If you’re like most people, you’ve probably heard the saying about “having the right tool for the job.” With that in mind, there are plenty of digital tools and programs that can make your life a lot easier. These tools aren’t only for business owners. They can be beneficial for anyone working in the electronics industry.
What’s also great about many of the tools in this list is that most are free! If they’re not free, they either have a free version. Any types of paid software on this list got included because they’re truly worth it. Here is more information about 28 tools and programs to help you scale up your electronics company.
You’re not going to get many things completed as a business owner without sending or receiving emails. But, with so many choices, how do you choose the right email tools? By checking out the programs below.
1. Gmail
When you’re working with businesses or customers, it’s common to see lots of Gmail email addresses. So, why is Gmail so popular, and what makes it so great? One reason people like Gmail so much is that they trust it. Being from one of the world’s most well-known companies, Google, Gmail is a trustworthy email provider.
Another benefit of using Gmail has to do with this program’s flexibility. While using Gmail, you can make multiple accounts and split up your messages by using this program’s intuitive filters. These filters make it incredibly easy to avoid having a single inbox that’s full of all sorts of different messages.
You can also use a wide range of keyboard shortcuts that make Gmail much easier to use than other email programs. There are also many popular themes from Gmail that allow you to customize how this email program looks.
Also, since it’s a program from Google, you can rest assured that you’ll have plenty of space to store all of your company’s important messages. Best of all, Gmail is free.
2. Titan
You might find that Gmail isn’t right for your business. If this is the case, you might enjoy everything that Titan offers. This business email service allows your company to instantly link its email domains to its website domain.
Having email domains that match up to your website domain is an important way to make your business look professional. Plus, Titan currently offers a 30-day free trial for you to see everything it has to offer. If you enjoy using Titan, it only costs $1.50 per month for each user under your plan.
Calendar/Time Management
As you continue managing or working for a business, you’ll learn about the importance of time management. Whether you’re an electronics recycler, salesperson, or have any other role in the electronics industry, properly managing your time is a must.
Unfortunately, many people who aren’t properly managing their time simply aren’t getting as much done as those who are. To help ensure you stay organized, check out these beneficial time-management programs and services.
3. Pomofocus.io
If you like learning about time management, you might have heard about the Pomodoro Technique. The Pomodoro Technique is a popular time management system that was developed in the 1980s. This system has someone work for a period of 25 minutes, which is called one pomodoro, and then take a five-minute break.
Here’s a closer look at how this process works if you used it throughout the course of a day:
Start working on a task, setting a time for 25 minutes (or one pomodoro).
When the timer sounds, take a five-minute break.
After your third pomodoro, take a longer break (usually 20 to 30 minutes).
Repeat steps 1-3.
If you want to try this time management system for yourself, consider checking out pomofocus.io. This website is home to a free pomodoro timer. If you make a free account on this website, you can customize the length of your pomodoros and breaks.
While it’s not for everyone, the Pomodoro Technique can be a great way to help you stay productive and on-task.
4. Google Calendar
Another incredibly important tool for any businessperson to have is a calendar. With a calendar, you can keep track of important dates, meetings, and other events. In this day and age, you don’t need to go buy a paper calendar to hang up on your wall.
Instead, consider using a digital calendar from Google. Known as Google Calendar, this digital calendar is incredibly popular among people from all walks of life. What’s great about Google Calendar is that it’s free.
Another cool feature of this calendar software is how well it integrates with other members of your team. You can create meetings and other types of activities. Then, you can group who needs to attend this event and remain updated on whether or not they will be there.
5. TimeDoctor
You might also enjoy checking out TimeDoctor for an easier way to manage your company’s time. This productivity tracker enables you and your team to focus on each task clearly. By doing this, it can become much easier to make the most of your time finding electronics online. Plus, each of your members can utilize detailed built-in analytics to track how much time everyone is spending on projects.
TimeDoctor does offer a 14-day trial. After that, you’ll need to pay $10 per month to continue using TimeDoctor.
Content Creation
In this day and age, content creation is one of the best ways for companies to market themselves. If you’re working on creating content for your business, consider using one or all of these great content creation tools.
6. Google Docs
Another excellent and free program your business should consider using is Google Docs. This is Google’s version of the Microsoft Word program, complete with everything your company needs to stay productive.
Google Docs has a wide range of templates for all sorts of content, including brochures, newsletters, proposals, and much more. Another great feature of Google Docs is how easy this program makes it for one or more people to share their documents. This is great for companies that have people working remotely.
