Every business has at least one amazing software tool they couldn’t do without; Sox Digital is no different.
Here are our top four:
1. GIMP
No, you didn’t read that wrong. GIMP or GNU Image Manipulation Program is an open source equivalent to Adobe Photoshop. It’s not quite as intuitive as Photoshop, and has a bit of a learning curve, but it’s (arguably) just as powerful. We use it almost daily for image editing and mockup building. It’s an amazingly powerful tool that we wouldn’t be without.
2. PHPStorm
The king of IDEs (Integrated Development Environment) for PHP development projects (PHP is a coding language). PHPStorm goes lightyears beyond a simple text editor. It’s packed with useful tools and features that streamline development and simplify tasks that would otherwise require additional programs. PHPStorm doesn’t come cheap, but the value it delivers to us and our clients makes it worth every penny. And each year you buy it, it discounts!
3. Google Workspace
This is actually more than one tool. It’s an entire suite of tools and cloud software that makes collaboration and running a business so much easier. Google Workspace offers GMail inboxes (with your own domain e.g. hello@soxdigital.co.uk) Google Meet, Google Docs, Google Drive, and so much more. All from about £5 per user per month. The value for money is incredible. There are equivalent services, from Microsoft for example, but we’re fans of the Google ecosystem.
We always recommend Google Workspace for email hosting. You can, of course, get it cheaper elsewhere. But when you consider the reliability, ease of setup, and additional tools you get with it makes Google Workspace a no brainer.
4. Trello
We’ve spoken about Trello in the past (read more here). It’s an incredibly flexible project management tool that we use to manage everything from leads and sales, to development projects. There are countless extensions and integrations to expand its functionality. As many companies will attest to, it is great for tracking work and project progress. We’ve even used to it plan our holidays! (Do we need to get a life? …We probably need to get a life.)
Tell us about the amazing (software or otherwise) tools you use day to day and what makes them so great!