What Are Your Favorite Automation Tools To Get More Things Done In Lesser Time...?

[Jag82]

"The first rule of any technology used in a business is that automation applied to an efficient operation will magnify the efficiency" - Bill Gates, Founder and Chairman, Microsoft.

“Automation is about building a sustainable, automatic source of income.”
- Timothy Ferriss
Author of #1 New York Times Bestseller “The 4-Hour Workweek


The elites agree that automation is a powerful leveraging tool
because it helps:
- Save you time and cost...
- Get you to be more productive...
- Cut out unnecessary work for you...
- Reduce human-induced errors and delays...
- Eliminate bottlenecks in your ops...
- Simplify your workflow...


There is nothing more fulfilling and satisfying when you see
the computer performs all the tough grunt work that you
used to do manually.

With this, I want to ask you what's your favorite time-saving
automation weapon and how does it help you?

Here's my list:

1. Big Mike's list of Traffic Mania automation tools
Nothing like getting my social bookmarking, article/rss/directory/
press release submissions done!

2. Metastock - I rely on this to scan and filter stocks that
fits my indicators' criterias.

3. Launchy - A small nifty tool that allows me to open up
programs, files, folders, softwares on the fly - without me wasting
time searching for them

4. Google custom search - allows me to zoom in on exactly the
information I want. I've customized search engines to get me information
for public domain, copywriting, online marketing, answers and a lot more...

Hail Google!

5. Texter - Text substitution application saves me countless keystrokes
by replacing abbreviations with commonly used phrases I define on
the fly.

6. Jack Duncan's Copyright Records Search - Now I know what
exactly books are in public domain. A indispensable part of my
public domain "treasure hunt" arsenal.

7. ArticleIdeas - Low cost research software to get ideas for
articles/products. By a fellow Warrior (Milan).

8. Keyword Analyzer - for keywords/SEO research

9. MetaSpy - Yet another great automation tool by Big Mike
to scrap meta keywords data from my competitors' sites.

10. Roboform - Automated form filler. I cannot do without
my favorite Roboform. I absolutely cannot do without it!!!!!!!
I used to search high and low for my login and password details.

Very painful just thinking about it. But not anymore!


Okay. There's my list. I've got more. But I'll stop here.

You got your favorite autopilot tool? I love to hear yours...

Jag

[The Expert]

I'm going to put in Bookmarking Demon and ArticleMarketer.

[dingleigofai]

Unique article wizard for article marketing.

[Jag82]

Okay...I forgot to add in Power Article Rewriter for article rewriting.
By far the best article rewriting tool I've used.

It's not exactly automated. More of semi-automated. Because human intervention of
rewriting is still needed.

[Tom Brite]

SENuke is mine!

Yet i do like to outsource my articles too! Which i suppose saves me time but isnt a too really!

Tom Brite

[Amy Bass]

I have to second the Icansoft software tools, I use them daily.

[FifthDimension5]

Traffic Bug, this software automates the submission of your sites and blogs to multiple directories, bookmark, RSS sites, search engines, etc with the press of a button! I also use WinKey for application automation, Filebox extender for storing frequently used folder infos.

[Searchlabmedia]

Tom, are you getting good results with SENuke? Maybe I am not doing something right but I am not seeing the results I want.

[d3sign3r]

Nice big list.. I'm a graphic/web designer so there are fewer opportunities to automate stuff But thanks, I'm sure I'm gonna love Texter !

Cheers,
aLee

[Jag82]

Originally Posted by d3sign3r

Nice big list.. I'm a graphic/web designer so there are fewer opportunities to automate stuff But thanks, I'm sure I'm gonna love Texter !

Cheers,
aLee

Hi aLee:

If you do design, I think Photoshop has action scripts which can
allow you to automate certain stuff (e.g. creating ebooks graphics etc).

There are related jobs to your field you can automate as well,
such as:

- Resizing/renaming files
- Opening up your favorite graphic tools in a single click (or with hotkey)
- Backing up of your work

There are probably plenty more. If you sit down, and think
through your daily tasks, there could be a lot more repetitive stuff
that you can automate than you ever realize.

