In the world of startups, every day brings a new challenge. To tackle these obstacles head on using technology, we asked 13 entrepreneurs from Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) what apps they count on most.
Below are the apps and tools they use every day to optimize their time, finances, connections and staffing.
1. OrderAhead
There are a few days a week where I am immersed in an idea and I get hungry. Being able to order my staple lunch using the OrderAhead app is really useful. I can walk in to my favorite burrito bar, grab my order and walk back without losing my train of thought! – Robert Castaneda, ServiceRocket
2. Uber
Say you or your staff need to head to a meeting, get a transfer to the airport, visit a client, etc. You no longer need to wait on the street to hail a cab. Booking an Uber driver on your phone let's you see who's picking you up and when, track their location, and then leave the office when your ride is waiting for you. It can be billed directly to your company card. – Jürgen Himmelmann, The Global Work & Travel Co.
3. Postmates
Our favorite app is Postmates. They streamline ordering from some of the best restaurants and snack places. Equally useful is that they can deliver from the Apple Store and other retailers. Their fees are reasonable and the app is really user-friendly. Most importantly, saving our team the walk (plus wait) at a restaurant or store pays for itself ten times over. – Aaron Schwartz, Modify Watches
4. Expensify
I'm a big fan of Expensify. Take a photo of your receipts and an expense report gets magically created. It makes our life much easier. – Charlie Graham, Shop It To Me, Inc.
5. Fancy Hands
Fancy Hands has been my go-to solution for quick tasks that can be done with a web browser or phone. Never sit on hold again, as they will take the call for you and patch you in once a live person is online or just handle the entire call. They have a virtual 'advance team' to help scout out a travel destination or to schedule appointments. It's a must-have for those who want to get ahead of their task list. – Kevin Henrikson, Acompli (now Outlook iOS/Android @ Microsoft)
6. TurboScan
Often times I have handwritten notes from a meeting in my Moleskin and need to get them to team members to implement straight away. With my TurboScan app I can take a photo and it auto-crops then converts to a PDF that I can send via email from inside the application. I can also sign work orders, contracts or NDA's while out of the office and "scan" them to clients, my attorney or keep them for my own records. – Faithe Parker, Marbaloo Marketing
7. Caviar
We use Caviar to order lunch at the office every day. It's got a great selection of different cuisines, and there's something new and interesting to try every day. It's super easy to select and order your dish, and the delivery process is seamless. – Jason Shah, Do
8. Meldium
Meldium makes it super easy to share account logins and information with the rest of the team on a company-wide or as-needed basis. It's easy to onboard a new employee and immediately give them access to your analytics suite or your advertising software without having to create all these new accounts for them. And if you let go of an employee, it's just as easy to remove their access. – Mattan Griffel, One Month
9. Followupthen.com
Followupthen.com is my best friend. I send an email to 1hour@followupthen.com or tomorrow@followupthen.com or tuesday@followupthen.com, etc. Then I get an email when I am in a better place to order something or tell somebody something or whatever task I need to remind myself to do. – Alisha Navarro, 2 Hounds Design
10. Magic
I just found out about Magic, and it is truly one of those services that makes you realize that the future is now. All you have to do is text any (legal) request, and it will deliver whatever you need as quickly as possible. It has partnered with companies like Instacart and Postmates as well as a few local businesses to meet our needs instantly. – Firas Kittaneh, AstraBeds
11. Amazon Prime
The most effective e-commerce app for solving everyday business challenges is Amazon. Not only does Amazon offer free shipping for most products through the Amazon Prime program, but you literally can leverage the app to scan products and compare prices wherever you are to make sure you are getting the best price. – Kristopher Jones, LSEO.com
12. Directr
Shooting high quality professional grade customer testimonial videos or interviews can be expensive and time consuming. Directr's iPhone app makes it a breeze. If you run the kind of business where video marketing is important, Directr can come quite handy. –Pratham Mittal, VenturePact
13. Shake App
The Shake app is great. It allows you to easily and quickly create contracts. There is a great selection of templates to choose from. This is especially handy in the tech world, where negotiations happen quickly. We can even start setting up agreements during meetings, and get details hammered out immediately. – Curtis Smith, Yeeldr