Resources
Before you read on know this… the list below is pretty large, but all of these tools, apps and resources play a huge part in my life so that’s why I use them, some of them took me years to stumble upon. Without a doubt, I wouldn’t be able to do what I do in my life and business if it wasn’t for all of the resources below. Trust me when I say this… they’re worth their weight in GOLD!
My Most Recommended
Out of all the tools, software, products, services and gadgets I use these ones are my most loved and used ones that I can’t live without.
ActiveCampaign: is a great tool that every internet marketer shouldn’t be without. When I first started an online business I didn’t have an email marking account and I lost a lot of money, but I did learn why having one is so important. I’ve had many email service providers in the past and this one is hands down the best in my opinion. The service is much more powerful because it allows you to create highly targeted automations based on actions from your subscribers among other things.
LeadPages: you might already know I understand how to build websites using HTML, but I still resort back to using Lead Pages to create landing pages for the many offers I run. Without this tool, I would not have as much time for many things, as it takes a lot of time to create landing pages.
1Password: I like having passwords that are strong and almost imposable for someone else to remember as first glance. However, that poses a problem because then you might not remember it yourself, that’s where this hardly little app comes into play. Create just one password to remember them all, you input your password to open the app and then BOOM! All your passwords, loving, and data in one convenient place, by the way, you can use this handle little tool across all your devices (Mac, iPhone, Android and Windows).
Trello: is the tool I use for many things (client management, social media scheduling, team tasks, and so much more). The really amazing part thing about this tool is that I have hundreds of clients, tasks, ideas, boards, and it doesn’t cost me a thing. You can upgrade for some perks, but I still haven’t and I use this tool for so much with my business and personal life. Must have tool!
My Writing Tools
Grammarly: is a web app that lets you eliminate grammar errors, improve your text, detect plagiarism, and loads more. I’ve never been all that great at grammar and editing and that’s why I love this tool. You can also install it into your web browser and it will perform it’s magic wherever you’re writing on the web (Facebook, email, ect…).
Hemmingway: is a tool that makes your writing bold and clear. The app highlights long, complex sentences and common errors and give you the ability to make them better. I’ve really come to like this tool as I will pop in some text and change it up without having to think much. I highly recommend it.
RainyMood: is another great app to get you to focus, relax, and sleep great. I love the rain and every night when I go to sleep I flip on the rain sound. I often times listen to the rain when I write and work because it just gets me in the mood. The RainyMood can be listened for free on a web browser or you can get the paid version for $2.99 to get some premium perks and able to play it from an app on your phone. It’s well worth it.
My Website Tools
WordPress: I could not have the businesses I have without this amazing tool. I’ve built thousands of sites in my time and they’ve all happened by using WordPress. If you want a website then you need to use this tool and forget about all the others.
WishList Member: is a powerful yet easy to use membership software solution that can turn any WordPress site into a full-blown membership site. Owning a web development company a few years ago gave me the ability to build all kinds of membership sites and for the longest time I didn’t find a tool that would do it all for the membership sites until I stumbled on this one. Currently, this is the one I use for all my membership sites.
VisualComposer: is a WordPress page builder plugin with intuitive drag and drop interface. Honestly… I LOVE THIS TOOL! You can (without any HTML or code) build website pages fast. With the tool you have the ability to create unlimited layouts for your website. If you use WordPress then you MUST get this tool.
PrettyLinks: is a Plugin for WordPress that will enable you to shrink, cloak, track, organize, share and test all of your links on your own domain and server. You can turn a long link into a link like this: scotthurtado.com/PrettyLinks
Bitly: is a link shorter that I like to use for social and online marketing efforts. This tool works much like the PrettyLinks shorter, but you don’t need to memorize the link so the purpose is just to really shorten long links for social media, email, and online marketing.
Yoast: is the most complete WordPress SEO plugin I’ve ever used. It handles the technical optimization of your site & assists with optimizing your content. What more could you ask for. 😀
Stripe: is a simple and extremely powerful payment/merchant gateway. Being in the business I am in there are days when I have to do some big transactions and what I don’t want to have to do is wait days or weeks to get the funding. This really great tool is just a gem to add to your business and it’s free to setup. The tool also integrates with SamCart And many other tools for ease of use.
Disqus: is a powerful comment and native ads solution. I’ve never really liked the build in WordPress comment system and that’s because someone has to create an account or log into your site to comment. With this tool, someone can push a button and log in through Facebook. It’s a faster and easier option for the reader to leave their feedback on your site.