Jag

P.S I love Texter. It's a bit buggy though.

[itsliz]

Great list!

I love Texter. Use it for usernames, email addresses, people's names, product names, URLs, emails, commonly used phrases, email signatures, etc.

There are a ton of tools I use on a regular basis, but here are a couple of my other faves:

Imacros: This is freakin awesome, I love it! I save so much time using this. It records what you do and then plays it back. So once you've recorded a macro, all you do is press "Play" and it does certain tasks for you, and much faster.

See: https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/3863

Use it to log in to sites (it'll go to the url, put in your username and password, and even navigate around the site for you.). For example, one macro I have logs in to 3 different sites, and gathers stats (such as visitors, opt-ins and sales for the day).

It does this in about 30 seconds! And did I mention it's free?

Evernote: creates short web clips of things anywhere on the web. Useful for writing articles, press releases, doing research, etc. Rather than copying & pasting or just bookmarking the URL, you just clip what you need from that page and can label it.

Very useful for doing research (such as for a sales letter or other marketing materials), writing articles, writing press releases, and more. Also free. http://evernote.com


~Elizabeth~

[itcoll]

here is my input:[this is not a automation tool but still a must for everyone for productivity]
SNIPPELY - this is a adobe air application

I use this for taking notes about any topic- you can pick quick notes and then paste in this application.it is much better to use this instead of taking notes in notepad or ms word.The major advantage is that it is easier to organize things.

I also use this to take note of any catchy Adwords ads - there are so many cool ads posted by top marketers.They give me ideas about how to write super catchy ideas.I make note on them in SNIPPELY

[Jag82]

Originally Posted by itcoll

here is my input:[this is not a automation tool but still a must for everyone for productivity]
SNIPPELY - this is a adobe air application

I use this for taking notes about any topic- you can pick quick notes and then paste in this application.it is much better to use this instead of taking notes in notepad or ms word.The major advantage is that it is easier to organize things.

I also use this to take note of any catchy Adwords ads - there are so many cool ads posted by top marketers.They give me ideas about how to write super catchy ideas.I make note on them in SNIPPELY

Good tip. I use Sonic Snooper for easy swiping.

AutoHotkey is another useful tool if you like to use hotkeys for 1 keystroke command to open any applications.

I use other tools for this though. AutoHotkey is a good free tool though.

Jag

[Andy]

Hi Jag,

Nice list. Thanks. I think you covered what I like and more.

God bless,

Andy

[wisecrone333]

Heavens, is there things you can automate??? Just when I think I have learned a heap of stuff, I find out there is more I can be doing - most of the things mentioned here I have never heard of - oh well I see another late night looming

Lisa

[Tom Brite]

Originally Posted by Searchlabmedia

Tom, are you getting good results with SENuke? Maybe I am not doing something right but I am not seeing the results I want.

Yes!

If you were to re-signup under me (check my second sig link) then i could help you out with it. When i first started with it i really had no idea what to do as i didn't really have a manual strategy that i followed to replicate with senuke. So i then developed my own after lots of trial and error!

Tom Brite

[Jag82]

Hi Tom,

I'm interested to know about SE Nuke.

Currently, I already possess tools to automate certain part of what SE Nuke does. So I don't want any duplication.

Having said that, there are certain sites that SE Nuke target which I've not automated for yet. Do you think you can share more about your results with SE Nuke?

Any encounter with bugs? Or submission not going through?

Jag

[rapidscc]

iMacros Fan here

[abelacts]

Nice thread. RoboForm is another great time-saving tool.

[Tom Brite]

Originally Posted by Jag82

Hi Tom,

I'm interested to know about SE Nuke.

Currently, I already possess tools to automate certain part of what SE Nuke does. So I don't want any duplication.

Having said that, there are certain sites that SE Nuke target which I've not automated for yet. Do you think you can share more about your results with SE Nuke?

Any encounter with bugs? Or submission not going through?

Jag

I did have like all the icansoft products, bookmarking demon, tools that i had custom made to automate squidoo pages and hubpages. Yet then i dropped all of those for senuke!

