This might be a slow time for some businesses, but that doesn’t mean it can’t be productive. Now’s a great time to simplify your marketing efforts using online tools. They help you work smarter so you get the best results. Take a look at these online marketing tools to see if they can help. Best yet, they’re free.

Hubspot CRM

If you’re still managing your customer base with spreadsheets or stacks of business cards, this customer relationship management (CRM) tool can help you get more value from this activity. You can track your prospects and send bulk email with one tool.

Why is this important? You can better manage your sales cycle from prospect through ongoing customer support. It prevents you from dropping the ball on a potential sale. For example, it will remind you to follow-up with a prospect using notes you made from your last conversation. No more relying on messages you scribbled on the back of a business card.

Canva

A picture is worth a thousand words, especially when it comes to getting marketing results. But if you break out in a cold sweat when it comes to designing, it’s difficult to harness that advantage. That’s where this graphic design tool comes in.

You’ll get access to over 250,000 free templates including social media posts, brochures, posters, presentations and videos. With a drag-and-drop format, you can quickly design professional-looking marketing materials. If you want to learn more, there are free tutorials that help you advance your design chops.

You Can Book Me

If yours is a service business, scheduling appointments with clients can be time consuming, especially if you’re playing telephone tag trying to connect with each other. This client scheduling tool eliminates that back and forth and lets clients schedule an appointment online.

Just add the tool to your website and identify available times. It connects to your calendar so if you make a change, it will automatically update your open times. Clients get confirmation and reminder messages so you minimize any no-shows. And there are options to customize it to match your branding.

Mailchimp

In a world of social distancing, email continues to be an effective way to stay in touch with customers. This email marketing tool lets you send and track emails to targeted lists (up to 2,000 contacts). You also have access to ready-made templates.

A big advantage of this tool is the analytics you receive. You’ll be able to track the response and identify patterns that will help you create even more successful email campaigns. That helps you get a better return on the time you spend with this marketing tactic.

Sumo

When someone walks into your store, it’s easy to engage with them. And chances are, the greater the interaction, the more likely they are to purchase. But that’s difficult to do when a visitor steps into your website. This website engagement tool offers a number of plug-in apps designed to build more interaction from those visitors.

For example, its List Builder app uses smart technology to identify when visitors are mostly likely to enter their email address. A form automatically pops-up where visitors can enter it. That helps build your email list so you can continue the interaction.

Trustpilot

Benetrends Financial reports 92% of consumers will not purchase your product if there isn’t a review online. This online review tool helps small businesses cultivate online reviews with customers.

Trustpilot helps you collect reviews from customers who would otherwise stay silent. You can then use those reviews and the Trustpilot rating in your marketing efforts, including how your profile is listed on search engines.

Great marketing isn’t always a matter of working more, it’s working smarter. Online tools help you be more productive with the time you have. Consider whether these marketing tools can help you get a head start on success this year.