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Tracie Fobes
Wondering which tools you need to succeed?

Tracie’s Top Tools & Recommendations

If you aren’t sure where to get your domain, hosting, email, or other features you will need to use on your site, this page should help.  Just click on the link for each product and I’ll take you there so you can read more and get started!  And of course, email or tag me in our Facebook Group if you need some help!

In full transparency, I am an affiliate for many of the companies on this page, which means I may earn a commission (at no additional cost to you) if you make a purchase using my code or link. I only recommend companies or products because I believe in them, not because of the small commission I may receive. Please do not spend money on any product unless you believe it will help you achieve your goals. See my disclosure policy for more information.

  • Stage 1: Newbies
  • Stage 2: Amateurs
  • Stage 3: Experts

Tools For Newbies


If you are just starting your blogging journey or if you have been at it for less than six months, you don’t have a lot of money to invest. And, if you are in any Facebook groups, you are being bombarded with courses, books, apps, and programs people say you need to get.

Let’s cut through the noise and share the tools such as your domain, hosting, email provider, legal forms, and more that you need as a new blogger. Scroll down to find everything you need to start your blog.

Free Profitable Blogging Roadmap Course

Don’t waste any more time fumbling your way through setting up your blog. Get the exact steps you need to take to start your blog the right way. This will help you determine the perfect blog topic, come up with a site name you love, and start your blog in a matter of days (even if you know nothing about tech!)

SIGN UP FOR FREE!

Domain & Hosting

Your domain name is your site address.  That is what you type to access your blog.

Your hosting is where your domain lives. You will need both to run a profitable blog.

NameCheap

Affordable domain name provider that includes free privacy protection.

TRY NAMECHEAP

HostArmada

Affordable hosting that includes
a free SSL certificate.

TRY HOSTARMADA

Theme & Site Design

Once you have your site set up, it is time to make it look good! Get a quality theme and page builder to give your site a custom look.

Kadence WP

A free mobile-responsive theme that is easy to customize.

TRY KADENCE

Astra

A free mobile-responsive theme that is easy to use.

TRY ASTRA

WordPress Plugins

Plug-ins add functionality and features to your WordPress site.

Akismet

Catch and eliminate spam comments on your site. Cost: $5/month

TRY AKISMET

Grow

Social sharing icons + multiple hidden pins. Cost: Free

TRY GROW

ShortPixel

Image compression is necessary for site speed. Cost: Free

TRY SHORTPIXEL

Yoast

Create your sitemap and ensure proper SEO formatting. Cost: Free

TRY YOAST

WordFence

Keep your site safe and secure from hackers. Cost: Free

TRY WORDFENCE

Updraft Plus

Back up your site to a location of your choosing. Cost: Free

TRY UPDRAFT

WP Rocket

Caching holds content in memory for faster site speed. Cost: $49/year

TRY WP ROCKET

Email Marketing

You need to collect email addresses to have a direct connection to your readers.

MailerLite

Free email service provider

TRY MAILERLITE

ConvertKit

Email service provider (free plan option)

TRY CONVERTKIT

Legal Pages

Your site must legally comply with the laws in your country as well as where your reader resides.
The mandatory forms include your privacy policy, disclaimer, terms of service, and cookie consent.

E. Legal Corner

All the legal forms you need in one place.

GET LEGAL PAGES

A Self Guru

All the legal forms you need in one place.

GET LEGAL PAGES

Cookie Notice

Necessary cookie notice for all visitors.

TRY COOKIE NOTICE

Graphic Design Tools

Create the graphics you need to market your blog online.

Canva

Create graphics, pins, printable & more. Cost: free

TRY CANVA

PicMonkey

Create graphics, pins, printable & more. Cost: $7.99/mo

TRY PICMONKEY

Stock Photos

You need pictures for your pins and your blog posts. Never rely on a free site for your images as you set yourself up for liability.

Deposit Photo

Thousands of images for every niche.

TRY DEPOSIT PHOTO

Haute Stock

Work and Lifestyle images.

TRY HAUTE STOCK

IvoryMix

Thousands of images for any niche.

TRY IVORYMIX

Tools For Amateurs


By now, you have been blogging for a while and are making anywhere from $1,000 – $4,999 per month, or may have been blogging for at least 18+ months. While the money is great, you are looking to increase both income and traffic.

Below you will find the tools you may want to use to sell products, grow your list, and see your profits increase.

Ensure every article you write makes money!

You need to know what to do to get your site ready to do affiliate marketing and then make sure every post is written to get more clicks and conversions!

Where should I send the FREE Affiliate Marketing Checklists?

Privacy Policy: We hate spam and promise to keep your email address safe. Unsubscribe anytime.

