How to Know When to Invest In a Tool for Your Business

Knowing when to stay on the free plan and when it's time to upgrade to the paid plan of a tool (like Asana/Trello, Zapier, Acuity/Calendly) can be tricky.

Even trickier -- when is it time to switch away from free tools to a tool that is only paid?

Today I'm sharing how I go about thinking through this decision with my clients and for my own business. If you're wondering if now is the time to start paying for a tool, listen in.

Click below to listen to this week's episode:

In today's episode:

How to decide when you should upgrade to the paid plan
When to stay on the free plan
How to know if an app or tool is working for you
Why I decided to take the plunge and invest in an (almost) all-in-one solution

Resources that were discussed:

Project & Task Management tools - Asana and Trello*
Scheduling Apps - Calendly and Acuity Scheduling* (Squarespace users - you can get the Emerging Entrepreneur plan on Acuity for free. Here’s how to connect your accounts.
Customer Relationship Management (and Project Management) Apps for Creatives - Dubsado* and Honeybook*
Collect Signatures - Hello Sign, DocuSign, PandaDoc
Make your own integrations & automations - Zapier

Ready to let go of the client management overwhelm?

Dubsado is the tool to you need! And I'm walking you through a complete setup in one day. Join me on March 15th as we work through all the features, how to use them in your business, and setting up your own account so you can start accepting more clients and getting booked faster.

Give me all the details!

Today's Permission Slip:

Each episode I give you a permission slip - a reminder to give yourself permission to run your business and live your dream life on your own terms.

Today I want you to take advantage of those free trials before you purchase a software. They are there for you to test out the app to see if it will work for you and your business. USE THAT TIME!

And if you need a little extra time, reach out to support to see if they can give you an extension! I don’t think I’ve ever actually been turned down when I asked for an extension.

I give myself permission to use the free trial before I purchase any new software or apps for my business.

Let’s Connect

If we aren't already friends, I'd love to get to know you! The absolute best place to do that is on Instagram. I hang out there pretty much all the time. I'm @chelseabfoster. Come say hi!

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Hey there! I’m Chelsea.

I empower creatives, bloggers, and coaches break the cycle of overwhelm and burnout, and scale beyond their dreams so they can step into that lifestyle of freedom they actually want and truly deserve--and they can do it right now.

As a former teacher, my goal is always to help you understand how to do it on your own and how different techniques, strategies, and tools apply to you and your business. There is no one right way to run a successful business!

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