16 Productivity Apps Used By Shopify

I've said it before, and I'll say it again: being productive isn't about working harder, it's about working smarter. Most of us at Shopify use an arsenal of apps to help us supercharge our productivity.

These 16 productivity apps are some of our favorites. They help us work smarter, faster, and more efficiently. Let us know what productivity apps you use in the comments. 

Soulver

Soulver is faster than a spreadsheet and easier to use than a calculator. Simply type your problem as you'd write it on paper, and you'll see the answer instantly with no formulas to deal with. If you make a mistake, simply hit the delete button - you don't have to start over again. My favorite function is solving percentages. Simply type "35% off 300K" and Soulver instantly displays the answer: 195,000. 

TextExpander

TextExpander saves us a lot of keystrokes here at Shopify. With this productivity app, you can program custom keyboard shortcuts into frequently used text and pictures. For example, when I type the abbreviation ";home" TextExpander automatically replaces that code with my address. This can be really helpful when responding to customer service emails. 

iA Writer

iA Writer is a noise free writing program that gives you a clean typing sheet that's distraction-free. I really like iA Writer's "focus mode" where the surrounding text fades into the background, reducing the temptation to stop writing and start editing. I use this productivity app all the time when I'm writing articles for the Shopify blog.

Trello

Trello is all about team projects. At Shopify, we use Trello for projects that involve team members from various offices. Picture a giant white board that everyone has access to. You can collaborate in real-time, assign tasks, gather opinions and more. 

Clear

Clear is a to-do list app that's simple and intuitive. Items are easy to add, they're sorted by priority from top to bottom, and color-coded according to urgency, and  a quick swipe to the right crosses an item off.

Boomerang for Gmail

This handy productivity app from Baydin Inc lets you "boomerang" emails based on different criteria. Example: I can tell Boomerang "If nobody responds to this email within two days, bring it back to the top of my inbox." I can also write an email now, and schedule it to be sent automatically whenever I want. 

iDoneThis

Every day I reply to an evening email reminder with what I did all day. The next day, I get a digest that lists what myself and everyone else on my team accomplished. iDoneThis is simple, uncluttered, and keeps everyone in the loop.

Divvy

This window management tool is essential for anyone who keeps multiple windows open at the same time. This app lets you "divvy up" your screen into exact portions with the click of a button. If you waste time shuffling around and resizing windows - Divvy is going to be a huge time saver.

Evernote

This is an app that most people already have, but no productivity app list would be complete without it. Evernote lets you collect things, make notes, lists, and anything else you may need to store. It syncs between your computer, smartphone, and tablet so your files are available everywhere you are.

Dropbox

We use Dropbox to sync and share documents, photos, and videos among all our staff members. It has a free service that lets you create a shared folder on multiple computers / devices which automatically synchronises. 

Campfire

Campfire is a web-based group chat tool that we use for internal communications all day, every day. Every department at Shopify has its own chat room, and most employees keep their Campfire window open at all times. Since it's web-based, it's really easy to setup and run with nothing to download, install, or update. 

Buffer 

This is a social media app that you hook up to your Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and App.net accounts. You can then add articles, pictures, and whatever else you want and make a schedule for Buffer to automatically publish them. 

The Hit List

The Hit List is an awesome project manager app that I use to keep my to-do list and prioritize my life. In addition to its basic scheduling function, it has a timer, smart folders, iCal syncing, and so much more.

TeuxDeux

This simple to-do app is bare-bones, and that's the point. It's a really well designed weekly priority list that is exactly what it should be and doesn't complicate things with a bunch of bells and whistles. Type your to-do, edit, check off, done. 

Alfred

Alfred takes your Mac OS X search bar and puts it on steroids. Alfred is a high powered search bar and application launcher that lets you launch any application with a quick shortcut. It'll learn which apps you use most often, and prioritize them. The paid "Powerpack" option will give you tons of extra navigation functions, like global hotkeys, clipboard history, and access to hundreds of useful extensions. 

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