Are you over there hustling As A New-ish Creator?
When you’re just starting out as a beginner content creator, you have to juggle so very many tasks. Unless you already have money set aside to spend on outsourcing some of those tasks, it can feel like the days are swallowing you whole, with very little progress to show for it.
I’m here to help make your content creating journey a little easier, by sharing the 9 must have items that help me personally run multiple brands and websites, as a quiet content creator.
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My BEST Tip For A Beginner Content Creator
You have to be consistent and you can never ever give up.
I’ve been creating content intentionally since 2009. Granted, I wasn’t very good back then as a TOTAL newbie and I had NO strategic plan for that first year. The thing is though – I was taking action; doing the work and learning everything I could. I was putting myself out there. I was showing up! All that passion, drive and consistency led to some really incredible things.
No.1 A Quality Camera & lenses
For the Girl Planted Food Blog, I use my cell phone for 90% of the content I create.
I am a professional photographer and I’m used to using a fancy DSLR, but the convenience of the cell phone is by far my greatest asset for that content creator brand.
Professional TIP: Learn to use what you have first and then upgrade when you can and only if necessary.
Do I use a different camera for HeyHappyHello Co? YES! I use my fancy (but older) DSLR, my iPad and my cell phone, because I have more control over the quality and can get specific and detailed with the camera settings, angles, etc. They are all three a vital part in my digital art creation process.
But for MOST content creators, a cell phone is a GREAT investment and the quality is pretty damn good. There’s a lot you can do with a cell phone.
For my Canon 5D Mark ii, I mainly use a 35mm 1.4 lens in the studio and absolutely LOVE shooting with my 24-70mm 2.4 zoom lens, too.
I do have this mirrorless camera & microphone kit on my wish-list when I’m ready to purchase something more vlogging-friendly, yet affordable.
No.2 A Tripod
Getting a quality tripod can help you in SO many ways. When you’re making videos, you can use a tripod to stabilize your camera. You can use a tripod (and remote clicker) to take incredible selfies. You can use a tripod while you’re shooting video to get cool new height and angles.
I have 3 tripods in my gear toolbox – a heavy duty stationary one that came with my lighting kit, a light stationary one and a smaller bendy leg one, to get my camera and my cell phone in just the right spot to shoot stop motion films, static video and hand-held in motion video (like b-roll).
No.3 Best Mobile Video Editor: SPLICE
We all know that video is ruling the content creating universe and that’s not going to change anytime soon. There are some great free options and there are some kick-ass paid options.
For today, I’m sharing the video editing app I use on my cell phone for ALL of my YouTube videos (at the moment).
- Weekly, Monthly and Yearly Subscription Options
- Android and Apple
- Great Audio Library
- Cool Speed Features
- Easy Editing Techniques
- Masking Tools (Like Split!)
- Album Of Projects In Dashboard
- Easy EXPORT Options
- Easy Sizing Options
- Zoom Features / Ken Burns
- Incredible Filters / Editing Tools
- Color Picker Tool / Change Backgrounds
- Video and Photo Overlays
- Text Features
- And More.
I love the Splice app SO much that I take the time to airdrop between my iMac and my iPhone for all my video projects.
If you aren’t a fan of creating content IN the social media apps you’re on or if you aren’t on social media like me, this could be a great option for you.
No.4 Best Mobile Photo Editor: Afterlight
My favorite mobile photo filters EVER are on this app. They have quite the FILM collection and I honestly find it very easy to edit my photos in this app.
One of the reasons why I use Afterlight so much is that I’m able to save my editing workflow in the FUSION area.
I can build my own filters, save my favorites already on the app and organize my editing steps to keep everything looking cohesive.
I also REALLY love the extras like:
- material overlay
- dust
- light
- color shifts
- chroma
- double exposure
I have tried a TON of mobile photo editors including Lightroom, which I also like. This one, however, is my jam! I personally keep coming back to Afterlight time and time again.
No.5 Canva (Free Or Pro)
Okay, so when I first started using Canva when it was a new design tool, I wasn’t a fan. Honestly. I was paying the monthly fee and didn’t think it was worth it.
Fast forward a bit to when I started the Girl Planted Food Blog.
