The Ultimate Resource List: Tools Every Small Business Should Know About
Running a small business today means juggling marketing, finances, customer relationships, and a hundred other things at once. The good news? There are powerful — and often free or low-cost — tools designed to make life easier for entrepreneurs like you.
We’ve rounded up some of the best platforms across marketing, finance, productivity, and more to help you save time, stay organized, and grow smarter.
📑 Table of Contents
Table of Contents
1. Marketing & Branding Tools
Getting the word out about your business doesn’t have to cost a fortune. These tools help you look professional, stay consistent, and reach more people.
🖌 Canva
An essential design platform for creating everything from social media posts to flyers, business cards, and email graphics. Canva’s free version is packed with templates, and the Pro upgrade offers even more flexibility.
📅 Buffer or Later
Both are excellent for scheduling and managing posts across multiple social media platforms. Stay consistent without spending every day glued to your phone.
📧 Mailchimp or The Newsletter Plugin
Build and maintain customer relationships through newsletters and email campaigns. If your site runs on WordPress, The Newsletter Plugin is a powerful, privacy-friendly option.
📍 Google Business Profile
Every local business should claim its free Google listing. It helps customers find you on Maps, boosts SEO, and adds credibility.
📸 Free Photo Resources: Unsplash, Pexels, & Pixabay
When you need great visuals but don’t have the budget for a photographer, these sites offer free, high-quality photos and videos for commercial use.
✍ Grammarly
Whether it’s a social caption or an email to clients, Grammarly helps you write clearly and confidently.
2. Finance & Accounting Tools
Keeping your finances organized can make or break your business. These platforms simplify bookkeeping, invoicing, and payments so you can focus on growth.
💰 Wave Accounting
A free tool for invoicing, expense tracking, and basic bookkeeping — perfect for freelancers or small businesses just getting started.
📊 QuickBooks Online
A more robust solution for businesses that need full accounting features, payroll, and tax preparation tools.
🧾 FreshBooks
Ideal for service-based businesses. Send invoices, track expenses, and manage projects from one intuitive dashboard.
💳 PayPal Business & Stripe
Reliable, secure payment processors for online or in-person transactions. Both integrate easily with websites and e-commerce platforms.
📚 Bench
If you prefer to hand off bookkeeping entirely, Bench pairs you with real humans who handle your financials each month at an affordable rate.
📈 Google Sheets Templates
For DIY entrepreneurs, free templates on Google Sheets can help you create budgets, track income, or plan cash flow.
3. Productivity & Project Management Tools
Stay on top of deadlines, tasks, and team collaboration with these efficient productivity tools that we’ve included in our resource list.
📋 Trello
A visual way to organize tasks using boards, lists, and cards. Perfect for solo founders or small teams.
📅 Asana or ClickUp
Both are powerful for tracking projects, assigning tasks, and keeping everyone aligned — whether you’re managing two people or twenty.
💼 Zoho
An all-in-one business suite offering everything from CRM and email to project management and accounting. It’s scalable, customizable, and perfect for growing small businesses.
🧠 Notion
Organize ideas, notes, and workflows in one digital workspace. It’s great for creating content calendars, client records, or internal guides.
⏱ Clockify
Track time spent on tasks or projects — ideal for freelancers or anyone who bills by the hour.
💬 Slack
A must-have for team communication. Keep conversations, files, and updates in one place (and out of your inbox).
📂 Google Workspace
The complete productivity suite: Gmail, Docs, Sheets, Meet, and Drive — all synced and easy to share.
4. Customer & Sales Tools
Building relationships with your customers is the foundation of a strong business. These tools make it easier to manage communication, bookings, and transactions.
🤝 HubSpot CRM
A free, powerful customer relationship management system that tracks leads, organizes contacts, and monitors interactions.
🗓 Calendly
Simplify appointment scheduling by letting customers book available time slots without the back-and-forth emails.
📋 Google Forms or Typeform
Collect customer feedback, run surveys, or accept event sign-ups easily with these intuitive form builders.
💳 Square POS
A great point-of-sale system for in-person sales, inventory tracking, and payment processing — ideal for retail shops and mobile vendors.
5. Inspiration & Learning Resources
No matter where you are in your business journey, there’s always more to learn.
📚 SBA Learning Center
Free online courses and guides on starting, managing, and growing your small business.
🤝 SCORE
A nonprofit offering free mentoring, workshops, and templates to help small businesses thrive.
💡 Byztopia Byz Tips
Your go-to source for actionable resources, small business spotlights, and community-driven insights to help you grow smarter.
🎓 YouTube
It’s free, vast, and surprisingly effective — from SEO tutorials to marketing strategies, you can find lessons on just about anything.
Final Thoughts
Running a business is challenging enough — you don’t have to do it alone or from scratch. These tools exist to help you simplify, automate, and elevate what you do best.
Bookmark our ultimate resource list, share it with other entrepreneurs, and keep exploring more helpful resources on Byztopia’s Byz Tips.
