The #1 Essential Startup Stack

Taking your business to the next level can be expensive, but it doesn't have to be. This list covers the essentials every business needs. What's the best part? Some are totally free!

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The services on this page were independently selected by our editors.
Starting a business can be tough. Not knowing how to properly form a legal entity can result in unforeseen issues and financial complications down the line. Inc Authority helps founders create legal entities in their states the right way. As the good folks at Inc Authority say, "Free your dime. Free your time. Free your mind." Click below to learn more.
CHECK OUT INC AUTHORITY
One of the biggest decisions you'll make is choosing where to host your online presence. From domain selection to website speeds and uptime, you'll want to pick a provider that's affordable now and meets your long-term goals. Bluehost is one of the best hosting providers in the world, is mind-blowingly affordable, and scales with you. Click below to learn more.
CHECK OUT BLUEHOST
Often overlooked but critical to running a business is bookkeeping and other financial-related tasks. FreshBooks helps you organize and maintain your business' finances, and even send invoices, track mileage, and more based on your needs. Even if you're not ready to dive in, it's worth checking out. Click below to learn more.
CHECK OUT FRESHBOOKS
Managing everything your business has going on can be tough. Airtable makes building a centralized command center for your business effortless, and enables you to automate just about anything. VENTEUR uses Airtable for everything from form submissions to sending automatic publishing updates, and even managing every stage of our digital and print issues. What's the best part? You can start using Airtable for free. Click below to learn more.
CHECK OUT AIRTABLE
Fiverr is great for finding high-quality freelance assistance. Whether you're starting out and need a logo, are trying to set up your email marketing campaigns, or are looking for in-depth video production services, you can find the professional you're looking for on Fiverr. VENTEUR uses Fiverr to outsource specialized tasks that we don't even know how to approach. Best part? You set the budget and the terms. Click below to learn more.
CHECK OUT FIVERR
Envato Elements is a beast of a service for anyone in need of creative assets. From photos to icons, illustrations, to music, and more, you can find pretty much every type of creative you can think of (and more) rolled into a simple and affordable subscription. VENTEUR uses Envato Elements for several types of assets. Click below to learn more.
CHECK OUT ENVATO ELEMENTS
Canva is probably our favorite creative service available. If you can dream it, you can do it with Canva. Starting out, we were reluctant to use Canva and focused a lot of our time and financial resources on using InDesign, Photoshop, XD, Adobe Stock, DaVinci Resolve, and a bunch of other overly complicated and pricey creative services. We've since ditched almost every other service to use Canva, which enables us to save boatloads of time daily while significantly reducing overhead. If there's one service on this list that's worth it for any business, no matter what stage it's in, it's Canva. Let's not forget how little a monthly plan costs, too. Click below to learn more.
CHECK OUT CANVA
The internet is a sketchy place. As an organization that receives thousands of requests a month, has to click on more links than we're comfortable with, and is just generally aware of how one bad actor on the internet can mess everything up, we really value quality VPNs. Atlas, which we've placed in our digital and print issue a few times, is one of our favorites. Click below to learn more.
CHECK OUT ATLAS VPN
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