Tools + Resources

Wondering what tools I use?

Here’s a list of the tools I swear by

When I first started building websites, I spent way too much time searching for the “perfect” tools.

The internet is overflowing with options, and let’s be real—it’s overwhelming.

These are the tried-and-true essentials that keep The Site Stylist running smoothly and help my clients streamline their workflow, optimize their site, and start their dream blog or a website for their small business.

Website Essentials

  • Kadence Pro: Kadence is free (and all of my templates are compatible with the free version. If you want everything Kadence has to offer, like header and footer builders, custom hooks, and conditional headers, enabling users to create highly customizable and performance-optimized WordPress websites.
  • Kadence Blocks: A plugin that extends the Gutenberg editor with additional blocks, allowing for more complex layouts (advanced galleries, tabs, accordions, and more).
  • WP Rocket: My favorite caching plugin for WordPress to improve website loading times and performance.
  • ShortPixel: An image optimization plugin that compresses and optimizes images on your website, reducing their size and improving page load times.

Design & Fonts

  • Canva: A graphic design platform that allows users to create visual content, including social media graphics, YouTube thumbnails, and other marketing materials.
  • Envato: A digital marketplace offering an array of creative assets, including themes, templates, graphics, and stock media.
  • TypeType: A font library where you can download free + paid professional fonts.
  • Etsy: An online marketplace that’s great for selling/purchasing digital products and design resources, including fonts and templates.
  • Creative Market: Another great marketplace for finding custom design materials.

Stock Photos/Video

  • Deposit Photos: A stock content marketplace offering a vast library of high-quality images, vectors, and videos. These stock photos aren’t as widespread online, and it’s my favorite stock photo site to use.
  • Pexels: A free stock photo and video platform providing high-quality, royalty-free media.
  • Unsplash: Another platform with a large collection of free + paid, high-resolution photos contributed by a community of photographers.

Hosting Platforms

  • BigScoots: A managed web hosting provider known for its reliable performance and customer support. It’s a little pricey, but you get what you pay for!
  • Lyrical: The best mid-range hosting provider (and the one we use for this site).
  • A2 Hosting: A budget-friendly web hosting company offering a range of services. They’re known for great customer support and great site speed.

Marketing

  • Kit (Formerly Convert Kit): My favorite email marketing platform, tailored for creators and small business owners. It provides tools for building email lists, automating email sequences, and managing subscriber relationships.
  • Mailerlite: Another great email marketing service offering features like drag-and-drop email design, automation, landing pages, and pop-ups.
  • Tailwind: A marketing tool focused on more visual platforms like Pinterest. The tool can help schedule posts, analyze performance, and improve exposure.
  • KeySearch: The most affordable SEO tool to find relevant keywords, analyze competition, and track rankings.

E-Commerce

  • Payhip: An affordable e-commerce platform that enables creators to sell digital products, memberships, and courses directly to customers. It also offers affiliate marketing tools, payment processing, and file delivery.
  • Thrivecart: A premium e-commerce platform that’s best for hosting online courses, selling digital products, and creating high-converting checkout pages. They also do great with upsells, bump sales, and affiliate management.
  • Woocommerce: An open-source e-commerce plugin for WordPress, allowing users to create fully customizable online stores. It also supports various products, payment options, and even shipping.