What’s also cool about Google Docs is that it features an offline mode. While most people try to always stay connected, there are times when this won’t be possible. By using Offline Mode, you can complete your work as you normally do while online. And, once you’re back online, Google Docs will sync your work and save it.
If your company needs spreadsheets, make sure to check out Google Sheets. This is Google’s free-to-use spreadsheet software. It’s also great for anyone that wants many of the features Microsoft Excel offers without the expensive price tag. Many companies use Google Sheets for everything from listing wholesale electronics prices to preparing business reports.
7. OpenOffice
There’s no doubt that the Microsoft Office Suite is a popular and feature-filled suite of programs. However, it’s also quite expensive for most business owners. Fortunately, you can have many of the features that Microsoft Office contains by checking out OpenOffice.
While it’s officially discontinued, this suite contains sound-alike versions of all of Microsoft’s famous office-related programs. If you need a replacement for Microsoft Word, check out OpenOffice Writer. Do you need to make spreadsheets? Instead of buying Microsoft Excel, check out OpenOffice Calc.
8. LeadPages
Almost every business owner wants a solid stream of leads coming their way. Before you can get these leads to potentially become customers, your company might need a new website. It’s also possible to have a great website but still be in need of high-quality landing pages.
If you’re needing help with the design side of things, your company might benefit from using LeadPages. One thing that makes LeadPages so great is its flexibility. You can create everything from websites to individual buttons with the help of LeadPages.
Plus, LeadPages features a wide range of templates for you to work with. You can also use the wide range of LeadPages’ resources to create your own websites, landing pages, and much more.
Images and Videos
What good is your company’s content if it doesn’t contain images and videos? No matter what you’re writing about, adding images and videos can make your content look even better. Plus, having multimedia in your content also engages your audience.
With that said, you don’t want to start grabbing images from any website you visit. This can be seen as a copyright infringement and might get your business in trouble. Instead of taking any unnecessary risks, check out these great sources for royalty-free images and videos.
9. Pexels
If your company is on a tight budget for multimedia content, you’ll definitely want to check out Pexels. Pexels is one of the internet’s most popular stock photo and video websites. The main reason why Pexels is so popular is simple - it offers free and high-quality multimedia.
Besides that, Pexels’ photo and video libraries are full of amazing content. After submitting a quick search, you’ll instantly receive a list of what Pexels has to offer you. Best of all, you won’t have to worry about violating any copyrights while using images or videos from Pexels.
10. Unsplash
If you don’t find what you need on Pexels, Unsplash is another popular option. Unsplash features hundreds of thousands of photos from many of the internet’s best photographers. Like Pexels, all photos on Unsplash are royalty-free.
11. Canva
Understandably, royalty-free images might not be for you. If this is the case, why not expand your company’s creativity by designing your own images? With Canva, you can. Canva has lots of templates to help you design almost anything you could need. Plus, you can upload your own photos to Canva to use for any project.
Whether it’s an intro for a YouTube video or great-looking blog images, Canva has everything you need. What’s also great about Canva is that you can enjoy a lot of features with this company’s free plan. If you have a little room in your company’s budget, Canva Pro offers even more templates, photos, and graphics.
Finances
When it comes to important things for business owners to focus on, almost nothing is as important as a company’s finances. Without a way to manage your company’s finances, you could wind up losing quite a bit of money. Check out these websites to help keep a close eye on your company’s finances.
12. Stripe
Stripe is quickly becoming one of the world’s most popular ways to accept payments. By using Stripe, you can start accepting card payments, ACH, and other popular payment methods. You can also set up Stripe on your company’s website for fast and easy payment processing.
Another great feature of Stripe is that it’s able to integrate with other popular accounting software. These integrations can help ensure you’re not having to jump back and forth between multiple programs. You can set up Stripe on such platforms as Drupal, WooCommerce, WordPress, Magneto, and many others.
13. Mint
Part of running a business usually involves sending and receiving invoices. If you want help with these actions, you’ll probably want to check out Mint. Mint is a free digital budget planner that many busy business owners feel is a life-saver.
Made by Intuit, the company behind QuickBooks, you can rest assured that Mint has almost everything you could need to manage your company’s finances. With this app, you can look over company budgets, pay your bills, and even check your company’s credit standing.
If you do any investing, Mint also has an investment and portfolio tracker that could come in handy.
14. PayPal
If you need to start sending or receiving invoices and getting paid, it’s worth getting PayPal for your business. PayPal also has a convenient mobile app that contains all of the features you would find if using this program on a computer.
Plus, your customers (whether they’re consumers or companies) will enjoy the peace of mind that comes from using one of the world’s most trusted payment platforms.
