13: 7 Tools to Use to Bootstrap Your Business

When you’re just starting out it can be scary to invest in a lot of new tools to run your business, especially when you’re just figuring out what platforms you really need and what strategies are most effective for those just getting started!

Thankfully, I’ve searched high and low to find the best free tools for those of you who are not ready to make a big investment (after all – I want your business to be profitable and sustainable!!) I’ve seen too many new coaches sink money into tools they don’t need or are more complicated than what they really need.

Here are 7 free or low cost tools to help you get leads, book clients, and make money in your business!

Calendly – An appointment scheduler with a free version to help you set your availability to book discovery calls and client calls. You can upgrade the service if you want to integrate a payment processor or create multiple types of appointments but the free version is plenty to get you started. It syncs with Google and Apple Calendars.

Google Forms – A form creation tool that you can use to create application forms for new clients. Before you get on discovery calls with potential clients you’ll be able to collect information from them and determine if they’re a good fit for your coaching practice. It has a drag and drop interface and multiple question types so you can get creative creating these questionnaires. Form submissions are stored in Google Sheets (also free, you just need to be a Google user)

Stripe – A payment processor that is free to sign up for. You do pay processing fees on the money you make using it but this is going to be the case with any processor and it’s the cost of doing business.

Mailerlite – an email marketing platform and lead magnet creation tool. When you’re first starting out and capturing the contact information of potential clients, you’ll want a place to collect the emails and be able to send newsletters to your subscribers regularly. Mailerlite offers the most functionality in their free version while still being intuitive and easy to use. (ConvertKit also has a free version that is very good!) 

>>Read more about the CAN-SPAM Act here<<

YourCoach Client Management App– An all-in-one client management tool you can use to take payments (it integrates with Stripe), send fillable client forms, take health histories, schedule calls, track habit development, send messages, and provide your clients with coaching program documents like PDFs, ebooks, and videos. It is free to use for 1 group program and with 2 individual clients.

It also has a desktop version if you’d rather not work on your mobile device. The best part of this app is that and the more you coach using it, the more affordable it is! Using the platform can also qualify you to be matched with prospective new clients.

Zoom – At this point I think everyone knows what Zoom is but it’s also a great tool to host video coaching calls for your clients anywhere around the globe. Although you do have to pay to use it for group calls over 40 minutes, it’s free to use for 1:1 clients.

Social Media – with BILLIONS of worldwide users, social media gives you access to an infinite pool of potential clients. You can use one of any number of platforms and its tools to boost your business’s visibility, develop relationships, and create and connect with a network of potential clients, and referral and collaboration partners!