In my line of work, I get asked more times than I can count to recommend products and services to help others. Where is a good place to buy domains and host a website? What’s the best way to access information from anywhere? 

Document Management:

Dropbox - This product is great. You can take whatever you work on from your desktop, and have it automatically sync with the cloud. Then, you can access your files and records from any location at any time. If you have a smartphone or tablet, you can take your files wherever you go. And, if you need to access your files from someone else’s computer, you can always just log-in to the Dropbox website directly for quick access. There are plans that range from free personal accounts to small business pricing starting at only $9.95 a month which makes it very attractive to people and businesses who simply can’t afford enterprise-level prices for their scaled-back needs. 

YouSendIt - This one I really like because of the added features. Like Dropbox, it’s really good for small- or mid-sized businesses. Unlike Dropbox, the pricing structure is simple and cheaper for unlimited storage. But, getting back to the features…there is a toolbar and plug-ins for Outlook and webmail accounts that enable you to send files larger than the standard allowable by the email servers. Plus, there is a feature for smartphones and tablets which allows you to comment on and sign documents too. The best feature is the pricing, however, for if you pay annually, you’ll only pay for 10 months. And, they give you a 14 day free trial to test out the service before you commit to anything.

Communication:

Phone Power – This is what I use in my home office, and I honestly can’t tell the difference between it and a regular old landline. The quality is clear, the features are all there, and I have virtually unlimited business phone service (the cap is at 5,000 minutes). I get notified whenever I get a voicemail left for me and can access my messages using the app on my phone or via the website directly. Compared to the other popular VoIp options (one of which I left to go with this company), this can be a real great deal! 

GoToMeeting (and GoToWebinar) – If you ever had the need to collaborate in real-time with people who you could not gather in person, this is the program for you. It’s used by countless companies for presentations and groupthink, and in my experience (as a participant, not a creator) it is just amazing. Sure, Google Hangouts is free, but nowhere near as powerful, and is limited to 10 people just for starters. With GoToMeeting, you can run meetings from your mobile device and even present from a tablet. There is even a 30 day free trial for you to give it a spin and see if it suits your needs. And, if you are the type that likes or needs to run webinars, GoToWebinar has the same offer for you. 

HootSuite Social Media Management – This is a very powerful tool for anyone with a need to communicate with their audience on different levels and/or from different accounts. Just one company requires at least 3 social profiles (Facebook, Twitter, G+), so if you own or manage several companies or brands, you need something more than a basic tool. One dashboard on a free account holds up to 5 of your social profiles. Sign up for a free 30-day trial of HootSuite Pro and see what happens when you can access all of your profiles in one place at one time. Throw in Google analytics, Facebook insights, advanced scheduling plus everything else the pro version gives you, and you’ll wonder how you functioned without it.

Stamps.com - There are still a ton of people who are not on board the technology train. Because of that, and some privacy issues in a variety of businesses, it’s still necessary to use good old snail mail. If you still have an ongoing need for postage, why would you ever drive to, and wait in line at the post office? 

Marketing:

MycroBurst (Logo Design Guru) - If you need a logo designed or any other custom-designed marketing and have more than a few dollars to budget for it, this is the place to go. You give your suggestions and preferences, then professional designers begin submitting their concepts for your feedback. It’s a total free-for-all with you being the ultimate winner. Not only do you not have to spend thousands of dollars, but you still get submissions from a large number of sources with different ideas and visions. How do you think I got the logo for DollarVersity? 

GoDaddy - Regardless of anything else, this site is awesome for the deals. Where else can you register a domain for $1 (plus fees of course)? Or how about getting an SSL certificate for $5.99 to secure your site? What do you do if you see that a domain has expired and you want to jump on it? You go over to GoDaddy and take advantage of it’s backordering and monitoring system of course. Who cares about what kind of commercials they produce, its business is that of a registrar and they do a pretty good job of it. And you really can’t beat all of the different coupons it offers to help keep your costs low.

Copyblogger Media - Everything you need to build websites all under one roof. Whether you want the ultimate WordPress foundation in the Genesis Framework, or you already have a site and want to turn it into a sales and lead generation monster with Premise for WordPress, or you just want to have a wide array of StudioPress Community Themes to choose from, Copyblogger Media provides it!