of inspiration efficiently, allowing you more time to focus on what truly matters in your business and life.

Thank you so much for reading I appreciate you and I hope you have a wonderful week.

Is Trello the right project management software for you?

Is Trello the right project management software for you?

by | Content Creation, Content Systems, Planning-Organization-Productivity

Michele Duwe from Miss Task | Is Trello the right project management software for you?

When it comes to organic content creation, are you all over the place? Is your content strategy laughable and not a true asset to your small business? Are tasks slipping through the cracks and getting missed? Have you attempted to solve this with project management software in the past and failed? Was it the right one? Is Trello the right project management software for you? Here are 3 questions to ask yourself.

Are you all over the place with content consistency?

There are a number of podcasts I follow that haven't released an episode for months, and I find that surprising. It piques my curiosity if they had a good checklist in a project a management tool, would that keep them from feeling overwhelmed with creating consistent content?

If I’ve learned anything in all my experience with working with online coaches and course creation, every one of them is triggered by overwhelm differently. 

I’m sure this will come as a shocker, each one of us has our own threshold for overwhelm. We all think in different ways; some project management software can overwhelm one business owner while it clicks for another.

Is Trello the right PM software for you? Here are 3 questions to ask yourself to find out.

Simplicity and Ease

Trello is the right project management software for you; let’s find out with our first question.

Do I value simplicity and ease in a project management tool, or do I prefer more complex solutions?

One thing you know for sure is that you are busy. You are juggling a lot of schedules and people; you need a simple solution.

Even the thought of implementing project management software makes your palms sweaty.

Maybe you’re happy with a piece of paper or a Google doc.

I’m guessing if you’re listening to this, it is for a good reason.

When you sit down at your desk, do you find yourself wasting your time and energy? I certainly did when I started my business. See, I found that transitioning from employee to business owner was quite challenging.

The problem is managing a business can be overwhelming, especially when you wear many hats. A user-friendly project management software is essential.

Designed for simplicity, Trello makes it easy to use.

We can easily manage our content creation with its clean and clutter-free interface.

This leads up to question two as we explore: is Trello the right project management software for you?

Visual Layout

Is visual organization and layout crucial for helping me stay organized and focused on my tasks?

If the answer is yes, you’re a girl after my own heart! If flexibility in making your space beautiful and visually appealing is important to you.

Trello is for the business owner who needs to see the big picture in front of you.

If you define yourself as not naturally organized, Trello is the one you should consider.

Trello drag-and-drop feature to rearrange the content cards to go from idea to posting to repurposing.

Michele Duwe from Miss Task | Is Trello the right project management software for you?

Basic Planning and Tracking

Do I require basic planning and tracking capabilities to manage my content creation and business tasks effectively? This is the third and final question: is Trello the right project management software for you?

Have you ever described yourself as not being very good with technology? This is a key reason why you’ve been unsuccessful in the past with project management software.

Do you find yourself forgetting to do something? Content tasks somehow seem to slip through the cracks.

Trello is a great choice if you want a streamlined content creation process to make the most of your limited time.

You’re able to set up the cards with your to-do list. One way to set up your content Trello board is by the milestone steps in your workflow. If you are going to set up your board like this, your column heads could be

  • Idea Bank
  • Outline
  • Record
  • Write
  • Edit
  • Scheduled
  • Published
  • Promote
  • Metrics
  • Done

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Another option to set up your content Trello board would be by batch days. Instead of milestones, the columns on your board can be set up with your batch creation days.

What that could look like is:

  • Monday | Outline
  • Tuesday | Record
  • Wednesday | Keyword Research
  • Thursday | Write
  • Friday | Schedule

All you need to do is move your card from one column to the next in your batching days.

Still not sure if Trello is the right solution for you? Book a 1-hour content creation simplified virtual session, and we can figure out a project management software that will work for you. https://misstask.com/mini-session 

Here are the three questions to ask yourself to find out if Trello is the right project management software for you.

1. Do I value simplicity and ease in my project management tool, or do I prefer a more complex solution?
        a. Remember, Trello is designed with simplicity in mind. It's clean and clutter-free.

 

2. Is visual organization and layout critical for helping me stay organized and focused on my tasks?
        a. If you need to see the big picture in front of you, or you're not naturally organized, Trello may be the project management software for you.

 

3. Do I require basic planning and tracking capabilities to manage my content creation and business tasks effectively?
        a. So, if you've ever described yourself as a person who is not very good with technology.
        b. Or you find that you're forgetting to do things frequently with your busy schedule. Trello may be the task management or project management software for you.

 

Time To Wrap This Up

Whatever project management software you select, it must make your life easier, your business smoother, and your dreams of growing your business achievable in between your kids' drop off, pick up, and that busy carpooling schedule.

I'm very grateful that you've chosen to spend time with me today. Thank you so much for reading. I appreciate you, and I hope you have a wonderful week.