I am often asked about what tools I use for my online business, so I thought I’d create a page that lists many of the tools and products I use for website design, promotion and video.
This is not an exhaustive list by any means, but the ones I feel have the most impact and use the most.
Some of the links are affiliate links. That means when you click and buy, I earn a commission. I make no secret this blog earns me money, but you can rest assured I only recommend products I generally like and use.
Web Design Tools
Genesis Themes
This is the theme family I’m using for all my WordPress sites.
Right now I’m using the Daily Dish theme. I even bought their All-Theme Pro Package. That means I can download any of their themes, and I get access to all FUTURE themes they launch too! Great deal.
It’s nice because any time I want to change my design or build a new site, I have tons of premium themes to choose from.
StudioPress is very popular with bloggers because they have amazing support, and their themes are incredibly easy to customize. You can watch my video on customizing their themes here.
Genesis Simple Hooks WordPress Plugin
I can tell you that customizing/editing themes is the number one roadblock people face with their websites.
This is the perfect complement to any Genesis theme, and it’s free! Add your own custom edits to any section of your blog (before/after header, before/after sidebar, before/after footer, etc.) without having to fumble with the theme files and ugly code.
Want to add text below your header? No problemo. Just add it to the box marked “After Header” and you’re good to go. Plugins like this really take away the intimidation that often comes with theme customizations.
More themes should create plugins like this to make editing WordPress themes much easier. You must have a Genesis theme to use this.
Social Warfare
This is the only plugin I’ve ever used that has a yearly fee. I rarely buy plugins.
What I love about Social Warfare is the social sharing buttons are stylish, modern and load quickly. BUT my favorite feature is you can set it so it won’t show your number of shares on a page/post until you reach X amount of shares.
This is great if you have a new or untrafficked blog and you don’t want to show your share count on social networks. But you might have a few posts that have done well and you want to highlight those. So the plugin will only display the share count once the page/post meets that minimum you set.
It’s also great for pages like this that are never promoted or announced to my feed. These types of pages tend to get shared less.
InstantWP
I was so happy when a subscriber introduced me to this free software. You can install WordPress on your Windows computer and design your site locally before publishing. Nothing like having a local testing platform!
Watch my video on InstantWP below…
Hexadecimal/Color Picker Tools
If you own a website, no doubt you’ve had to tinker with hex colors at least once.
They are the 3 or 6 digit codes that control the colors of various parts of your site (links, background colors, etc.) My tools will help you choose a hex color and even a color scheme if you wish.
You can also use browser plugins/add-ons like Chrome’s Eye Dropper extension.
Photoshop
With all the free image creation tools out there, people often wonder why anyone would use Photoshop today.
Well the reason I love it is there are no limitations to what you can do. A lot of the free tools are wonderful, but their fonts and templates are limited. I’ve started to see these same templates show up on sites all over the web.
Plus, you can’t use the free tools to create images if you want to earn money with SpreadShirt and other P.O.D. affiliate programs. I have gotten my money back and then some.
Update April 2015: I just discovered you can get an older version of Photoshop absolutely free and it’s 100% legal! Details are in the free “Preview” video of my course.
I have a course on Photoshop here if you want to learn the basics of the program. I created it because people often believe Photoshop is only for advanced web designers or photographers.
But it’s also for bloggers and site owners like you and me who want the freedom to create our own site graphics like the feature images you see on my blog posts. The biggest issue I’ve found is that no one teaches it from that angle.
I also believe the course takes the intimidation out of learning the program. It’s really an easy program to learn with the right guide. Photoshop is definitely my favorite image editor.
Promotion Tools
Long Tail Pro
I’m not a huge fan of focusing on Google traffic much anymore, but I do think it’s important to narrow down your niche before you begin your site.
Most people don’t do this. They have a general idea for a site and try to rank for very broad, competitive keywords like “fitness tips” or “skin care.”
Bad idea; especially today.
You should choose long tail keywords (less competitive phrases) when selecting a topic/niche and writing articles.
