Hey wedding planners, the Timeline Genius team is here to give our hot takes and expert-driven opinions on the issues facing today’s wedding pros. And this month I’m sharing my favorite tiny tools for productivity & efficiency!
You know we’re all about thoughtful, strategic software stacks. After all, Timeline Genius can save you hours on each wedding and elevate your professionalism. And you can’t listen to an episode of Wedding Industry Insider without hearing Eddie tout the many ways he’s embraced AI.
But you also can’t sleep on the tiny tools. The small apps and simple software that can transform your day-to-day habits.
Recently, Eddie was training me on some new Timeline Genius features, and I was shocked he wasn’t using one of my favorite MacBook apps. CopyClip has saved me so much time, and I knew Eddie would love the efficiency from this simple tool. And best of all, it has zero learning curve. You simply need to download it and you can start saving time right away.
Once I got Eddie using the app, I started wondering how many wedding planners could save time with it too. And how many other tools are planners sleeping on?
Over my 11 years as a wedding planner, I’ve discovered loads of helpful tools that saved me so much time and minimized careless mistakes. Some of my favorite ones are the most simple. They’re called Tiny Tools, and they’re fast to install and require no learning curve or setup.
And today I’m sharing them with you! Check out my top picks for free & simple efficiency tools, and let me know your favorite.
Editor’s Note: These are simply some tools I’ve personally enjoyed using! They’re not specifically endorsed by Timeline Genius. And always review terms & conditions carefully when you use any software, and only use it if you feel good about it all!
5 Free & Easy To Learn Productivity Tools
My goal in creating this list is to provide easy tools that you can start using today. These basically have zero learning curve, so you could add all five tools to your tech stack today and see the time you save right away.
Copy Clip
Do you have to move information from form to form as you plan weddings? Moving between tabs and windows can really slow your flow.
Enter: Copy Clip. This app adds an icon at the top of your screen that stores a clipboard for easy access. Anything you command-X or command-C will be stored in a handy list. When it’s time to insert your info, simply click on the item you want to move and paste.
So if you have a form with the couple’s names, numbers, and Pinterest board link that you need to move into your Timeline Genius page, you can copy them all at once (highlight, command-C; highlight, command-C; highlight, command-C), and then move to your new tab and paste them all without having to go back and forth.
Briskine
When I first discovered Briskine (then called Gorgias), I couldn’t believe the amount of time I saved. I invested about 1-2 hours creating templated text and saved them as custom keyboard shortcuts. I estimated that I saved 1 hour a day using this Google extension for efficiency.
As a wedding planner, I was sending a lot of the same emails over and over. Inquiry responses, vendor availability, confirmations, and phone calls. Briskine allowed me to send these quickly with a swipe of the keyboard.
For example, I often had to email our go-to officiant, Richardo, about his availability. I set up my Briskine shortcut so that when I typed out “richardoavailability” in my email text box, it autofilled a full email, a subject, and the “to” field. All I needed to do was add the correct date, time, and location.
This was before I used Timeline Genius, so I also saved timeline templates with shortcuts. It also supports custom variables and has a handy template box available in Gmail, which is way easier to use than the standard template format.
And now that I’m using Timeline Genius, I have even greater news, because your Briskine shortcuts work within Timeline Genius. It’s a great way to make your timeline process even more efficient and error-proof.
Here are some of my favorite shortcuts I created in Briskine:
- The Calendly link I’m always sending
- Full emails, complete with “to” and “subject” fields and the full body
- Common phrasing I use within my timelines and emails
- Links and copy when I help set up webinars and master classes for Timeline Genius.
Trello
What checklist tool do you use to keep all your tasks organized? I was introduced to Trello early in my career and was never too motivated to look for anything else. After all, it’s easy to read, easy to collaborate, and simply what I’m used to.
This was a big one for the photography team that worked alongside my wedding planning team. They would use it to keep track of which portraits and weddings have been completed, culled, edited, released, and blogged.
I dropped Trello for my wedding workload when Timeline Genius released its Checklist feature, but it’s still my go-to for tasks and projects that fall outside of specific weddings.
Pomofocus
We all have those days when we can’t seem to stay focused. For some of us, those days might be the norm. Pomofocus is for those days, whether you have them now-and-then or nearly all the time.
At its most simple, it’s a 25-minute timer that you can run in a desktop tab or a phone app. Having a timer specifically for productivity shifted my mindset and allowed me to stay laser-focused while also giving me much-desired breaks. The simple timer is ready to go as soon as you open the site.
But Pomofocus has lots of other great features that you can use too. Set up specific tasks, track your time, and get reports on your productivity.
Grammarly
This is an oldie but a goodie for me. I know lots of people have moved on from Grammarly as they use ChatGPT to write emails and blog posts, but Grammarly can still be huge as you communicate with vendors and clients.
I’ll always remember when I first started using Grammarly and discovered my long-used inquiry response had a small typo in it. So here’s a pro trip: if you have any templates you’ve been using since the dawn of time (or at least the dawn of your business), run them through Grammarly or Chat GPT for a thorough review.
More Ways to Save Time as a Wedding Planner
These tools are waiting for you right now, and you can start using them all today. Want to save more time as a wedding planner? Timeline Genius is a great place to start. It’s customizable and so easy to learn, so you won’t feel like you’re starting from scratch.
For example, when I was using Google Docs for my wedding day timelines, I put all the key info (date, location, guest count) at the top and the actual timeline below it. When I moved to Timeline Genius, I was able to set up a custom text box at the top of each event and include that info. I also saved it as a Timeline Template so that the text box was at the top every single time.
And you don’t have to be alone trying to learn it. You can set up a personalized tour of Timeline Genius so that you can learn how to make it work for your specific planning flow.
So get your tiny tools ready and download the most game-changing software for wedding planners, and get ready to have more time to put toward your business goals!
