We TOTALLY understand the heart and hustle that goes into running a business because we’re doing it now too! We don’t even pretend to have it all figured out, but we’re here to share what we’ve learned through years of trial and error. The amount of time and effort we’ve put into finding tools to simplify every task is kind of insane.

Why do we care so much about business tools? That’s easy. We believe great business tools have the power to streamline the nitty-gritty of your business so you can spend time on the things that bring you joy, make you unique, and impact the world. That sounds pretty great, right? These five tools will help you:

• Save time
• Get & stay organized
• Look & sound legit
• Spread the word about your venue
• Serve your clients well

Now that we have your attention, here are our favorite game-changing business tools!

In the spirit of full disclosure, certain links in this post are affiliate links, which means that we may get commissions if you decide to purchase anything from any of these companies. Rest assured, we only recommend products that we love ourselves and that we think you’ll love, too.

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Google Workspace

For Communication & Organization

Google Workspace is absolutely essential to our business and it probably will be for yours too. We trust Google to handle all our emails, calendar, and cloud storage. We even store and collaborate on documents with our team and clients via Google Drive. That isn’t even all Google Workspace can do, but those are four major functions you don’t want to hand over to just anyone. Here’s a bit more detail:

• Gmail – Easily send, receive and organize all your emails.
• Drive – Store and collaborate on photo galleries, documents and spreadsheets with your team and clients.
• Calendar – Keep track of all your appointments, events and tasks.
• Business Profile – Share your basic business information so clients can find your business hours, contact info, driving directions and post reviews.
• Domains – Find and purchase your website domain.
• Analytics – Track and report website traffic to help you make educated decisions about your website and marketing strategy.
• Search Console – Measure your site’s search traffic and performance, fix issues, and make your site shine in Google Search results

Honeybook

For Customer Relationship Management

Before Honeybook, our client information was so scattered I was constantly worried I was forgetting something. Honeybook brings ALL our client communication together in one place so I know what needs to be done and when. It is faster and easier to get clients the information they need to book and work with us which means $$$ in our pocket faster!

Honeybook allows you to:

• Share your offerings through digital brochures
• Track leads and clients through inquiry, booking and planning
• Manage contracts, proposals & payments online
• Create workflows and templates that save you time

Click >>HERE<< to get 20% off your Honeybook subscription!

Canva

For Graphic Design

I’m not a professional graphic designer, but with Canva you’d never know it.  Canva is the simple graphic design tool I use to create stunning digital and print content. Use one of the thousands of templates or start your design from scratch. I actually designed the downloadable version of this post in Canva!  Canva makes my life easier by:

• Automatically selecting the dimensions of my design based on what platform it will be shared
• Giving me the option to animate my designs
• Providing a library of stock photos, icons and design elements
• Allowing me to download my final product in several different file types

Gusto

For Human Resource Tasks

Gusto is our go-to payroll, benefits, and human resource management software. Onboarding and maintaining a team of full-time and seasonal staff is easy with Gusto‘s convenient features and intuitive design. I never have to worry about whether my team is getting paid on time, or if tax documents were prepared correctly. Gusto handles all of that!

Click >>HERE<< to get $100 off when you enroll with Gusto!

Plann

For Social Media Planning

Plann is a desktop & mobile app for social media planning, scheduling, and analytics that is powerful yet simple to use. Before we started using Plann we struggled with posting consistently and meaningfully.  Now, we plan out content in advance then post on the go.  Plann makes it easy to visualize how your feed will look so you can create a cohesive feel that tells your story and represents your brand well.

• Collect your best photos in one spot
• Craft thoughtful captions
• Design an eye-catching feed
• Create hashtag groups to save time
• Get a reminder when it is time to post

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Plus 2 Bonus Tools

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Grammarly

For Content Creation

Know that your writing is clear, concise, and engaging with the help of Grammarly, your personal writing tutor. As you whip out emails and marketing content, this app alerts you of spelling, grammatical, and punctuation errors.  Grammarly actually made three great recommendations for this paragraph and I willingly took the advice. Your words matter so make the most of them with Grammarly!

Favorite Feature | Tone Detection – Grammarly rates your content on how accurately your writing conveys your intended voice and emotion. Pretty cool, right?

Showit

For Website Design

Forget about coding and overly complicated website editors. Showit is a drag-and-drop style website-building platform. It is easy to customize a template, design your own website or tweak a website someone else designed for you.  It is also comforting that, Showit‘s amazing customer service team is there to save the day if you get stuck on something. Your website is often the first impression your potential clients of you and your venue. This makes your website, and Showit, a key part of your marketing strategy.

*TIP* Purchase a beautiful, Showit website template from Elizabeth McCravy Designs. Elizabeth’s templates are full of personality, easy to use, and strategically designed to transform viewers into raving customers. Her sites also come with an amazing Showit training course for beginners. You’ll thank yourself for making this investment!

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Want more wedding venue tool recommendations?

Check out our >> Venue Toolkit << that includes a list of 20+ online tools & resources to help you tackle tasks related to business setup, business management, communications, client management, marketing, advertising & supplies. The list includes helpful information like: 

• Description of what each tool does
• Link to the provider’s website to learn more
• Brief explanation of exactly how we use each so that you can imagine what each tool could do for you and your business.

We’ll give you the scoop on the tools you need to launch or up-level your business now. Sustainable, efficient processes start with choosing the right tools to keep you sane, use your time wisely, and ensure that you’re serving every client like royalty. We’re sharing our go-to resources so you can skip all the trial and error, guesswork, comparison shopping, and research it takes to find the best tools. 

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Photos by Kendra R. Photography | Floral Design by Wild Roots Farmer Florist | Dress from Relix Bridal