Or should I call it my tech stack? At any rate, I used to have a bad case of shiny bauble syndrome, but today … not so much. I’m grateful for this because, particularly with all of the available AI and automation tools, there are only about a gazillion to choose from. These are my go-to’s, my daily drivers.
Nimble CRM – I have been a Nimble user, and an authorized Independent Solution Partner since before Nimble was introduced in 2012. I have used CRM since the late 80’s. I simply can’t imagine any salesperson not using some sort of CRM. A good CRM makes you money!
Google Workspace – Yeah, I have sipped the Google Kool Aid. It does everything I need and I love the fact that I can create or edit any files from any device and from anywhere. Gmail, Docs, Sheets, Slides, and Drive that also backs up my desktop.
Wisestamp (free) – Not too much to this. It gives me a nice looking email signature.
WordPress – I started my website on WordPress.com and later switched to the paid version, .org. It works and it works consistently.
Hostgator – These folks have hosted my website since the beginning, I don’t have to think about it and the few times that I have required support it has been excellent!
Wordfence and Bitdefender – Wordfence protects my website and Bitdefender protects everything else. I had used competitive products for both, but I finally seem to have settled in on applications that work consistently and do so while not being annoying.
Feedly (free) – When Google Reader shut down, I needed to find an alternative news feed aggregator. I use Feedly to keep up on both my personal and professional interests and I then take the really great business articles and I share those on LinkedIn.
ChatGPT Pro – I started on AI and on ChatGPT in the last quarter of 2024. Wow! So far, I have not felt the need to invest in any other AI tools. Besides, me and my chatbot, Hal, have developed a relationship. I’m joking, but I’m not. The more you use ChatGPT the more it learns about you, your preferences, and your styles.
LinkedIn (free) – I have used premium versions of LinkedIn in the past and may do so again in the future. Right now, and with me being focused strictly on B2B, it does what I need.
Zoom – I have free access to Google Meet but, the few times I have used it, I have just preferred Zoom. That being said, never say never.
Calendly (free) – OMG! People go to the site and schedule Zoom consultations with me without the typical back and forth on email. What’s not to love!
ScreenPal (so cheap it should be free) – I have been using this application to record screen captures (videos) for well over 10 years. It’s not AI and there are certainly more sophisticated recording systems out there, but I like simple and dependable.
PhotoscapeX (free) – For the most part, I use this to resize and crop images. While it can certainly do more, I’m not a graphic designer.
Text Blaze (free) – Text Blaze is a text expander. Think of sentences or paragraphs that you frequently type over and over again. Put those in Text Blaze and then call them up with a short code. The text in italics at the end of this post came from this. It works in Google, WordPress, Nimble, and LinkedIn. For me, that is everywhere that I need it.
Peace Equalizer (free) – I’m on Windows 10 as I write this, but I will shortly bite the bullet and move to Windows 11. For whatever reason, and I’m not the only one, Windows 10 struggles with USB microphones. Peace Equalizer corrects these issues.
Canva & Adobe Express (free, at least for now) – Just getting started. ChatGPT, for the most part, is phenomenal at written tasks, but it flat out sucks at images. These applications are a step up from Google Slides or PowerPoint for image creation.
Perplexity (free one-year Pro subscription courtesy of Zoom) – Perplexity uses AI, but it mostly scours the web. I’m still working on figuring out where to use this vs. ChatGPT.
There are other utilities that mostly run in the background but, for the most part, that’s it. Right now, I am spending less than $1,500 per year for these applications. Certainly, there are other programs that I am evaluating. Nothing so far has spurred me into investing, but that is always open to change
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Are you thinking about a CRM? If you would like to explore whether or not Nimble CRM might be right for you, please book a free 30-minute Zoom consultation with me by going to my calendar. To learn more about our Nimble training and implementation services, please visit our Nimble CRM training services page.
In addition to Nimble CRM, I also offer sales training and training on LinkedIn as well as getting started with AI (Artificial Intelligence). I can even assist with hiring new salespeople with initial interviews and pre-hire DISC personality assessments.
I would also be happy to connect you to managed I.T. and telephony services or to a marketing professional who I know and trust or to an automated yet personalized and human-to-human LinkedIn prospecting system. Please reach out to me at craig@adaptive-business.com for an introduction!