Favorites: The Tools Actually Running This Business Right Now
No fluff — the real stack behind the scenes, and why each one earned its spot.
I get asked this a lot — "what do you actually use to run your business?" So instead of another vague answer in a DM, here's the real list. Not the trendy app everyone's talking about this month. The tools that are actually open on my computer, week after week, doing the work.
Squarespace — for my website
This is my go-to for site building. Squarespace is easy to use, and you don't need to be technical to make it work. You can sell products, run email campaigns, collect donations, manage membership dues — you name it, Squarespace does it.
Slack — for communication
Email has its place, but Slack is where the real-time back-and-forth happens with my team instead of a three-day email thread. It keeps communication out of my inbox and out of my head.
Dropbox — for file storage and sharing
This is where the heavy files live — brand assets, design files, client deliverables. I like Dropbox specifically for how easy it makes sharing large folders with clients without the back-and-forth of "can you resend that?"
Google Drive — for anything I'm working through with someone else
Dropbox is storage. Google Drive is where the actual work happens. Every strategy doc, every draft, every messy outline I'm building alongside a client lives here, because I can watch someone else typing in real time instead of emailing a file back and forth five times and losing track of which version is the real one.
Flodesk — for email marketing
I used to dread email marketing. Genuinely dreaded it. Then I switched to Flodesk and it stopped feeling like a chore — the templates are actually pretty, I'm not fighting the platform to make something look decent, and my bill doesn't jump every time my list grows, which is the part that made most of the other options a dealbreaker for me.
Zapier — for automation
This is the quiet one nobody asks about, but it's doing more work than almost anything else on this list. Zapier connects the tools that don't talk to each other on their own — so a new inquiry, a new sign-up, a new form submission can trigger the next step automatically, without me lifting a finger.
Canva — for quick design
Not every graphic needs a full design process. For fast social content, quick one-pagers, or anything that needs to happen today, Canva gets it done without slowing me down.
QuickBooks — for the numbers
I'll be honest — this isn't the fun part of the business. But knowing your numbers is non-negotiable, and QuickBooks keeps that side clean and current instead of something I'm scrambling to figure out at tax time.
Notion — for keeping my own brain organized
This is the one that holds everything else together for me personally — content plans, client notes, half-formed ideas I don't want to lose, to-do lists that actually make sense a week later. If Google Drive is where the work happens with other people, Notion is where I think.
Why the stack matters more than the tools
Here's what I really want you to take from this: it's not about collecting tools. It's about building a stack where each one has a clear job, and none of them are duplicating work another one already does.
Before you add a new tool to your business, ask yourself what specific problem it's solving. If you can't answer that clearly, you probably don't need it yet.
TL;DR:
Squarespace runs my website, Slack runs my communication, Dropbox holds the files, Google Drive is where the real work happens with other people.
Flodesk handles email marketing; Zapier handles the automation no one sees.
Canva covers fast design, QuickBooks covers the numbers, Notion keeps my own brain organized.
The goal isn't more tools — it's a stack where every tool has a clear, non-duplicated job.
Before adding anything new, know exactly what problem it's solving.
Building out your own stack and not sure where to start? Contact Me Here, and let's talk through what your business actually needs.
To note: your stack will change over time. As your business grows, you'll need to adjust your stack.
