Lavish Events and Prints by Talia: Business tools

A Look back: Top Business Blog posts of 2015

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My Top Tools I Use to Run My Business!

You may not know but Talia's Creative printing is just one person! Allow me to introduce myself, I am Talia Foster and it's nice to meet you! I currently work full time as a Coordinator in a medical facility, mom of a teenage young lady, business owner, event planner, crafty aunt, girlfriend, daughter, and much more! Organization, time management, great tools are key to running a successful business. My motto for this year and beyond is to "Work Smarter not Harder".

1.) Picsart -PicsArt is a one-stop-shop for all your mobile photo editing and drawing needs. A full-featured editing and drawing app packed into a sleek and intuitive design, it will help you transform your photos into works of art or create masterpieces from scratch. With PicsArt the sky's the limit and anyone can be creative. You can use PicsArt to add filters, create collage, edit photos, add effects and so much more! I use it to add my logo to my photos before sharing them with the world.

2.) Dropbox-I'm always on the go and I need my files to be with me. With Dropbox I can upload files and access them anywhere, mobile phone, tablet, etc. All I have to do is log in to access my files. Dropbox is also great for sharing files with clients especially if you have large files that you cannot send via email. Get up to 500 MB of free space by using my link to join. https://db.tt/nlTtxYuf

3.) Bit.ly-I am a very ananlytical person and love reading my web statistics. With Bit.ly you can shorten a url of any site, blog, etc, capture data from the link, use the data to optimize your marketing. Bit.ly offers you statistical data for people who click through your shortened link.

4.) Paypal- I've used paypal since starting my business. Paypal offers secure check out and invoicing options for business owners and clients. It's hassle free and the fees that are charged to the business owner are small. You can create checkout buttons, add to cart buttons and donation buttons to go on your websites/blogs. Paypal also offers a debit mastercard. The PayPal Business Debit MasterCard accelerates your cash flow by providing direct access to your PayPal balance. Plus, you can earn unlimited 1% cash back on your eligible purchases everywhere Debit MasterCard is accepted. Paypal also offers a credit card reader for taking in person payments.

5.) Hootsuite-Hootsuite is a social media Management utility that allows you to Manage social networks, schedule messages, engage your audiences, and measure ROI right from your dashboard. I can post to my most used social networks all at once instead of having to post to each one individually. The free option allows up to 3 social media accounts.

6.) Outright-Accounting software. Managing my business finances is extremely important and this actually should of been number one! I've been using Outright for 3 years now. It used to be free but now it's $10-$11 per month. Outright has simplified my tax prep at the end of the year I just have to print the report. Each month I do small reconciliations to stay up to date. I use the reports to see what I am spending money on, where can I minimize my expenses, see what's selling and much more!

7.) Google Drive- Similar to Dropbox, Google drive allows you to share and store files. You can create and share your work online and access your documents from anywhere. Manage documents, spreadsheets, presentations, surveys, and more all in one place.

8.) Google Calendar- I use google calendar to note all of my events, tasks and appointments. I have it synced to my phone so if I edit my calendar on my phone or online using google it will automatically synced both calendars.

9.) Asana- Asana puts conversations & tasks together, so you can get more done with less ... Run your day, your team, and your company with Asana—from everywhere. You can also use Asana as a to do list.

10.) Internships- Need a little extra help? Hiring an intern (paid or not paid) is a great way to get some extra help with your business while they are earning experience and college credit. I've successfully hired 2 interns in the past 6 months and they are currently with me. You may see one running my blog and the other does some of my photography. The 2 websites I use to find interns are www.internships.com and www.barefootstudent.com

11.) TimeStation- Do you have employees and interns? Time station is great for tracking their time. TimeStation is a quick-to-setup, easy-to-use time and attendance system that runs on iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch with a front-facing camera. Using our Fast-Scan technology, employees can punch In & Out in less than a second, and because TimeStation runs in the cloud, there’s no software or servers to maintain. Managers can see who’s in and run time and attendance reports anytime, anywhere. TimeStation is the perfect solution for small and medium businesses looking to track time and attendance without the usual costs and overhead of traditional systems.

11.) Mailchimp-Mailchimp is an online email marketing solution to manage contacts, send emails and track results. You can import your currently email list into mailchimp and send campaigns/emails to your clients. With Mailchimp you can tract statictical data such as open rates, click rates, subscribers, unsubscribers, social activity and more!