Running a small business? Then you must constantly be thinking about how to maximize your resources, cut costs, and draw more customers to your business. That might seem like a tall order sometimes, but you’re not in this alone! With a little help from a few free small business tools, you can achieve your goals faster than you think.
What is a business tool?
A business tool is a device or a platform used to complete a specific task. Many modern businesses are using online business tools and solutions to reduce the burden of doing all kinds of different work on their own. When used to their full potential, the best small business tools can save you lots of time and money, drive productivity, eliminate stress, and improve your overall operations.
What are common business tools?
- Task management tools
- Time-tracking tools
- Social media scheduling tools
- Project management software
- Communication tools
- Meeting scheduler apps
- eSignature software
What are the benefits of business tools?
- Improved day-to-day operations
- Better time tracking
- Enhanced employee productivity
- Optimized work schedules
- Strategic growth
If you’re still using a pen and paper to run your business, it’s time to consider shaking things up with a few business management tools. Choose a free small business software that’s perfect for your small business or startup to get more work done with less effort.
10 free small business tools to run your business
Google Docs
Google Docs is one of the best-known small business solutions on the market. This free online tool is great for collaborating on documents with team members and partners. An app within the Google Suite, this business tool has a host of great features including ready-made templates, offline access, voice typing, revision history, autosaving, suggestion mode, editing and styling tools, and you can quickly clear formatting without any hassle.Â
HubSpot CRM
Whether you want to run an inbound marketing campaign or share key insights on traffic and revenue, HubSpot is a great free business CRM software for small business owners. This easy-to-use tool unites sales, marketing, and customer service within the same platform, making it easy and convenient for stakeholders. You can track your deals, monitor the performance of your campaigns, schedule social media posts, send emails, and much more.
Slack
Slack is another free small business tool that you can use to bring your team together. With this messaging app, you can connect and collaborate with anyone inside or outside your organization, regardless of your location or time zone. Slack lets you create channels that focus on certain tasks or topics, facilitate group discussions, have one-off conversations, make audio calls, and share files.
Asana
Absolutely free for up to 15 users, Asana is an amazing task management tool for your business. Asana helps your team stay on top of their responsibilities and collaborate from anywhere. You can easily track the progress of different projects, identify bottlenecks, and streamline workflows. Asana’s visually appealing user interface makes it a popular project management tool with small businesses, and a great free alternative to Todoist.Â
Calendly
If you’re looking for a free online scheduling tool, Calendly is your best bet. Calendly turns scheduling nightmares into a breeze for small businesses and startups. You can book meetings and appointments with just a few clicks, save time on back-and-forth emails, send reminder emails and thank you notes, and reschedule meetings without the hassle. Timezone detection lets you set buffer times between the meetings and avoid misunderstandings.
Canva
When you are running on a tight budget, hiring a graphic designer might not be in the cards. Canva comes with pre-formatted templates for nearly every visual asset your business needs: you can create social media banners, marketing posters, flyers, gift certificates, checklists, various documents, videos, and so much more. What’s more, this easy design software is absolutely free!
MailChimp
MailChimp is an all-in-one email marketing platform designed for small businesses. This free tool simplifies email communication with customers, allowing you to send up to 12,000 emails to 2,000 subscribers at no cost. It has many handy features such as easy-to-use templates, advanced analytics that track open and click rates, and one-click personalization. For any solo entrepreneur, MailChimp is an important email business tool to send and manage newsletters.
WordPress
WordPress is a free blog management tool for startups and small businesses. Once you sign up through a web hosting service, you can pick a theme from a wide variety of templates to build a website, manage a great-looking blog, and sell items without the hassle of coding. You can also use plugins to create contact forms, calendars, add payment methods, and so much more.
Signeasy
Signeasy is an eSignature software that helps small business owners sign and send documents for signature with just a few clicks. No matter where you are or what time zone you are in, you can easily collect signatures for important documents and close deals the same day. As a business owner, you don’t have to worry about staying close to a printer or a scanner; Signeasy gets the work done for you. As the easiest eSignature solution on the market, Signeasy offers a 14-day free trial for its Business Plan (plus extra time upon request).
Flickr
If you’re wondering how to get copyright free images, Flickr is your answer. Images are essential if you want to create a beautiful brand story, and if you’re not a skilled photographer, this website has billions of options. Whether you’re looking for photos for your blog, social media, flyers, or other marketing materials, you will find everything you need on Flickr.
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