Results wise... well there are no real bugs (there were but they have really sorted it all out now). Plus it saves me days of work that i can now complete in hours.

Best thing i like about it is that its all together. I don't have to open up like 10 programs to do each thing. Plus im not transfering site url's etc between programs as senuke keeps them all together.

Tom Brite

[apple87jane]

I use roboform before it's quiet efficiency, but still not perfect enough, the catcha words still need you to fill in. I heard that there is a service that helps you to fill in catcha words, right? Need more information. thanks!

[Jag82]

Originally Posted by apple87jane

I use roboform before it's quiet efficiency, but still not perfect enough, the catcha words still need you to fill in. I heard that there is a service that helps you to fill in catcha words, right? Need more information. thanks!

You are right. BeatCaptcha does the job pretty well.

Captcha Bypass - Captcha Entry Service

[Trieu]

Big Mike's social bot and roboform are definitely my favourite. I used to use Imacro, a secret method of getting loads of incoming freinds from myspace.

[Barry Walls]

There is only ONE reason why humans have jobs...and that is because a way to automate the task using technology hasnt been found yet....

But it will...

IMO...we are seeing the beginning of structural technological Unemployment.

People want full employment and technological freedom from work...they can't exist together in our current system. We are on the verge of catacylsmic changes.

All the best

Barry

[Diana Lane]

Originally Posted by Matt M

This is a problem that contributes to the lack of getting anything done and the overwhelming number of people that come in here everyday and complain that they are going in circles.

"The first rule of any technology used in a business is that automation applied to an efficient operation will magnify the efficiency" - Bill Gates, Founder and Chairman, Microsoft.

"an efficient operation will magnify the efficiency"

Most people who don't get anything done run in efficient circles but how effective are they?

I can be the most efficient driver in the world but if I'm on the wrong road I will never get to my destination.

On the other hand, I can be the most inefficient driver in the world but if I'm on the right road I will eventually get to my destination.

So, I could be the most inefficient driver and yet be more effective than the most efficient driver who is not effective at all.

More and more of the "circle runners" keep buying more and more products to be more efficient when they should be concentrating on being more effective.

Matt

This is all so true.

A lot of people seem to want productivity tools in the hope that they'll rapidly do for them the jobs that they themselves are not so great at. They seem to forget that these tools are generally only as good as the person pushing the button, and that they can just as easily automate mistakes at speed too.

That said, if you've got a handle on your procedures and know that they work well, I'm all in favour of tools that automate them and let you get on with something else instead. Anything that can increase the time available to drink beer can only be a good thing Another vote here for Incansoft tools, and for Market Samurai too, which seems to be sprouting new features just lately faster than the average Triffid sprouts leaves.

[Jag82]

Originally Posted by Barry Walls

There is only ONE reason why humans have jobs...and that is because a way to automate the task using technology hasnt been found yet....

But it will...

IMO...we are seeing the beginning of structural technological Unemployment.

People want full employment and technological freedom from work...they can't exist together in our current system. We are on the verge of catacylsmic changes.

All the best

Barry

Hi Barry. Thanks for your input. Allow me to offer an additional perspective.

First off, automation is not a new thing.

You are probably surrounded by it and are using it...but you
just may not be aware of it.

Think traffic light...gantry at carparks...auto-open doors
at mall...your autoresponder....

Automation is not a magic pill. Not everything can be automated.
Say we want to write an article with unique content, that
still requires creativity on our part.

Human intervention is still needed.


Having said that, automation is designed to help us. Not go against us.
It is designed to replace us for tasks that are repetitive, mundane,
and time consuming. So that more precious time will be freed up for us to
spend more time on stuff that matters more.

And I'm talking about going out to build relationships...creating products
...writing your sales page...making sales...
or even spending more time with your loved ones...

You don't have to be spending time manually submitting articles...
doing research...bookmarking and so on... All these can be automated.

Since we only have 24 hours a day, why not spend whatever time
we have on tasks that gives us the most value? And let the computer
handle the rest?

Remember the 80/20 rule (Pareto Principle)? 80% of our results come from 20%
of our effort. That is extremely true for many things.

