24 Tools I Use To Run My Freelance Web Design Business

Blog #139: 24 Tools I Use To Run My Freelance Web Design Business

Photo by Gaelle Marcel on Unsplash

Recently, I reviewed all the tools that I use in my freelance web design business. I like to take an inventory from time to time to see where I can invest in tools that will help me simplify and streamline my business, and remove those that don’t serve me anymore.

In 2024, it turns out I currently use 24 tools to run my business and deliver my design packages. In today's article, I am breaking them into six categories so it’s easier to follow: client acquisition and communication, payments, design, organization and project management, legal, finances, taxes, admin, content production, and social media.

I. Client Acquisition and Communication

1. Zoom: Zoom for consult calls, and client communication during projects as well as webinars and paid workshops.

2. 9Designs/Squarespace Marketplace: This is my main source of client projects. Many new designers hesitate to go on a freelancer platform because of the fees they charge. But if you are not booked out or making the revenue goal you want, getting a profile set up on a platform like Upwork or others and diligently applying to jobs will make a huge difference. Remember it won’t be forever, just to get your foot into the door.

3. Squarespace (Hosting, Domain, Client intake, online presence): This is where I host my website, purchased my domain, and have an online presence. As a Squarespace web designer, this makes sense.

4. ConvertKit: This is my email marketing platform. Mailerlite is my second favorite as it is cheaper and delivers the key features that Convertkit delivers. But the user interface and ease of use of ConvertKit keep me there for now.

5. Google Workspace (for email): This is where I get my business email from.

6. Google Drive (for client content): I use Google Drive to receive all client content including text, images, logos, and links. They also fill out two questionnaires which are hosted on my website.

7. Keynote: I love using Keynote, mostly for presentation slides for my webinars or YouTube videos. I have also used Google Slides, which I may switch to in the future.

8. Pages: I love Pages for creating PDFs - such as my welcome package, finished website PDF, and my Bio/Testimonials PDF that I send to any new client inquiring about a project.

9. WeTransfer: If I am not sending a recording link of my website launch training on Zoom, I may send the entire video recording via WeTransfer.

10. Acuity Scheduling: This is the app that I got legacy pricing on as I was using it when Squarespace first acquired it. So I have all my consult calls on there. Calendly, and Whereby are my other alternatives.

11. Loom (for client communication): During my two-week design project workflow, I will often use Loom for presenting my design draft or asking a question to a client. This allows for more asynchronous communication and avoids lengthy meetings on Zoom.

12. Honeybook: This tool can be it’s own productivity app. But I primarily use it for sending a single email that has both the payment link and the contract in one. This has saved countless hours of back and forth and got me booked faster.

II. Payments

13. Stripe: Stripe is the tool I use for receiving payments for clients who book me directly via my website or if I have digital products or live paid workshops.

14. Paypal: Paypal is the payment processor that I use to get paid for my projects via 99Design. Squarespace integrates with both Stripe and Paypal, so if you create a product or service there, you can offer both options to your clients.

III. Design

15. Canva: Mostly for creating video clips, documents, and some graphics.

16. Picmonkey: I use Picmonkey for image alterations, enhancement and YouTube thumbnails

IV. Organization and Project Management

17. Notion: This is now my entire business operations. I have my goals, workflows, content creation, everything in Notion.

18. Milanote: Milanote is where my headquarters used to be. I have moved most of my things from Mila to Notion but still have some archives there which I would like to eventually move to Notion and have a single online headquarters.

(See also point 6). Google Drive: (Google Docs and folders for client content) Google Drive is mostly for clients to send me their content inside Google Docs and folders.

V. Legal, Finances, Taxes, Admin

19. Turbo Tax: I use Turbo Tax to pay my taxes.

(See also point 6) Google Drive (Finance Spreadsheet): This is where I track my income and expenses. I find it very encouraging to track income and potential income in here.

VI. Content Production and Social Media

20. QuickTime: Quicktime is what I use for recording my screen and also my face for YouTube tutorials.

21. iMovie: This is my editing software. I am keeping things simple with video editing. I may explore other options like Final Cut Pro or hire a video editor when things progress in my content creation branch of my business or for course creation.

