Resources to help you

I’ve compiled some great resources for you to help you be productive & successful. Some of these have affiliate links, but only to the companies I USE and recommend!

Terms of Service & Privacy Policy Generators

With the event of GDPR as of May 25th, 2018 EVERY website must have a Privacy Policy. Even if you do not directly do business with the EU.  If SEO is important to you or if you have PPC ads with say, Google, then you will need a Privacy Policy for that reason.  This document should also have a Cookie Policy.

If you sell ANYTHING on your site you’re required by most payment gateways to have a Terms of Service Policy clearly on your site.

• Termageddon – This is the company I use for my PP and TOG. I highly recommend them! They cover GDPR AND CCPA compliance both are important for businesses to be compliant for these days.
• Low Cost (how good is it?) Privacy Policy Generator – http://getterms.io/
• Termsfeed Free Terms of Service & Privacy Policy Generator
• CCPA free Privacy Policy template

Software / Services

• Backblaze – keep your computer backed up off-line for as little as $6 a month per computer. This has been a real life saver for me.  Even if you back up to an external hard drive, they can fail too!  Believe me it happened to me several years ago.
• Lastpass – Password Manager. FREE and Pro versions.  Most people’s websites and online accounts are hacked because they use weak and overused passwords. But how do we remember all these complex passwords – right?  This is a way to generate and securely store all your passwords.  The Pro version lets you use it on your phone & tablet too for only $36 a YEAR. I couldn’t function with out this!
• NewOldStamp – branded email signatures. This is what I use and I love it! SO many great options and features. Create Branded Email Signatures for All Employees in Few Minutes. It’s More than Email Signature Generator.
• MissingLettr – automatically turns your blog posts into engaging social media campaigns. I use this for my blog and really see a boost in my posts from it. Depending on the focus of your blog, you probably should be reposting regularly. If not, very few people are actually reading it!
• Dropbox– File sharing and syncing.  Great for sending large files and sending files securely.  I have the Pro version, but most can get away with the free version.
• Zoom – Video Chat at its best! Easy, reliable cloud platform for video and audio conferencing, chat, and webinars across mobile, desktop, and room systems.
• Microsoft Office365 Premium – Suite of apps. Access and sync email, files, booking feature and much more! Online and desktop access.

Software / Services – Free!

• Awesome Screenshots – Screenshot app. This is my go-to screenshot program. It has a plugin for most browsers.
• Name Ideas Generator- is a FREE tool that suggests possible domain names based on the keywords you enter. Voila’!
• PDFill Free PDF & Image Writer– this is my go-to PDF maker.
• Evernote– Organize your notes, projects, ideas, to-do lists and more! I use Microsoft OneNote because it comes with MS Office 365, but Evernote is a great, free alternative! Keep all your notes in one searchable location, with categories, images, and web-clipping capabilities.
• FileZilla– A good basic FTP (file transfer protocol) program for moving files to and from your website host.

Email Services

• Office 365 – This is a must for most businesses.  You can get your email easily from anywhere and sync it with all your devices. And it comes with all the software I need such as Word, Excel and OneNote (which I can’t live without)
• Google Email for Business

Domain Registrar & Whois Lookup

These are some companies I recommend to register a domain name.  But I most importantly DO NOT recommend GoDaddy under any circumstances any longer!

• https://domains.google – YES!  Google offers domains AND custom email services!  Privacy is INCLUDED with each domain registered or transferred to them.  Yahoo!
• https://www.hover.com – highly recommended AND they offer email service too.  Privacy is INCLUDED with each domain registered or transferred to them.
• https://namechk.com – find not only domain names, but any social media names that may be available too
• https://www.namecheap.com/ – very good company.
• https://whois.icann.org/en – go straight to the issuer of ALL domains. This is a safe place to see if a domain name you want is available or not.

SEO Resources

• Google’s Startup Guide for SEO
• How Search Engines Work by Google’s Matt Cutts (Youtube Video)
• Google Analytics Official website

Stock Photo Resources

• http://depositphotos.com
• http://www.istockphoto.com
• https://pixabay.com – FREE photos you can use anywhere
• http://www.bigstockphoto.com
• http://www.canstockphoto.com
• http://www.dreamstime.com

Trademark & Copyright Info

• The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) http://www.uspto.gov/
• The Library of Congress – U.S. Copyright Office http://lcweb.loc.gov/copyright

last updated 02/04/2020