WEBVTT NOTE This file was generated by Descript 00:00:05.000 --> 00:00:06.290 Mike Bifulco: This is Tiny Improvements. 00:00:06.320 --> 00:00:07.369 I'm Mike by ko 00:00:10.703 --> 00:00:12.443 Everyone loves a generous free tier. 00:00:13.134 --> 00:00:15.953 There are loads of free tools I use to get my work done and I love 00:00:15.953 --> 00:00:17.933 recommending free tools for others to use. 00:00:18.444 --> 00:00:20.094 A quick search of articles and newsletters. 00:00:20.094 --> 00:00:22.823 I've written shows 99 mentions of the word free. 00:00:23.314 --> 00:00:24.633 I'm no stranger to the free tier. 00:00:24.633 --> 00:00:27.483 And most of all, I'm a huge fan of products that use a free tier 00:00:27.483 --> 00:00:30.333 to prove their value, and then convert me to a paying customer. 00:00:30.993 --> 00:00:33.724 I thought it might be interesting to share some products that I do pay for. 00:00:33.724 --> 00:00:36.603 Uh, like most developers, I'm pretty sensitive to price. 00:00:36.873 --> 00:00:39.364 I'm willing to pay a reasonable fee for services based on 00:00:39.364 --> 00:00:40.593 the value they provide to me. 00:00:40.864 --> 00:00:42.904 But I'm also quick to cancel a subscription. 00:00:42.904 --> 00:00:44.763 If I feel like I'm not getting my money's worth. 00:00:44.853 --> 00:00:47.763 So with that in mind, here's a few tools that I do pay for and 00:00:47.763 --> 00:00:48.693 why I think they're worth it. 00:00:50.044 --> 00:00:53.553 Let's start with transistor.fm for $19 a month. 00:00:53.583 --> 00:00:57.423 I get unlimited shows and episodes and up to 20,000 downloads a month. 00:00:58.053 --> 00:01:01.593 I've been using transistor.fm to host my podcasts for a few years now. 00:01:02.163 --> 00:01:06.003 . Over the years, I've used a few other hosting services for podcasts, but I 00:01:06.003 --> 00:01:07.684 found transistors the best fit for me. 00:01:08.484 --> 00:01:09.294 Killer features. 00:01:10.104 --> 00:01:12.234 Transistor does many things amazingly well, but these are 00:01:12.234 --> 00:01:13.524 among my favorite features. 00:01:13.764 --> 00:01:15.114 First off, it's easy to use. 00:01:15.174 --> 00:01:18.214 Starting a new show, takes a few minutes, upload your episode and 00:01:18.214 --> 00:01:19.744 you'll be off to the races in no time. 00:01:20.854 --> 00:01:22.504 Transistor also never breaks. 00:01:22.684 --> 00:01:25.834 Not once have I needed to worry about my podcast feed being down. 00:01:26.764 --> 00:01:29.044 The team adds thoughtful features to make my life easier. 00:01:29.044 --> 00:01:30.094 Pretty regularly, too. 00:01:30.424 --> 00:01:33.514 For example, you can add guests to individual podcast 00:01:33.514 --> 00:01:34.864 episodes for better SEO. 00:01:34.954 --> 00:01:36.574 And, you know, I love SEO. 00:01:36.934 --> 00:01:39.574 They have great HTML and beds to share episodes and shows 00:01:39.574 --> 00:01:40.594 on your website as well. 00:01:41.104 --> 00:01:43.954 Transistor also makes it dead easy to get your show listed on all 00:01:43.954 --> 00:01:45.454 the major podcast directories. 00:01:45.734 --> 00:01:48.043 This is a task that's fairly time-intensive otherwise. 00:01:48.344 --> 00:01:51.973 And loads of other podcasters don't do it, which is a huge mistake. 00:01:52.424 --> 00:01:55.003 You don't want your show only to be listed on apple podcasts? 00:01:55.003 --> 00:01:55.394 Do you. 00:01:57.044 --> 00:01:58.754 Being the nightmare developer that I am. 00:01:58.754 --> 00:02:01.544 I tend to tinker around with things when I have them available to me. 00:02:01.604 --> 00:02:04.784 So I've also sent the transistor team, a few support requests while 00:02:04.784 --> 00:02:06.884 poking around with the transistor API. 00:02:06.884 --> 00:02:09.254 And they've always been quick to respond and super helpful. 00:02:10.183 --> 00:02:12.884 If you're thinking about starting your own podcast and want to give transistor 00:02:12.884 --> 00:02:16.603 a shot, check out the links in the show notes to get my referral link for 15% off 00:02:16.603 --> 00:02:18.254 your first year at transistor dot AFM. 00:02:19.754 --> 00:02:20.893 Up next descript. 00:02:21.583 --> 00:02:25.483 For 12 bucks a month, I get 10 hours of podcast transcription each month 00:02:25.513 --> 00:02:27.463 and 20 hours of screen recording time. 00:02:28.003 --> 00:02:31.153 Descript also lets you, I loved the script because it lets you 00:02:31.153 --> 00:02:32.653 edit audio and video files. 