I’ve included my favorite blogging tools for beginners page to provide a list of the products and services I recommend. I provide links to products, services, and information that will help you earn extra money, build a better blog or website, and find ways to save time and money. This page is also a bit self-serving because I often forget the awesome tools (apps) I use on my smartphone, and online that help me with earning and saving money and time. By setting up this page, I know I can always come back here to find what I’m looking for! I recommend bookmarking this page because I will continue to add to it.
Note: Some of the links below (but not all) are affiliate links where I will earn a commission if you end up making a purchase. As always, I only recommend products and services I use, have experience with or researched and feel that they can be helpful to others. I do not recommend products or services just for the small commission that I may receive if others purchase them. My recommendation to you is to only spend money on products and services that you truly believe will help you with your goals. As we all know, it is easy to empty our pockets on the next shiny object that looks good today, but of no use to us tomorrow!
BLOGGING
WordPress: In my opinion, WordPress is an easy blogging platform to install and use, and is one of my favorite blogging tools for beginners. It has many options to personalize your blog or website any way you want. I often use Wordpress to build websites for paying clients. With so many theme options, both free and paid, you can’t go wrong with WordPress! Check out my post, “Make Money with a WordPress Blog,” to give you step-by-step directions on how to get your blog or website up and running!
Genesis Framework: This blog and oh so many blogs run off of the Genesis Framework. It’s a WordPress foundation to which you then add a Child Theme on top of it. Confusing? I know. Think of it like this…all your customizations will be done on your Child Theme so when there are updates to WordPress, only the underlying framework will be updated, and your Child Theme remains untouched with all your customizations. Some premium themes that run on the Genesis Framework are priced higher because the Framework comes with them. My Child Theme, Modern Pro Blogger, did not come with Genesis so I first purchased Genesis, then added Modern Pro Blogger that I got from Pretty Darn Cute Designs. You purchase Genesis through Studiopress.com. If you like the Themes from Studiopress, you’ll be happy to know that most come with the Genesis Framework.
Bluehost: This is the hosting company I use for my blog. You can get hosting for as low as $2.49/month on their basic plan, AND get a FREE domain name, and 1-click WordPress installation. To learn more and get easy step-by-step installation instructions, visit How To Set Up a WordPress Blog That Makes You Money.
EMAIL SUBSCRIPTIONS/DISTRIBUTION
MailerLite: I now use MailerLite but used Aweber for years. MailerLite is a great email marketing platform for several reasons:
- User-friendly interface: MailerLite has an easy-to-use drag-and-drop editor that allows users to create professional-looking email campaigns without needing technical skills.
- Affordable pricing: MailerLite offers competitive pricing, with a free plan that includes basic features and a paid plan that starts at just $10 per month.
- Advanced automation: MailerLite allows users to automate email campaigns based on triggers and user behavior, such as sending welcome emails, abandoned cart reminders, and follow-up emails.
- Responsive templates: MailerLite provides a variety of responsive email templates that look great on all devices, ensuring that your emails are easily readable on mobile, tablet, and desktop devices.
- A/B testing: MailerLite allows users to test different email campaigns to see which one performs better, allowing users to optimize their email campaigns for higher engagement and conversions.
- Analytics: MailerLite provides detailed analytics that enables users to track email campaign performance and measure metrics such as open rates, click-through rates, and conversion rates. This allows users to continually improve their email campaigns over time.
Overall, MailerLite is a good email marketing platform that offers a range of useful features at an affordable price point.
Aweber: I used Aweber as my email marketing company for years and I can HIGHLY RECOMMEND them. It’s a tool that can be used for collecting email addresses as well as sending out your newsletter. This is one of the most popular of all email subscription platforms. Many internet marketers use and recommend Aweber.
KEYWORD RESEARCH
Google’s Keyword Tool/Google Adwords: Free keyword tool to use for your Adwords advertising campaign or to look up preliminary keyword ideas to get a sense of there is a lot of competition for your keyword or keyword phrase ideas, and a number of searches completed on your keywords.
Keysearch: Keysearch is an excellent keyword research and analysis tool that offers various pricing plans depending on the user’s needs. The starter plan is $24 per month or $240 per year. I’ve been using Keysearch for years and can’t recommend it enough!
IMAGES, FONTS, PHOTOS & MORE
Creative Market: A platform where you can buy digital design goods to use for personal or commercial use. Graphics, photos, fonts, images, templates, themes, and more are offered for sale here. Every week, they give away 6 free “goods!“
Tinypic: Free image and video hosting, and photo sharing.
Canva: Canva is a super easy-to-use design website that lets you create everything from social media posts to presentations. With the free version, you get tons of templates, millions of photos and graphics, 5GB of storage, and all the basic tools you need to get started. If you want to take things up a notch, Canva Pro (about $15/month) gives you access to even more photos, videos, cool features like background remover, extra storage, and AI design tools to help you design faster and look more professional. It’s great whether you’re just starting out or want to create polished designs for work or fun!
Lunapic: Have you ever tried to get rid of the white or colored background around a picture or a logo and didn’t know how to do it? Enter Lunapic.com. This is where you can upload your picture and transform it into a transparent background .png file.
Imageafter: This is a large online free photo collection. You can download and use any image or texture from their site and use it in your own work, either personal or commercial.
Openphoto: The Open Photo Project is a photo sharing platform. Contributors have offered their images free of charge under terms of Creative Commons licensing. License terms and conditions vary from image to image.
Free Stock Photos from Canva: Browse and find your match from Canva Photos—a diverse library of millions of free and premium stock photos and assets you can use all the time.
BONUS RESOURCES TO SAVE YOU MONEY!
WEBSITES & SMARTPHONE APPS TO SAVE YOU MONEY
The Coupons App: The #1 ranked FREE coupons app! I always check my coupons app before shopping at any store to see if there is a deal, freebie or coupon for that particular store. I’ve been able to score free popcorn at the movies, a free Starbucks drink, money off at restaurants and more! Plus, you can see where the cheapest gas is around your local area or if you’re traveling.
The Krazy Coupon Lady: This is definitely the website to check out before doing your grocery shopping–or any shopping for that matter! This is where in-store sales meet coupons. This website does an excellent job of listing many major department stores, grocery chains, dollar stores, discount chain stores and drug stores as well as the sales they are offering for the week. This site tells you what coupons are available in these stores as well. The savings can be huge! Often times you will find deals that are so good, they are free!
Every Dollar Budgeting App: Everyone knows that if you make a monthly budget and stick to it, you have a better chance of getting out of debt and saving more money. Every Dollar is a great website and app that lets you make a simple monthly budget.
Dave Ramsey: Dave Ramsey is a popular money expert who’s all about helping people get out of debt, save smarter, and build wealth. He’s written books and hosts along with other Ramsey personalities, The Ramsey Show, where he and the other hosts answer real-life money questions and shares easy tips to take control of your finances.
You can catch The Ramsey Show podcast on Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, or the Ramsey Network app. The show also airs live on weekdays from 2–5 p.m. ET, and you can even call in to ask your own money questions at 888-825-5225. It’s a great listen if you want straightforward, no-nonsense advice on money!
For a little more about Dave, you can check out my post, “10 Super Easy Ways to Make Money For Christmas Fast: Tips From An Experienced Side Hustler.“
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