The Tech We Swear By (and Pay For…Every Month)

Let’s get real: running a creative strategy and event agency in 2025 means paying for a lot of software. Every creative professional gets asked: “What software do you use?”

The answer: the best tech tools for creative agencies aren’t one-size-fits-all. Instead, successful event and creative businesses build a tech stack – a collection of integrated tools that handle different aspects of the work.

Between the project tools, design platforms, payment systems, and communication stacks, our monthly tech tab is… let’s just say, it rivals our rent. But here’s the thing—it’s all worth it.

We’ll admit it: our tech stack isn’t cheap. Between subscriptions, upgrades, and premium tiers, our tools run the gamut—but they also power everything we do. At 3 Pillars Co., we believe in building smart, efficient, scalable systems that help us create bold experiences, run smooth projects, and deliver strategy that actually sticks—and we do the same for ourselves.

This isn’t sponsored content – these are real recommendations. Some links below are affiliate links, which means we may earn a small commission if you sign up (at no cost to you). We only recommend tools we genuinely use and trust.

Why These Are the Best Tools for Creative Strategy

As a creative strategy and event production agency, we don’t just use software because it’s trendy—we use tools that help us streamline communication, build bold campaigns, and manage complex projects across clients and time zones. These platforms support how we think, create, and collaborate. Every tool below plays a specific role in keeping our team nimble, our work polished, and our client experience seamless.

What We Look for in a Tech Subscription

Before we commit to adding another tool to our monthly overhead, it has to meet some high standards. At 3 Pillars Co., we treat our tech stack like an extension of our team—it needs to pull its weight, integrate smoothly, and actually make our lives easier. Here’s what we consider before hitting “Subscribe”:

• User Experience (UX): If it’s clunky or confusing, we’re not using it. Clean interfaces and intuitive navigation are non-negotiables.
• Automation & Integration: We love tools that talk to each other. Seamless integrations with our existing platforms save time and eliminate double work.
• Scalability: We choose tools that grow with us—whether that’s adding more users, handling larger projects, or offering advanced features when we’re ready.
• Transparent Pricing: No hidden fees, unclear tiers, or confusing pricing models. We need to know exactly what we’re paying for (and what we’re getting).
• Support & Resources: When things go sideways, we want a responsive support team and a solid help center to back us up.
• Purpose-Fit: We don’t believe in one-size-fits-all software. Every platform we pay for serves a specific purpose in our creative strategy, operations, or client experience.
• Collaboration-Ready: Many of our clients are remote or hybrid. Our tech needs to support real-time collaboration and centralized communication without friction.

Here’s what we’re using, why we love it, and how we integrate it into our work with clients.

The Platforms We Love (and Use Every Week)

Wavebox:

The unsung hero of our daily operations. Wavebox keeps all our apps, tabs, and workspaces organized in one beautiful, streamlined browser. It’s like having command central open at all times—cutting down tab chaos and helping us move faster.

Notion:

Our HQ for everything. Our everything-hub. If it needs structure and cross-functional collaboration, it lives here. We use Notion to track progress, collaborate with clients, and centralize communications in one easy-to-navigate hub. We use it for project dashboards, internal SOPs, brand guidelines, and client collaboration. Clean, customizable, and easy on the eyes. Bonus: we’ll build you a Notion system if you need one.

Google Workspace:

Docs, Slides, Sheets, Drive.

The reliable foundation of our inboxes, file sharing, and cloud storage. Docs, Sheets, Slides, and Drive are the bread and butter of our day-to-day operations, especially when collaborating with clients in real time.

It’s a staple—and we’re masters of folder hygiene.

Adobe Creative Suite:

For high-level design work, our creative team lives in Illustrator, InDesign, and Premiere Pro. Expensive? Adobe powers our high-quality creative work, including brand identity design, video edits, and marketing collateral.

Typeform:

We love a good intake form. The sleekest way to collect info, conduct surveys, or onboard clients. We’ve even used it for registration, speaker intake forms and post-event feedback.

Beautiful.ai:

Presentation design that doesn’t make us want to cry — creating polished presentations for strategy decks, creative proposals, or event recaps is a breeze. Perfect for proposals, pitch decks, and visual storytelling, this tool helps us keep our client-facing documents sharp and branded.

Melio:

The easiest way to pay vendors and contractors without pulling out your hair. (We see you, 1099 season.) Paying vendors, contractors, and small businesses shouldn’t be a pain. Melio helps us handle payments smoothly with fewer fees and better transparency.

Gusto:

As an S-Corp, we have to run payroll. Payroll management, simplified. Especially helpful as our team grows and flexes across states. Gusto keeps our internal team happy and compliant.

Dubsado:

Our client relationship engine since our inception in 2018. We use it for contracts, proposals, invoices, workflows, and more. Dubsado makes the client experience smoother from start to finish. We use it to send proposals, contracts, invoices, and keep all your project info in one place.

Flodesk:

Our newsletter HQ. Gorgeous email templates, automation options, and zero coding needed. If you’ve read our newsletter, you’ve already seen Flodesk in action. It’s our go-to for designing beautiful, responsive, and easy-to-manage email marketing.

Figma:

Collaboration meets design. We use Figma to build wireframes and collaborate with clients in real time for brand and web development projects.

Canva:

Not everything needs a full design sprint. Canva helps us move fast when we need graphics for social, client decks, or branded internal docs.

How We Use These Tools With Clients

We’re not here to force a system on you. While these are the platforms we use internally, we’re platform agnostic when it comes to client work. If your team lives in Monday.com or Asana, we’ll meet you there. If you need tool recommendations, we’re happy to help guide the process.

Most importantly, we build systems that work for your workflow—not the other way around.

Whether it’s:

• Embedding Notion into a shared client dashboard
• Delivering creative assets via Adobe or Canva
• Setting up invoicing through Melio or Dubsado
• Using Flodesk to send your first newsletter

— we make it seamless, collaborative, and manageable for you and your team.

Should We Drop Some Referral Links?

Honestly, maybe. Some of these platforms offer affiliate programs—and if a tool is working wonders for us and could do the same for you.

Affiliate Note: Curious about trying one of these tools? Many offer free trials—and a few have affiliate programs. We may earn a small commission if you sign up through our links (at no extra cost to you). It helps keep our lights on and our team caffeinated. 😉

We’ll never recommend something we don’t actively use and trust ourselves.

The TL;DR

You can also check out our streamlined tech stack breakdown here with some of our affiliate links—we’re always happy to share and chat tech.

TL;DR: Our Streamlined Tech Stack with some additional mentions

• 🌐 Wavebox – browser workspace magic
• 🧠 Notion – digital HQ for collaboration
• 📧 Google Workspace – docs, slides, email, storage
• 🎨 Adobe Creative Cloud – visual design powerhouse
• 📝 Typeform – elegant forms & feedback
• 📊 Beautiful.ai – client-ready presentations
• 💸 Melio – vendor & contractor payments
• 💼 Gusto – HR, payroll, onboarding
• 📋 Dubsado – CRM & client ops
• 📨 Flodesk – email marketing that doesn’t suck
• 🎨 Figma – live design collaboration
• 🖌️ Canva – quick, accessible, and on-brand visuals
• 🧮 Quickbooks – accounting and bookkeeping made easy