15. Hubstaff
For many new business owners, managing a team of staff isn’t always easy. Fortunately, you can get the help you need to manage your team by checking out Hubstaff. This program can allow you to monitor what your team is working on in a non-creepy way. Hubstaff can even take automatic screenshots to ensure that work is getting completed.
The main reason why many companies partner with Hubstaff is to get help with payroll. As you likely know, payroll isn’t an aspect of your business where you want lots of errors. Fortunately, Hubstaff can basically automate your company’s payroll department.
Team Communication
Whether you have a team of two or two hundred employees, communication will always remain a vital concern for your business. However, you might not have all of your company’s team members working in the same office (or even the same country). If you want to help ensure that communications between everyone in your company go smoothly, try these programs and services.
16. Asana
When you’re communicating with other people and companies, flexibility is an important concern. Fortunately, by using Asana, you’ll have an easy time managing your team. Asana is available as an internet-based app. You and your team can also download and use a mobile version of Asana that’s available on both iPhones and Android devices.
With Asana, everyone in your team can create tasks, utilize attachments, set rules, use templates, implement timelines, communicate with team members, and much more. It’s also possible to create reports to help manage your team’s performance.
17. Zoom
In some cases, communicating by text won’t be enough for your team. If you need a way to start communicating through video, check out Zoom. This incredibly popular program gets used by millions of people throughout the world.
What’s great about Zoom is that it features a simple interface that should be easy for most people to use. Zoom is available in both free and paid versions. However, most companies find that the free plan gives them everything they need. Also, Zoom is available for both computers and smartphones.
18. Google Meet
Another popular way to handle video communications is with Google Meet. This browser-based video communication program gets used by companies around the world. Also, you can have up to 250 separate participants on a video call.
Other popular features of Google Meet include a low-light mode, an option to save recordings onto Google Drive, and a cool noise cancellation feature. For only $6 per month, being a G Suite customer allows you to gain access to all of Google Meet’s features.
19. Slack
Another must-have tool to help your company’s workers communicate with each other is Slack. Each member on your team can have separate Slack profiles with their own profile pictures. However, what makes Slack truly great has to do with its many other features.
Slack allows your team to manage workflows by using easy-to-understand organization systems. You can assign tasks, set due dates, add updates, and much more. You’ll also find that Slack is a great communication platform. Some companies exclusively use Slack to handle all communication among their employees.
If you’re like most people, the learning curve for Slack can initially feel a little steep. However, there are lots of great resources online to help you learn about Slack’s many features.
File Management
Chances are, your company is going to be working with a lot of files. As this happens, it’s good to have one or several file management systems in place. Without using one or all of these programs, you could be wasting a lot of time trying to track down documents and other important files.
20. Dropbox
If your company needs to share and organize its files, you might want to try Dropbox. This service is one of the most popular ways to store and access your company’s files from a cloud-based storage system. This means being able to access important files from almost any location.
Dropbox is compatible with many types of file formats, making it easy for all of your team members to work together under one program. Dropbox can also integrate with other programs on this list, including Zoom, Slack, and many others.
With over 500,000 teams using Dropbox, your company might also benefit from using this secure workspace.
21. Google Drive
One of the most popular cloud storage solutions remains Google Drive. This storage solution allows you and your employees to easily store documents, photos, and many other types of files. If you’re even a little familiar with Google’s program interfaces, you’ll quickly get used to the layout of Google Drive.
Documents created on Google Drive can effortlessly get converted into .pdf and .doc formats. This makes it easy for you to quickly transfer files between workers who might be completing their assignments on other programs.
Another great feature of Google Drive is having complete control over who you share files with. You can choose to make files shareable with a link. It’s also possible to set editing, viewing, and writing rights for everything you create.
What’s also good about using Google Drive is that it contains a large library of Google Drive apps. These apps are all checked over by Google’s team for safety. With these add-ons, it’s possible to use Google Drive for video recording, audio editing (great for podcasts), and many other cool things.
Marketing/SEO
We’ve covered a lot of programs and tools to help your business in many ways. With that said, some people feel that the true cause of growth for any company is effective marketing. Currently, there is an astounding number of marketing and SEO programs out there. Here are several great programs to help take your business to the next level.
22. Trade-In Tech
One of the best ways to effectively market your company in the electronics industry is by joining Trade-In Tech. Trade-In Tech launched in 2012. Since this time, we’ve become a leading hub for electronics companies of all shapes and sizes. Whether you own a phone flipping business, repair computers, or do anything else with electronics, you’ll want to learn more about Trade-In Tech.
