No exaggeration when I say.. I’d be LOST without everything on this list. These are the exact tools and tech I’ve used to grow my copywriting business from scratch. But you can use them for any kind of online, service-based business.
I’ll be upfront and say you could start without most of these but, as you grow, these are gonna save you so much time and grief.
Dubsado
Never chase an invoice again - Dubsado is a dream machine for automating all your admin. Set up workflows that can run while you’re asleep. It takes care of your proposals (and they look amazing), contracts, invoices, emails and appointment scheduling, so your entire client onboarding process can be automated if you want it to be. It’s fully customizable, too.
It’s not easy to set up but they have a free course you can follow. This hands down makes me look and feel like a badass professional.
Get 20% off your first month or year of Dubsado with the discount code: nikkitrailor20
And if you want to get someone to set it up for you, check out my friend Devin Lee, recommended here.
Copy School by CopyHackers
You don’t need to be a copywriter to make use of Copy School - if you run a business, great copy should be a top priority if you want to make sales. And Copy School is a one-stop shop for all things copywriting. Wanna write emails, sales pages, launch copy, funnel copy, your website? there are detailed lessons covering everything you need.
The way CopyHackers teach it is thorough, and founder Jo Wiebe is a mastermind of conversion copywriting, so what you learn is designed to make you sales.
Using what I’ve learned in Copy School, I’ve made clients $70,000 in one month (while they were having a baby!), strategized + written Black Friday campaigns that have made $36,000 (2x what my client expected), and sold out so many spots of a 1:1 high-ticket coaching program that my client had to open more spaces.
Pretty Simple
Pretty Simple is an amazing lead tracking app that helps you see exactly how much money is in your pipeline. It’s great for predicting cashflow and seeing missed opportunities to increase your revenue.
My fave thing about it is it’s woman and minority owned, built by two small business owners for other small business owners. It’s super affordable and easy to use.
Use this link for a free month and try it for yourself. Currently only available on Apple OS but will be coming to Android and Desktop soooon.
Zapier
Have a ton of tech to run your biz and sick of manually moving info from one app to the other? Zapier links up your apps and automates tasks for you. I use it to set up Google Folders when I start a new project, as soon as a client signs a contract in Dubsado. Or to add people to my email list in ConvertKit when they tick a box on my website application form.
It’ll save you a ton of admin time. And you only pay when you use it past a certain number of tasks every month. The free version is enough to get started and there’s loads of example ‘Zaps’ on their site to get you started.
Check out Zapier here.
ConvertKit
I use this for my email list and it’s so easy but super powerful. You can highly personalize marketing emails, monetize your list easily by selling products, segment your audience to send targeted emails and so much more. Plus, you can automate email sequences so you don’t have to send it all manually (are you seeing a theme here… I LOVE automation).
Get ConvertKit here. If you want to use automations, you’ll need to upgrade and pay but it’s affordable!
AirTable
I’m hands down obsessed with AirTable and use it to keep my whole business organized. All my SOPs, marketing plans, goals, templates, expenses.. you name it, are all stored in here. It’s a database but on steroids. And it works like Excel so it’s easy to understand and organise.
When you dive into it more, you can use it to automate more workflows, track memberships and clients, marketing spend etc - its functions seem kinda endless. Check it out here.
And if you wanna learn more about using AirTable, check out these resources. I’d learn from these gals any day!
Lanie Lamarre @ OMGrowth - her course AirTable Like A Boss is a godsend that’s packed with templates
Ashley Pendergraft @ Do The Damn Thing - her group program Systems Over Stress on managing your membership or group program on AirTable has been on my wishlist for yonks - except I don’t have a membership or group program yet… one day… I’ve been on her email list for a while and attended webinars she’s taught and she really knows her stuff.
Loom
This screen recording software is a godsend. I use it to communicate with clients and show them what I'm working on as I explain stuff, so it’s super clear. I’ve also used it to record SOPs for my business. You can record your face and screen at the same time, just your screen or just your face, so it’s perfect for a range of uses.
The free version is enough to get started but if you upgrade, you get way more storage.
Inspired Stories Planner
Sometimes I like to ditch tech, especially when it comes to planning my year or week. Inspired Stories have a range of beautiful planners and I love how easy they make it to split out your goals for the year, month and day. There’s space to reflect on what went well and what didn’t every week so you can start the next week fresh and organized.
Love ‘em. Check out their planners here.
Otter.ai
An affordable transcription tool. Make transcripts directly through Zoom or Google Meet, as you record a meeting. Otter isn’t 100% accurate but it does save me hours of trawling through meeting recordings to find bits I want to refer to when writing copy.
Considering the price, it’s well worth the investment - I use it to record customer interviews for clients and meetings with clients so I never forget what was said and don’t have to waste time making notes.
**Worth noting that it doesn’t transcribe strong accents well so if you want a more accurate tool, I recommend checking out Rev or Temi.**
Tango
Records you doing tasks and automatically generates screenshots and captions - hey presto, an SOP in seconds. And I mean, seconds.
I’m OBSESSED with Tango and I only discovered it last week, thanks to my friend and systems whizz, Sam Whisnant.
If documenting your processes is on your agenda so you can make a hire, and you’ve put it off approximately 3,276 times (like I did), you need Tango.
Female Invest
Not strictly a biz or copywriting tool but a game-changer when it comes to building wealth. There’s such a lack of financial education out there and especially for women. Only 7% of women hold investments, which is WAY less than men. Not cool.
Female Invest make budgeting, investing and learning how to make your money go further super easy. They have a ton of resources, courses, spreadsheets and other gems in their membership and it’s helped me start on this scary but empowering journey.
Get 50% off their annual membership here and start building more wealth.
Please note: some of these links may be affiliate links but I’d never promote anything I don't personally use or fully believe in. By using these links, you’re supporting me as a creator + small biz owner and it doesn’t cost you anything extra (in fact, some of them will save you money.
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