Okay, okay, I could technically live without these apps, but to quote Oscar Wilde, “life would be a sunless garden when the flowers are dead.” In this age where smartphones are all but necessary and social media stands as some people’s only real form of communication, apps have enhanced lives as much as Hot Pockets and microwave ovens. Here are four that are essential to simplify your daily existence.
Buffer
If you have social media, which of course you do, you need Buffer. This brilliant personal assistant allows you to schedule and publish posts individually or as a group spanning all of your social accounts. Plus: the app analyzes when your followers are online so you get the most out of each post. Create your own content using Pablo, the app’s image creator that is chock full of pre-loaded inspirational quotes (or choose your own), graphics, fonts, typography and formatting options. All this takes about 30 seconds and it looks so darn professional, I can start calling myself a graphic designer.
Of course if you prefer to delegate the whole process, you can have your posts researched, written, and posted daily for you. Social Essentials is the no-brainer solution.
A Color Story
There are tons of photo-editing apps out there, but A Color Story is my new number one. With more than 100 filters, 40 movable effects and 20+ free tools, this app is teeming with ways to improve your ho-hum photos. One of my favorite features: the sun flare tool that allows you to strategically place glints of sun in your outdoor pictures. The app doesn’t aim to make all of your photos look the same like some other photo editing apps; their claim to fame comes from the app’s ability to enhance compositions, brighten whites and make colors pop.
Evernote
If you are like me, you find yourself taking notes, making lists, or needing to remember something for later. For effortless note taking in a clean interface that works with dozens of other apps, Evernote is my go-to app for keeping organized. Instead of using several different apps, Evernote allows you to save images and links, email coworkers, and read content online. It’s easy to come back to your most important content by setting reminders; this tool notifies you on the date you set up the reminder for. Evernote is a simple way to keep all your writing, bookmarks and documents in one place, saving you the headache of flipping between apps to get the same job done.
Feedly
When it comes to finding content online, any of us can spend hours sucked into the Google vortex. Enter Feedly: a single destination to access all of your favorite publications, podcasts, blogs, and YouTube channels. Create folders for topics of interest and effortlessly find just what you’re looking for from sources that you trust. Feedly integrates with Facebook, Twitter, Evernote and Buffer so that you can easily share the content you come across on the app. If it’s inspiration you’re after, the app allows you to search topics and find new publications that may interest you. This app has single-handedly made searching for and finding new content a technological piece of cake.
