Share the tools you use to make your internet marketing life better. I guess this can count as my 1k post. Note: These are from a performance marketer/media buyer using a PC for most of his work, with a Macbook for travel.
First of all, I will talk about some Google Chrome extensions. Chrome is by far the best browser out there; Firefox is dying a pathetic death lashing out at marketers at any step and positioning itself as the "anti-tracking" browser. I don't know why people still use this bloatware but I digress..
I have some Chrome extensions that make my life a whole lot simpler, and my work a lot faster. You should install them as well.
Chrome Extensions:
Chrome Toolbox by Google: These days Chrome hides a lot of advanced functionality to streamline their browser but this extension, made by Google, brings back all of the missing features.
Flash Control: Prevents flash files from loading automatically, such as videos and music and stuff. I hate Flash with a passion and try to avoid it as much as possible, you should too. Websites tend to load faster with less content, YouTube videos don't auto-play, etc.
Pinda: Allows you to open pinned tabs when you open the browser. I use this for websites that I always pin, i.e. my Neverblue login page, my main traffic source, etc. instead of having to manually do this every time.
Stay Focusd: Sets your time limit on certain websites, to prevent slacking off. i.e. You can only visit Facebook for 30 minutes a day. Good if you have an issue with distraction.
Website Blocker: Like Stayfocusd but more severe. Block entire sites from your browser. I have things like facebook, twitter, reddit, and even ppc.bz etc. completely blocked from my main Chrome. If I'm "dying" to look at it I can check it on my phone or my other browser, but it just reaffirms that your work computer is for work ONLY. Try it, if you're man enough.
Auto Refresh Plus: Automatically refreshes websites. Useful for networks that log you out every 2 minutes *cough pof cough*. Whenever I need to check my stats or my 202 it's always fresh and logged in when I need it, which saves time.
Yellow Highlighter: Allows you to highlight parts of the page in yellow. Helps a ton when you're sifting through hundreds of subids and need to isolate the good ones while flipping in between screens.
PC Software (some of these are on Mac as well)
Disclaimer: Some of the software I'm posting here will inevitably be bundled with some kind of "toolbar" or other spyware so install at your own risk and make sure to click NO if they ask you to install anything additional. The software itself however is all legit.
SrWareIron: For those paranoid that google is tracking them, you can use this program which is basically Google Chrome that guts google's tracking from the browser, leaving you with a nice sanitized experience. Though the site hasn't been updated in 2009 the browser is still updated periodically and has everything the modern Chrome has, including extension support.
Useful in two ways: if you're paranoid of being g-tracked, get it. But the way I use it is, in conjunction with Auto Refresh Plus. My SRWare houses all of my networks and traffic sources with constantly refreshing pages, which makes it a whole lot easier to track my day to day activity. Try it.
Notepad++: I'm not a coder or programmer but I do take a lot of notes. Notepad++ is basically a tabbed notepad which helps organize a lot of data. Can't live without it. Plus if you're a coder you probably need it.
VMWare: Everyone probably knows about VMware these days, but I'll repeat it briefly.. A useful tool when you don't want to get your cookies mixed up, want to install some adware without compromising your pc, and great for proxies. Nuff said. Not free though.
LSO Remover: Did you know Flash stores cookies on your computer without you knowing? If you're advertising on Google or Facebook or another anal traffic source you might want to be aware of this fact. I use it out of principle. Cleans the "super cookies" that your browser cache doesn't on its own.
Greenshot: Probably my favorite tool. Mimics the Mac's snip feature but takes it a step further. Allows you to snip and save parts of your screen with a quick mouse stroke. So many uses, from showing people your info, saving creatives or simply parts of creatives, grabbing information within a few seconds, etc.
Sharpkeys: (I think this one might come with a toolbar, so say no when it asks you to install it.) This allows you to remap any key, to ANY key. I've had issues with my keyboard in the past, especially the way function/media keys worked and this fixed everything. Probably useless to 99% of you but worth mentioning.
Jing: Easy way to share a video of your desktop. Helpful for troubleshooting and easily sharing without having to use more than one program. Saved me a bunch of time explaining dumb reps what the problem was
.
