Tech tools help me to organize data. Three of the tools that I’m going to share with you are smart phone apps, two of them are computer applications, and one is a scanner. I use all these tools everyday in my business and in my personal life.

Google App

I am an android phone user and this app was originally called Google Now. I believe it is now called the Google App. It is available for both Android and Apple mobile devices.

Why do I love it?

I can find information in seconds by tapping the microphone and saying “OK Google” and asking my question. Sometimes Miss Google, who has a beautiful voice, will tell me the answer. Other times she just brings up a list of sites that will have the information that I need.

I rarely type a query into my phone. I ask Google a question 5-6 times a day.

Evernote

I love this application.

Evernote is software that lives on your hard drive. It is also an application that lives in the cloud. You can put Evernote on your computer, your tablet and your smart phone.

All your notes sync across all platforms. They are searchable. Evernote will even search the text that is in a photo.

Evernote can help you organize almost anything. Its best use is organizing information that you need to access on the go. You can share notes with other people too.

Evernote can help you organize almost anything Click To Tweet

Use Evernote to store your recipes.  You can pull up an ingredient list while shopping and you can email a recipe to a friend with a simple click.

Use Evernote to store vehicle info like your tag number, V.I.N. number and tire size. The next time you check into a hotel and the front desk wants your tag number – you will have it in Evernote on your tablet or smart phone.

Organize notes and information for remodeling projects in Evernote.  They will be accessible while you are shopping.

Evernote uses the freemium model. The basic product is free and works for most people.  Evernote has two tiers of annual pricing in the paid version. There is a monthly pay option as well.  You can learn more about Evernote on their website.

Runkeeper

Runkeeper is an app on your smart phone that measures your mileage and other stats from your workout. It’s designed for runners but as a walker I find it invaluable.

Runkeeper works with your phone’s built in GPS. It allows you to set goals. I set an annual walking goal and it tracks my progress.  I love the built-in feature that tracks weekly mileage. I have a weekly walking goal that will insure that I reach my annual goal.

Runkeeper allows manual entry of your data when you must exercise inside. This app is available for Apple and Android phones and has a free and premium version.

Quicken

I use Quicken Home & Business.  It does everything that I need it to do to stay on top of my personal and business finances. It tracks all my spending in all my accounts. Not running a business? Quicken Deluxe will help you track your personal finances.

Quicken allows you to download your transactions from your financial institutions.  It works with PayPal too. You can do manual entry instead if you prefer. I do a combination of both.  Quicken even lets you set up a cash account to track cash transactions.

On the business side – It is easy to set up a customer data base and create proposals and invoices in Quicken. I previously used QuickBooks for this but found it overkill for my business. Invoices are not as customizable in Quicken as they are in QuickBooks – that is the only flaw that I have found.

Fujitsu ScanSnap

I love my Fujitsu ScanSnap S1300 that I purchased from Amazon in January 2012. It is getting some age on it, but it still works great. There is a newer model available now.

My ScanSnap S1300 is loaded with useful features.

The ScanSnap S1300 is small enough to be portable. I have taken it with me to client appointments and taught them how to use it. Most of these clients purchased one of their own after seeing it in action.

It is much faster than scanning on my “all-in-one printer.” My portable ScanSnap model serves my needs fine as far as speed because I don’t have a large volume of documents to scan. If you have a lot of scanning you should consider the larger desktop Fujitsu.

You may scan your documents to your computer or to applications like DropBox, Evernote, and Google Drive. I frequently scan directly into Evernote. These scanners will scan letter and legal size paper as well as receipts.

ScanSnap scanners allow you to set up scanning profiles which increase your productivity. For example, I have a profile for scanning individual one-sided documents. I have another for scanning individual two- sided documents. I choose the appropriate profile and ScanSnap knows that each sheet is a separate document. I can load up to ten documents and it scans them as separate documents. There is a built in profile that will scan a stack of ten pages into one document.

I learned how to set up scanning profiles when I read Brooks Duncan’s Unofficial ScanSnap Setup Guide. He has put everything that you need to know about using the ScanSnap into an easy to read and understand guide.

Check out these five products and apps. Be sure to leave a comment as well. I’d like to learn about your favorite tech tools for getting and staying organized.