The stack that replaced
$500/month of software

Powers every script, caption, blog post, and strategy document in the SimplySolvd OS. The only AI that holds context well enough to write in a consistent brand voice across hundreds of pieces.

Generates every voiceover and background music track in the OS video pipeline. Replaced a freelance voiceover budget completely. The voice quality is the only one I've tested that doesn't sound like a GPS.

Runs Flux Pro image generation and Seedance video generation inside the OS. Not a tool you log into — it's the engine under the hood. Mentioned here because it's genuinely the fastest and most reliable image API I've tested.

Tested Jasper for long-form blog content before building a custom pipeline with Claude. Strong brand voice training features and good template library. Better for teams than solo operators — the brand voice locking is its real value.

Tested extensively for brand visual development. Still the best pure image quality of any AI model — the level of artistic control with prompting is unmatched. Now use fal.ai for volume, Midjourney for one-off high-quality creative work.

Tested Sora for short-form video generation. Impressive on cinematic shots, less consistent on product-focused content. Worth testing if you're on the ChatGPT Plus plan — it's included.

Free alternative to paid AI models for research tasks, brainstorming, and drafting. Not replacing Claude for brand voice work — but for raw research and idea generation, the quality-to-cost ratio (free) is hard to argue with.

Daily driver for research. Unlike standard AI chatbots, Perplexity cites its sources in real time — essential for financial and wellness content where accuracy is a legal matter, not just a quality preference.

Used before building the automated image pipeline. Still useful for one-off brand assets, presentation decks, and quick mockups. The template library is genuinely good for side hustlers who need professional-looking visuals fast.

Use Premiere, Photoshop, and Illustrator for specific production work. Honest take: for most solo operators, the cost ($55+/mo for all apps) is hard to justify when Canva and AI tools handle 80% of the same tasks. Worth it if video editing is a core part of your output.

Used for targeted prospecting — finding specific people by role, industry, and company size with verified contact details. The free tier is genuinely useful for solo operators who need to reach a specific type of person directly without paying for a separate contact database.

Tested before switching to n8n. Easier to set up for simple two-step automations, and the app library (7,000+ integrations) is unmatched. If you need something connected quickly and don't want to manage infrastructure, Zapier is still the fastest path.

The cleanest job search tracker I've tested. One dashboard for every application — status, contacts, notes, follow-up dates. The resume builder tailors your resume to each job description automatically, which is the single most time-consuming part of a high-volume search. Free tier handles most use cases.

Browser extension that auto-fills job applications using your saved profile. Tested across LinkedIn, Indeed, Greenhouse, Lever, and Workday. Cuts application time from 15 minutes to under 2 minutes per role. The job tracker syncs automatically when you apply — no manual entry.

Easy Apply is the fastest application method on any platform for roles that accept it. The real value is in the network — a warm connection at a company converts at dramatically higher rates than a cold application. Use it for applications AND for mapping connections at target companies before applying.

Kanban-style job tracker — move applications from Wishlist to Applied to Interview to Offer. The contact tracker inside each application card is what makes it stand out. Every person you talk to at a company is logged with their role, email, and your last interaction. Prevents the awkward "who did I speak to?" moment before an interview.

Scans your resume against a job description and scores how well it will pass through Applicant Tracking Systems before a human sees it. Most large company applications go through ATS screening first — a resume that doesn't pass never reaches the hiring manager. Worth running every resume through before submitting to any role at a company over 200 people.

A 90-second Loom video sent as a follow-up after an application converts significantly better than a follow-up email. Tested this personally. The format is unusual enough to get opened, personal enough to build connection, and short enough to respect their time. Free tier covers everything a job seeker needs.

An end-to-end job search automation system that handles application tracking, follow-up sequencing, and outreach automation. Lifetime access — not a subscription. This referral is available exclusively to SimplySolvd community members and is not linked publicly. To get access, email hello@simplysolvd.com with the subject line HIRED or reply to any Sprint email with the word HIRED.

