Welcome to our resources page where we share the resources we use in our business and in our podcast. We also want to share the resources that the moms we interview say are their best tools of the trade. We will not include an item on this page unless we use it and love it, or unless a mom interviewee raves about it herself. This will be your one stop shop for the great app, tool, or program that will help your business grow. As we learn more from each mom we interview, we will continue to add great new products and apps to the page. We hope you enjoy!
Please note this page does contain our affiliate links. This means that should you purchase from some of these links, we will receive a small commission from the sale at no extra cost to you. Please know that the products on this page represent what we honestly feel to be the best products or programs out there, commission or no commission.
Yeti Microphone: This is the microphone that Beth Anne uses for each podcast episode and webinar. It’s a high quality microphone that produces high quality sounds.
Snowflake Microphone: This is the microphone that Sarah used for each episode. It is a great microphone for the price and is a nice compact size.
Logitech Headset: This is the headset we send to each interviewee to ensure consistent sound quality
Libsyn: Podcast hosting
ScheduleOnce: The easiest way to schedule appointments or meetings.
ConvertKit: Our email service provider of choice! Want to know why we think ConvertKit is so great? Check out our blog post all about brilliant ways we use it in our business (and how you can use it in yours, too!).
Leadpages – Want to know the secret to our gorgeous landing pages for email sign-ups and webinars? It’s Leadpages! We love using them, especially their Drag & Drop builder. You can check out how we use it here at BBM.
Restored 316 Designs: We love their blog designs and themes! Making your website pretty is so easy with their themes.
Bluehost: We used Bluehost when we first started Brilliant Business Moms, and we were really impressed with the level of customer service they provided! While we use a different host now, we highly recommend Bluehost for when you are first starting out.
Dropbox: We use Dropbox everyday in order for both of us to have access to the same files. It also serves as a system to back up our important business items. Dropbox is free until you reach a certain storage threshold.
Shopify: We use (and love!) Shopify for our online shop.
ShipStation: We use ShipStation with our Etsy shop and Shopify store, and everyone we interview who uses it, raves about it! ShipStation allows you to print shipping labels for your products across multiple platforms, all in one place.
PicMonkey – Once you have great photos, edit them, add labels, and add words here! PicMonkey is easy to use and has a free version.
Canva.com – Although we're still learning about everything this site can do, one thing's for sure: their templates for mixing beautiful fonts together makes graphic design easy! Instead of having to test and experiment for hours, you can use one of the pre-done designs and just change out the words, photo, and you're ready with a gorgeous eye-pleasing image with font overlaid. They also have a library of free stock photos, and others that you can purchase for $1.
Audible: Listen to audio books while your in the car, folding laundry, or doing dishes. Being able to listen to a book while doing these tasks is a great use of your time. Audible has over 150,000 titles, so find something to listen to for fun, or learn something new from a business book.
Trello: This great free tool helps us both to stay on the same page on multiple projects. See our screen shot video tutorial on Trello, and see for yourself how easy is it to use.
Evernote: The perfect place to brain dump all the information accumulating in your brain, and then search for it easily when you need to find it.
CorpNet: Need help becoming an LLC or an SCorp? Want to Trademark your brand? CorpNet can help with all of your business filing needs.
Looking for ways to increase your traffic to your shop or blog? Come to my FREE class on how to Double Your Traffic with Pinterest!
It is no easy task being a mamapreneur! Making time for your business while juggling the home and family is challenge. We wrote Time Management Mama to help you use your time wisely and eek out small parts of your day to pursue your biggest passions. Productivity and time management books written by men fail to deliver realistic techniques to help you prioritize and manage your time well. We understand your struggles because we are there! We are raising our kids while growing our business! We are juggling the housework with podcast episodes and blog posts! We are busy running errands and getting out Etsy orders! Time Management Mama is here to help!
