The Entrepreneurial Starter Kit

As the years go by, more and more people are becoming self-employed. If you're starting your own business this year, these gadgets and apps will be perfect for you. Later this week we'll go over some examples of side hustles you can start up that'll put these things to good use.

Smart Pen-

In the age of Smart technology many items receive the title as a gimmick. However, smart pens are often a hit or miss in this category. Most smart pens like the Smarson Smart Pen, boast a great deal of useful features such as the creation of interactive PDF files that can be shared on-the-go, through the use of a mobile app. One in particular that impressed me was the Echo LiveScribe. The LiveScribe allows the user to record audio while they write and, while using the included note book, users could jump back and forth through the recording with a simple tap. The pen even records your pen strokes in the order you wrote and or drew them. A smart pen allows you to jot notes and diagrams from wherever you are and record them digitally. This is extremely helpful when you need to record something and can't waist time fiddling with your phone or when you are in a place where you can't have your phone.

Mobile Credit Card Reader-

Entrepreneurs don't wait for work to come to them, they go after the work themselves. As such it's always good to have away to conduct monetary transactions at a moment's notice. Now with the ever evolving mobile technology available most people are well aware of what the Square is, as the Smartphone apparatus is springing up more and more at small businesses and flea markets around the world. However, there is always a demand for more convenience and with Apple and Android Pay available, some people don't even carry their wallets any more. In response to that PayPal created their own card reader that accepts chips, magnetic stripes, NFC, Apple Pay and Android Pay. Having multiple options for receiving payment is a very versatile tool in your arsenal.

BlueTooth Headset-

The Bluetooth headset has been around for years and while the novelty wore off for a lot of people, its usefulness in the business world has never waned. A proper Bluetooth gives you more freedom, as you don't have to be tethered to your phone while it's charging or downloading items from your computer. It's also helpful when you are in a place where you have to have your phone on silent by preventing missed calls. Some headsets, like the Mugmee Bluetooth shown here, can be paired with two devices simultaneously.

External Hard Drive-

Keeping track of clients, expenses and projects will be relatively ease at first. As your business starts growing, however, the number of files and archives you'll need to keep track of will grow as well. Having a dedicated business hard drive not only makes organizing easier, it also allows you to keep your records with you wherever you travel. Even if you leave your laptop behind, many of the modern drives allow usage on both PC and Mac platforms like the Seagate Slim.

Accounting Software/ App-

Speaking of records, keeping track of a businesses finances is very different from tracking your personal finance. Fortunately, the internet and app stores are full of choices. Just remember, you get what you pay for. Most of us remember seeing those QuickBooks commercials when we were growing up, especially around tax time and they're still around providing accounting software packages for Mac and PC based on scope. As far as apps go, there's FreshBooks and Mint for both iPhone and Android. Accounting is one of the most crucial facets of entrepreneurship. Not just for seeing how much you are making but also for keeping track of your expenses. Every mile you drive in pursuit of leads and clients is a tax deductible expense. Every meal on the road, any damage incurred to your property, any equipment you have to buy (like the things listed in this post), even a second car used for business can be deducted from your taxes so long as you keep an accurate record of the expenses you incurred throughout the year.

Social Media- Social media is possibly the best marketing tool you have at your disposal. Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and Pinterest are all prime examples of free advertising platforms. That's actually how I'm planning to grow this blog in 2017! Create a business email separate from you main email account. It can be on the same server, but don't use it for anything but business. Create accounts on every outlet you can think of and then create posts that will attract your target audience. We'll get more into the specifics of that later this week, for now start out simply by informing those in your network of the new page. Invite your email contacts as well, no matter how long ago you were in contact. Nothing ventured, nothing gained is especially true in this instance. Hash-tagging will help link your posts to your niche market and can be used on ANY social media site, not just twitter.

Website-

Last but not least, to tie your online presence together, create a website. There are hundreds of web hosting services out there and you can hire a freelance web design to put your page together. Regardless of how you do it or how small you think your business maybe, a website gives you a solid foundation to work from. I work as a freelance page builder myself and aside from Yagoli.com and the new Yagoli Writing Block, I also constructed "A GLUE View Media" for another entrepreneur friend, Capri. In fact you can make a small business just for designing websites for people.

Now is the perfect time to start out your journey to become your own boss. This week is going to be dedicated to helping you go into business for yourself so through the same steps I'm applying to my own business. Know of any other helpful tools to help start a business? Let us know in the comments and be sure to like and subscribe to Yagoli.com

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