When I started out as a copywriter, I had to rely on the equipment and software my agency used. This meant PCs rather than Macs (I write, so I don’t ‘need’ the Mac) and Outlook for email, tasks and calendars, plus MS Word for writing copy documents.
While most of the business world still uses MS Office, I find that its cost and lack of true portability really hinder me as a freelance copywriter.
Having tried many online tools to help me manage my copywriting tasks, calendar and notes – even with the writing itself – I’ve settled into using these 3 tools to help me manage my time and write copy for my clients.
1. Task management – Toodledo
Keeping track of all my daily tasks is complex and ever-changing. Deadlines move, additional items are added to projects and I need to track the time I spend on various activities to make sure I’m invoicing the right amount.
Toodledo is my go-to web-based task management tool.
Each task allows notes, editable dates, priority ratings (yes, some projects are more important than others), and the ability to organise it all in folders.
The best part about Toodledo is the time feature. I use these often because I can set a ‘length’ estimate of how long I think a project will take, and then run the timer to see how long it *actually* takes me.
And that’s all the free functionality! If you want more management features and better organisation, you can upgrade to a pro account for a nominal monthly fee.
Writing software – OpenOffice
Surprise! I don’t always work where I can get an Internet connection, so I need a desktop software for writing that is compatible with MS Office (most of my clients like to receive copywriting documents as .doc files).
OpenOffice is without a doubt one of my favourite applications. It’s free (yes!) and it is fully compatible with the usual formats (Word, PowerPoint, Excel).
What’s more exciting for me is that it doesn’t have 3,000 features. It is simple to use, doesn’t crash very often, and it has built-in PDF capability! This is very important for someone who doesn’t have (or want!) Adobe software for creating .pdf files for their slides and text documents.
Scheduling – Google Calendar
Keeping track of when things are happening is as important as actually doing the work. Scheduling in my copywriting and moving around blocks of time is necessary in any calendar software, but Google Calendar is the honest-to-goodness easiest to use.
I think I actually sighed with joy when I started using Google Calendar. It’s a breeze to sync and I do this across several devices: iPod Touch calendar, mobile and desktop.
It is infinitely faster and more useful than other online calendars I’ve tried.
Bonus!
With a Google account, you also get access to another awesome (and free) copywriting tool: Google Docs. These simple documents are easy to share and I find the change-tracking and commenting a dream. You can even upload/export in MS Office formats.
I find that I’m using Google Docs more and more lately, because they are much easier to manage than a lot of attachments and versions.
Are there any tools you can’t live without?
Tags: copywriting · software · tools
