Communication is key for any relationship to work.

Using modern tech in the digital era makes it possible to not only improve efficiencies in the office but running a fully remote team is now a popular reality.

This post will focus mainly on what we here at Boon Creative think is the top online software out there that helps us and hopefully others get stuff done.

So let’s get started.

Paralysis by analysis is the worst. The infamous paradox of choice. Undoubtedly, in the digital era, there is data overload. Too many options out there with everyone having a voice and an opinion can be overwhelming.

We like mental clarity and simple tools. So, just like with any team working on something, everyone’s got something to say and do. This is where being organized is crucial and having a good project management tool comes in handy.

Most have the basics: file storage, task creation and ability to assign to team members, viewing progress and milestones, staying up-to-date with notifications, etc.

We choose: TEAMBITION

What is Teambition and why is it in Chinese?

Founded in Shanghai back in 2013 by Junyuan Qi, a student then, at Shanghai Jiao Tong University. Qi was inspired by working on a personal health recording system which focused on how to manage people more effectively. Qi realized that the problem was not about managing people and exchanging emails. It was about discovering the processes of *how* people work together. While Qi studied in Sweden he learned how to use project software developed by Microsoft but still found that projects weren’t succeeding.

The main philosophy behind Teambition is that everybody should be involved in the project. By allowing everyone to stay in the loop this reduces one from jumping into the process and asking counterproductive or distracting questions.

Teambition is touted as a team collaboration platform that is efficient, simple and elegant. They currently have versions of the site in Simplified Chinese, English, and Japanese.

Teambition is a software as a service (SaaS) platform that provides products and services to foster team collaboration and project management, attempting to be a mix of Silicon Valley’s Slack, Trello, and Dropbox.

We stumbled across this gem when we were working on a project with a remote team that had an international mix of Chinese, Swiss, Finnish, NZ and US team members. We had used Asana, Slack, and Trello before, but were having problems with slow connections and server issues. The great thing about Teambition, besides having a mobile app and an intuitive easy to use interface, was the ability to switch between Chinese Mainland and International servers.

Regardless of whether or not you have an international team, it’s still an amazing *free* service. They do have a premium plan, but for smaller teams, it’s perfect and always surprises with new features.

Try it for yourself and improve your team’s communication and collaboration.

We choose: HelloBonsai

Keeping track of documents and client accounts can be tricky.

We use HelloBonsai to handle it all: Proposals, contracts, invoicing and payments, time tracking, reporting and more. Bonsai products are deeply integrated so you don’t need to enter the same information again and again. Your client accepts a proposal, they auto-draft your contract. Your client signs a contract, and they auto-generate the invoices.

You can structure your proposals in a few clicks and generate a clear estimate to help close a deal.

By answering a few questions you can generate your contract from a vetted template. Send it to the client to securely e-sign in minutes.

HelloBonsai lets you build, customize and send invoices with automatic reminders to get paid with a bank transfer, credit card, Paypal or Bitcoin.

They have a 14-day free trial, a plus and premium plan for $16 and $24 per month.

We choose: GSuite and Mailchimp

Email, as old as it is, isn’t going anywhere. Having a company name attached to it gives your brand reputation. Google’s GSuite is cheap at $3/month and lets you replace “@gmail.com” with whatever you choose.

Mailchimp is a great email template making tool. Who said emails have to be boring?

With the power of automation, emails can reach more relevant people with no effort on your end. Plus, employing good email messaging practices will do wonders for your business. Mailchimp offers an easy to use guide and tips for getting the most out of your follow-ups, newsletters and subscriber lists and more.

We choose: Calendly

The back and forth correspondence to debate when to have a meeting is a thing of the past. Calendly is a simple booking tool. Set your schedule and share your link via email or embed on your website. Let your prospective clients pick what time is best for them. They pick a time and the event is added to your calendar. Super simple.

Boon Creative Agency uses all of these services combined to offer seamless, streamlined and efficient communication with our clients. Because we want people to be involved with projects that we work on it’s important to use the latest tech available.