But what can being a Trade-In Tech member offer your business? For one, it’s packed with members operating in all aspects of the electronics industry. Currently, Trade-In Tech is proud to have over 25,000 members on our platform. These members include retailers, distributors, wholesalers, and many others within the electronics industry.
With Trade-In Tech, you’re not having to wait weeks, months, or years for your company to take off and start making sales. After we verify your business, you can start selling or buying electronics on our website right away.
Trade-In Tech is a great place for companies looking to buy wholesale electronics. You can find our sellers offering anywhere from five to 500 electronics for sale at a time. While you’re browsing Trade-In Tech’s marketplace, you can find smartphones, computers, tablets, home tech, smartwatches, and much more.
Plus, Trade-In Tech is a wholesale electronics platform that focuses on safety and security for all of our members. We have each of our applicants complete a verification process. We do this to make sure all of our members are working with legitimate buyers and sellers. Trade-In Tech also utilizes a review and rating system as extra layers of trustworthiness for our members.
23. Google Search Console
People and companies can find your company’s website in many ways. Wouldn’t it be great if you could find out how many visitors your website receives and what keywords are bringing them to you? With Google Search Console, you can have this information.
Google Search Console allows you to see what search console queries your website is showing up for. It will also show you what countries you’re getting visitors from. Google Search Console can also pull data back from weeks, months, and years. With all of this information, you can understand how your company is doing and where things could get improved.
You can also find out about any potential issues that could be impacting your website’s ability to obtain top rankings. Another cool feature of Google Search Console is its ability for you to learn what other websites are linking out to your company’s website.
24. Google Analytics
Google Search Console is great for letting you know about what keywords your company’s website shows up for in Google. But what if you could also learn about what visitors do once they’re on your website? For help with this, you’ll want to check out Google Analytics.
Google Analytics is an easy-to-use analytics program that’s full of great features. You can track all sorts of goals, including website destinations, how long people stay on your website, certain actions they take, and much more. For example, you could use Google Analytics to see how many are browsing your company’s electronics pages.
Another one of this program’s standout features is Audience Reports. This remains one of the best ways for any company to learn more about who is visiting its website. You can find out how many sessions your website receives, how many pages they’re viewing, and how many of your visitors are ones who came back a second time.
25. Long-Tail Pro
As you’re looking through your company’s search performance, especially if it’s new, it’s understandable to feel like you could be getting better results. Fortunately, this is possible. But it will take some work. If you want to handle your company’s SEO or marketing in-house, it’s definitely worth checking out Long-Tail Pro.
This program does a great job of finding and presenting what are known as long-tail keywords. With SEO and digital marketing becoming so popular with companies, utilizing long-tail keywords in your company’s content can give you a major competitive edge.
Long-Tail Pro also presents a Keyword Competitiveness score for each search term you’re looking at, an exclusive metric that only this program uses. This feature is great for presenting non-competitive keywords your company can create content around in an easy-to-understand manner.
It’s not the only way your company should be doing keyword research. However, using Long-Tail Pro is a great way to get comfortable with this process.
26. Ahrefs
If you are either somewhat savvy regarding SEO or want to learn more about it, it could be worth becoming a member of Ahrefs. Instead of only giving your company data from Google, Ahrefs looks at many more of the internet’s most popular search engines, including:
Yahoo
YouTube
Amazon
Bing
Baidu
Yandex
Ahrefs can also give you a clear idea of how much traffic search terms receive each month. These numbers are usually more clear than Google’s estimates, which can sometimes be quite a bit off the mark.
You can also use Ahrefs to let this powerful service give your company lists of keywords it could start using in its content. Ahrefs is also one of the best ways to get a look at your website’s backlinks (other websites linking to your website). You can then dive further into this data to learn about how much value each of these backlinks has.
27. SEMRush
Much like Ahrefs, SEMRush is another popular program that gives your company a major advantage over the competition. This service is also good for allowing you to figure out where your company’s on-page SEO can be improved.
You can also use SEMRush to improve your standing for local searches, track your website’s rankings, and get in-depth analyses for each of your company’s competitors.
28. YouTube
Another great website/social media platform you can use to your company’s advantage is YouTube. This video-sharing website has become more popular than most television channels. While it might seem a little intimidating, you no longer have to be a pro at filming to create high-quality videos.
Making videos on YouTube can also help get your company’s name out there. Plus, having a YouTube channel can also help your company start showing up in lots of search results.
We hope that you enjoyed taking a look at some of the best programs and software for owners of electronics companies to check out. If you want to learn more about succeeding in this industry, you’ll want to check out the Trade-In Tech blog. You’ll find tons of content there, all of which is designed to help out electronics businesses.