As a startup marketing agency we have the strength of having no ties to any legacy tech/business ecosystems. Unlike my roommate working for a large agency across the street, upgrading our Internet Explorer license will never be an issue. We can jump from platform to platform as they compete and improve ensuring our clients stay on the cutting edge. It also keeps billings low without any built in all in marketing suite charges. We wanted to share our current favorites.
Google Business Apps/Chrome OS/Android We are a Google agency through and through for our general productivity apps like email, spreadsheets, and docs. We can access them seamlessly on all of our various devices, but far more importantly is the ease of collaboration within our team and often with clients too. As a huge bonus Google’s Search DNA makes organization and the ability to search for any email, doc, or file automatic.
Chromecast We recently began using Chromecast as a valuable screen sharing tool. We got tired of twisting our laptops around or sliding over to look at each other’s screens, so we decided to make it happen. Now, when we’re working on daily tasks, we can all take a look at the tv screen and collaborate as a whole. It’s also very beneficial to office culture watching the occasional youtube clip. (We also host quarterly Google Partners Events where we cast a presentation from Google that is open to interested clients).
Trello/Slack When we do need some formal organization we group everything by client or business function in Trello. Trello is a free web-based project management app that is helpful when it comes to organization. Matchnode uses this application to keep track of client to-do lists, update leads in the pipeline, take notes on client weekly and bi-weekly calls, and jot down ideas that come through our minds on how to improve the company. The cards and labels allow us to keep track of things in an organized manner all within one single account. Their mobile app allows for quick notes on the go. Slack has been a runaway success unicorn in this space, and while we were intrigued upon trying it, it is yet to unseat Trello in our org.
LastPass Enterprise Managing a million passwords for both clients and yourself is a pain in the ass. Managing them securely without an outside program is nearly impossible. LastPass solves the password problem for teams, providing a centralized, cost-effective password management and SSO solution. The software is easy to install and after your password site management is set up, you will begin to reap the benefits of this tool.
Unbounce Marketers can’t always wait for developers to launch new landing pages. Unbounce is by far the easiest, quickest way for a non-coding, non-photoshop-pro to launch multiple versions of beautiful mobile responsive pages. Its so easy, we built our first company website using the platform. A great feature on Unbounce is the ability to capture your leads and then send them to your email list whether it be in Mailchimp or Constant Contact, which then allows you to send out campaigns or autoresponders for lead development. (Note: In the coming weeks Matchnode will be releasing a case study using Unbounce to create pages for our client, New Balance Shoes.)
Optimizely When we are optimizing/testing existing pages, Optimizely is our go-to testing platform. You can quickly drop in, move, and change elements of any page. Their analytics are detailed and dummy proof to find statistically significant winners.
Google Tag Manager Waiting on a developer to drop in small piece of tracking code is inefficient at best and at worst just doesn’t work. More importantly Google now recommends Tag Manager as the standard method to deploy Google Analytics. Plus the “Listener” tools make it super easy to create Events in Google Analytics for things like Submitted Forms, Specific Clicks on Elements and Outbound Link Clicks.
KissMetrics Too often marketers forget the “Who” in their analytics analysis. Kiss assigns a user ID to website visitors so you can track people instead of generic web hits. A basic Kiss implementation is only a few lines of code and more detailed API’s can be added with Google Tag Manager.
Pocket Finally, how does a small team keep growing its tool set? A lot of reading. Pocket allows us to quickly save articles or videos from twitter and around the web to share and read later. A great perk of Pocket is its’ Chrome Extension button, which allows you to easily save for a later read. Once it’s saved in your pocket, it’s on your phone, tablet or computer. You don’t need an internet connection.
Odesk This freelancer website has been a part of our business from the beginning. When Matchnode first started out, Odesk was used to find work with new clients, even if it was only small projects. Although we have grown our client base and have moved away from that approach, we still use it today to hire freelancers for web development, graphic design needs around other small tasks. If you are interested in learning more about how we can use these types of tools to help your business contact us at info at matchnode.com.