I knew I needed to be on Pinterest and with Canva having a scheduling feature, I decided to sign up for a month long free trial of their PRO features.
I quickly changed my mind about Canva and LOVE it now. Actually, my business relies on Canva daily. I use it for EVERYTHING.
I currently use Canva for my food blog, my author illustrator brand, my pdf products and I use it for my clients design elements, too.
There’s just too many things to list, but if you need to do some designing of any kind and you want to avoid looking like a newbie creator, you’ve got to try Canva Pro.
No.6 Pinterest SEO Tool
The best thing you can do for your business, even if you are solely on social media, is to learn SEO.
I can’t recommend this software enough. I’ll be doing a more detailed “How To” Video in the very near future, but for now it has to be on this list.
I mean, why wouldn’t you use Pinterest to market your website, your blog, your instagram, your tiktok, etc.? You are missing out on an incredible opportunity to drive traffic for FREE.
I love Pin Inspector because…
- I can totally “spy” on my competitors.
- I can do specific searches for keywords, phrases and more.
- I can see the actual pin designs, the pin descriptions and titles.
- I can view current trends.
- I can even click through and see my competitors profiles right from my desktop.
It’s a one time payment and is downloaded onto your desktop for easy access any time you need it.
And shhh…here’s another little secret. I use this powerful SEO tool alongside my google searches and FREE topic research sites to quickly rank and trend on google.
No.7 Have A Website? Make Sure You're Legal
A lot of new content creators don’t know this, but if you are online and own a website, you must protect yourself legally and your visitors. Keeping up with laws and rules for being online officially can be a bit tricky and overwhelming.
Did you know that you need to have a privacy policy, terms and conditions page and a disclaimer policy on your website?
I wrote a great article on my food blog about this very topic. I highly recommend you give it a read.
Ready to make your website legal? CLICK HERE TO ORDER THE STARTER LEGAL BUNDLE
No.8 The BEST Email Service For The Beginner Content Creator
You may not be ready for email marketing yet, but it is something you should put on your to-learn and to-launch lists ASAP.
If you don’t utilize this one and only direct communication tool that YOU own, you are quite literally leaving money on the table.
Stop right now to PIN this article for later, to reference when you ARE ready to tackle an email marketing strategy.
If you’re ready now, keep reading, listening or watching!
Okay, so I was a die-hard Mailchimp girl for the longest time. I kept the free account and was content with that. I didn’t really feel like I was ready to focus on building an email list so the basic features suited me just fine.
When it was time for me to get serious about email marketing, I knew I needed something else.
That’s when I chose Constant Contact. I heard good things about them and started paying $10-ish a month. Long story short, It was lackluster and way too expensive.
I jumped ship when I found Flodesk. Holy guacamole!!!!! Not only does it make the graphic designer in me squeal with excitement, I’ve never ever learned a new interface that quickly.
It flows well, it’s easy to understand and WOW, was it simple to embed custom forms and pop-up offers directly into my custom website designs on WordPress.
I’ve even started utilizing the new checkout feature and host 2 of my products through my email platform. Eeekkk!
I’m obsessed with Flodesk to say the least.
Take a peek at Flodesk here and grab 50% off your first year’s subscription. Yay!
I truly love this email service (that continues to roll out incredible features like product hosting and checkout)! What?!
No.9 Are You A Freelancer?
Perhaps you consider an experienced content creator and are looking into becoming a social media manager or providing a service of some kind?
Maybe you already provide a service outside of your content creating business?
Let’s say you already have clients or are ready to book clients (Whoop! Go Girl!)?
I had to include this one, for you; You simply must check out Honeybook.
I LOVE Honeybook and honestly wish they were an option back when I was a Portrait and Wedding Photographer.
My team and I currently use HB for my Strategy & Website Design Clients.
We can…
- draw up contracts
- send invoices
- keep a record of conversations
- create custom project timelines
- keep private notes inside each individual project folder
- send PDF and other files
- send custom questionnaires
- send project proposals
- send custom brochures
I can even embed specific questionnaires right into my custom WordPress site. I cannot recommend this client management system enough!
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Did you know – By pinning this article to your favorite Pinterest Board, you’re helping Girl Planted reach new eyes. I really appreciate this kind gesture that takes just a few moments of your time and would give you a virtual hug if I could!
