As a geek and a techy at heart, I love to know about the cybersecurity, productivity and comms tools MSP (managed service provider) owners use. If you’re a regular TubbTalk listener, you’ll know that I often ask my guests to walk me through their tool stack.
It means I learn about what’s new in the industry, and sometimes I get idea of things I’d like to try myself. And flatteringly, it seems that a number of you are interested in the tools I use within my own business.
Now, Team Tubb is not an MSP. If we were, our tools would probably align with an outsourcing partner such as Uptime. But I’m happy to share what we use to give you some ideas. Let me know if you sign up for any!
Team Tubb Productivity and Comms Tools
Firstly, we’re a Google Workspace shop, and have been since I sold my MSP business. Back then, Google was a more open platform than Microsoft when it came to 3rd party integrations. Although today, that’s no longer the case.
Internally, we use Slack as our communications tool. Microsoft Teams is getting better each year, but we still find it cumbersome to use Teams vs Slack.
We recently dropped Zoom as our video conferencing platform, as it made no sense to pay for this service when Google Meet is bundled with our Google Workspace subscription and has become so reliable.
The team and I use Manifest.ly – A Checklist App for Teams, and Blue for project management. I believe checklists are a superpower for businesses, and so we’re a very systems and process driven company. This combination of productivity and comms tools really keeps us focused and up to date.
When it comes to media, we record videos and podcasts using Squadcast, edit using Descript, and publish and host our podcasts using Captivate. If you’re looking at starting or growing a podcast, Captivate is hands-down the best platform around.
We’re also a big fan of Choppity for creating content for our social media content, and are raving fans of AgoraPulse – Inbox Zero for Social Media.
We use Bitwarden for password management, and Authy for two-factor authentication.
Finally, we recently made the move from ActiveCampaign to MailerLite for our email marketing. We made this change because we found AC to be very inflexible when it came to licensing. In my experience that’s a sure sign of a company that has lost touch with its user base.
Review Your Productivity and Comms Tools Often
No matter how long you’ve been with a platform, it’s always wise to review it and make sure it’s still right for your needs.
I’m not talking about jumping ship because you can save a few quid here or there. Nor am I talking about procrastinating. I know that many MSPs use “tool shopping” to avoid focusing on tasks that will actually move the needle in their business!
But we do keep a list of all of our tools and review them at least once per year. As my business has evolved and changed, especially with the team being international, so my tool requirements have changed. What was right for me when I started out as a solo blogger is no longer the best fit for a media company!
Look around for new solutions, ask your peers and don’t be afraid to cut ties when a platform is no longer serving you! Continuing to pay for something you don’t want anymore will only cause resentment.
Let me know what you think of our comms and productivity tools and share your own in the comments. As you’ve seen, I love new recommendations!
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Richard Tubb is one of the best-known experts within the global IT Managed Service Provider (MSP) community. He launched and sold his own MSP business before creating a leading MSP media and consultancy practice. Richard helps IT business owner’s take back control by freeing up their time and building a business that can run without them. He’s the author of the book “The IT Business Owner’s Survival Guide” and writer of the award-winning blog www.tubblog.co.uk
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