Upgraded Hosting

When you get more traffic to your site it may mean it is time to upgrade to a better server.

BigScoots

Fast, reliable hosting at an affordable price.

TRY BIGSCOOTS

WP Engine

Fast, reliable hosting at an affordable price.

TRY WP ENGINE

Paid Themes

Free themes can work but sometimes, paid themes offer the ability to create the custom look you desire.

Restored316

Gorgeous, customizable themes with different layouts and designs.

TRY RESTORED316

Studio Press

Hundreds of theme options to give your site the layout you desire.

TRY STUDIOPRESS

Envato Elements

Hundreds of theme options to give your site the layout you desire.

TRY ENVATO

Legal Pages

Your site must legally comply with the laws in your country as well as where your reader resides.
The mandatory forms include your privacy policy, disclaimer, terms of services, and cookie consent.

E. Legal Corner

All the legal forms you need in one place.

GET LEGAL PAGES

A Self Guru

All the legal forms you need in one place.

GET LEGAL PAGES

Cookie Notice

Necessary cookie notice for all visitors.

TRY COOKIE NOTICE

Lead Generation Services

Applications that offer custom sign-up boxes or landing pages to use for sales and increasing your subscriber count.

LeadPages

Templates to create opt-in boxes and landing pages for lead magnets and products.

TRY LEADPAGES

ThriveLeads

Email sign-up box templates for customized email sign-up boxes to increase subscribers.

TRY THRIVE LEADS

HelloBar

Static bar for the top of your site for announcements, products or to get more subscribers.

TRY HELLOBAR

Scheduling Tools

Your time is limited. Scheduling tools will ensure your content is shared on autopilot.

TailWind

The #1 tool to schedule content to both Pinterest and Instagram.

TRY TAILWIND

SmarterQueue

Schedule and recycle your content on Facebook and Twitter.

TRY SMARTER QUEUE

SEO Tools

By now, you should have an SEO strategy. These tools can help boost your rankings.

KeySearch

A basic tool for simple keyword research.

TRY KEYSEARCH

SEMrush

An advanced tool for keyword and SEO research.

TRY SEMRUSH

Selling Digital Products

Platforms to use to sell your digital downloads and eBooks. Learn more about digital products through Product Perfection.

Shopify

Create a professional store on your site.

TRY SHOPIFY

Gumroad

All the legal forms you need in one place.

TRY GUMROAD

SendOwl

Necessary cookie notice for all visitors.

TRY SENDOWL

Selling Courses

If you want to sell a course, these are the recommended platforms to use.

Teachable

Fully integrated course hosting platform that handles VAT for you.

TRY TEACHABLE

Thinkific

Affordable course hosting platform for creating your first course.

TRY THINKIFIC

Podia

Affordable course hosting platform for creating your first course.

TRY PODIA

Advanced Graphic Design Tools

These applications will help you create higher-end printables and products you can sell.

Canva Pro

Create graphics, pins, printable & more. Cost: 12.99/mo

TRY CANVA

Adobe Photoshop

Create quality printables and product images to sell in your store.

TRY PHOTOSHOP

Tools For Experts


You have been blogging for more than 2 years and should be making around $5,000+ per month. Now is the time to leverage what you know and increase your income by adding more products or services to your site.

While you will use the recommended Amateur products, there are additional tools you may want to use to sell products, grow your list,
and see your profits increase.

Lead Generation Services

Applications that offer custom sign-up boxes or landing pages to use for sales and increasing your subscriber count.

LeadPages

Templates to create opt-in boxes and landing pages for lead magnets and products.

TRY LEADPAGES

ThriveLeads

Email sign-up box templates for customized email sign-up boxes to increase subscribers.

TRY THRIVE LEADS

HelloBar

Static bar for the top of your site for announcements, products or to get more subscribers.

TRY HELLOBAR

SEO Tools

By now, you should have an SEO strategy. These tools can help boost your rankings.

KeySearch

A basic tool for simple keyword research.

TRY KEYSEARCH

SEMrush

An advanced tool for keyword and SEO research.

TRY SEMRUSH

Selling Digital Products

Platforms to use to sell your digital downloads and eBooks. Learn more about digital products through Product Perfection.

Shopify

Create a professional store on your site.

TRY SHOPIFY

Gumroad

All the legal forms you need in one place.

TRY GUMROAD

SendOwl

Necessary cookie notice for all visitors.

TRY SENDOWL

Selling Courses

If you want to sell a course, these are the recommended platforms to use.

Teachable

Fully integrated course hosting platform that handles VAT for you.

TRY TEACHABLE

Thinkific

Affordable course hosting platform for creating your first course.

TRY THINKIFIC

Podia

Affordable course hosting platform for creating your first course.

TRY PODIA
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