Putting a firm’s many components together can seem daunting if you’re a first-time founder.
Managing customer service, financials, project scheduling, team communications, and more is necessary when starting a firm.
Fortunately, like in many other areas of the IT industry, other companies have already done the legwork for you by creating a variety of tools to make your life simpler while putting a product together. Many of these are either cost-free or reasonably priced.
I have gone above and beyond to compile a list of tools that some of the top entrepreneurs and team members recommend. So, without further due, let us take you into it.
Communication Tools for Startups
Startups are rushing to implement online communication and collaboration tools as a result of an increase in remote employment. With online video conferencing and in-person meetings, technology has made interacting with colleagues and clients simpler and more accessible than ever. There are several collaboration options to think about for your startup, whether you wish to connect through PC software or a mobile application. Here are our top picks:
1. Slack
Slack is a team collaboration and group messaging platform that promises to streamline business communication. Text Linking, Public discussions, closed groups, direct messaging, deep contextual search, message archiving, and file sharing are among the features. Slack connects to numerous other programs, including MailChimp, Dropbox, and Google Drive.
Slack provides both free and paid plans, with subscription versions offering more features and greater control.
Pricing:
- Free Plan: $0
- Pro Plan: $6.67
- Business plus: $12.50
- Enterprise Grid: Custom Price
2. Microsoft Teams
Microsoft Teams helps bring individuals together so that they can be productive together. Google Teams The only software that combines calendars, files, tasks, meetings, video calls, and conversations in one location. Bring ideas to life by connecting with coworkers quickly over a video call or group chat.
Work together on documents in private meetings, video calls, built-in cloud-based storage, and collaboration. All of it is possible with Microsoft Teams.
Pricing:
- Free Plan: $0 – one on one meetings up to 30 hours.
- Microsoft teams Essentials: $4 per user per month.
3. Google Meet
Google Meet (formerly hangout meets) is a smart video conferencing software for businesses globally. As Google Meet and Google Workspace are fully connected, you get the flexibility to attend meetings right from a Calendar event or email invitation. If you’re joining from a laptop, phone, or conference room, all the crucial event information is there when you need it.
Pricing:
- Google Meet Free
- Google Workspace Individual: $7.99/month
- Google Workspace Enterprise: As this is a custom plan, you need to contact the support staff to get the quotation.
4. Zoom
Similar to Google Meet, Zoom is a video conferencing platform. Group meetings are limited to 40 minutes with the free plan, but one-on-one video calls can be as long as you like. They offer optional add-ons, such as hosting webinars, as well as subscription packages with more features like the ability to record the meet.
Participants don’t have to create an account in order to join a Zoom meeting, but hosts do need one to create meetings and send out invitations.
Pricing:
Zoom’s most basic plan is free; the most premium plan can go up to thousands of dollars. Zoom has vast options for all business needs. If you wish to check them, Here is the link to their Pricing Window.
Brainstorming Tools for Startups
By using brainstorming tools, team members may come up with successful solutions more quickly and efficiently, which increases accountability and motivation. Below is a list of the finest brainstorming tools for your startups that you can use to collaborate with your team wherever they are and on whatever device they like because it’s more than just pen and paper now.
5. Coggle
Coggle lets you make and share mind maps and flow charts with a breeze. As it is available as a browser extension, you don’t need to download any additional software. Coggle enables startups to connect and chat with their team members in real-time while taking organized notes during brainstorming sessions.
Coggle’s freemium version makes it ideal for startups that don’t have a lot of extra cash to spend.
Pricing:
- Free Forever: $0
- Awesome Plan: $5/month
- Organization Plan: $8/member/month
6. MindMeister
Startups can utilize Mindmeister to comprehend and draw connections between ideas, concepts, and data. Other than mind mapping, Mindmeister has several uses, such as to-do list creation, project planning, designing timelines, and brainstorming.
Pricing:
- Basic Plan: Free
- Personal Plan: $2.49/month
- Pro Plan: $4.19/month
- Business Plan: $6.29/month
SEO and Keyword Research Tools for Startups
Every online firm has to know what interests its potential clients. This way, firms can integrate those keyword(s) in their content which will eventually increase visitors and rank higher on SERPs. SEO, on the other hand, ensures that whatever keywords you are targeting are optimized well. In order to gain an advantage from the beginning, we recommend going for premium SEO tools that can do keyword research too. Here are our top picks.