22. YouTube: All my long-form videos are published on YouTube. This is part of my leveraged business model.

23. LinkedIn: Also part of my leveraged business model, LinkedIn is where I post short-form content and link it to my website.

24. Medium: Also part of my leveraged business model, Medium is where I post my long-form content and link it to my website.

These are all the paid and free tools I use in my one-to-one web design business. I have also used Upwork in the past for client acquisition and Teachable/Crowdcast for course hosting and webinars but I don’t use these anymore. I may have a section for courses and digital products here later when I grow that part of my business.

There you have it: six categories and 24 tools to grow and build my solopreneur online web design business. Post below in the comments any apps that are critical to your business or alternatives you think I should consider to those I am currently using.

PS: For more tips and invites to trainings on how to grow your freelance online business, join the Abundant Creative Newsletter here.

Cop-out or Commitment to 10X

Blog #138: Cop-out or Commitment to 10X

Photo by Rohan Reddy on Unsplash

What feels like a commitment to you, may look like a cop-out to others.

That’s what happened recently when I called off a new project even before it began.

The project was a new YouTube interview series where I would chat with web designers, freelancers, and content creators. The aim: to help freelancers build and grow their solopreneur business online.

It was exciting. Four people booked to be guests. But as it got closer to getting things organized, I felt this increasing unease. After a day of feeling a knot in my stomach, I called it off.

From the outside, this looks like a cop-out. I seem unreliable and flip-floppy in my decisions. But on the inside, this took courage. Courage not only to write that message to my guests but courage to stay committed to my Unique Ability.

I was committing to my Unique Ability.

What is “Unique Ability”?

At the start of this year, I learned deeply about this idea in the book, 10X is Easier than 2x by Dan Sullivan and Dr. Benjamin Hardy. They write that your Unique Ability is “where you have superior skills, where you’re intrinsically motivated and are energized and engaged, and it’s where you see a never-ending possibility for improvement.” It’s about becoming familiar and really clear about what you like and dislike and that your judgments about your experience are completely valid. It’s becoming open to your preferences and not letting other people’s opinions about what you do affect you.

”Unique Ability is qualitative and individual, it’s extremely unique value that only you can create…It’s a combination of a degree of skill as well as an extreme degree of uniqueness.” - Dan Sullivan and Dr. Benjamin Hardy

It’s akin to what I have heard Oprah Winfrey in her talks and speeches mention repeatedly when she said, “I want to fulfill the highest, truest expression of myself as a human being.”

But as the authors write in the book, committing to one’s Unique Ability is the “hardest and most intense thing you will ever do.” It’s about taking inventory of where you are investing your time and what activities are taking up your mental bandwidth.

That takes courage. Saying no to invitations is hard. Choosing to work a 4-day week is not easy. Filling up your calendar with the most important items will lead to very little time remaining for anything else. And canceling projects you asked your guests to join, not just once, but twice, does feel awkward.

“I want to fulfill the highest, truest expression of myself as a human being.”

— Oprah

Facing One’s Ego

Sometimes you’ve got to face your past decisions. The first time I canceled the YouTube interview series was because I had already a very full schedule and I was trying to squeeze-in one more thing into my calendar. I could see that I was moving toward burnout very fast this way. So I dropped the project.

The second time I canceled the project was out of a renewed sense of self-awareness.

"As you develop your Unique Ability...You'll stop forcing yourself to do anything you don't want to do. You'll accept and live by what psychologists call pull motivation, rather than push motivation. When you're pulled by what you want and what excites you, that's freedom and intrinsic motivation. You'll no longer operate based on need, but want." - Dan Sullivan and Dr. Benjamin Hardy

After taking time to reflect on my goals, I realized that starting the interview series was based on a need, not a true desire or want. I was giving in to this idea that creating a YouTube interview series is something I "should" do because I heard or read somewhere that this is a great way to build an audience and grow my business. Although I was excited about meeting the guests and asking them questions, the whole logistics of conducting the series, editing, and putting it all together was something that had begun to drain me. Sure, I can outsource all of that but the project as a whole was making me feel out of my element. I started to get this feeling that I should dye my hair, buy new makeup, and change who I essentially am so I can be “good enough” to host the show!

