When we start our photography business, we need to make a lot of decisions around softwares and business tools, whether it is to help our Admin, Editing or Marketing.
And I know that photographers – and small business owners in general – like to see what others are using.
So here is a complete list of my current business tools (some of them are newer additions, and some I have used for years).
Note: Some of the links in this post are affiliate links, which means I may earn a small commission (or credit) if you make a purchase through my link, at no extra cost to you. I only recommend products I’ve personally used and genuinely believe in.
Pixieset: Client Online Galleries
Pixieset has evolved a lot over the years and added a Studio Manager, a Website Builder on top of an improved Store experience for its online galleries.
I am very happy with their system and pricing structure, and have not found ShootProof or Pic-Time to work as well for my needs.
Get $20 off your first bill on Pixieset with this link: https://pixieset.com/ref/V1pjmTBwz8
Metricool: Social Media Manager / Scheduler
Having tried other schedulers before but never sticking to one, I was pleasantly surprised when a friend suggested Metricool. I found it to have everything I could hope for, and to be very user-friendly.
You can not only schedule Instagram & Facebook posts, but also YouTube, Pinterest, BlueSky, LinkedIn etc.
On top of its scheduling feature, Metricool also lets you access your website analytics in a much clearer way than Google Analytics does.
Use this link to sign-up to a free Metricool account: https://f.mtr.cool/NOYSFX
Systeme.io: Email Marketing + Online Courses Platform & Automations
I published an entire blog post about Why I simplified my online platforms and switched to Systeme.io (from Podia, Zapier & Mailerlite), so you can have a look at it, or simply:
Use this link to sign up for a free account and test its many features.
Descript: AI Video Editor
If it weren’t for my online courses, I probably wouldn’t need Descript, but I sure wish it had existed in 2020 when I first started recording videos. These AI tools make it sooooo easy to edit videos for all kind of use: courses, podcasts, YouTube channels etc.
It takes a bit of getting used to when you’re used to traditional video editing softwares (and they won’t be replaced by Descript), but the features are mind-blowing.
Descript also has a free version – consider using my affiliate link to sign up: https://get.descript.com/xh6vt6k37bow
VSCO Workspace: Client Management Software (previously Táve)
There are lots of great client management softwares out there now, and a few of them specialise in helping photographers keep their business organised. Táve is one of them (and I believe they were bought by ShootProof – or the other way around).
I tried many client management softwares at the beginning, and VSCO Workspace was the only one that integrated seamlessly with my WordPress website, specifically my existing Contact Form.
Get a 60-day free trial when using my referral link: https://workspace.vsco.co/join/johanna-king-photography
Canva: Graphic Design
I used to be a graphic & web designer using softwares such as Adobe InDesign and Illustrator and, yet, I’m converted to Canva. It’s just so much quicker and easier to create graphics for social media, as well as doing easy video editing.
You’re probably using Canva or an alternative already, but if not, here is the link: https://www.canva.com/
ManyChat Automations
You’ve seen people on Instagram asking people to comment a word, right?
If you comment a word, you then receive a link in your DMs and it saves you having to find the “thing” (blog post, freebie, special product link) mentioned in the post.
It’s helpful to you, and because it’s helpful to you, it makes sense for the business (what is convenient to a user always makes sense).
This is of course automated, and the tool I use is called ManyChat. It’s not the only service, but I belive it’s one of the biggest one.
You can use the free version and select a specific post in your automations but if you want to select “All posts”, you will have to go premium. (Ex: someone comments the word “GUIDE” on any post to receive a link to your free blog.)
Get 30% off for 3 months with this referral link: https://manychat.partnerlinks.io/72hxflnjw7nb
WordPress & Siteground: Website
I’ve just mentioned that I used to be a web designer, so WordPress made total sense for me. I like to have complete control over the code and I’m comfortable with the “techy” side of hosting / domain names etc.
This being said, I do think that Website builders such as SquareSpace and Pixieset make a lot more sense for those who don’t want to worry about these “techy” things.
Siteground is one the most recommended host for WordPress worldwide. I switched to Siteground for a safer and faster website experience.
You can get an exclusive discount with Siteground by using this referral link: https://www.siteground.com/?referrer_id=8043183
More info about WordPress open-source publishing platform here: https://wordpress.org/
SEOPress: Search Engine Optimisation (SEO)
When I redevelopped my website in 2024, I switched from Yoast SEO to SEOPress.
I wasn’t sure, yet, if I was going to get SEOPressPRO, but the feature I was most after was the AI generation tool for Alt Tags.
If you know, you know.
So I did get the Pro version. It’s not that easy to set up. You have to link your account to OpenAI, and make sure there is enough money on it to get started. The documentation wasn’t fully updated then so it took me a while to get it working, but eventually, it worked like magic.
Some of the Alt Tags did need a little bit of tweaking, but overall, it helped with one of the most time-consuming piece of SEO.
Try SEOPress for free: https://www.seopress.org/?ref=2088
Check SEOPress Pro features here: https://www.seopress.org/wordpress-seo-plugins/pro/?ref=2088
Loom | Screen & Video Recording
Loom is great to record and share short videos with your clients or inquiries.
You get 25 videos of max 5mins in their free package.
Referral link: https://loom.com/invite/966c11c0479a4492b39dc3a3da23050e
That’s all for now! I’m trying to think if there are more tools I use on a regular basis, and I do use Adobe Lightroom and Photo Mechanic to cull and edit my images, but it does feel like stating the obvious. I also have JpegMini to compress images without losing quality (handy when uploading to Pixieset, or WordPress blog posts – although you can also compress with a plugin).
Maybe my next post could be on my favourite WordPress plugins, for those of you who are interested. Let me know!
It’s been fun doing this blog post, so I’m happy to do more of them if I get enough demand.