7. Semrush
Semrush is a comprehensive toolset for increasing online presence and learning about marketing trends. Marketing professionals who operate in the following services can benefit from SEMrush: Search Engine Optimization, Pay Per Click, Social Media Marketing, Keyword research, competitive spying, content marketing, marketing insights, and campaign management.
Pricing:
- Pro plan: $119.95/month
- Guru Plan: $229.95/month
- Business Plan: $449.95/month
Pro Tips:
- Check our post here to save up to $200 on your SEMrush purchase.
- Also, get a 30-day free SEMrus trial by clicking here.
8. Ahrefs
Ahrefs is a common SEO tool used by marketers around the globe to improve their Google ranks. Tools for backlink building, keyword research, spying on competitors, rank tracking, and site audits are all included in Ahref’s comprehensive SEO package. The majority of Ahrefs’ features were created with marketers in mind.
We use Ahrefs and SEMrush to perform our keyword research and SEO audits. We wouldn’t recommend anything to you that we won’t use ourselves.
Here is how much Ahrefs Costs:
- Lite Plan: $99/month
- Standard Plan: $199/month
- Advanced Plan: $399/month
- Enterprise Plan: $999/month
Pro Tips:
- Are you confused between Ahrefs and SEMrush? Click here to check our unbiased comparison.
- Is there any Ahref’s 7-day free trial available?
9. Answer The Public
AnswerThePublic is a platform that monitors search engine autocomplete data and rapidly generates every useful phrase and query people are making around your keywords. The best aspect is that you can utilize the tool for basic search insights for free; however, subscription plans will yield superior outcomes. Its free version is ideal for very basic keyword research and newbies.
Pricing:
- Pro Monthly: $99/month
- Pro Annual: $948
- Expert Plan: $199/month
Email Marketing Tools for Startups
Sending material to your email list is a very effective marketing strategy for businesses. We aren’t shooting arrows in darkness; it is what the statistics say. It is inexpensive, enables you to learn more about your audience, and guarantees that you can spread your message widely. Here are our top picks for email marketing tools that can benefit your startup:
10. SendInBlue
Sendinblue includes email marketing tools and other capabilities like building landing pages and managing client relationships. Sendinblue’s email design features make it simple to produce a beautiful email with their selection of over 70 design templates. Additionally, each of these templates is responsive, and you can examine the results before publishing to be sure your design will appear as you intend it to on any screen size. You can also A/B test to eliminate the guesswork involved in campaign optimization and audience targeting.
Pricing:
- Free plan: $0
- Lite Plan: Starting from $25/month
- Premium Plan: Starting from $65/month
- Enterprise Plan: As this is a customized plan, you need to contact their customer support.
11. Hubspot Email Marketing Software
HubSpot Email Marketing’s free version can be utilized to send thank you emails post purchases, or simply get existing campaigns to more people’s inboxes. It is also a very simple tool to use, even for newbies. The tool also has a convenient drag-and-drop visual editor and ready-made templates that will help you get going immediately.
The natural integration of HubSpot Email Marketing with other HubSpot technologies, including the lifetime free Customer Relationship Management software, is what sets the tool apart.
Pricing:
Hubspot’s Email Marketing tool comes with the Hubspot marketing suite. Here is the pricing of the same.
12. Moosend
Moosend offers Startups an economical solution for email marketing. Using one of Moosend’s many tailor-made email templates or designing your own, you can conveniently and easily build an email newsletter and adjust the email format to match your brand’s identity.
You can analyze important metrics like email opening rate, clicks, bounce rates, number of products viewed, transactions, and even demographics data with Moosend. The platform also lets you perform A/B testing.
Pricing:
- Free Trial for 30 days
- Pro Plan: Starting from $9/month up to $5840/month.
- Enterprise Plan: As this is a custom plan, you need to contact Moosend’s customer support for the quotation.
Website Builders for Startups
The initial step is to find a website builder to build a professional website for your business. Not all Startups necessarily have the time and resources for scripting out a whole website that can scale with the business. A drag-and-drop website builder may be quite helpful in this situation. Here are our top picks.
13. WordPress
WordPress isn’t strictly a website builder because it’s a content management system (CMS). Still, there are a variety of tools that can be integrated with WordPress that can offer a drag-and-drop experience.
