Affiliate Disclosure & Links

If you’d like to purchase any of the software or subscriptions I use to make this blog and my business look good, flow well, and remain ad-free, I invite you to use my affiliate and referral links below.

When you purchase from these links, I may earn a small commission – at no extra charge to you, or we may both receive a discount or special offer. I only become an affiliate with a brand after using them and trusting them.

Affiliate Links

When you click on links to products for these brands, I may be eligible to earn a monetary commission.

Pixistock – Styled Stock Photography.

• From the banners to featured images to graphics and printable books, Pixistock is all over this site! I use Alicia’s and her team’s graphics, templates, and training to show up better for all of you who stop by to read. She has everything from social media post templates to client onboarding and offboarding templates. If you are looking to increase your overall look, stop by her site today and check out the deals. As an annual member from November 2018 through November 2020, and a Lifetime Member since November 2020, I am always blown away at how much value Alicia offers all of us who have invested in her. We have one heck of a deal!
• The Annual membership won’t be offered in 2024. Alicia is making updates to its services. However, you can still purchase the Content Planner and Annual Memberships.

Well-Styled Essentials – Styled Stock Photography for bloggers and Young Living Brand Partners.

• Alex does a wonderful job with sharing Young Living products and stock photography, and has expanded her offerings in 2023 to include a la carte items such as welcome emails, eBooks, and more. I’ve been a member since 2018 and will be for as long as I maintain The Essential Creative. I use her photos on the Young Living posts on that blog and my IG for the account. Many of the diffuser blend graphics I create personally also use her stock photography.

Young Living – Essential Oils and Oil-Infused Products.

• I’ve been a Brand Partner since 2014. I’ve been using essential oils long before then but became dedicated to them in after finding the quality and variety in Young Living. We use them in our home exclusively. I don’t know if this is truly an affiliate program, but just in case, and because the point is for you to learn about the tools I use to be successful with business, I am sharing it here too.

Flodesk – Email software.

• You can get the email offering for $19 / month for your first year (unlimited subscribers and emails). I love how easy this software is to use. I have a background with email marketing, including using professional email platforms with intricate workflows and more. This one is my favorite because it is easy to use, has beautiful templates, AND has landing pages available for an affordable rate! I started using this product in 2019 after seeing several blogging and content creator friends using it for their newsletters. It’s a relatively young company. I use the email software, including their check out page offering.
• They continue to add to their software and I LOVE it. I don’t use it nearly as much as I should. The Checkouts offering allows you to sell directly from your email, which is huge for your buyers, who are busy and don’t want to click on multiple pages.

Referral Links

When you buy from the following links, I may receive a discount, credit, or free products.

Business

Canva – Design software: Receive a free design element.

• I design all of my designs with my Canva and Adobe Creative Cloud subscriptions, which are yearly subscriptions because I know I am coming back year after year. You can start with a free subscription and upgrade after you feel it’s worth the value to do.
• I use the Pro subscription because I wanted unlimited free photos, larger storage capacity, and the branding elements includes at that level.
• Canva continually increases their features, is really easy to use, and is a fraction of the cost for Adobe. In 2023, Pro users received early access to all the of Magic Design features as well as Docs long before it went public. If you aren’t a paid graphic designer, I highly recommend it as your chosen design platform.

WordPress – Website and blog hosting software: Receive free credits.

• This one feels a little too easy! You can see that I have been using the paid subscriptions since 2018, when I launched with TheEssentialCreative.com and ShellVera.com. Prior that that, I used the free version with my EyesStraightAhead.wordpress.com site since 2011 (and sunset in November 2018 after this community was up and running and I no longer wanted to just blog but to create a growing community where I can have guest bloggers and really focus on excelling creatively in faith, family, business, and community). The offer changes from time to time, but usually involves free credits of $25 or so.