I'm pretty sure many bloggers, like myself, are always wanting to find ways to make our site more professional and help make our work more efficient as well.
One of my main goals this year, in terms of what I plan to achieve on my blog, is to make my work life more organized and have a more established schedule. So with this in mind, I decided to share with you some of my favourite tools and apps that I love using everyday to help me carry out a myriad of tasks and activities.
FTC Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links, which means I may receive a commission for purchases made through these links. Purchasing a product or service from an affiliate link does not increase your purchase price. All of the products and services I recommend are based on my personal experience and research and are not representative of the companies that create them.
1. Milanote
This is by far the best tool I use for planning all my creative projects. Milanote has a visual dashboard that allows you to organize your ideas and keep all your notes, lists, doodles and inspiration in one space.
Source: Milanote
They have thousands of templates available depending on what project you want to work on, and you can also work on your own blank canvas.
They offer a free account, where you get a limit of 100 notes/images/links but if you refer a friend, you get additional space. There is also a paid plan if your projects are more demanding and you need additional storage.
2. Planoly
This year, I'm focusing on growing my social media engagement and following. One of the hardest platforms for me to post consistently on is Instagram. I still haven't been able to fully commit to it so I decided to step up my game and try to educate myself a bit more on how to make the best of it.
This is where Planoly comes along.
This app serves as a planner and schedule for Instagram. You have a monthly/weekly calendar to schedule posts. You can also save hashtags in groups, which is a time saver when it comes to captions. There's also an area where you can view your comments per post, view you analytics and even create a shoppable feed.
Source: Planoly
Honestly, this is the best tool/app you can use to manage your Instagram account. The free version allows 1 Instagram account and 30 photos per month, which is perfect for a small/new blogger. If you want unlimited uploads, you can sign up to a paid plan.
3. Google Drive
I use Google Drive every single day. I keep all my files and media, as well as backups to my blog posts. I love how I can sync all my files between all my devices which makes it easy and convenient when I'm not working in my home office. It's fast an easy to upload files and you can also take advantage of their office apps like Google Docs and Google Sheets to manage your blog.
4. Google Keep
This app is probably the most useful tool ever. I have been using Google Keep for years. I like making lists for everything I have to do. I also use it to quickly jot down any idea I have for blog posts and as I mentioned in a previous post, I use it as a tool to help me manage my anxiety.
5. Pinterest
Pinterest is my go to source to discover new ideas, find life inspiration and any other possible thing I can imagine. I love having a worldwide catalog of creativity and finding ways to bring the amazing finds into my every day life.
6. Canva
This little tool does wonders for those of us who are not skilled graphic designers or if you don't have access to expensive design software. Canva is a great way to create professionally looking graphics and media for your blog and social media channels.
7. Styled Stock Society
I'm always looking for beautiful photos for my blog posts as well as my social media and one of the best sites and one I always use is Styled Stock Society. In here I can find the most beautiful images that make my blog look professional and has also help keep my brand cohesive.
There is a membership option with different plans that gives you access to over 1,800 stock photos and they keep adding new images to the ever-growing library every month, so you'll always have beautiful photos for your blog.
8. Creative Fabrica
Source: Creative Fabrica
I use Creative Fabrica to shop for fonts, graphics, themes, vectors, patterns, templates and more. The site has an amazing selection of the best curated artists and they offer their digital products at affordable prices. So check this site out if you want to create blog designs and social media graphics that look more polished and professional.
9. Adobe Lightroom
This app has become so popular recently, especially thanks to its presets for photograph enhancing. Adobe Lightroom allows you to edit, crop, make adjustments, and apply presets to your photos. They offer a free mobile app, a web tool and a paid software version for both Windows and Mac. I recommend this tool if you're serious about photography since the full feature option is somewhat expensive but will allow you to create beautiful photographs.
There you go guys, the top tools & apps I think every blogger needs to be using. Please, let me know in the comments down below if you have a particular tool or app that you think I should try out. If you found this post useful please leave a like and share it. Thank you so much for reading.
Until next time.
Gabriela Fernández
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