The planned infrastructure for physical product expansion. Not using it yet for digital products — Payhip handles that more efficiently. Shopify earns its cost when you're managing inventory, multiple product types, or need a full branded storefront.

Used for 3 months for landing pages and funnel building. Honest take: incredibly powerful, genuinely overwhelming for a solo operator. It can replace your CRM, email platform, calendar, funnel builder, and SMS tool simultaneously — but it costs $97/mo and you'll spend a month learning it. Worth it if you have clients. Hard to justify for a single-product side hustle.

Used ClickFunnels for landing pages before moving to GoHighLevel. The template library is excellent and the "Funnel Hacker" community is genuinely one of the most active SaaS communities I've seen. Steep learning curve, and the price feels high at $147/mo for the base plan, but the conversion-focused page builder is hard to beat.

Currently using Wix for a separate brand project (Workflora). The AI website builder is genuinely impressive for non-technical operators — describe what you want and it builds a functional starting point. The drag-and-drop editor is more intuitive than most alternatives.

Used Squarespace for a portfolio site. The templates are genuinely beautiful — the best-looking out-of-the-box designs of any website builder. Less flexible than Wix for custom functionality, but if design quality is the priority and you don't need complex integrations, Squarespace wins.

The email backbone of SimplySolvd. Runs the 30-Day Stability Sprint nurture sequence, captures leads from every blog post and landing page, and connects directly to Payhip purchases. The automation builder is visual and genuinely usable for non-technical operators.

Tested Mailchimp early on. The free tier is generous (1,000 contacts, 500/day sends) and the interface is intuitive for beginners. The automation features are weaker than Kit for sequence-based nurture funnels, but for simple newsletters and broadcasts it gets the job done.

Tested for complex automation sequences. Genuinely the most powerful email platform I've used — the conditional logic in the automation builder is in a different class. Overkill for a solo operator starting out, but the right tool when your list crosses 10,000 subscribers and your sequences get complex.

Standard scheduling tool for calls and meetings. The free tier handles most use cases. The Stripe integration (paid plan) makes it clean for paid consultation bookings.

Hosts both simplysolvd.com and the OS dashboard. The free tier is genuinely generous for solo projects, and deployment is a single git push. If you're building anything with Next.js, Vercel is the path of least resistance.

The database behind the entire OS — stores every post, research item, content calendar entry, and analytics record. The free tier is the most generous in the space (500MB, unlimited API calls). Postgres under the hood means real SQL, not a dumbed-down NoSQL alternative.

Standard payment processor used across multiple projects. 2.9% + 30¢ per transaction is the benchmark rate. The dashboard is clean, payouts are reliable, and the API documentation is among the best in the industry.

Used for client and collaborator communication. The free tier stores 90 days of history, which is enough for most solo operator use cases. Worth upgrading when you have multiple active client relationships or need search across full message history.

Used for strategy documentation, content planning, and personal knowledge management. The AI features (Notion AI) are genuinely useful for summarising notes and drafting from outlines. The database views are the real differentiator — you can build a lightweight CRM, content calendar, and project tracker in one place.

Used for project tracking when the work is linear — move a card from To Do → In Progress → Done. Less powerful than Notion for complex projects, but faster to set up and easier to hand off to collaborators. The free tier is legitimately useful.

Vagus nerve stimulation device. Shifts your nervous system out of stress mode in minutes — no breathing exercises required. The hardware version of what polyvagal theory recommends.

Tested for creating authentic-looking product testimonial videos without real creators. The output quality is better than expected for the price. Most useful for ad creative testing — lets you test 5–10 different "creator" voices on a product before scaling any of them.

Tested Zeely for automated ad creative generation. The AI generates multiple creative variants automatically, which is useful for rapid A/B testing without a designer. Better suited for e-commerce product ads than service-based content.