Resources – 2015
Empower & Equip: My two primary business goals.
On this page, you'll find the best resources, tips, knowledge, and tools possible to help entrepreneurs build successful businesses. To accomplish my goal, I've created this resources page. After testing thousands of plugins, apps, services and sites, I've compiled this list. I've done the research, so you don't have to.
Disclosure: Some of these links are affiliate links, and at no additional cost to you, I will earn a commission if you use them to make a purchase. Please understand, I use or have used each of these products, and I recommend them only because they're useful and because I've benefited from them in the past. I do not recommend them because I get a small commission for doing so. Please only spend money on these products if you need them or believe they'll help you achieve your goals.
These resources are divided into these convenient categories:
- Websites & Design
- Building an Online Business
- Writing
- Productivity
- Other
My #1 Most-Recommended Tool
Exit Strategy – The Exact Tactics I Wish I'd Had 4 Years Ago to Transition From a Job I Thought I Had to Have to a Life I Wanted. Discover my 8-week road map for how to get your business going the right way the first time and starting a business in today's modern and connected world. Learn how to cut through the fluff, adopt the mindset of a successful entrepreneur, and build a solid foundation for a business where you can truly thrive.
Websites & Design
OptimizePress – One of the best tools you can buy for your online business, OptimizePress the best money I've spent. Create beautiful and responsive landing pages, high-converting sales pages, membership sites, and tons of other features. This is a much more cost-effective solution than LeadPages or Wishlist Member.
My eCover Maker – Create 3D mockups of your digital products! No more basic or boring covers for your ebooks or training courses. My eCover Maker lets you upload almost any image and transpose it onto a 3D surface like a book, DVD cover, laptop screen, tablet or TV. We all judge books by their cover, My eCover Maker makes those covers look awesome.
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Kraken.io – The faster your website, the more business you'll do. That's a fact. Kraken.io takes any image you upload and compresses and optimizes it. A 100kb image could be reduced to 3-4kb which reduces the load time for your users, as well as the strain on your server. I run 100% of my images through Kraken before uploading to WordPress.
Website Architecture – When I switched to the Genesis Framework by StudioPress my page load speed dropped by half. With dozens of themes, well-written code, and a fantastic support area, StudioPress is now my preferred place to buy new themes for my sites. Not only are they fast, but they're reliable.
Blubrry PowerPress – One of the best ways to share your message is by starting a podcast. One of the best tools for your podcast is the PowerPress plugin by Blubrry. This plugin integrates with WordPress and makes it easy to set up the behind-the-scenes pieces for your show.
SumoMe – The team at AppSumo created the SumoMe plugin to make it easy for visitors to subscribe to your list. Their plugin is easier to use than most and is more attractive than other free options.
Building an Online Business
Membership Has Its Benefits – To help aspiring entrepreneurs, regardless of budget or time commitment, I created this membership site. You'll find Action Plans, step-by-step tutorials, live training, and a community of business builders to help you on your journey. If you're the DIY entrepreneur, or maybe you just like building your business at night and on the weekend, my membership site is for you.
How to Start Your Professional Podcast for $200 or Less – This ebook hit bestseller status because of the value it brings to future podcasters. With video tutorials, product recommendations, and even comparison tests, this ebook should be on every podcaster's required-reading list. If you want to market your business with a podcast or get your message in front of a growing audience of podcast listeners, this is the perfect resource to help you get started.
ActiveCampaign – The service I was looking for when I started my online journey, ActiveCampaign offers the most features for your dollar. If you want to treat subscribers differently based on the actions they take with your emails, you can do that. If you want to send someone a coupon after they visited your store, you can do that. If you want a built-in CRM that shows your most active contacts, yep, that's included. Loaded with automation features and customization options, ActiveCampaign is my email marketing service of choice. Prices start at just $9, or you can get started with a free trial today!
MailChimp – When it comes to communicating with your audience, no one makes it easier than MailChimp. With a free option for up to 2000 subscribers, MailChimp allows you to do amazing things with your emails without spending a dime.
Writing
Hemingway Editor – Every blogger needs to be a good writer. We need to entertain and educate. To improve your writing, the Hemingway Editor checks your writing for unnecessary words, phrases that are difficult to read, as well as other common mistakes. I now run 100% of my blog posts through this tool.
Grammarly – I started using Grammarly in the middle of 2015. The free plugin for Chrome browsers scans any text I'm typing, from new blog posts to Facebook status updates, and helps me keep egg off my face. From spelling errors to misplaced commas, Grammarly is a must-have tool for writers. On the premium plans, Grammarly connects to MS Word and Outlook and even checks for style issues, poor word choices, passive voice (which is bad writing), colloquial phrases, possible plagiarism and vocabulary enhancements like synonyms and such, and more. Ya, it's pretty cool.
Productivity
Buffer – When it comes to social scheduling, the best tool I've found is Buffer. Their software allows you to build a “buffer” of social media tweets, posts, updates, etc. that will post at a later, predetermined time. Load it up in the morning and your updates will go out during the rest of the day.
IFTTT – An acronym that stands for “If This, Then That,” IFTTT is free software that connects two other pieces of software on a conditional basis. Connect 2 services to work together and streamline some of the details associated with building your business
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