There are many different technical resources at our fingertips. Whether you need to simply reach out to someone or sketch out a rough draft for a design, we know it can be overwhelming trying to find the best of the best.
Here at Lightsource, we value the great resources and tools that let us do our jobs day to day. Here are some of the latest tools and resources to help bring your next great idea to life.
This list is in no particular order and is simply curated by the personal preference of the author.
Canva - Freemium
Canva is an easy-to-use online graphic design program. With Canva you can create beautiful slideshows, documents, cards, and more. Canva offers a simple drag-and-drop design tool which helps you, the user, seamlessly jump into the program with little to no help. Canva offers a variety of template offerings, however, you can still use the toolset in your own custom project. Whether you’re creating a Facebook ad or a poster for your next band concert, Canva has templates sized and designed to make your next marketing campaign look stunning.
InVision - Freemium
Second on our list is InVision, created for designers, by designers. InVision lets you effortlessly create simple and interactive mockups and wireframe designs to help plan your next big idea. Since InVision was created by designers, there are a ton of features designers will enjoy, from Adobe and Sketch integration, to easy feedback and handoff features. InVision helps over three million people worldwide design better products.
Slack - Freemium
A list about technologies to use in the workplace without Slack is no list at all. If you’ve done any work in the corporate/business world, Slack is probably a name you’re familiar with. However, for the uninitiated, at its roots Slack is a chat client. Slack lets you create threads keeping work and play separate, while leaving both easily accessible under one hub. For more about how we use Slack, check out another blog post of ours here.
MailChimp - Freemium
MailChimp is one of those brands you see everywhere, but just don’t appreciate enough until you need it. MailChimp is an email marketing platform built for businesses to streamline and make email fun and exciting again. By far, MailChimp’s most widely known feature is their automated email platform, which just like it sounds, can automatically send emails to your clients without you having to do anything. MailChimp also offers an extensive API which can let you connect their services with your own service. With its intuitive drag-and-drop layout and heavy data integration, it’s a no-brainer to put MailChimp on this list.
UNUM - Free
UNUM is a service built for the modern digital era. If you participate in any form of Instagram marketing, UNUM lets you storyboard your feed and helps you create the most #aesthetic feed on The Gram. UNUM allows users to pre-plan posts and draw out campaigns to help grow your audience. If you’re an artist, influencer, designer, or even just an Instagram Stan, UNUM is definitely a tool you want to try out.
LastPass/Password Manager(s) = Freemium
In the era of frequent cyber-attacks, unique and nonintuitive passwords are essential for good security. But keeping track of such passwords can be challenging. LastPass and other password managers help manage your passwords in a secure and user-friendly way. LastPass makes and keeps your passwords in a secure encrypted vault, to make sure that you don’t have to remember or ever worry about those pesky passwords.
Trello - Free
Trello is a fusion of new meets old, in the sense that at its core is a board for lists. However, don’t let that turn you away as, behind the simple lists, you have tools for your team to help organize projects and boost productivity. Trello lets users connect on projects and ideas via lists in real time. You can organize each task in a project down to the most minute scale, and make sure your team is completing all their tasks on time, keeping everyone organized.
G Suite - Starting at $5 a month
Last but definitely not least, we’ve got G Suite. We admit G Suite is kind of cheating, as it helps tie all loose ends regarding workplace collaboration. From Gmail to Drive, G Suite offers tools to create and connect, all in one package. Coming from Google, G Suite is highly trusted, and just keeps getting better over time. Trusted by millions of businesses, try G Suite with your company and you’ll know why it’s so loved.
Of course, these aren’t all the tools out there, and we know there are plenty of great tools that aren’t on our list. Leave your favorite tool in the comments, and we’ll check it out. Who knows, it might even make our next list.