00:02:32.653 --> 00:02:33.853 Like they were a text document. 00:02:34.963 --> 00:02:35.713 I'll say that again? 00:02:35.923 --> 00:02:38.563 Descript lets you edit audio and video files. 00:02:38.593 --> 00:02:40.543 Like they were a text document. 00:02:40.753 --> 00:02:42.133 It's wild. 00:02:42.523 --> 00:02:45.223 I was an early adopter of descript and I've been using it to edit 00:02:45.223 --> 00:02:46.873 podcasts and videos for years now. 00:02:47.833 --> 00:02:49.153 Among its killer features. 00:02:49.753 --> 00:02:50.233 Do you say? 00:02:50.293 --> 00:02:53.353 Um, and ah, a lot when you're speaking, do you tend to stutter? 00:02:53.503 --> 00:02:55.573 Descript can automatically remove that for you. 00:02:56.053 --> 00:02:58.093 Do you want to add a section of your podcast where you're talking 00:02:58.093 --> 00:03:00.943 about a product, but you don't want to rerecord the whole episode. 00:03:01.123 --> 00:03:02.473 Descript can do that for you. 00:03:02.863 --> 00:03:04.933 Do you want to add a video to your podcast episode? 00:03:05.203 --> 00:03:06.553 Descript can do that for you. 00:03:07.333 --> 00:03:10.693 Descript can export video in portrait or landscape mode and it makes 00:03:10.693 --> 00:03:13.693 it trivial to create content for Instagram, Tik, TOK, and YouTube. 00:03:14.053 --> 00:03:16.393 I also really love their audio gram feature, which you can 00:03:16.393 --> 00:03:19.543 use to make close caption clips from podcasts for social media. 00:03:20.993 --> 00:03:23.963 If you're ready to make audio and video editing, feel like magic head 00:03:23.963 --> 00:03:27.023 on over to the show notes and check out my link to give Descript a shot. 00:03:28.673 --> 00:03:32.243 Finally, let's talk about Backblaze Backblaze is automated cloud backups 00:03:32.243 --> 00:03:35.993 for your computer for 18 bucks a month, I get unlimited backups of the 00:03:35.993 --> 00:03:39.593 two computers that my wife and I use having a backup of your computer is 00:03:39.593 --> 00:03:42.683 one of those things that many people don't think about until it's too late. 00:03:43.163 --> 00:03:45.683 I've been on the short end of that sick one too many times in my life. 00:03:45.713 --> 00:03:47.963 So I take a military mindset to backups. 00:03:48.143 --> 00:03:52.073 Two is one, one is not, I have my computer backed up locally 00:03:52.073 --> 00:03:55.853 to a Nass or network attached storage device using time machine. 00:03:56.153 --> 00:03:58.883 And I use Backblaze as a cloud backup for my computer's hard drive. 00:03:59.213 --> 00:04:01.013 It's a set it and forget it kind of service. 00:04:01.073 --> 00:04:02.333 And I've been using it for years. 00:04:04.043 --> 00:04:05.543 Among back pleases killer features. 00:04:05.573 --> 00:04:07.943 Well, you install it once and it does its magic. 00:04:08.423 --> 00:04:11.903 If you ever have a catastrophic event and need to restore your data from a backup, 00:04:11.933 --> 00:04:15.893 you can download your files directly from the web, or they'll send you a USB hard 00:04:15.893 --> 00:04:17.723 drive with all your data on it for free. 00:04:17.723 --> 00:04:19.013 As long as you ship it back to them. 00:04:19.013 --> 00:04:21.593 Within 30 days, it's a super thoughtful feature. 00:04:21.593 --> 00:04:24.203 It's a great service and it's well worth it for peace of mind. 00:04:25.133 --> 00:04:27.863 If you're not already backing up your computer, you probably should be. 00:04:27.923 --> 00:04:30.953 So try Backblaze by using the referral link I provided in the show 00:04:30.953 --> 00:04:32.423 notes for a month of free service. 00:04:34.193 --> 00:04:34.853 And that's it. 00:04:34.853 --> 00:04:35.513 This is a quick one. 00:04:35.513 --> 00:04:37.973 I'm actually headed out to take some time off from work this week to 00:04:37.973 --> 00:04:39.713 recharge and spend some time in the sun. 00:04:40.013 --> 00:04:43.494 It's something I try to do regularly to take care of myself, work life, and 00:04:43.494 --> 00:04:44.843 everything else can be a lot to handle. 00:04:44.843 --> 00:04:47.213 And it's important for me to take time to recharge. 00:04:47.263 --> 00:04:49.063 I hope you're able to do the same from time to time. 00:04:49.604 --> 00:04:51.284 Until next time, be excellent to each other. 00:04:51.313 --> 00:04:52.724 Stay positive and love your life. 00:04:53.024 --> 00:04:54.794 Thanks so much for listening to tiny improvements. 00:04:54.884 --> 00:04:55.693 I'll catch you next time.