Over the past few posts I have been answering the question where do I get targeted leads from. In this post I want to have a look at a question one of my subscribers asked as to what tools I use in my online business.
I thought this was an excellent question, so I have done a quick audit of what I use (clue; it didn’t take long).
I must add that other marketers will swear by other bits of software, and that’s fine, however I believe it is very easy to spend a fortune on ‘labour saving’ tools that just complicate things, whilst at the same time rapidly chewing up your funds.
You will see that I believe less is more (although some might say it is because I’m so tight 🙂 )
OK, so here we go.
Tool 1: An Autoresponder
In my opinion probably THE most important element of any online business and where I do believe an investment is well worth it.
Having an autoresponder allows me to collect the details of others (ie build my list) and then automatically send emails to them.
This automation element allows me to put in some work up front to schedule an email sequence, and then sit back while the mails get automatically sent to individuals once they subscribe.
If you are still looking for a good autoresponder, you won’t go far wrong than checking out the free trial of GetResponse and Aweber and seeing which suits you best.
Tool 2: A Click Tracker
Once you have a sales funnel up and running, it is essential you start working out where the clicks come from and which squeeze page design converts best etc.
Therefore another important part of my business is my click tracker.
I use it both to do split testing and to count the clicks offers get and the conversion rates from those clicks.
There are many versions out there for various budgets, with both monthly subscriptions and one off payments. I personally opted for a one off payment.
Whichever option you choose, I thoroughly recommend some way of measuring and analysing the clicks you get.
I don’t believe the one I use is still available, so I don’t want to recommend any of the others as I have never tried them. Well worth a bit of research though.
Tool 3: An FTP Tool
Pretty essential this one if you want to upload anything to your hosting.
The one I use is the free Filezilla, and bloody good it is too. You can get download it from the link below (no requirements to subscribe or anything like that):
https://filezilla-project.org/download.php
Tool 4: HTML Editor
I still like to build my squeeze pages from scratch, which I know for some is so ‘yesterday’, but it works for me.
Therefore this little free tool is a mainstay of my business.
Kompozer is a WYSIWYG (what you see is what you get) editor, which means you don’t have to be a wiz in coding to build your web pages (good job, because I’m not!).
You can download this free application from: http://www.kompozer.net/download.php
And that my friends, is it.
I’ll admit there is the odd bit of software I use on a very infrequent basis, but I don’t want to muddy the waters by adding them here.
I believe with just these tools you are going to be able to create and run a successful online business.
Others might disagree, but as I say this is what has worked for me.
I’m not scared of technology, but I’m also not someone who loves technology so much that I have to have every new bit of labour saving software.
I still have a paper based diary to map out my weekly plan and a paper notebook to record my ‘bright ideas’ and to sketch out the design of my sales funnels.
I believe anyone just starting out should keep to the basics and only add to the software they use as and when they find they need it…and can afford it.
This way it keeps your focus on the important stuff…
…not to mention save you a fortune 🙂
