When you’re first starting your business, money may be a little tight. You have to be selective in what tools and software you purchase. There are so many different options nowadays. However, there are also many free business tools that will get you started in the beginning until you’re able to afford to purchase more expensive products.
Here are the top 5 free business tools that I use in my business:
Canva is an online graphic design tool that is easy to use for even inexperienced designers. They have a paid version that is $12 a month, however, the free version will work fine for what you need. You can use Canva to create social media graphics, newsletters, invitations, book covers, and much more. They have lots of different fonts and images that you can use for your design. It’s an easy program to use once you play around with it and it’s a really useful tool for your brand.
Calendly is an online appointment setting app that syncs with your Google calendar. I use it to schedule discovery calls with my clients and love that you can set it to automatically send reminder emails. The free version allows you to set up one type of appointment. Then you enter in your available dates and times. When your client books an appointment, you’ll get an email letting you know and Calendly will automatically put it on your calendar.
Loom is a video recording software that connects through the Chrome browser. You can record your computer screen, yourself or both at the same time. All of the recordings have a shareable URL so you can send to others to watch. I’ve used Loom to create training videos for clients. They allow you to set up folders and download the videos as well.
Trello is an online project management tool that allows you to share information with a team. It’s free and very simple to use. I use it to keep track of personal tasks as well as business. The way it’s laid out on screen makes me think of virtual sticky notes. When I am on the go, I like to quickly jot down my big ideas using the phone app.
And Co is a complete dream for freelancers. They offer built-in proposals, contracts, invoicing, expense tracking, and time tracking all in one place. And Co makes it so easy to manage your workflow because every feature connects to each other. I was able to set up my account and start accepting payments within minutes.
There are many resources and tools available for new entrepreneurs. However, if you are trying to save money, these 5 free business tools will help get your business off to a great start.