What if we can focus all our efforts on 20% of such tasks...and
automate the rest (if it is "automatable")? Do you think that can
dramatically boost your results?

Cheers,
Jag

[Jag82]

Originally Posted by Diana Lane

This is all so true.

They seem to forget that these tools are generally only as good as the person pushing the button, and that they can just as easily automate mistakes at speed too.

Very true! Mistakes can be magnified too with automation
if the process is not done correctly.

I want to say that automation tools are just that. A tool.
A tool we can use to our benefit.

Or a tool that can work against us if we use it the wrong way.

In the beginning, when I first started using automation,
it makes it so easy for me that I inadvertently started to spam
(e.g. submit bookmarks too frequently) even though I had
no intention.

Of course that works against me. Because Google destroyed
some of the backlinks I built. And even de-index of my
articles which was ranking very well (it has since been restored though).

So that brings to mind the importance of using automation
the right way. We don't want to abuse it.

Jag

[Paul Schlegel]

I've been enjoying Jonathan Leger's WebDataParser recently. It's been pretty helpful for automating a surprising number of extraction tasks pretty easily.

And MarketSamurai keeps adding more and more amazing functionality.

[Intrepreneur]

1. Mincro Nice Finder - Makes it easy to find keywords and tell how easy they will be to rank.

2. Googles tools (Wonder Wheel and realted searches - Super fast relevancy on cue.

3. RSS bot - why shouldn't my content be read by more people while also helping me get indexed.. :-)

4. Search Status (plugin for firefox) - PR, Alexa BAcklinks all in 2 easy seconds.

5. SEO for firefox - Quite a nifty tool it is too.

6. SEM rush SemRush.com - find keywords my competitors and soon to be competitiors are ranking for.

7. Social Bot - Get that landing page as much instant traffic as I can.

8. Press Bot - Comes in handy for announcing anything new on my blog.

9. Style Master CSS editor - fast quick and easy CSS editing even for PHP based sites.

I think that's it for my fav's :-)

[Pat Jackson]

Originally Posted by Jag82

9. MetaSpy - Yet another great automation tool by Big Mike
to scrap meta keywords data from my competitors' sites.

That sounds good. Where can I find this?

I couldn't find it on Incansoft's website.

[Jag82]

Originally Posted by Pat Jackson

That sounds good. Where can I find this?

I couldn't find it on Incansoft's website.

It used to be on Traffic-Mania.com. But apparently it has been taken down.
Not too sure why. Maybe you can send Mike a PM on this.

[BIG Mike]

Originally Posted by Jag82

It used to be on Traffic-Mania.com. But apparently it has been taken down.
Not too sure why. Maybe you can send Mike a PM on this.

PM John Rogers - he's got a copy of the program to give away.

We took it down, because Traffic Mania is going to be used for larger version of all of our bots. One program will incorporate all of them and provide additional services no one else provides

Oh and we're about to release VideoBot and PADBot (soon as I finish the help files).

@Tom Brite - starting with VideoBot, you'll be able to import and share data between programs

[ashishthakkar]

FeedReader
Article extractor
Yahoo answers extractor
AutoBlogger

regards,
ASHISH THAKKAR

[Flyingpig7]

Micro Niche Finder

I have to agree with Diane Lane & Jag82 there is still more work involved like thinking through your choices (making intelligent decisions). Also sometimes MNF does not find all the keywords for you, so you have to manually dig for more; but it is a time and labour saver.

[reapr]

Market Samurai
SEOQuake
Unique Article Wizard
Roboform
Winautomation

Market Samurai replaced a lot of my other keyword tools. Checks keyword ranking and PR and ranking of competitors sites and backlinks.

SEOQuake a ff plugin just gives me information overload.

Unique Article Wizard is just amazing ...

RoboForm save me much needed time and a brain cells.

Winautomation just go my hands on it and it rocks.

[ildarius]

Originally Posted by reapr

Market Samurai
SEOQuake
Unique Article Wizard
Roboform
Winautomation

Market Samurai replaced a lot of my other keyword tools. Checks keyword ranking and PR and ranking of competitors sites and backlinks.