WordPress may be an excellent platform for a variety of Startups with technological experience. The platform has the ability to make websites load quickly, many of the themes are responsive, and free hosting.
Pricing:
- Personal Plan: $4/month
- Premium Plan: $8/month
- Business Plan: $25/month
- eCommerce Plan: $45/month
14. Shopify
One of the most popular options for eCommerce companies of all sizes is Shopify. Shopify has all the tools you need to launch an online store because it is completely focused on becoming an eCommerce platform. So, Shopify is the way to go if you are an E-commerce startup.
Fun Fact – over 5.7 million websites have been made using Shopify to date.
Shopify offers numerous plans and service tiers to fit a range of budgets, with options starting at $19 per month. Shopify also has free hosting included on all its plans.
Pricing:
Basic Plan: €19/month
Shopify Plan: €49/month
Advanced Plan: €259/month
- You can claim 14 day Shopify trial here.
15. Wix
Wix will assist users in creating startup websites the way they want them to be without having to learn how to code. Wix has capabilities that are beneficial for practically any company endeavor, even if you work in a highly technical industry.
Wix is a fantastic option for many small companies and startups, whether you want to design a website for your online store or need a terrific builder to help you present your portfolio. Wix has free domain hosting on all its plans.
Pricing:
- Business Basic Plan: $27/month
- Business Unlimited Plan: $32/month
- Business VIP Plan: $59/month
Social Media Marketing Tools for Startups
Using the power of Social Media to market your startup can be an effective way to gain maximum impressions and enhance sales. Here are some tools that can help you in Social Media Marketing:
16. Canva
Several people and businesses use Canva to create social media posts, infographics, Twitter headers, Facebook advertisements, Instagram posts, and many other things. You can create various aesthetically attractive materials with the help of a library with more than a million fonts, photos, and icons.
Its user interface is quite simple to operate. You can choose a template or start from scratch using their drag-and-drop tools. Canva also lets you design logos which is great!
Pricing:
- Free Plan: $0 — Read more about Canva Pro vs free comparison.
- Pro Plan: Starting from $119.99/year to $2819.99/year. The pricing is subject to the number of users. It also has the option to customize.
- Use these Canva Coupon codes to save more on Canva Pro.
- Enterprise Plan: $1500/month (Limited to 50 people)
17. Buzzsumo
The research phase of social media marketing is vital. You need to know what your rivals are doing and whether your actions are effective if you want to succeed and beat them out.
Buzzsumo can tell you how well your material is performing and who is sharing it. Some of the main uses of Buzzsumo include finding the material that is shared the most on social media platforms and locating relevant influencers to your startup.
Pricing:
- Free Plan: $0
- Pro Plan: $99/month
- Plus Plan: $179/month
- Large Plan: $299/month
18. Hootsuite
With Hootsuite, you can assign tasks, create a social media calendar, and schedule posts. You can also see all the comments and mentions across your social media handles in one location. Hootsuite also offers free SMM courses to improve your social media management abilities and understand the basics of social media marketing. Check some of the reliable HootSuite alternatives here.
Hootsuite integrates with Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Reddit, YouTube, and other social media platforms, providing a detailed overview of your metrics and enabling you to communicate with potential clients.
Pricing:
- Hootsuite lets you try all its plans for free before making a purchase. Its Basic paid plan starts from $49/month.
Sales Tool for Startups
As a marketer, you know that a startup’s ability to create enough sales determines whether it will succeed in surviving, expanding, and attracting financing. According to Stats, 90% of Startups fail, most of which is due to poor sales. To avoid such a scenario, you need a good sales tool. Here are our top picks for you:
19. Clearbit
For the benefit of sales teams, Clearbit provides a number of unique but connected products. For instance, you can quickly locate anyone’s email address with the free sales intelligence tool Clearbit Connect. Clearbit not only aids in lead generation but also helps in relationship building by providing details about the person and the business next to every chat in Gmail.
Pricing:
Clearbit’s plans are decided on volume and the packages and add-ons. They tailor plans to best fit business needs. In order to get a quotation, users need to contact Clearbit’s customer support.
20. LinkedIn Sales Navigator
LinkedIn Statistics says that When it comes to closing deals, LinkedIn Sales Navigator results in a seven percent higher win rate and provides a +18 percent pipeline in finding customers.