Even though it’s harder to rank for more competitive keywords (Google favors brands now more than ever), you can still generate some good traffic from long tail keywords (4-6 word phrases) or phrases that have less competition.
I’ve used many, many keyword tools over the years (Site Build It’s Brainstorm It!, Market Samurai, WordTracker, etc.) and the best one I’ve used thus far has been Spencer Hawes’ Long Tail Pro.
Many keyword tools are clunky and present you with so much data it’s overwhelming. I’ve found Long Tail Pro to be quite streamlined and Spencer offers very detailed videos to help you understand the software.
You can type in any phrase and it will give you the PageRank, domain age, # of authority links and more for the top 10 ranked websites on Google. This will help you determine if it’s worth trying to compete for that phrase or not.
Here’s a screenshot for the competitive analysis for the keyword phrase “grow a tomato plant.”
Spencer’s videos will show you how to interpret each column of data as you research your niche.
Try Long Tail Pro for free here.
HootSuite
Unlike many bloggers today, I’m not very reliant on automation, but when I do use it, HootSuite is my application of choice. It’s great for scheduling posts and finding other sites in your niche. I use the free version.
AWeber
This is one of the most popular email management systems online. Send one-off email broadcasts, blog broadcasts (automated mailouts of your new blog posts) or setup an autoresponder series.
The biggest regret I have about my business is not starting a list sooner.
With free search engine traffic getting harder to come by and social media platforms limiting your exposure to force ad spend (Facebook & Pinterest), it’s becoming even more important to build a list.
Google can lower your rank and take your traffic overnight, but no one can take your email list away from you.
Don’t hesitate with this step. Creating your list should be the first thing you do when you launch your site.
Foobar
This is a WordPress plugin that creates a notification bar on top of your theme. It’s a great way to announce promotions and special events.
Foobar is extremely flexible and even allows you to rotate multiple notifications and target them to different pages.
Video Tools & Software
Powtoon
If you want to liven up your content and make it more interesting and fun to read, Powtoon may be the answer for you.
Short, animated videos are known to be highly effective for converting sales and making tutorial-based content easier to absorb.
Below, you can see the intro video I created for my site WebsitePalace.com.
I signed up for the yearly subscription plan, and it was money well spent. I chose the Agency plan so I can have full access to all their animations, artwork, features, produce in HD quality, etc.
I also use their software to create some of the videos for my courses.
Powtoon also has free options. So if you aren’t ready to open your wallet, you can still use their service for free with limited features.
Take my course on how to use Powtoon.
Sony HDR CX-380 Handycam
This is the video camera I use for videos where you see me talking on YouTube.
It’s an HD camera and also has an input for an external mic. I also love that no media is required. All footage is stored on the camera’s hard drive so I simply plug the camera into my laptop with its attached USB cord to download footage.
This is my 3rd Sony HD camera. I am loyal to this brand simply because I am familiar with the settings and features.
Camtasia
This is the software I often use for screen recording videos. It’s pricey at $300, but there are much more cost-friendly options like CamStudio and Jing.
Obviously you get more features with a paid tool, but you may discover the freebies are enough!
Bamboo Tablet
In some videos I draw on the screen for illustration purposes. I use a Bamboo Tablet by Wacom. It works with Photoshop, Corel and other programs, but it also comes with software in case you don’t already have a compatible graphics program.
You can see me using this tool in the video below…
And here’s the video where I show you how it works…
They have a few different ones at various price points. This is the one I use.
I use this feature a lot in my courses to make the videos more interesting to watch.
Thank you for listing this . It is a great tips . Love it . 🙂
Awesome post lisa i am a new blogger and i have learned a lot 🙂 thanks for the awesome post!
Yes ! Agree With you. WordPress is the best and easiest Platform of Design a Website according to our imaginations. I’m also recommend WP because it is simple and we can easily promote our blog through online Tools.
