Starting an online business is fun and challenging at the same time.
Trying to figure out logistics can be one of the things that can be time-consuming and expensive.
Lucky for us, we are living at a time when great and affordable tools are available on the market. There is an app for almost anything!
So if you’re starting for ways to make your life easier as an online business owner, I’ve got you covered.
Here are 10 apps that will help you run your online business smoothly without breaking the bank.
Payment Processing
Paypal
Paypal is wildly used all over the world. Especially if you outsource freelance services in other countries, Paypal seems to be the default payment method.
One drawback of using Paypal is that it can be expensive especially if you transact with other currencies. But it can also be worth it considering as I mentioned, it’s wildly used.
It also gives you the ability to collect credit card payments, set-up payment plans, and subscriptions, and create buy buttons.
Paypal also gives you the ability to create invoices so that’s a plus.
Stripe
Stripe is a great option and alternative to PayPal. The one disadvantage of this is, it’s not available in some countries.
Payoneer
If Stripe is not available in your country, one option is to use Payoneer. Most e-commerce businesses use Payoneer because it creates a US, UK or EUR bank accounts.
Collaboration/Communication
Slack
Slack allows you to create “channels”. Each channel can be assigned for a topic or company department. Each channel you create will have a # sign in it.
The default channel when you create a Slack account is #general. You can create several channels based on the topics you need.
Here are sample channels to give you an idea:
As you can see from the image, each channel has a specific purpose. This helps keep conversations to stay on topic.
Discord
Discord looks very similar to Slack. Discord was originally created for gamers. Recently it’s been discovered by online business owners and a lot of them has started using it.
The only difference I noticed with Discord and Slack is that Discord has a voice chat feature and in-app video calls. No wonder it’s been pegged as the Messenger-and-Slack rolled into one.
Social Media Management
Later
The Later app allows you to schedule posts on Instagram. Instagram has always been very strict with third-party apps but with Later, you don’t have anything to worry about. It’s Instagram approved so anything you post on Later, it’s as if you’re posting it directly on Instagram.
If your social media presence is mainly Instagram, Later is a good tool to help you with scheduling.
Tailwind
If Later is for Instagram, Tailwind is for Pinterest.
Tailwind not only lets you schedule pins, but it also allows you to join Tailwind Tribes.
The Tribes are groups inside the Tailwind app where you can pins (or images) from fellow bloggers to pin. And they can also re-pin yours.
Hootsuite
If you’re looking for an all-in-one solution, Hootsuite can be a great choice. It allows you to schedule posts on major social media channels like Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and Pinterest.
For me, Hootsuite is best to use for Facebook and Twitter.
Project Management
Trello
Trello looks like a cord board with index cards. If you’re familiar with the Kanban method of organizing, you’ll love Trello.
Trello also has a tagging @ feature to tag your team.
If you’re looking for a simple yet intuitive project management tool, Trello is worth checking out.
Asana
Asana is a project management tool but it has more bells and whistles. It allows you not only to tag your team but also to assign specific projects to each of them.
It also allows you to monitor the progress of a project.
Also, it was a “board” feature similar to Trello. So if you’re using Trello and find it lacking, you might want to check out Asana.
So there you have it! I hope you’ll find these apps useful.
If you can’t decide on which tool to use, is it Slack or Discord? Asana or Trello? I highly suggest you give one a try for over a month and see how it works for you.
Most of these apps have a free version so try those versions first before upgrading to the paid versions.
Let me know in the comments which of these apps you already use.
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Joy
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