We Recommend

Around here, we read a lot of books, take a lot of courses, and try out a lot of applications. Some stuff isn’t very good. Some get a ‘meh’ out of us.

Some are awesome, and we love them.

And that’s why we want to tell you about them.

We’ve personally tried and tested each product or service on this list. We’ve measured them against our (pretty high) standards of quality and value. They got our stamp of approval. We bet they’ll get yours, too.

Click any of the tabs below to view our recommended resources.

Start and Grow Your Freelance Business

Want to be a freelance writer? Written by Laura Spencer for Freelance Folder, How to Become a Freelance Writer is your quick-start guide to learn how to start your writing business – the right way – and be in charge of your income, your hours, and your lifestyle.
Written by Men with Pens very own James Chartrand and Freelance Folder’s Mason Hipp, the Unlimited Freelancer teaches you proven strategies for successful freelance business and reveals tactics used by companies around the globe to boost productivity, income, and growth.
Before your site, before your copy, before your first customer, you need to put all the chances on your side and stack the deck in your favor. Kelly Erickson from Maximum Customer Experience is all aces at helping you discover, identify and woo your ideal customer intimately so that you can draw clients in and make them love you forever.
You need an online presence – seriously, don’t be without one. And the best online presence we’ve seen yet is Eric Hamm’s Frugal Theme, guaranteed to put your business first and help you bring in those clients. It’s easy to use, easy to customize and just full of goodness so your freelance business hits the ground running from the gate. Two thumbs up!

Get More Customers and Make More Sales

Want customers? You need an online presence for your business – this isn’t negotiable. Get a website. Get a blog. Get an edge on your competition with our favorite WordPress theme, Frugal Premium. It’s clean, easy to use, and looks very professional to help you draw in droves of clients .
Kelly Erickson from Maximum Customer Experience takes our site critiques to the next level with your Web Audit and Experience Solution. Learn where people click on your site, what they think, and discover what they need to become buyers. The results will stun you. Bonus! Mention our name to Kelly, and she’ll give you a 10% discount!
Having a website or a blog is nice, but if search engines can’t find you, your customers can’t find you either. Pick up a copy of SEO School to learn how to help your customers find your site quickly – before they find your competition.
Testimonials make a huge difference in your ability to impress and draw in new clients. GigPark gets testimonials for you, collects them for you, and lets people recommend you to their friends and peers. Bonus! Sign up for a Pro Account, and you can add a GigPark widget that displays your testimonials to your WordPress site sidebar.
Copyblogger’s Freelance X Factor course is a jam-packed gem that teaches you how to use social media marketing to power up your freelance business so you can get more clients, higher-paying gigs and reach better success faster.

How to Make More Money and Take Care of It

You can write and sell your own book online easily. Learn how, the right way, with How to Launch the **** Out of Your Ebook. This baby takes you through every step you need to create, write and launch your ebook to make more money. Yay!
Most freelancers suck at selling themselves – and you don’t want to be one of those guys, do you? Upsell 101 teaches you how to sell more to your clients just by offering them what they need. They’ll love you for suggesting it!
If you’re going to be a freelancer, you’re going to need bookkeeping. (Seriously. No kidding. Sorry.) To make it really, really easy for the math-challenged creative people out there, we love IAC-EZ . It’s the easiest DIY bookkeeping service ever and you never have to do math!. No kidding. We think it’s even better than Quickbooks – and they’re pretty hard to beat!

Get Unstuck and Get Going (Finally)

Todoodlist is a huge favorite of ours. Ditch all your gadgets and apps and use this baby to create a no-nonsense, indispensable blueprint that helps you start new projects, launch them faster, hit your targets and achieve your dreams. Sheer brilliance – and fun, too!
Alex Fayle’s Someday My Ship Will Come In is a fantastic, easy-to-read and super-helpful workbook that lets you stop waiting for life to change and start living the life you really want to have . Learn what holds you back, break free from bad patterns and reveal ways you can start living your dream today.
Freelancers have a huge tendency to focus on NOW and procrastinate about what could really help them be the success they want to be. Don’t you be that way! Stop putting success off and start achieving it now, with Alex Fayle’s workbook I’ll Get Around to It Someday. Grab your copy, and get to it today.
Dave Navarro’s Becoming an Early Riser program is your secret weapon to achieve that dream goal and get more hours out of your day. Amazing stuff – learn how to feel rested, refreshed, energized and ready to tackle the world!.
What’s Holding You Back is one of the best we’ve seen to help you take a good look at your life and help you beat the seven success killers that hold you back. Break free and get what you really want out of life.
Another hit from Dave Navarro, Never Procrastinate Again is your personal coach to help you discover better strategies so you can achieve your goals, get started towards making them happen and keep going so you finally, actually, really do what you’ve been putting off. Awesome!

Books We Strongly Recommend

Web Copy That Sells by Maria Veloso: The Revolutionary Formula for Creating Killer Copy That Grabs Their Attention and Compels Them to Buy
The 22 Immutable Laws of Branding by Al Ries and Laura Ries
Influence by Robert Cialdini
Made to Stick by Chip Heath and Dan Heath
A Whack on the Side of the Head by Roger von Oech: How You Can Be More Creative
On Writing by Steven King
The Well-Fed Writer by Peter Bowerman: Financial Self-Sufficiency As a Freelance Writer in Six Months or Less
Back for Seconds by Peter Bowerman: A Second Helping of “How-To” For Any Writer Dreaming of Great Bucks and Exceptional Quality of Life
The Copywriter’s Handbook by Robert Bly: A Step-by-Step Guide to Writing Copy That Sells
Secrets of a Freelance Writer by Robert Bly: How to Make $100,000 a Year or More
Start and Run a Copywriting Business by Steve Slaunwhite
Kick-ass Copywriting in 10 Easy Steps: Build the Buzz and Sell the Sizzle by Susan Gunelius

We add to this list as we discover the best products and services out there. Check back often!