Essential Business Tools We Can’t Live Without: How to Grow Your Online Business Efficiently
Running an agency or managing a growing online business requires a solid tech stack to keep everything organized, efficient, and scalable. As experts in online business management, we’ve tried, tested, and streamlined the best tools that make our daily operations smoother. If you’re like us at processrun, you probably rely on a handful of key platforms that help streamline your operations and keep everything (and everyone) on track. So if you’re looking to improve productivity, boost collaboration, and grow your online business, these are the tools we swear by.
1. ClickUp
When it comes to online business management, ClickUp is hands down the most versatile tool we use. We leverage ClickUp for client management, organizing our team’s tasks and projects, maintaining our internal wiki, and even keeping meeting notes in one place. It has replaced multiple tools, including Loom, thanks to ClickUp Clips, which allows us to record and share screen captures directly within the platform.
One feature we can’t live without is automation. From task assignments to project updates, ClickUp’s automation capabilities ensure that repetitive tasks are handled, leaving our team with more time to focus on strategic work. The key to efficiently growing your online business lies in removing friction from processes, and ClickUp helps us do just that.
2. Slack
We use Slack for our daily team communications, but with a twist. We're on the free plan and don’t plan to upgrade because we've shifted much of our knowledge management over to ClickUp. Many businesses make the mistake of using Slack as a project manager or knowledge base — which it’s not designed for. One of the risks of relying on Slack for more than communication is that if you ever cancel or move to another platform, you could lose valuable information.
That’s why we now use ClickUp’s robust search and AI features to store and manage our company knowledge. Slack is still great for quick chats and collaboration, but online business management requires tools that do more heavy lifting.
3. Google Workspace
If you’re not using Google Workspace for your business, you’re missing out on an incredibly integrated and reliable toolset. Gmail, Calendar, and Drive are essentials we can’t do without, but there’s so much more to Google Workspace. Did you know you can create free email addresses through Google Groups using your Workspace account? It’s an easy hack that saves us time and money.
Another feature we love is the ability to record calls and generate transcripts, which are automatically saved in the corresponding event in Google Calendar. No more emailing team members to ask for meeting recordings—everyone knows exactly where to find them. It’s small efficiencies like this that help us streamline operations and grow our online business with fewer roadblocks.
4. ChatGPT
We can’t sing the praises of ChatGPT enough. From research to automating content creation, ChatGPT has become a key player in our business. Whether we’re creating quizzes, tables, or client documents, it makes work faster while still allowing for human input to refine and check its output. This human-AI collaboration allows us to handle high-volume content creation without sacrificing quality.
If you’re in the process of figuring out how to grow your online business, ChatGPT is a powerful tool that can help you work smarter, not harder. The key, though, is to always add a personal touch and ensure the AI-generated content aligns with your brand voice and message.
5. Zapier
Automation is at the heart of a well-run business, and Zapier is the glue that connects many of the tools we use. We’ve integrated ClickUp with ChatGPT to generate blog posts and social media content automatically, without leaving ClickUp. Zapier also allows us to manage our email subscriber lists, ensuring that new subscribers are seamlessly added to our email service provider.
The less manual admin work you have to do, the more time you have to focus on growth. By automating our marketing tasks, we’ve freed up countless hours that are now spent on strategy and client interaction—two critical elements of growing an online business.
6. Canva
Design work can get chaotic, but Canva makes it easy for our team to collaborate and stay organized. With shared folders, our designs are always accessible to the right people, and revisions are a breeze. Whether it’s social media graphics, client presentations, or branded materials, Canva’s simplicity and collaborative features make it an indispensable part of our workflow.
7. Dubsado
Proposals, invoicing, auto-pay, intake forms, and workflows—all in one place? Yes, please! Dubsado helps us manage everything from client contracts to freelancer onboarding. We’ve canceled our e-signature software because Dubsado takes care of both client and team contracts with ease.
The beauty of Dubsado is its flexibility; we even use it for our own internal processes, like team onboarding. By simplifying administrative tasks, we’re able to focus more on strategy and client work, which is key to growing an online business.
8. QuickBooks
When it comes to bookkeeping and taxes, QuickBooks is our go-to tool. It integrates seamlessly with TurboTax, ensuring we’re always on top of our financials, which is a non-negotiable aspect of running any business. QuickBooks helps us manage bookkeeping and taxes giving us peace of mind and more time to dedicate to scaling our business.
9. Squarespace
Our website, online store, and blog all live on Squarespace, and we love how easy it is to maintain compared to platforms like WordPress. Squarespace is user-friendly, beginner-friendly, and doesn’t require the constant upkeep that other platforms often need. This allows us to focus on what matters most: delivering value to our clients.
Whether you’re setting up a new website or looking to scale your online presence, Squarespace provides all the tools you need to grow your online business without the hassle of complex maintenance.
Final Thoughts: The Right Tools for Online Business Management
Choosing the right tools is essential for running an efficient and scalable business. From project management and communication to design and automation, these tools have become the foundation of our daily operations. The key to growing your online business lies in leveraging these tools to streamline processes, increase efficiency, and allow more time for strategic decision-making.
If you’re curious about how an Online Business Manager (OBM) can help take your business to the next level, check out our in-depth guide on what is an Online Business Manager (OBM). An OBM can help you implement these tools and optimize your workflows so you can focus on scaling your business.