That's all I can remember for now. Please contribute to this thread as I love discovering new software that helps with affiliate marketing.
:hitit_sml:
First of all, I will talk about some Google Chrome extensions. Chrome is by far the best browser out there; Firefox is dying a pathetic death lashing out at marketers at any step and positioning itself as the "anti-tracking" browser. I don't know why people still use this bloatware but I digress..
I have some Chrome extensions that make my life a whole lot simpler, and my work a lot faster. You should install them as well.
Chrome Extensions:
Chrome Toolbox by Google: These days Chrome hides a lot of advanced functionality to streamline their browser but this extension, made by Google, brings back all of the missing features.
Flash Control: Prevents flash files from loading automatically, such as videos and music and stuff. I hate Flash with a passion and try to avoid it as much as possible, you should too. Websites tend to load faster with less content, YouTube videos don't auto-play, etc.
Pinda: Allows you to open pinned tabs when you open the browser. I use this for websites that I always pin, i.e. my Neverblue login page, my main traffic source, etc. instead of having to manually do this every time.
Stay Focusd: Sets your time limit on certain websites, to prevent slacking off. i.e. You can only visit Facebook for 30 minutes a day. Good if you have an issue with distraction.
Website Blocker: Like Stayfocusd but more severe. Block entire sites from your browser. I have things like facebook, twitter, reddit, and even ppc.bz etc. completely blocked from my main Chrome. If I'm "dying" to look at it I can check it on my phone or my other browser, but it just reaffirms that your work computer is for work ONLY. Try it, if you're man enough.
Auto Refresh Plus: Automatically refreshes websites. Useful for networks that log you out every 2 minutes *cough pof cough*. Whenever I need to check my stats or my 202 it's always fresh and logged in when I need it, which saves time.
Yellow Highlighter: Allows you to highlight parts of the page in yellow. Helps a ton when you're sifting through hundreds of subids and need to isolate the good ones while flipping in between screens.
PC Software (some of these are on Mac as well)
Disclaimer: Some of the software I'm posting here will inevitably be bundled with some kind of "toolbar" or other spyware so install at your own risk and make sure to click NO if they ask you to install anything additional. The software itself however is all legit.
SrWareIron: For those paranoid that google is tracking them, you can use this program which is basically Google Chrome that guts google's tracking from the browser, leaving you with a nice sanitized experience. Though the site hasn't been updated in 2009 the browser is still updated periodically and has everything the modern Chrome has, including extension support.
Useful in two ways: if you're paranoid of being g-tracked, get it. But the way I use it is, in conjunction with Auto Refresh Plus. My SRWare houses all of my networks and traffic sources with constantly refreshing pages, which makes it a whole lot easier to track my day to day activity. Try it.
Notepad++: I'm not a coder or programmer but I do take a lot of notes. Notepad++ is basically a tabbed notepad which helps organize a lot of data. Can't live without it. Plus if you're a coder you probably need it.
VMWare: Everyone probably knows about VMware these days, but I'll repeat it briefly.. A useful tool when you don't want to get your cookies mixed up, want to install some adware without compromising your pc, and great for proxies. Nuff said. Not free though.
LSO Remover: Did you know Flash stores cookies on your computer without you knowing? If you're advertising on Google or Facebook or another anal traffic source you might want to be aware of this fact. I use it out of principle. Cleans the "super cookies" that your browser cache doesn't on its own.
Greenshot: Probably my favorite tool. Mimics the Mac's snip feature but takes it a step further. Allows you to snip and save parts of your screen with a quick mouse stroke. So many uses, from showing people your info, saving creatives or simply parts of creatives, grabbing information within a few seconds, etc.
Sharpkeys: (I think this one might come with a toolbar, so say no when it asks you to install it.) This allows you to remap any key, to ANY key. I've had issues with my keyboard in the past, especially the way function/media keys worked and this fixed everything. Probably useless to 99% of you but worth mentioning.
Jing: Easy way to share a video of your desktop. Helpful for troubleshooting and easily sharing without having to use more than one program. Saved me a bunch of time explaining dumb reps what the problem was
.That's all I can remember for now. Please contribute to this thread as I love discovering new software that helps with affiliate marketing.
:hitit_sml:
