The Small Business Modern Toolbox
Starting a new business can be daunting, but having the right tools makes all the difference. These are the necessary things that should eliminate headaches, not create new ones. When I started Poulos Collective last year, I spent a lot of time making sure I surrounded myself with the right tools that allowed me to operate as a streamlined business while keeping my monthly costs as low as possible.
Having a small team with limited resources doesn’t mean you can’t operate with the professionalism of a larger company.
For context, my company is a creative consultancy and partner network. So some of these tools are geared towards design and technology. However, there are many things that can apply to just about every independent or small business.
Productivity
Google Apps for Work
$5 / month
If you’re just starting out, this should be the first thing you set up. This includes the essentials like business email, calendars, online storage and customer support. Most people are very familiar with using gmail and google apps for personal use. Having a Google Business account is a great way to start with a clean slate, especially so that you don’t mix personal and business files.
Why I love this: It’s very inexpensive and you start out with a whopping 30GB of online storage.
Other Options: Office 365
Project Management
Mavenlink
$19-$49 / month
I use Mavenlink as an all-in-one project management and financial tool. Initially, I started off using Google Sheets to record basic financials and time. I didn’t see the need for paying for a tool that only does one thing, like Harvest. I actually chose to pay for the most expensive Mavenlink plan ($49/mo) because of the included financial management, reporting and analytic tools. I also like that you can set different rate cards for every client. The resourcing tool is really built for larger teams, but I found that it’s a great way to “block in” my own schedule so that I can provide my clients realistic timing and availability.
Why I love this: It gives you peace of mind knowing everything is organized. It provides great analytics tools that allow you to see projected vs actual revenue.
Other Options: Intervals / Basecamp / Wrike / Workamajig
Design Prototypes
Invision
Free–$25 / month
This is a very popular tool among creatives to use for prototyping websites and apps. However, it’s easy enough to use for just about anyone. Just upload your designs and add hotspots to transform your static screens into clickable, interactive prototypes complete with gestures, transitions, and animations.
Why I love this: It brings ideas to life and also shows a clear reference point for developers and clients.
Other Options: Marvel / UX Pin / Weld / Flinto / Pixate / Moqups
Scheduling
TimeTrade
Free–$49 / year
TimeTrade is an online scheduling and appointment tool. It “watches” your iCal and Google calendars for open windows and allows other people to see your availability and automatically book a time with you. You can also block out times that you are unavailable. I found that this is especially helpful in sales, because people opt to skip a contact form or an email entirely and go directly into booking a meeting. This is an example link I would typically send out to schedule a meeting.
Why I love this: It eliminates the dreaded back and forth “does this time work for you” emails.
Other options: Doodle
Other Helpful Things
MileIQ — The smart mileage tracker that you set and forget.
Freshbooks — The accounting software alternative to Quickbooks.
Canon MX922 — All in one wireless printer and scanner.
MyDigital SSD — External solid state drive.
MacID — Unlock your mac with your fingerprint.
Switch.co—The business phone system built for Google Apps.
Read my next article in Creative Independence
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