WHAT’S THIS EPISODE ABOUT?
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Let’s Imagine Starting Over…
Wherever you are in your journey today, if you had to start your online business over from scratch…don’t you think you know a thing or two? I do!
I know where I wouldn’t waste time, more, or resources. I know that having too many tools, in the beginning, is not only overwhelming and confusing but unnecessary. I also know that are tons of tools out there absolutely free that can make a huge impact on your online business.
So, we’re going to pretend that you’re starting your online business from scratch today. And I’m giving you my favorite tools and resources.
You Gotta Have a Website!
One thing I know I wish I would’ve invested more time and money in from the beginning is my website. I’ve used free platforms, blogging websites, and ones that are easy to design. But at the end of the day, if I was doing it all over again, I wish I would’ve started with a WordPress website from the beginning.
The blogging sites I used weren’t very well designed and didn’t have great options for SEO. (Listen to the SEO for Podcasts episode to learn more about SEO.)
My recommendations for getting started with a WordPress website are:
I’ve done my fair share of trying to do a website on my own in the simplest, cheapest way possible and this is what has worked for me for the past 2 years.
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Email Service Providers
The next most important piece of the online business puzzle is your email service provider. This is how you should depend to speak to your audience on a regular basis. Before social media and even, dare I say it, more important than setting up your podcast hosting service.
Here are my email service provider recommendations:
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Beginner ESP: MailChimp
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My experience with MailChimp started at the beginning of my blogging journey and grew steadily over my first 12 months. I highly recommend it when you’re just getting started because they have a free plan of up to 2,000 subscribers. You can check out MailChimp here.
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More Advanced ESP: ConvertKit
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ConvertKit is the platform I converted to once I decided to go all-in with my online business and I’ve never looked back. It’s the best platform for creating weekly emails, welcome sequences, and even sales funnels for your email marketing campaigns.
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You can’t go wrong with either MailChimp or ConvertKit to get started for your email service provider. Just choose one that works for you and get started sending those emails to your list on a regular and consistent basis! (To learn more about growing your email list with a podcast, listen to this podcast episode.)
Podcast Hosting Services
You know I love my favorite podcast hosting service Buzzsprout! You can learn all the reasons why I chose Buzzsrpout as my podcast host since day one in these two interviews I did with their Head of Content and Head of Marketing.
- Best Podcast hosting Site Platform, Buzzsprout.com
- Podcast Marketing Questions Answered, Interview with Alban from Buzzsprout
You can also try Buzzsprout for FREE for 90-days here!
Graphic Design Tools
There was a need for graphic design tools early on in my online business. So I started using Canva and rely on it heavily every single day!
I use it for social media, my website design, and all kinds of other fun projects. You can check out Canva for free here.
Course Platforms
There are many options for creating and launching your digital course. Here are the ones that I highly recommend trying out as you explore creating your own digital course:
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Kajabi
- I didn’t start out using Kajabi at the beginning of my online business. But after I was established in my online business enough to afford the monthly platform, I was so excited. The platform is user-friendly, looks fantastic, and is easy to design.
- Kajabi is also an all-in-one platform: meaning it can be your website, email service provider, and course platform altogether.
- You can try Kajabi for free for 28-days here.
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Kartra
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I haven’t used Kartra myself, but I have several online business colleagues that use it. Like Kajabi, it’s another all-in-one platform.
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Thinkific
- Thinkific is a platform I’ve heard great things about and definitely one to explore as you start thinking about creating an online business with a digital course.
- Learn more about Thinkific here.
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Teachable
- When I created my very first digital course, I used Teachable as my course platform. It was a great starter platform to use and I know many of my course creator friends that still use it today.
- Learn more about Teachable here.
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WordPress Plugins
- I don’t have firsthand experience using a WordPress plugin as my course platform, but I do know that’s possible!
- If you have a WordPress website, then checking out a plugin like LearnDash would be helpful.
There are a lot of options for creating your online business with a digital course and I wanted to make sure you knew which platforms are worth checking out.
Other Free Tools & Resources
I could sit here all day and tell you about the rest of the tools and resources I’ve tried over the last 5 years, but I want to tell you about the ones I’d use again if I were starting my online business again today. Here are a few:
- Project Planning Platforms:
- Video & Screen Recording Platform:
- Platform to Schedule Podcast Interviews:
- Schedule Social Media Posts:
- Team Communication Tool:
So many amazing tools that I’d love to keep talking about them forever! (#NerdAlert!)
Optional Podcast Services
And last but not least, there are a few optional podcast services that I’ve grown to love!
If you have any questions about any of these tools & resources we’ve talked about here today, don’t hesitate to reach out!
RECAP: If I Started My Online Business from Scratch Today…
- Websites
- Email Service Providers
- Podcast Hosting
- Graphic Design
- Course Platforms
- Other Tools & Resources
- Optional Podcast Tools
Links Mentioned in This Episode:
- Digital Course Masterclass
- The Ultimate Course Creation Starter Kit
- Learn More About Amy Porterfield Here
- Amy’s Quiz: What’s Your Personal Path to Creating a Profitable Digital Course?
- Podcast Monetization: How I Developed My First Idea
- The Ultimate Podcast Checklist
- 9 Ways to Brainstorm Podcast Ideas
- The Poddy Report
- 500+ Podcast Ideas for Any Industry
- Proffitt Podcast Online Community Facebook Group
- TheBestPodcastBook.com
- Facebook Group for Podcast Book Launch Team
- Proffitt Podcasting Course
- Podcast YouTube Channel
- 5-Day Podcast Bootcamp
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