The People Platforms That Help Me Do It All Version 4! - When I Grow Up

The People Platforms That Help Me Do It All Version 4! - When I Grow Up Ive been loving all the love Ive been getting for all of my organization posts lately  (basically this one and this one), and it along with a current client asking for help with systems for her new biz made me think about this post. And when I looked it up, I realized its two and a half years old! And I can update it along with what Id recommend using for peeps whore starting new biz! And wouldnt that be helpful? I hope so. Buckle in! The People Arwyn Todd When she arrived: She joined me in August 2011 as my Virtual Wizard and a real Jill-Of-All-Trades. How I found her: I stole her! Kinda. We were coaching together and I knew she was planning to leave her full-time job and wanted a super part-time gig while maybe-kinda-sorta considering being a coach. I thought we’d be the perfect fit, and I was right! What she does for me: Currently, she’s my  Tech Titan. When my site needs updating, Arwyn is my gal. Amanda Sue Howell When she arrived:  May 20th, 2016! Yes, I  just brought Amanda on when Jamie, my Communications Director, got a full-time  job that took up all her hours. I miss you, Jamie (but Im so proudcited for you)! How I found her:  Amanda has been in my Internet circle for about a year (or more) now. She took my CreativeLive class, knit my daughter and I gorgeous hats, and been a genuinely nice person and friend. She told me months ago that shell always have a spot to work with me, so when I knew Id be losing Jamie I thought of Amanda first! She was true to her word and is taking on my 5ish hours of work each month (yup thats all I need right now!). What she does for me: She’ll be locking and loading my pre-written social media updates in Hootsuite each month (more on that below!); pitching, loading and confirming guest posts for my Client Case Studies and I Did It Anyways blog series; pitch, book and confirm guests for my upcoming monthly webinar series and be there live to moderate comments. More on that in a month or two! Rebecca Pollock When she arrived: I’ve been working with Bekky since late 2009, when I needed a designer for a more professional website (nope, whenigrowupcoach.com has not always looked like this!) How I found her: Bekky worked with my husband Luke in advertising, and he recommended her right away when he knew I wanted a better looking site. I felt immediately understood and she uber-impressed me with her first mock-ups. What she does for me: She’s now my resident designer, having been the talent behind my website designs since 2010 and my logo rebranding. I run to her with all of my graphic and web design needs. It’s worth mentioning that everyone on the team is a freelancer and not a full-time employee. This means their schedules are flexible and benefits are not given by my LLC. Other peeps I recommend are all right here on this Pinterest board. The Products Platforms (don’t go down the rabbit hole too far!) For CRM (Customer Relations Management): Batchblue How long I’ve been using it for: 2008-ish, since I started coaching. What I love about it:  Everyone is there! Seriously, its great to have a system that represents my entire life as a coach in terms of who Ive communicated and work with.  It’s also really easy to attach files, create To Dos and Events (that sync with your calendar), run reports for whatever you find important (i.e. I have one that tells me how many consultation calls end up signing on as clients), create web forms that then sync with the contact’s info, and keep track of Deals. And seriously, the company is generally awesome. They not only send me goodies all the time, but they even donated to my boob cancer walk! What it lacks:  You used to be able to upload RSS feeds and Facebook accounts to their social media integrations, but not so much anymore. I wish it was more of an all-in-one system, as Im only tempted to stray with new platforms that incorporate scheduling, online signing, invoicing, etc. If I was just starting out:  Id probably try something like Satori, which is an all-in-one system for coaches. The $29/month is a bargain considering you dont need a scheduler or a platform to sign agreements. For newsletters:  Mad Mimi How long I’ve been using it for:  Since December 2013, when I started blogging  for them. They paid me per post  and gave me a free account, so I moved everything over. What I love about it:  All my stuff is loaded in there already! Ha! Seriously, thats the main reason Im sticking with them because itd be a pain to get my drips, confirmation emails, template and course emails to another platform. And I dont wanna learn a new platform it always