Building A Business When You’re Broke: Free Tools For Entrepreneurs
By Tara Brennan
Starting a business when you're broke may seem like an insurmountable challenge, but it's entirely possible with the right approach. Entering the world of entrepreneurship can be pricey, but lack of capital doesn’t have to deter you from pursuing your dreams. In addition to starting small and prioritizing sustainable growth, you can make the most of limited resources with free online business tools and apps. Check these out and get your business off the ground without breaking the bank.
The Adobe Suite
Adobe is one of the most well-known names in graphics and communications. They offer several free software programs, including some versions of Photoshop, Lightroom, and Acrobat Reader. If you’re looking for something to help you sign and send out contracts, check out their sign and fill PDFs.
Connecteam
Connecteam is free for up to 10 users and is a workforce management app that helps you put business processes on an autopilot. You can create work schedules, track hours, and create one-on-one or group chat rooms. You can also send announcements and maintain an employee directory.
Google Suite
Google is another name synonymous with “communication”, and the Google Suite of cloud-based products is a no-brainer for small businesses. From the cloud, you can do everything from creating new spreadsheets to collaborating with your team across the country or across the ocean. And when you need to scale beyond the provided 15G of storage, you can enhance your Google Workspace presence starting at just $6 per month.
HubSpot
HubSpot is a popular customer relationship management software and offers some free features for small business owners. Their free options include task management, email tracking, document sharing, live chat, and sales quotes. And like its many counterparts, HubSpot has upgrade options, where you can take advantage of more than 1,400 different tools as your business grows.
Monday
Are you a team of no more than two? Monday is free forever. You can have up to three boards, save unlimited documents, and integrate them with your iPhone or Android, all at no charge.
Meta
Meta is the new parent company for two of the most popular social media platforms out there: Facebook and Instagram. Social media is crucial for all business owners as many of your customers are already scrolling their liked pages. A vast majority of their services are free, and you’ll typically only have to pay for ads you run.
Canva
Canva is free for individuals and is a great design software that can help you bring your ideas to life. You can use the service to design everything from bags and notebooks to postcards and hoodies, which you can then choose to purchase to sell or market.
When you’re stepping out of your comfort zone to start a new business, every penny counts, and it’s easy to overlook many of the costs that you’ll incur along the way. Hopefully this article helps you streamline your budget, so you can focus less on bank statements and more on growing your business.
Like this article? Share it and comment below with other free or low-cost business tools for budding entrepreneurs!
Meet the Writer
Meet the Writer
Tara Brennan runs the blog, The Five Who Thrive, inspired by her family of five. After some rough pandemic years full of online learning, lots of tears (from everyone!), limited social interaction, and A LOT of family time, Tara wanted to share the activities, homeschooling lessons, and other tips that brought smiles and laughter to her family.