SEOQuake a ff plugin just gives me information overload.

Unique Article Wizard is just amazing ...

RoboForm save me much needed time and a brain cells.

Winautomation just go my hands on it and it rocks.

Wow same here, but I'm thinking of dropping Unique Article Wizard

SEOQuake is the coolest FF add-on

Winautomation is very useful too

[reapr]

OMG I almost forgot ... and I use it often for my posts when the spouse is not watching TV.

One of my big favorites ....

Dragon Naturally Speaking ...

This is by far my favorite article writing tool... er I meant speaking tool. Dictation into a microphone. I think mac has it built in and I think Vista has it but you have to dig around!

[josh123]

I only use Roboform, unfortunately that's about the only part of my biz I can automate at the moment.

[reapr]

Originally Posted by ildarius

Wow same here, but I'm thinking of dropping Unique Article Wizard

SEOQuake is the coolest FF add-on

Winautomation is very useful too

You are correct here ....

SEOQuake is by far the coolest FF add-on and most useful for affiliate marketing I have tried many.

UAW well I still find it worth its money if you are aware of something better or comparable please PM me.

[Jag82]

Originally Posted by reapr

OMG I almost forgot ... and I use it often for my posts when the spouse is not watching TV.

One of my big favorites ....

Dragon Naturally Speaking ...

This is by far my favorite article writing tool... er I meant speaking tool. Dictation into a microphone. I think mac has it built in and I think Vista has it but you have to dig around!

Ahhh yess...Dragon Naturally Speaking. A tool...I love...and also love to hate.

I know it's a powerful tool. But I can't seem to make it work for me, at least for now.
Maybe it's because I'm so used to typing. And speaking to the screen and correcting it
is something I'm not very accustomed to.

I must really make some time to train DNS again.

Jag

P.S For PPC marketers, AdGrenade is another automation tool
I use. It creates hundreds of targeted ad groups and ads on the fly.

Big time saver!

[Angela Wills]

I'm surprised no one said Aweber

My favorites are Aweber and Roboform, couldn't be nearly as effective without them.

[jkatzenback]

Twitterfeed, Aweber, 1Password (roboform for mac) are what come to mind right away.

[Jonno]

Couldn't live with out

Micro niche Finder
Bookmarking Demon
Aweber
Roboform

[reapr]

Originally Posted by Jag82

Ahhh yess...Dragon Naturally Speaking. A tool...I love...and also love to hate.

I know it's a powerful tool. But I can't seem to make it work for me, at least for now.
Maybe it's because I'm so used to typing. And speaking to the screen and correcting it
is something I'm not very accustomed to.

I must really make some time to train DNS again.

Jag

P.S For PPC marketers, AdGrenade is another automation tool
I use. It creates hundreds of targeted ad groups and ads on the fly.

Big time saver!

Hey Jag
I had problems with it at first. The more I used it the better it became.

[diggy20]

Mine are Unique Article Wizard and Textmate which is an awesome text editor for the Mac with some great automation features for programmers.

[John Rogers]

Originally Posted by Jag82

9. MetaSpy - Yet another great automation tool by Big Mike to scrape meta keywords data from my competitors' sites.

Aha! Now I know where the sudden rash of requests for MetaSpy are coming from!

The original download page disappeared, so here's a temporary link to snag it from. No optin. Just grab it while the gettin's good.

http://projectwbft.com/download/MetaSpy.zip

John

[mrsteady]

Code everything I use myself. My favourite automation tools are the ones that get me my links. Feels good when I type in the command and am getting links

[rachaelgerk]

I like this list! I'm gonn be here awhile to make sure I didn't miss anything, lol...

[Gail Sober]

A few I use that I haven't seen mentioned.

statsremote.com - Check about every affiliate stat possible.
mailutilities.com - Several utilities from here.
econfirmpro - Modified to process general email confirmations
pitrinec.com - Perfect Keyboard and a few others.
wavget.com - Typeitin (Maybe not automatic but useful anyway)

[Kyle Tully]

If you're on Mac you NEED to learn how to use Automator.

I won't even try and explain it here, but you can do INSANE amounts of automation with it