Thanks Lisa for this helpful Article 🙂 Keep Posting
Hey Lisa, I’m curious to find out what blog system you happen to be working with? I’m having some small security problems with my latest blog and I would like to find something more secure. Do you have any suggestions?
<a href="Mommy Makeovers Phoenix
Good work:)- Savannah Allison
Hi Savannah, I’m using WordPress.
Hi Lisa,
I like to know what are the tools you are using to generate traffic.
This would really help me a lot.
Thanks in advance.
Hey Lisa ! you have shared the most beautiful and helpful information with us, I am very glad to read this 🙂
Hey Lisa Irby ! Everyone need this tools to make his on site and design it also, thank you so much for sharing with us 🙂
Lisa this is a great list of tools.and Genesis now supports Schema.org code, which allows you to output micro data in your site’s code. This enhances your site’s search engine optimization even further.Thanks for publishing the great list i have captured many thing from your Article 🙂
This is a great resource. Lisa it is really wonderful too and people don’t realize that promotion starts at the foundation. If you want to start with a strong foundation, refer back to this guide!
Thanks guys. 🙂
I was introduced to your blog from YouTube. And i’ve found it very fascinating. Thank you for your efforts.
Thank you! Glad to “meet” ya!
Thanks for sharing these useful tools, You have shared many interested plug-ins for WordPress like WP SEO by Yoast and i found it is very simple and easy. And yes ! SEO by yoast is better than All in One SEO pack 🙂
Awesome list of tools. A lot of thanks for showing us.
lisa where is you post of the 9 awesome ipad app that a blogger must have give its link
Do you don’t think SEO plugins are useful anymore ??
A lot of thanks for showing us the tools u use in your wp site.
Hi Lisa,
Thanks for sharing these useful tools, i am going to try Artisteer very soon 🙂
thanks i will contact you and hope you will too 🙂 these tools are really useful i like the interface and the layout of this blog so credit goes to you Miss Lisa nice to have this blog i must say and i will wait for further updates thanks once again 🙂
wow i like that tool. now i can work offline on my website Great thanks again lisa
Hi Lisa,
Thanks for publishing the great list. Many of the above programs I already use, but the Instant wordpress link was a real gem to find. I make quite a few custom wordpress themes and to date I normally work via FTP, which means uploading and checking after every change. I am definitely going to download this program and am sure it will save me hours!
Hey Nick, I LOVE LOVE that tool. It has saved me so much stress by being able to test things locally. Hope you enjoy it!
Hi Lisa,
I am newb when it comes to WordPress. Can I use the WordPress framework and templates with my own domain and host without the WordPress VIP package?
Sure, check around this blog or on the site. You can install wordpress on your host from your Cpanel (most time there is an option on your Cpanel allowing this). then you will be able to play with wordpress templates
Awesome list of tools. I need to add few of them in my list.
I started blogging some 7 months ago and iv been quite curious on wordpress themes and how they are made. Trying to learn some PHP so i can maybe begin create my first theme soon and this tool you listed Artisteer i will definitely try it out. Thanks a lot for such an informative blog. 🙂
Hi Lisa,
I started blogging about 3 months ago and recently made the switch to wordpress. I’m so glad I found your site early on. It’s extremely helpful! I was wondering what you thought about the jetpack plugin?
Hi Tish, glad you found me too! 🙂 I honestly have never used the plugin so I can’t really comment on it much.
Hi Lisa,
What screen capture software do you use to create your tutorials?
The videos are sharp and the mouse/cursor action is very smooth with none of the annoying stop-start jerky motion I’ve seen in most of the screen capture utilities I’ve tried.
Regards,
Randy
Hi Randy
Thanks! I use Camtasia.
Nice list am using most of this tools most especially studiopress products but recently simple hooks bas been giving me problems
Its strange that I don’t see any plugins like Yoast,SEOPressor etc. They are worth the money and I think you try them on the site.
Lisa, have you completely stopped using all of them ?
I don’t feel the need for SEO plugins anymore. I will be blogging about this soon. I used to use Yoast, but since disabling them I have seen no difference.
