Grow Your Small Business Using these Resources

As a small business owner, it’s easy to become overwhelmed and frustrated. These resources will allow you to regain your time and help educate you on the things you were most confused about. Grow your small business using the resources below! This post includes affiliate links which you can learn more about here.

Small Business Resources

Educational Videos, Lessons, and Podcasts

• LinkedIn Learning  — My favorite way to continue my education. LinkedIn Learning has a TON of courses & certifications to educate yourself with.
• Facebook Blueprint — Facebook walks you through how to use Facebook ads and so much more!
• Goal Digger Podcast
• Skillshare — Get a $30 prepaid gift card when signing up!
• The Brave Creative Podcast

Books & Readings

• Building a Storybrand by Donald Miller — Great book for someone looking to start a biz or refresh their current!
• The Money Book for Freelancers, Part-Timers, and the Self-Employed by Joseph D’Agnese — Get your $$ in order! The systems shared in this book have helped me find new ways to save $ and put away money for tax season. Really great lessons in this one!
• The One Week Marketing Plan by Mark Satterfield
• Word by Word by Kory Stamper

Find an even bigger list of books for creative small business owners here.

Software & Apps

I heavily use the apps below to keep my business as automated as possible. I’ve been using MailChimp for the last 5 years, and it’s been really useful for all of my email marketing needs. I’ve also heard great things about FloDesk, but I haven’t used it personally (yet).

• Trello — for Project Management & Collaboration
• Toggl — for Time Management & Tracking
• Calendly — for Scheduling
• Dubsado — for CRM. I wrote about Dubsado in an earlier blog post you can find here.
• MailChimp — for E-mail Marketing (receive $30 credit using this link)
• Tailwind — for Instagram & Pinterest
• Planoly — for Instagram Feed Planning & Scheduling
• FloDesk — for Email Marketing (receive 50% off using this link)

Related Post: Using Dubsado for my Small Business

Content Creation & Curation Resources

I’ve been a big fan of Haute Stock and their stock photography for a couple of years now! They have soooo many branded collections, quote images, and other helpful photos to use for your brand. Using Haute Stock has made my life so much easier when it comes to posting on social media. Having access to their photos to use for my Pinterest graphics, as well as website images has saved me so much time and energy.

• Haute Stock — Download 21 FREE stock photos using the link in their header!
• Pixistock
• Creative Market — 6 Free Design Goods each week!
• Unsplash — I personally haven’t used Unsplash yet, but I’ve heard very good things!

Free Digital Resources

• Customer Personas Workbook — Discover your ideal audience and define who you’re speaking to in your marketing. Who are you creating for?
• Social Media Content Calendar Template — Start creating consistent content for your audience! Organize your posts in one place.
• Define Your Brand Voice & Vocab 
• Marketing Tips for Small Business Owners — My Pinterest board dedicated to helping small biz owners!
• Motivational Quotes for Entrepreneurs

What would you add to this list? Do you already use some of these tools? Which have you found the most helpful?