Essential software for startups is the software that helps startups to increase their productivity therefore improving their chances of success. A lot of startup software is free or at very low cost. Here are some that I’ve found useful for small businesses.
Zoom
Holding virtual meetings would be the new norm. I believe even when COVID-19 goes away, we cannot deny the rise of the gig economy. There will be more freelancers out there, and businesses would have to carry out virtual meetings more frequently than ever. Zoom is a great tool when it comes to virtual meetings. Simply schedule a meeting via zoom, the meeting URL will be generated, and you can just send the URL to the person that you are going to have meetings with, and you are done!
Some of their best features:
- Built-in collaboration tool (e.g., screen sharing)
- Streamlined calendaring
- Meeting recording and transcripts
Pricing:
- Basic Plan – Free
- Pro Plan – $14.99 per user/month
- Business or Enterprise Plan – $19.99 per user/month
Find out more about Zoom: https://zoom.us/
Trello
With remote working becoming more prominent, it is vital to ensure that you and your team are working on maintaining task clarity and focus. Trello is a useful tool when it comes to project management. In a single dashboard, you can get a complete overview of what your team is working on. You and your team can simply add in new tasks and also highlight to the team on what is completed. You can also include file attachment to share your finished work to your team quickly. The interface is straightforward and easy to use. You and your team can pick it up in no time!
Some of their best features:
- Apps integration
- Easy and straightforward dashboard
- Customizable
- Always in sync with your mobile and desktop
Pricing:
- Basic Plan – Free
- Business Plan – $9.99 per user/month
- Enterprise Plane – $20.83 per user/month
Find out more about Trello: https://trello.com/home
Asana
Another great project management tool – Asana. While Trello is a great and straightforward tool to get a good overview of what you and your teams are working on, respectively, Asana focuses on incorporating more features on team project-collaboration. It allows you to plan the project agenda together as a team and assigned roles. Create project timelines and to-dos list to stay ahead of schedule and get things done more efficiently as a team.
Some of their best features:
- Customizable work templates
- Chat
- App integration
- Portfolios
Pricing:
- Basic – Free
- Premium – $10.99 per user/month
- Business – $24.99 per user/month
Find out about Asana: https://asana.com/
Calendly
With more virtual meetings, you might face challenges in keeping tabs on all your upcoming meetings, and this is where Calendly can help! In a way, Calendly works like your virtual PA. You can share your calendar URL with anyone you are meeting with and allow the person to fix a time with you in your calendar. Calendly will help you to keep track and avoid conflicting meetings and send you email reminders at your next meeting. Calendly is a great tool to help you stay organized!
Some of their best features:
- Calendar Integration
- Time zone intelligence
- Real-time notifications
Pricing:
- Basic – Free
- Premium – $8 per user/month
- Pro – $12 per user/month
Find out more about Calendly: https://calendly.com/
Javelin
To keep it simple, this is a one-stop solution for lean startups when it comes to customer development. A platform for innovators, Javelin can help you identify customer needs and validate new products. You can measure your product’s market fit with the assistance of their pre-designed surveys. It allows you to save time as the speed of workflow increases.
Pricing: Free to Signup
Slack
As the saying goes, communication is key. It is important to establish a good communication platform, especially when everyone is working from home. Having a transparent communication system ensures that everyone is in the loop and figure out what their main priorities are and, most importantly, to clarify doubts and gain clarification whenever possible. This is where Slack comes in. Slack is an online communication tool that is designed for collaboration in mind. It allows you to instantly communicate with your teammates and create channels according to the projects you are working on to drive productivity. Not to mention, Slack interface is user-friendly as well!
Some of their best features:
- Channels
- Searchable history
- App integration
- High data security
Pricing:
- Small Team – Free
- Standard Plan – $6.67 per user/month (suitable for startup!)
- Plus Plan – $12.50 per user/month
Find out more about Slack: www.slack.com
Canva
Canva is a digital graphic designing platform and is also my personal favorite. The main reason is that it allows people with no designing background to easily create and design marketing collaterals or any graphics like a pro. Its interfaces are user-friendly and well-organized. They have tons of design templates in different sizing to meet your startup needs. I guess there are no more excuses for not working on pleasing aesthetic collaterals without having a designer in your team.
Some of their best features:
- Tons of templates
- Millions of stock photos
- Enable team collaboration
Pricing:
- Canva Basic – Free
- Canva Pro – $9.87 per user/month
- Canva Enterprise – $28.23 per user/month
Product Hunt
This is the ideal go-to launch platform for startups. Product Hunt showcases amazing new products every day. It’s a brilliant platform for product-loving enthusiasts. They can share, discuss and geek about all the new products, websites, mobile apps, and tech other creations.
It can conveniently assist you to launch your product or more importantly, your startup successfully. The website operates on a system for user comments as well as a voting system which is similar to Reddit. With its pre-existing community of testers who are willing to try out new products, launching your startup had never been easier.
Pricing: Sign up for Free
12. Google Analytics
After you have a website, it is crucial to understand how your website is performing, and this is what Google Analytics is all about. This tool is designed to inform you and allow you to know which area of your website is not doing so well, and you can make the necessary improvements in such areas. This is a tool that is important to keep you informed on your website performance!
Some of their best features:
- Traffic reporting
- Keyword referrals
- Conversion tracking
Pricing: Free
Find out more about Google Analytics: https://analytics.google.com/
Squarespace
Squarespace is a website design tool created by designers. It’s so easy to use, affordable and has the benefit of less features than platforms like WordPress. This is a good thing – if you looking to get a beautiful website up in little time, less is more. Tip: Start with a one page website to get your vision into the world (get royalty free stock images via Unsplash). FOR MARKETING
HubSpot CRM
Establishing a positive relationship with your customers is crucial for your business, and having an efficient sales process aids in a higher conversion rate. Hence, this is where HubSpot CRM comes in. The tool offers a range of great features for startups such as sales pipeline automation tracking, sales activity report, and contact assignment. With the tool, you will be able to stay in the loop and understand how your sales team is performing.
Some of their best features:
- Contact Management
- Contact Website Activity
- Track deals, tasks, and activities
Pricing: Free
Find out more about HubSpot CRM: https://www.hubspot.com/products/crm
Conclusion
The road to building a successful startup is challenging. It requires efforts, talents, innovation, and also the right software applications. I hope the 15 software applications we shared give you some great ideas on what you might need to overcome the challenges faced in this pandemic and in the long-term.
If you use them wisely, you can conveniently flourish your business with better prospects and experience sustainable growth for the many years to come. Just in case if you think I have missed out on any helpful tool or resource, feel free to mention it in the comments section below and help us in making this blog post more resourceful for other curious startup owners.