Hi Lisa
thanks for the blog. You are the second person in a week recommend browsershots.org so that must be a sign! I better take a look.
I’m interested in your recommendations for the various plug-ins for WordPress. I’ve found Yoast WP SEO easy to use. I notice you don’t think SEO plugins are useful anymore. Can you elaborate on why not?
regards
Garry
Hi Garry
I will be blogging about this next week. I think they *can* be for certain things like ensuring you’re using the right markup, reporting, etc. But they aren’t going to help you rank better alone. SEO is so dependent on off-page factors now like social media shares, backlinks, etc. I think too many people assume a plugin is going to catapult their rankings.
Apart from the list may I know which SEO plugin are you using Lisa
I disabled all SEO plugins. I don’t think they are that beneficial anymore.
Thanks for the insight. I just downloaded Instant WP.
I just downloaded Instant WP. I will try it out. In reference to Hootsuite
You will need to use the WP Duplicator plug-in to migrate your offline installation of WordPress (delivered through the Instant WordPress software) to your web server. Getting your database and tables online can be somewhat a headache so I recommend you buy the eBook written by the Instant WordPress author. The book is called “Instant WordPress Unleashed”.
sound good Lisa’s Toolbox for Web Design & Promotion i like your article and i read ur articles and its very informative for me and gain my skills and learning activities,i saw you video on InstantWP installed i surprise its very easy and work for me,,,thanks lisa sadia here,
Thanks for the insight. I just downloaded Instant WP. I will try it out. In reference to Hootsuite, may I suggest that you do a future post on working it. ; )
Thanks for the List but my main worry is ultimately site security resulting from the ease word press sites are hacked. sorry for being skeptical but i once had site hosted by hostgator build using word press, new as i am before evening learning and preparing to submitt my first site map Big mum google had already spotted my site as a potential site attack. i sought refuge with SBI which had to do the sitemapping stuff for me automatically then came the issue of infinit which you talked about in one of your articles but up to now i dont even understand its meaning save for the fact that INFIN IT must be hosted outside of sbi.
This is my personal: can guide me tru.the infinit process provided i host infinit with you?
Regards
Jamil
Hi Jamil
Once you have a host outside of WordPress, you will follow the host’s instructions for installing WordPress on that domain. Once the site is up, go back to your SBI! account and setup Infinit to connect to your new WP site so it will look as if it’s hosted on your domain. I have never used Infinit personally so I cannot give much more advice than that.
Have you not asked SBI! for help?
Very interesting. You have a few more blogs than me .Thanhk you
goog
Thank you Lisa I now have Foobar on my site!! It’s fantastic. My articles are very long lol so this will keep a couple of the important pages on my site clearly “in mind”. I’ve seen something similar before but hadn’t known what it was called. Adding new little features like this on occasion really make my day a little “funner”. 🙂
-Rayzel
Yay! Glad you enjoyed it.
The tools which you mentioned here are very good. I guess these will make by life easier my a huge sum. Thanks for mentioning.
Hi Lisa i am new to the business and new to ur site> I been doing this for less than 2 month and am just learning WordPress. I find that I cant get thing to line up corectly on the I was womdering if the plugin simple works with other themes . I find your website to be very informative and I going to make a point in reviewing all your youtube videos.
You taught me something new – InstantWP and am hitting the site right away while taking a look at your other tools! Cool.
Wow, Instant WP sounds great! I’ve been using Xampp for testing and development but Instant WP looks much more straight forward. Gonna give it a whirl right now, thanks for the tip!
Lisa,
I am just trying to get started in creating a website. I don’t know what I am doing, so I am going to need all the mentoring that I can get. What is the first thing that I need to do?
Hi Derek
Have you watched my WordPress video? http://www.2createawebsite.com/traffic/create-free-blog.html First you need a domain name (yoursite.com) and hosting. It’s all on the page above.
I like comluv but it is not good idea use that on big blogs where where people comment for just spamming . Intense Debate is other option though.
