Running an online business does require that you use some tools. Over the years we’ve used dozen of different tools to help grow and run our businesses.
Some we stick with, while others we look for great alternatives. On this page you’ll find the tools that we currently use (and love), used to use (and love), and ones that we would not recommend that you use.
Almost all links for the tools that we use are affiliate links, but obviously we wouldn’t post them here if we didn’t truly enjoy using them.
Blogging / Content Management
WordPress
This one is a no-brainer for us. WordPress has everything that we need to build awesome websites and maintain our content. If you’re a beginner it might seem overwhelming but that quickly fades once you dive in and just start working.
Do not confuse this version of WordPress with the paid version that you can find at WordPress.com. The Open Source version allows for more flexibility and fewer restrictions than the .com version.
Page Builder
WordPress
Yep, plain old WordPress. Depending on the type of page that we wish to build, whenever we go minimal, WordPress does the job just fine of create beautiful looking pages.
Elementor
When we really want to add some spice to a page then we prefer to use Elementor. It’s overloaded with options, especially when you buy the Pro version.
With version 3.0 we are given even more options with the types of pages that we can create.
LeadPages
If you want to use a tool with pre-built landing pages then LeadPages is a great alternative. It does cost money but that costs can definitely be recouped with the amount of time that you will save.
We used to use LeadPages until we wanted to do more crazy stuff with our landing pages and moved to Elementor.
WordPress Themes
GeneratePress
Hands down our favorite theme to use with WordPress. It’s minimal, lightweight, and very easy to customize. Combine it with Elementor when you want to go crazy with pages and you have the perfect combination of power, speed, and ease of use.
WordPress Hosting
SiteGround
Choosing a web host is similar to choosing a mobile phone provider. They all have horror stories and they all have legions of fans.
You should just assume that at some point your website is going to go down. I don’t every hope this is the case for you but there is a good chance it will happen.
When it does you want to make sure that you have a web host that is quick with a response to your needs.
That’s SiteGround.
For the sake of disclosure, we no longer use SiteGround because we like to manage our own servers which we do with Digital Ocean and SpinupWP.
However, that’s a solution only for those of you who wish to troubleshoot their own site problems.
Website Analytics
Google Analytics
There isn’t much to say here. While we wish there were other analytics solutions that we could use instead of Google Analytics, the fact of the matter is you want to use the industry standard that 3rd parties accept.