Changing myself to be “good enough”! Phew! These are all signs that I was embarking on this project because of some idea that was not inherently mine. It was not an authentic desire driving me forward. It came from a feeling that I “should do” this. And that is not healthy or wholesome.

Questions You Can Ask Yourself When Making Decisions

If you are faced with a decision and don’t quite know which path to take, ask yourself these questions. Then assess if a project or a decision is something you want to embark on and if it’s helping you towards your 10x goals.

1. Is this in alignment with my Unique Ability?

2. Is this something that is fun, enjoyable, or inspiring?

3. Will this project help me explore the edge of my 20%?

Letting Go is Part of Embracing The 20%

One of the ideas in the book is about letting go of the 80% to focus on the 20%. This 20% is the edge where you take what you are really good at and get even better. It’s connected to going 10x which is an ongoing process of increasing the quality and decreasing the quantity of what you do. The 20% of everything you do is where the magic lies, allowing you to focus on the 10x goals, and that requires you to focus on fewer things than many.

Letting go more and more of the 80% that takes up your time is essential if you want to go 10x. This doesn’t necessarily mean eliminating it altogether, of course; it can mean delegating to a new hire or automating the tasks. But it is also about letting go of that which is not serving your 10x goals.

Committing to Your Unique Ability

As I read the chapter on Unique Ability in the book, I realized that if I am not enjoying the things I am doing in my business, then I shouldn’t be doing them. Either eliminate or delegate. As soon as I made the decision to call off the interview series, a knot in my stomach seemingly released. I felt at ease. I felt free.

Diving deeper into what inspires me, I realize that what I truly want to do is write and share ideas, insights, and strategies that can help online entrepreneurs and freelancers succeed. It’s not making YouTube interview videos unless I can tap into it from a true desire that brings joy and excitement and I am open to that happening at a later time.

Letting go of something you’ve started is okay. Even if it seems to others as wishy-washy behavior. You are allowed to re-commit to your most important priorities, to your 10x goals, to your Unique Ability. What others think of how you commit your time is none of your business!

I am committing to my Unique Ability.

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PS: If you are on LinkedIn, I invite you to ​connect with me​ there for more conversations and connections. If you want more tips and invites to trainings on how to grow your freelance online business, join the Abundant Creative Newsletter here.

I don’t Own A Toaster

Blog #137: I don’t own a toaster.

I don't own a toaster.

I don't own it because I like my kitchen counter free of appliances. In fact, I like my kitchen counter with nothing on it - wide, empty, and clear like watching the ocean from the shore!

I make my toast in the oven.

When people come to my home and I make them breakfast, I use my oven to make them toast. They comment, "Wow, you don't own even $10 toaster?"

And I smile with peace. I have the $10 to buy a toaster but I choose not to.

These are the kinds of choices my hubby and I make on the regular. They don't fit the norm but they fit our sense of a "rich life" to borrow Ramit Sethi's phrase.

From time to time, I find myself making decisions based on other people's expectations or the unspoken rules of society and I have to remind myself to find my authentic preference. It's not easy. But I practice with small things like the toaster!

What choices could you make in your life that are truly motivated by your personal preference, point of view, and values out of inner alignment? What ideas, practices, and values can you let go of that don't bring forth your truest, most authentic self?

I'll leave you with this quote which has inspired me today:

“Wealth has little to do with how much you earn and a lot to do with how you live. One of the simplest ways to grow wealthier is pushing to detach yourself from peer pressure and care less about what people think of how you live.”

— MORGAN HOUSEL

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PS: If you are on LinkedIn, I invite you to ​connect with me​ there for more conversations and connections. If you want more tips and invites to trainings on how to grow your freelance online business, join the Abundant Creative Newsletter here.