CommentLuv free is available through IntenseDebate. All comments get screened for moderation and I believe there is an IP block option
Great stuff. i really love it… m new in blogging field… hope it will help for me..
thanks so much for both responses!!
Hi Lisa , Great tool box. there are some things on your list I will explore ( commentluv)Question please Awber and Icontact are kind of the same have you tried both? If so which one do you like better. Awber is $19.00 per month were Icontact is $10.00. Thanks.
I’ve only used AWeber and have been since 2004. Can’t imagine using anything else.
MailChimp is free for the first two thousand subscribers.
I intend to use this for local internet marketing. I am unlikely to get close to two thousand email addresses for a local niche I am exploiting, so the free version will suffice.
For a larger market I would be willing to pay for AWeber
That Browser shots tool is going to be handy, given Internet Explorer’s compatibility issues. My site always looked fine in most browsers except IE.
Also, is there a CommentLuv free version? I played around with different systems before settling with DISQUS but I see the value of CommentLuv and the incentive to get people engaging.
Yes, there is a free version of CommentLuv.
I have tried the CommentLuv free plugin via Intense Debate but found it slightly hit and miss. I don’t think all the bugs have beeen ironed out. I’m not getting a very smooth integration with my Blogger template.
Hopefully it will be better with WordPress
great tool collection…… loved it
Thanks for this list – it really gives some tips for consideration! I’ve been using WP plugins to spread news over social networks but maybe it’s time to try something else…
A great list, website tools are essential for maintaining a website. I really like to stick to the basics with Bing and Google webmaster tools. These tools allow me to see very important metrics for keywords and my position in search. When it comes to commenting and back linking I prefer the manual method and attracta. Appearing to Google as a “good website” seems to be the most important thing these days. For social apps I like share this and the social options from the jet pack plugin for word press. I really like free stuff and as far as mail clients go I use mail chimp it seems to do a pretty good job. As far as web design goes I like to find a good pre made them and tweak it to fit my needs, I do this in Weebly and WordPress. The Genesis simple hooks looks intriguing to help tweak a word press site with out too much work.
Thanks for the post looking forward to more.
Dan
Hi Lisa
I am a little surprised that there was not more on this list!
I guess that is the problem with WordPress, there are so many good plugins, the temptation to load too many is too great, ending up in a slow site, with page loads that seem to take forever!
Artisteer sounds interesting, being able to easily make your own WP theme. This would have been easier to make a client theme from scratch, than wade through the repository looking for one they liked, and one that had the right balance of style V”s widget,tool allocation.
On that front, I now use the Headway Drag and Drop Theme, so I can make a theme look however I want, with however many widget areas, sidebar position, width etc, as I want.
You can even have completely different layouts for the posts page, to other pages. It would be easy to create a new template with no navigation, Headers, or different header, no footer, no sidebar…. Basically what you want to have for a sales page, capture page etc.
I would be interested in your opinion on thsi theme, if you know it.
Thanks for the list, I found your site through Anne of My Blog Guest, and the two posts regarding Guest Blogging.
Jon Barry
Hi Jon,
Yeah, that’s why I mentioned it was not an exhaustive list. I only wanted to mention the ones I use the most and were key to my sites.
I really want to try Headway. Now that I read the bugs are out, I’m willing to purchase. I was going to try this a year ago but someone told me to wait. That’s great to hear you love it. 🙂
Hi Lisa
I was wondering did you give headway drag And Drop a go?
If so, what do you think?
Jon
Hi Jon
No not yet. Never got around to it.
I can highly recommend Headway. It takes a little while to get the hang of it but once you do the possibilities are endless. And the best part is that when you get bored of your design you don’t need to buy a new theme, you can simply redesign it in Headway. Well worth the investment imo. I hardly use anything else now.
ThemeGrrl! Always great to hear from you. Now I’m curious. I have got to try this soon. 🙂
Thanks for sharing these useful tools. Didn’t know about many of them.