takes a nice amount of time. What it lacks:  The reports I want. While you can see your numbers for each email you send or compare a few side-by-side you cant get more general or detailed info. Also, it was bought by GoDaddy, which is a company I ethically dont stand by or want to support. If I was just starting out:  Mailchimp. No brainer. Its free for 2K+ sign-ups, its easiest to learn (IMHO), the company is fab. The end. For social media management: Hootsuite How long I’ve been using it for: 2008ish, when I started tweeting. What I love about it: Whether on my desktop, laptop, or iPhone, HootSuite is the one-stop-shop for me to update my Twitter account,  my Facebook profile, my Facebook fan page, and  my LinkedIn profile. So, no need to go anywhere else to update all your statuses, schedule updates/tweets in advance, shorten links, and create private and public lists (no more homefeed overwhelm!). What it’s lacking: For some silly reason the lists I create via Twitter don’t seem to sync to Hootsuite, so sometimes I lose peeps I wanna keep my eye on until I realize I need to do some double work. Youre also not able to pre-schedule updates to Facebook groups, and the Instagram link-up is clunky. If I was just starting out:  Hootsuite! The free plan will be all you need, but the Pro for $9/month would also be worthwhile. For email: Gmail How long I’ve been using it for: forever What I love about it: I’ve been using Gmail for my personal account for years, but it was a no-brainer to keep on using it when I became a Woman of the World (aka entrepreneur). I love me their folders, their filters, their forwarding, their starring system, their themes (the Bus Stop one changes with the weather!), their Priority Inbox, the amount of space I get, and their stacked conversation view. What it’s lacking:  I cant use my work email address to use Google Hangouts for some reason, and its tough to find personalized help because Google. If I was just starting out:  Gmail!   For personal calendering: Google Calendar How long I’ve been using it for: forever What I love about it: I love the web-basedness of Google Calendar, as well as the ability to create multiple calendars for different categories (and color-code ‘em!). It also seems to Sync with every application possible. What it’s lacking:  Nada! If I was just starting out:  Google Calendar! For legal signing: HelloSign How long I’ve been using it for: May 2013 What I love about it: I used to use EchoSign so my new clients can sign their agreements quickly/easily, agreeing I’m not the boss of ‘em and that they won’t sue me and whatnot but then they were bought by Adobe and the price went up while the service went down. I was glad to switch to HelloSign, which offers the same sign-documents-electronically feature for my clients while also integrating into my Gmail so I can sign attachments right from my browser. Killer. What it’s lacking:  I wish there was a way that my signature can automatically be on a contract template. But thats about it! If I was just starting out: I dont think Id need it if I had Satori, but if I didnt then Id recommend it. You get 3 documents a month for free! For fancy schmancy online scheduling:  TimeTrade How long I’ve been using it for: on and off since 2008 What I love about it: TimeTrade was my super simplistic client calendaring system from 2008, when I started coaching, through early 2011. I needed something   uber-basic and uber-cheap, until I knew I needed more bells and whistles. I swear poor Arwyn went through over a dozen platforms and we eventually wound up right where we started Timetrade. They added some bells and whistles in the year or so since I left, the price is right, and it’s way easy for my clients to schedule their appointments in their time zones and then add it to their own calendars. What it’s lacking: I’m still waiting for the Holy Grail of calendars. There’s not an easy way for the client to cancel/reschedule on their end (I have to do it) and making a new calendar for every offering is totally crazy-inducing with room for error. If I was just starting out:  Again, I wouldnt need it  if I had Satori, but if I didnt then Id use it or Id try Google Calendar appointment spots. For blogging/websiting: WordPress How long I’ve been using it for: since 2011ish What I love about it: I’m a bit spoiled here as I know this is tough to set-up/design and I had others do it all for me, so I can’t speak to that. What I can speak to is that I’m fairly developer-illiterate, and it didn’t take me too long to figure out WordPress so I could add pics, links, movies, yada yada yada to my posts. And all the plug-ins it offers rock. I went from an HTML platform to WordPress and will never look back. What