7 Pros Share The Best Tools to Help You Kill it in 2019
“Out with the old, in with the new” may be a cliché, but the practice is as valuable for your business as it is for your overcrowded closet. The end of one year and the beginning of the next is the perfect time to take a look at the processes in your business that could use a boost or refresh and find updated tools to improve efficiencies.
Change doesn’t have to be scary, especially when the recommended tools come from entrepreneurs like you who have done the leg work and tested them out. We caught up with the cast of the popular series Fix My Brand with Ali Craig to hear about the items they’ve added to their toolkits in 2018 that have them excited to tackle 2019. Check out the killer productivity tools these entrepreneurs who are actively engaged in taking their businesses to the next level recommend for success in 2019.
2018 Problem: Efficient Collaboration
2019 Killer Tool: Slope
If you’re finding yourself on the constant hunt for information and documents between several platforms, Ali Craig declares that Slope, which makes it easy for colleagues to plan, track and review creative work all in one place, has been an invaluable tool for her team. Craig says, “Instead of having certain items organized in Asana, some tasks in Dropbox, and losing documents like no tomorrow in Google Docs, Slope allows everything to be stored and commented on in one location.” Craig also notes that a major plus to Slope is that clients and coworkers alike can add pins and comments to any project making updates a breeze.
2018 Problem: Inbox Overload
2019 Killer Tools: Voxer and Slack
Always swimming in an overflowing inbox? Cassandra Shepard and Talmar Anderson have each discovered platforms to help. Cassandra and her clients have come to rely on Voxer, a walkie talkie app that allows you to simply press a button and send an instant, encrypted voice message. Shepard says, “The power of hearing someone’s voice and being able to keep projects moving forward in between meetings is a real game changer for those of us who work globally.”
You don’t have to answer every message and email any more than you have to respond to all the background chatter around you. The decision to invest your time in a response is totally up to you. mcg
Meanwhile, Talmar Anderson and her clients have come to rely on Slack, which offers real time messaging and document sharing, to reduce email clutter. Anderson enthusiastically says, “I love Slack! It cuts through the email mass, can be turned off easier than texts and gives me context depending on which group has a notifications alert.”
2018 Problem: Managing Customer Relationships
2019 Killer Tool: Insightly
CRM getting harder and harder to track? Lisa Rehurek recommends Inslightly to keep all data in one place and up-to-date. Rehurek’s RFP Success Company has found success using the platform to manage leads, clients, and referral partners. She notes that Insightly has “helped us track wins for our team and our client and keep the team on course with an overview of where we are in a process and what we’re working towards.”
2018 Problem: Social Media Content
2019 Killer Tools: Ring Light, LogoLicious, and Wordswag
Updated social media with engaging videos, graphics and images is an ongoing need for all brands. That need has lead cast members, Sylvia Becker-Hill and Gina Bell to seek out tools to help their images and graphics pop. Becker-Hill recommends a ring light that clips right onto a cell phone allowing any brand to produce professional looking videos and images. She says, “The ring light solves lighting issues that I’ve struggled with allowing my face to be beautifully lit no matter how dark it is where I’m filming.”
Your brand is your identity. Remember, a Coke without a brand is just another carbonated soda. Know who you are, and be sure others do, too. mcg
Bell has found two apps to help her grow her social media accounts. With LogoLicious, adding her MoonRoot Spirit logo to any image is a snap, and Wordswag allows her to add engaging text to photos. Bell notes, “Both apps are so easy to use and allow anything being shared to be labeled with my brand name and desired messaging, which is incredibly important to growing a brand’s online presence.” Ms. Bell is featured above with the inspirational message.
2018 Problem: Connections limited to social media
2019 Killer Tools: Good old-fashioned networking and collaboration
Lastly, the saying, “It’s not what you know, it’s who you know,” is as true today in our globally connected world as ever. It’s no surprise that the woman behind a business called Generate Work that Matters, Dr. Megan Todd, is interested in fostering connections that matter in the New Year. Megan was thrilled to surround herself in 2018 with strong and passionate people to collaborate with, she says “In 2019, I am thrilled to expand and deepen the networks of collaborators, co-conspirators, people and businesses who are ready to show up, take action, and make their visions into reality.”
