With technology constantly getting better and better, there is both an oversaturation of information and crafty apps to help us deal with it. Here, we’ve put together a list of some programs that will not only save you time by making work more efficient but that will keep you organized and on task:
Evernote is like the stream of consciousness for internet users…or for those that are easily distracted. This app keeps everything — photos, screenshots, links, web article excerpts, etc. — in one place.
You know when you’re online and see 50 things that you want to read, watch, or forward? That hilarious YouTube video. That article that has the stats that would help you with your project. The picture that has the perfect colour scheme for your kitchen remodel. Evernote holds them all and can even attach a reminder or trigger an email alert to remind you of deadlines. You can take notes, create to-do lists, and archive things for later.
It can even read your handwriting in 28 languages, so if you upload a picture of a Post-It, you will be able to find it though the search function. Best of all, you can synch across all of your devices, so you can access your content anywhere.
In short, this app creates some type of organisation in the chaos.
If you’re keeping up with our blog, you may have noticed that G Suite also made our list of top tools for remote teams. This is a great all-around app with a quick and easy way to create spreadsheets, documents, presentations, etc. Google Docs saves loads of time emailing a document back and forth until you and your coworker are annoyed but happy with it.
Instead, you can both edit at the same time and make notes about the changes. And what’s more is that there’s no need to worry about space. Files in Google Docs don’t count against your 15GB of free Google Drive storage. Plus, you can open and export many different types of files. Converting to a new format is a problem of the distant past.
Trello is a very intuitive program designed to oversee project progress. You start by creating “cards” that can represent single tasks with notes attached like priority level or deadlines. Or, they can be checklists with associated files, pictures, and hyperlinks attached. You can even set up your board so that each task falls under a stage, for example, “to-do,” “in progress,” or “done.”
The real fun begins with things like their Cloud Aging feature. To really emphasize the importance of deadlines, cards that haven’t been accessed will start to age — fade, turn yellow, and crack. Your employees will notice them pretty quickly and set to work on the tasks that have been neglected. And, of course, there are loads of third-party services that seamlessly integrate into Trello. Evernote, GIPHY, GitHub, Mailchimp, Salesforce, etc.
Still need a reason to jump onboard the Trello train? How about using the program as a sales tool? Visually move a client through “lead,” “contacted,” “pitched,” and beyond cards as you build your network!
This handy little app connects your web apps so they can share data automatically. What does that mean in English? Well, first you pick a “trigger.” Getting a new Gmail, for example. Zapier will take the attachment in the email and automatically load it to your dropbox and send you a message on Slack about the new item in Dropbox.
With compatibility with over 1,500 apps, you can create automation between any of them! All you have to do is pick the action that will start the process. Think of it like a high-tech Rube Goldberg machine. Think about all of that data entry time you can eliminate by asking Zapier to send GitHub issues to Teamwork as tasks. Data transfer is thoughtless after setting up your Zap.
There are even pre-made templates to accomplish commonly demanded tasks, for example automatically creating Trello cards from new Evernote notes or Google Forms responses. Menial tasks are over. At least the ones in the virtual world.
I only recently discovered IFTT, and I’m looking forward to incorporating into my daily life. The idea of this app is to make all of your apps and devices work together in new ways.
“Not everything on the internet plays nice […],” their website says. For use at work as much as at home, it’s changing lives. With over four stars and 133,348 ratings, I think it’s safe to say that it’s working.
For marketers, consider being able to post one time, and that post spreads to all of your other social media accounts. Or at home, combined with smart light bulbs, your front light will come on automatically when the delivery guy is dropping off dinner.
You can set it up to activate certain events based on your location, too, for example, messaging anyone you share a home with when you are near the grocery store. There’s even a function where you can discreetly trigger a call to yourself and get yourself out of awkward situations or meetings that are dragging on longer than necessary.
Oh, and if you’re really looking to take advantage of the functions, there is a way to trigger the Darth Vader theme song by telling Google Assistant to execute order 66.
Don’t let time get away from you. Try out these apps and see how much time you can put towards planning that holiday trip instead of grunt work the internet can do for you.
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