it’s lacking: Uh, nothing I can think of. If I was just starting out:  Its a tough answer because it really depends on what  you need for your business and whether youre doing the designing/building yourself. I have a feeling WordPress is really overwhelming if youre doing everything yourself. I hear great things about SquareSpace now, and Id probably start there. If I was selling products, Id give Shopify a whirl. For conference calls: FreeConferencePro How long I’ve been using it for: since 2008 What I love about it: They give me my own number, allow me to customize the greeting (aka make a sexy lady voice say the word “amazeballs”), it’s easy to record. What it’s lacking: I can count the amount of times the line has been down on one hand, and while it’s soooooo not fun when it happens (and the customer service team doesn’t really care), it’s happened so infrequently it wasn’t enough for me to change providers. If I was just starting out:  Free Conference Pro! For file sharing: Dropbox How long I’ve been using it for: forever What I love about it: Whether you’re sharing files between computers, with other people privately, or with the world at large, Dropbox is the coolest. There’s tons of storage involved with a free account (I have a crapload of files on it and have only used half of my available storage), and the app is great for when I need to read files on the road. Simple explanation, simple to use, super amazeballs product. What it’s lacking: Uh, nothing I can think of. If I was just starting out:  Dropbox! For virtual meetings/workshops/presentations:  WebinarJam How long I’ve been using it for:  A little less than a year. What I love about it:  Its essentially a way to make a Google Hangout thats automatically recorded, attaches to an email drip, comes with a landing page, and can lead peeps to something youre promoting. You can also make videos in advance and load em in to the webinar so you can play it live. What it’s lacking:  The landing pages are ugly and the learning curve is pretty big. The customer service team has been rude to me in the past (for real!), and it can be tough to find answers youre looking for in the FAQ section. If I was just starting out:  Google Hangouts  embedded into a page on my site.  Free and easy-ish! Zoom is also a super cool and reliable platform. For project management: TeamworkPM How long I’ve been using it for: June 2012 What I love about it: This was another thing that poor Arwyn tested seemingly dozens of platforms for us to find the project management system that works best for usand I’m so glad we landed at TeamworkPM. With the account that I have, I can have 15 open projects to work on, which is great with all of my offerings! Then, I can add people on a project-by-project base and create milestones, task lists, recurring tasks, deadlines, priority levels it gets us down to the nitty gritty so the entire team knows what’s happening when and who’s in charge of what. I also use  it for time tracking, and  it’s great to have my project management and my time logs all in one place. What it’s lacking:  Im still not in love with the aesthetic, but Ill live. If I was just starting out:  Probably Trello since its the most right-brain friendly and its free if you dont need it to work with a large team. For money management:  QuickBooks  Online How long I’ve been using it for:  Since I hired Stephanie of Simplify Your Books in January of 2015 to do my bookkeeping. What I love about it:  Um, honestly, I never log in to this. But if its easy for Stephanie, its easy for me! She uses this to generate my monthly reports and profit and loss statements. What it’s lacking:  Uh, no idea. Im not a big help here. If I was just starting out:  Mint! I used it when I was just starting out and as long as you dont mind plugging in your financial info, its really right-brain friendly with all its colorful graphs and charts and reports. For online sales/affiliates/yada yada yada:  E-junkie How long I’ve been using it for: Spring 2010 What I love about it: Ejunkie is good at what it does namely, having affiliates, allowing you to sell something that’s an automatic download, using discount codes, etc. It’s also insanely cheap and, with their new update (finally!), its much prettier and user-friendly than its ever been. What it’s lacking:  Not much that I can think of! If I was just starting out:  Ejunkie! For $5/month you can sell up to 10 products. Such a no brainer. Are you ready to launch your brand new biz? Then join me fellow career coach Laura Simms for this live, free webinar on June 5th! Were giving you our 8 Golden Rules of Launching Your Brand New Biz with plenty of time for live QA AND early access to an amazeballs offer. Dont miss it!