The Get Found Guide to Etsy by Beth Anne Schwamberger: Having trouble getting found on Etsy? Are you not ranking for any keywords related to your product? The Get Found Guide to Etsy helps you easily walk through the steps to get found by Etsy search. It includes a 42 page PDF guide, hours of video instruction, and printable worksheets. This easy to understand guide to SEO isn't just a bunch of theory, it's a practical instruction manual that you can apply to your own Etsy shop. Get found now!
Building a Framework: Everything I Learned My First Year of Blogging by Abby Lawson: Abby is actually our sister in law, but we can honestly say that her book is fantastic! It's an extremely comprehensive guide to starting a blog. And Abby doesn't just touch on the surface stuff, she really dives in deep on topics that will help you successfully manage and grow your blog. Whether you are completely new to blogging or have been blogging for awhile, this book will be your go to resource for making your blog a success.
There's no better way to connect with your customers and readers than with a live class! But it can be intimidating to get started with webinars – from tech issues to not knowing how to pitch your product without being too salesy. Whether you sell physical products, digital courses, books, services, or something in between, I'm confident you can use webinars in your business to stand out, earn more customers, and create a business you love. I'll give you a roadmap to follow so you can craft your own brilliant webinar! Learn more about Craft Your Brilliant Webinar here.
Book Boss: Write and Launch a Profitable E-Book in 90 Days or Less by Donnie and Abby Lawson: Donnie and Abby make a six-figure, full-time income from their blog, and that's largely due to sales of their e-books. Their course on writing and launching your own e-book is simply the best resource around for getting started and monetizing your blog in a big way. They've helped bloggers who cover all kinds of different topics – from tech issues to decorating – make significant income from creating and selling e-books.
Knowtbook by Amy Lynn Andrews: This is essentially Amy’s brain on blogging, online business, social media, and more. She gathers all of her notes and outside resources on a wide variety of topics and keeps them all organized in neat categories with expandable bullets. It’s a really cool system that makes you feel like you didn’t just pick up another book, but rather picked up this interactive resource to help you grow online.
Breakthrough- The Complete Guide to Growing Your Platform & Blogging Your Way to a Full Time Income by Addi Ganley: I can't speak highly enough about this comprehensive guide to blogging. Addi walks you through the entire process of starting a blog, gaining readers, using social media effectively, and monetizing to produce an income. Addi has been blogging for many years, and she shares all of her blogging knowledge with you in this book. She has also created a handy workbook for you to use as you map out your own path to blogging success!
An Inbox of Opportunity – How and Why to Create Killer Newsletters by Kirsten Thompson: Kirsten really knows her stuff when it comes to email lists and newsletters (you can listen to our podcast interview with her here). Her in depth course, An Inbox of Opportunity, will help you take your business to the next level by unleashing the power of your email list and the email newsletter. We all know we need an email list, but Kirsten shows you how to use it to it's full advantage.
How to Blog for Profit: Without Selling Your Soul by Ruth Soukup: Packed full of practical information to help you generate cash from your blog. A must read for every blogger. Learn more about the author Ruth Soukup in our interview with her.
Eat That Frog by Brian Tracy: This is book is a short and sweet and gets directly to the point on how you can better manage your time and be more productive. Read it in hard copy or listen to it in Audible.
The Handmade Marketplace: A great reference book for those making handmade items, with insights from various entrepreneurs in the handmade business. For those in the creative field it can be difficult to think with a business mind, but this book will help you think like a business woman and get your products out in the market.
Purple Cow by Seth Godin: Listen to Episode 14 where I discuss this book. A must read for everyone in business. This is book is also available as an audio book on Audible.
$100 Startup by Chris Guillebeau: A great resource that talks about many different types of businesses, how they got started, and ways to add value to your business model. This book is also available as an audio book on Audible.
The Laundry List by Rachel Brenke: We interviewed Rachel in Episode 6. This book is a great beginner for anyone thinking about starting their own business, but unlike most books of its kind, this one focuses on mothers who want to start their own business. We loved Rachel's straightforward advice from the point of view of a mother. Get your copy in paperback or kindle e-book format.
