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September 29, 2009
Top 7 technology tools that help me be efficient
We are all very busy people. I have found 7 tools that I'm convinced help me stay on top of things whether I'm in the office or not, whether I'm traveling or not, whether it's the work week or the weekend. If any of these 7 tools went away, I would notice.
1. Google Voice
Why I like this: One number rings multiple phones; transcribed voice mails; archive all messages and phone activity; conference calls on the fly; call recording; listen to voice mails while they occur and jump in if needed; use to send/receive text messages too; customized voice mail messages
2. Tweet Deck
Why I like this: Monitor key words and phrases being used; create groups to better track conversation; auto URL shortener; monitor Facebook and Twitter accounts; does this all on the same screen
3. Blackberry
Why I like this: A computer on the go; I can do just about everything I can do on a laptop with my Blackberry; I can't imagine life without one
4. Google Analytics
Why I like this: Tells me top content based on reader activity; reader analysis; how the reader found my blog (organically, referral, etc.); reveals unknown referral sources; measures one week of activity against the next and allows me to measure any time period to determine what's working and what's not; identifies key words people are using to find the blog; report is e-mailed to me weekly
5. iGoogle
Why I like this: Customized to what I like; gives me a dashboard and easy access to what I generally use (e.g. Google Reader, etc.) on one screen; let's me have a virtual post-it note pad; houses a collection of hyperlinks that make it easy for me to get to different sites
6. Google Apps
Why I like this: If you haven't discovered Google Apps, you will; The integration of gmail, calendar, DOCS, etc. is priceless; Docs is so robust that you should Google it and see it for yourself; Plus, I can access all this from any computer with internet access, no more "network" access needed.
7. Google Alerts
Why I like this: E-mails me at a frequency I design and in a way I determine best the results of key words and phrases that I want to monitor; I find a tremendous amount of information and content this way
Notice that 5 of the top 7 tools I list above are related to Google. They have done a great job at making technology accessible to me as a "regular guy," not a computer genius, and they have developed programs with the intention of making it easier for me to do my job.
What I didn't list were top tools I use to make it efficient for OTHERS to discover more about what I do and determine if I might be able to help them. That's a completely different set of tools. I'll save that list for another post.
Technology - for me at least - is less about adopting the latest options and gadgets as it is about helping me be better and more efficient doing what I do.
How are you using technology to improve your job efficiency?
Posted by bstroup at September 29, 2009 7:55 AM
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