Must-Have Tools to Scale Your Online Business to 6 Figures
If you’ve been around here for a while, you know I love talking about tools and organizational systems so in this post, I can’t wait to share with you some of my top tools to help scale your online business.
I’m going to dive into the specific platforms that you should be implementing in your business if scaling your service-based business to 6+ figures is on your goal list for this year.
Project Management
While there are quite a few different tools out there for you to choose from, if you know me, you know I love ClickUp. The flexibility that this program has, whether you’re a solopreneur or CEO, is unbeatable!
You want to make sure that you start using a tool that can grow with you because the last thing you want is to start on one platform and then have to move things over — talk about a headache!
Your project management tool is where all of the tasks and projects for your business are going to live, so it’s crucial to have some form of project management tool, whether that’s Asana, Trello, ClickUp or another popular option.
The reason that it’s so important is because are you are growing your company and team, you need a place to create these different projects and assign them to your team.
And like I said before, even if it’s just you in your business right now, you will eventually have someone else come in, likely a virtual assistant to start.
CRM — Customer Relationship Management Tool
My all-time favorite CRM (customer relationship management tool) is Dubsado, and this is where all of my client-related materials are kept.
In a CRM, you can keep contracts, proposals and invoices, and you’ll have them all in one place to refer back to.
Remember — this is not a project management tool so you don’t want the tasks for your clients to live here! You only want to collect their data, send proposals and contracts.
Plus, the great thing about Dubsado is that you can automate your entire on-boarding process from the time the client inquires about your services to the time that you have you on-boarding call.
File Management
The next thing you really need is some form of file management solution. You can use Google Drive or Dropbox, which are the two most popular options, and they enable you to keep all of your files in one place.
As you begin to scale your business, you need to make sure that you are staying organized and productive, and there’s no better way to do that than with a totally organized file management system.
A Scheduling Tool
In order for clients to book calls with you, and for you to book calls with other people, you’re going to need some form of scheduling tool.
The great thing about a tool like this is you can input your availability and the potential/current client can select a time that works for them. This eliminates all of the back and forth via email.
My favorite is Acuity for the flexibility, but you can also use Dubsado if you are using that as your CRM since they have a scheduling tool built in.
A Password Management Tool
If you need to share passwords with your team or your clients need to share passwords with you, you’re going to need a password management tool. This is the best option so you don’t have to share the actual passwords. Instead, you can use a tool like LastPass; this will give them access to the different programs but it won’t share the actual password with them.
Plus, this will help you to keep organized at all times, and you’ll never have to waste time and cause confusion by resetting your passwords.
Communication
For communication with my team, I use a combination of Slack and ClickUp. All of the communication that happens in Slack for my business is regarding items that need immediate attention.
ClickUp is used to communicate about specific tasks and projects, as you can add comments to those projects within this tool. We use this when something doesn’t need immediate attention.
As you begin to scale your business and hire more team members, having clear communication methods is key to the success of your business.
Zapier
As you begin the process of scaling your service-based business, you’re going to want to automate many aspects so you can get your time back. Why spend time doing tasks manually when you don’t have to, right?
Zapier is a program that integrates two or more platforms together that aren’t natively connected; this allows the two programs to talk to each other in the background.
For example, when a new client signs on to work with you, you can have them complete a form in Dubsado and it will create a task in ClickUp and a folder in Google Drive — pretty cool, right?
When working with my clients inside of Six-Figure Service, we aim to automate at least 50% of their business but the more we can hand over to the robots, the better!
Bonus Tools — Optional Extras You May Want to Use
You will need a checkout tool of some sort to collect payments, so personally, I like to use ThriveCart. ThriveCart has a lot of flexibility and with creating different types of products, collecting payments on different plans and has a robot affiliate software, if you ever choose to go down that route.
Airtable is another fantastic tool I love to use for different things like content creation, data tracking and client management. If you love using spreadsheets, you will LOVE Airtable!
Kajabi is another one of my favorite tools and that’s because it’s an all-in-one marketing tool! It keeps everything in one place and makes it really easy to simplify all aspects of your online business. From creating landing pages to your website, email marketing and more, Kajabi handles it all for you!
Remember, you don’t need to use a ton of tools and overcomplicate things. You just need to focus on the main tools I mentioned above to start the scaling process in your business.
Plus, when you join Six-Figure Service, I give you tons of templates and tips for using the tools I mentioned above. On top of that, I also review ALL of your tools after you set them up to make sure they’re done correctly!
If you’re ready to scale your service-based business to 6+ figures so you can work <20 hours/week, Six-Figure Service™ is the best option for you! This is my high touch, group coaching program where I show you how to turn your service-based biz into an agency model. Apply now!
Plus, when you apply for Six-Figure Service, you’ll get access to my private, advanced training that shows you how to create $100K+ in the next 12 months with my 5-part, S.C.A.L.E. Method framework for FREE! Click here to complete a 2 question application.
ABOUT STEPH BLAKE
After more than 10 years in corporate marketing, Steph decided that she was ready to go full force in her virtual assistant biz to help other entrepreneurs automate & organize the backend.
The end result? $10K+ months, completely booked out & ready to teach other women to do the same thing!
What began as a tiny dream to eventually help other moms stay home with their kids, turned into an obsession that she’s fully invested in as a business coach.
Today, she helps service providers scale their service-based business to 6+ figures while working less than 20 hours/week!
Steph also has an insane obsession with Chipotle & Amazon Prime. She lives outside of Chicago with her husband, little boy and pup!
Note: A few of the links mentioned above are affiliate links. If you sign up for the program via these links, I will receive a small commission at no additional charge to you.