With the help of this premium feature, you can use LinkedIn to boost your sales. With the aid of Sales Navigator, you are also able to interact with prospects via customized outreach messages, target the appropriate leads, and keep up with business news and title changes.
Pricing:
- Core Plan: $99.99/month and $959.88/yearly.
- Advanced Plan: LinkedIn offers a free trial for the first month and charges around $100 per month for this plan.
- Advanced Plus Plan: This plan is very high-end and needs you to contact LinkedIn’s customer support for the quotation.
Content Marketing Tools for Startups
Content is the king in SEO. If you wish to rank higher on search engines, you must post good quality content on your website. When all the keyword research is done, and you need to write content, you will need help from these awesome content tools:
21. Grammarly
When you write a piece of content and paste it into Grammarly, it guides you through a number of potential grammar issues in that content. The tool provides a brief and detailed explanation for each problem it finds.
These explanations feature examples of proper grammar. However, Grammarly won’t compel you to make any particular modifications; it’s up to you. If you disagree with the suggested modifications, you can discard them.
A human eye can miss some minute errors; Grammarly AI finds each and everyone and makes the content grammatical error free. It is a great proofreading tool that we use and highly recommend to our users.
Pricing:
- Free Plan: $0
- Premium Plan: Starting at $24/month
- Business Plan: Starting at $25/member/month
Get an awesome discount on your favorite Grammarly Plans with our Grammarly Coupon Code.
22. Jasper AI
- Claim 10,000 Words copy free and get the Jasper Free Trial.
Jasper is an AI-powered writer that helps people create content 5x faster. It runs on a sophisticated autoregressive language model. It can give out content with just a few keywords. All you have to do is select your use case and enter keywords or phrases for it. E.g., If you select ‘Social media caption’ as the use case and enter keywords such as ‘coffee mugs and rains,’ Jasper AI will give you an enticing caption for your social media handle in a few seconds.
Similarly, Jasper can be used in multiple scenarios such as generating Youtube descriptions, blog writing, blog re-writing, author bios, and more.
The content given out is plagiarism-free and SEO optimized in most cases. You can check the Full review done by our writer after using the tool for a year. It is a great tool to automate your content-creating process.
Pricing:
- Starter Plan: Starting at $29/month.
- Boss Mode Plan: Starting at $59/month
- Business Plan: As this is a custom plan, you need to contact Jasper’s customer support to get the quotation
23. Surfer SEO
Surfer SEO is a tool intended to assist with optimizing written content for search engines, such as blog posts and articles. It operates by comparing a page’s content to “500+ on-page” signals. As Surfer SEO will evaluate 500 distinct parameters across the top 10 results on page one of the search engine with your website, you will get accurate, data-driven information on what is currently effective for your written content.
Surfer will tell you if you need to reduce or increase your content’s length, how many images to put in your blog, are the number of headings is satisfactory, and much more. Let your intuition and Surfer work together to get the best out of your written content. You also get a keyword research feature!
Pricing:
- Basic Plan: $49/month
- Pro Plan: $99/month
- Business Plan: $199/month
Honorable Mentions
These are some other honorable mentions in the list of — the best startup tools.
24. Google Business Suite
Team members may work together in real-time on the same document using Google Suite. On Docs, Sheets, and Slides, your team members will be able to communicate, work concurrently, and make required adjustments by commenting and editing.
The best part is that it’s completely free. Write your content in Google Docs (Instead of Microfost Word), Track your data and stats in Google Sheets (Instead of Microsoft Excel), and much more.
It is the most primary yet the most useful among all the tools in this list. We use it daily and can’t imagine our workflow without it.
25. Pexels
Designers, bloggers, and anyone seeking visuals will find fantastic photographs and clips on Pexels. These images can then be downloaded and used without charge. Simply download the image or clip you like without any restrictions if you see it.
Conclusion: Best Startup Tools In (2023)
Startups will need to become more digital, linked, and operationally effective in the coming era of digitization. Due to this, entrepreneurs rapidly realize that they need to use new digital solutions to solve these pain points and cut down on tedious, time-consuming tasks to prevent being overwhelmed.
Each tool on this list was carefully and thoughtfully chosen after much research. We hope you get the most out of them and get your startup the status it deserves.
