There's an app for that
The process of finding tools
Heads up: Next week is the final Process Report! Definitely bittersweet, and I’m proud of myself for letting this be a limited-run project.
I’m the go-to person for tool recommendations in some of my circles.
Maybe it’s the former VP of Operations in me, but few things bring me more joy in business than having supportive tools in place.
Here’s how I find them:
Product Hunt
Product Hunt (PH) is a platform whose sole purpose is to help you find the latest tech products. People “hunt” new products every day. l go through phases where I check PH daily. Other times, I’ll use the search functionality to look for a specific type of tool (e.g., course software or survey builder.)
AppSumo
Tech companies use AppSumo to validate their product idea by getting their initial customers. You’ll find lifetime software deals and deeply discounted subscriptions on the platform. I recently subscribed to CastMagic via AppSumo, and I’m obsessed.
The only downside of AppSumo is that these early stage businesses might change their business model or go out of business entirely.
G2 and Capterra
G2 and Capterra are like Yelp for software. You can read reviews from real customers. The real benefit is that both platforms also automatically link to competitors, making discovery a breeze.
Google
There are three ways I use Google when I’m searching for a tool.
Search [popular tool]. See if any ads or content from competitors pop up in the results.
Search [popular tool] + alternative/competitor.
Search for specific functionality. For example, I knew a brand built a white-labeled mobile app on top of the course software, Kajabi. I couldn’t figure out what tool they used to make that possible. So I Googled “Kajabi app builder” and found VidApp.
Being nosy
As a consumer, I’m always mindful of what tools brands use. That’s how I found Webflow, my preferred website builder and countless other tools.
BuiltWith makes it easy to see what tools a brand integrates into its website. I’m also a fan of the good ole right click + “view page source” to check out a website’s code.
A word of caution
I’ll end with a word of caution. Don’t let tools give you shiny penny syndrome. Seek tools because you need them, not because they’re trending. It’s all too easy to let a tool upend systems and processes that still work for you. Yes, I’m speaking from personal experience here…