I love gardening in the spring and summer. Before I begin, I always gather my gardening tools to ensure I have everything I need to make gardening easier and faster. This way, I can enjoy my labour’s (literal) fruits more quickly. 

In your business, you have access to many tools that can help you plan and execute excellent marketing content easier and faster, too. Keep reading for my advice on choosing the right tools for your marketing “garden.”

How tech-comfortable are you?

I’ve found that many business owners, especially solopreneurs, hesitate to add marketing tools to their toolbelt because they fear they’ll be challenging to use and maintain. Before filling your toolbelt, it’s essential to understand your level of comfort with new software and tech. 

You don’t have to get all the coolest digital tools to do your marketing; even one or two can make a difference. You could do about 80% of your marketing and planning with an email address, a reliable word processor and spreadsheet software. 

We like using Microsoft or Google Suites for word processing and spreadsheets because they’re easy to use. For your website, have a designer build you a site on WordPress for maximum flexibility, and get an email marketing program like Mailchimp to send professional-looking e-blasts and newsletters. 

Essential marketing tools you’ll need

There are three categories of marketing tools that you’ll need for your business:

Basic print materials

(business cards, postcards, brochures, handouts)

Print materials are still necessary when you attend in-person networking events or conferences. You’ll need an excellent graphic design tool (Canva is a good, free version you can access online). Or, if you choose, hire a graphic designer to design these for you.

Online tools

(social media accounts, a website, graphics, photos)

Your website and online presence are essential tools for your business and will become the hub of your online presence. You can build a website yourself using free or low-cost website builders like Wix or Squarespace or hire a designer to create a site on the popular WordPress platform for your business. 

You should also have social media accounts. Choose a few platforms your target audience is on and be active (as your business) on these platforms. You can also use online tools to batch-create your social media posts and preschedule them to go live at a specific time. Meta Business Suite does this well for Facebook and Instagram, or you can use the native scheduling function on LinkedIn or a third-party scheduler like Buffer or Hootsuite (paid subscriptions). 

Evergreen content

(boilerplate about content, bios, logos, branded images)

Have a way to organize evergreen content (content you’ll use repeatedly). This means getting an excellent cloud-based file storage (like Google Drive or Dropbox) or using your computer to store your logos, bios, and templated content on your hard drive. 

What’s in your toolbox?

Which tools above are already your favourites? Which are you planning to incorporate into your business planning this year?

If you want more tips and tool suggestions to help make planning, creating, and publishing your seasonal marketing content more accessible and consistent, follow us on Facebook.