One of the biggest questions I get is what software resources I use to run my business.
I listed everything below including my go-to resources for websites, live streaming, social media and more.
I will be updating the list from time to time, so be sure to bookmark this.
Now, before we get started, some important points:
- You don’t need EVERYTHING on this list. Really…it’s a lot. So don’t go click and sign up for it all. What you really need are a handful of things including:
- A good way to attract your audience. (e.g. automated social media posts)
- A good way to engage your audience. (e.g. YouTube Live through StreamYard)
- A good way to turn your audience into customers. (e.g. online courses in Kajabi or Zoom Webinars)
2. Whether you are new or experienced, your primary focus should be #1 above: Attracting an Audience. Use social media, speaking, and livestreaming to do that. Then turn your audience into email subscribers and the rest is easy.
Ok here goes…
Websites
The best hosting platform I know of is BlueHost. I have used them for 13 years with no issues.
If you want to build your own website (which I don’t recommend), use SquareSpace or WebFlow.
If you consider yourself an adult (haha), then go and hire a real web team who can do the work for you. You’ll spend a little bit more, but your website won’t look like something you created in your basement.
Finding a good web team can be massively difficult. That’s because most “webmasters” are just over-opinionated / over-privileged / under-experienced millennials, who live in their parent’s basement, and who have never actually made any money online (or any where else for that matter).
So it took me 10 years to find someone who knows what they are doing. The best web team in the business is the team at Web Vitality (led by Tom Adams). Tom is U.S. based and his team understands what great marketing looks like. Both of those are rare qualities in web teams. Tell Tom I sent you and he’ll give you a good deal.
Landing Pages / Lead Pages
Definition: a “landing page” or a “lead page” is a place you send traffic so they can get on your list. Here and here are examples of my best performing landing pages. Pages like this are a minimum requirement for a great online business.
The best services for this are ClickFunnels (which is what I use to build most of my landing pages), Kajabi (which is also my “go to” membership site software), and Instapage.
Email Marketing
Once someone is on your list, you’re going to want to be able to send them both autoresponders (automated / timed emails) and broadcast emails (emails to your whole list like this email).
The best services in this league are Active Campaign and Drip.
Of note, email deliverability is a huge issue and it’s not good for anyone or any service. Just know that going in.
Membership Sites and Overall Online Business Management
Kajabi is hands down the most versatile software to manage an online business from beginning to end. I personally use Kajabi to host my online courses, but it does way more than that including landing pages, websites, emails, CRM, payment processing, analytics, and more.
eCommerce Checkout Pages
Shopify is your choice if you’re selling non-information products like shoes, t-shirts, or widgets.
Use Kajabi if you’re selling information vs. physical products.
Survey Software
I use surveys to gather information from my list as well as for program applications (like my coaching application which you can see here).
The two “go to” platforms are SurveyMonkey and TypeForm. I use the latter almost exclusively because I think it looks more professional. Plus, TypeForm has a nice free trial which you may never need to upgrade.
Third Party Integrations
Sometimes you find yourself in a situation where you want to connect 2 or more pieces of software. For example, you may want to gather leads, but then have those leads populate into a Google Sheet. Or you may want to have the people who register for a Zoom meeting go onto your Kajabi mailing list.
For every integration imaginable, use Zapier. There is literally nothing like it and the integrations are endless.
I also use Pretty Links to make this https://app.kajabi.com/r/cddjH6zE/t/tarhqf9e look like this www.EdRush.com/Kajabi.
Plus This is another Treasure Trove of online tools.
Social Media Automation
The gold standard for automating your posts and tweets is HootSuite and Later. I use Later for 95% of my Instagram posts.
For automating LinkedIn, use ClickedIn. It’s very smart AI-based software and the team at ClickedIn can help you get started.
For YouTube, I use TubeBuddy.
For online ads, the best tutorials can be found for Free at SurfSide PPC.
Live Streaming
For LiveStreaming to YouTube LIVE and Facebook LIVE there is nothing like StreamYard. I have used their platform for 93 LIVE 1-hour+ shows (and counting).
For team training, meetings, and product delivery, use Zoom. Important Note: Zoom’s Facebook Live /YouTube Live integration is clunky which is why I use StreamYard to stream online and Zoom for meetings.
Appointment Scheduling
I love Calendly. It’s cheap, easy to use, and integrates directly with Google Calendar.
Design Work
For Do-It-Yourself design work, use Canva or PicMonkey. I personally use Canva several times a week for YouTube thumbnail and social media posts. They have a massive image and video database, so you never run out of great ideas.
For Done-For-You design, contact Kristen at Spark The Brand or go to Design Pickle.
Every product graphic, banner, website, and video bumper I have ever used was created by Spark the Brand. They are not cheap, but they are the best in the business. If you want to look like a pro, then hire a pro.
Freelance Services
I have run out of fingers and toes to count the number of contractors I have found on Upwork and Fiverr.
Use Upwork for more serious or longer term jobs and Fiverr for cheap work like 3D book covers, fake celebrity voice overs, and anything else you can imagine like this guy who will record anything you want in a clown voice.
Podcast Hosting
Everyone in the podcast business hosts their audio on Libsyn.
Others
I use Google Docs for everything that Word, Excel, and PowerPoint used to do.
Dropbox. Take my advice and don’t store any files on your computer. My computer crashed 3 years ago and it didn’t slow me down because all my files were in the cloud.
Password Protection is key which is why I recommend 1Password or LastPass to keep track of everything.
Summary
If I could only pick 3 things from the list above, what would they be?
- Kajabi since you can create landing pages, host websites, membership sites, and send email.
- StreamYard to stream online.
- Dropbox to store everything.
If I could only pick one, it would be Kajabi.
Ok, that’s all for now.
Pretty great list, right? Just pick a few and go change the world.
Out.
Ed
P.S. Most of the links above are affiliate links which means I may (read: will) get a commission if you sign up for it. You should know I only recommend resources that we actually use and many of the links provide a better deal (since you are going through me).
P.P.S. For more detail on Kajabi (which I mentioned a bunch), watch my interview with Kajabi’s President Jonathan Cronstedt.
