
The Creator Tools & Subscriptions We Pay For and the Ones You Don’t Need Yet
From Creator's Leverage Guild by Mike Strahl
February 22, 2026 · 45 min
About this episode
Mike and Ben discuss essential creator tools and subscriptions, highlighting what is worth paying for and what can be done with free resources.
In this episode, Mike & Ben break down the creator subscriptions, software, and tools they personally pay for, and which ones are actually worth it for Amazon Influencers and content creators.As you grow in the Amazon Influencer Program, YouTube, or content creation in general, it’s easy to feel like you need to pay for every tool that promises faster growth. The truth is, most creators can go very far using free tools, and upgrading too early often leads to wasted money without improving results.We talk through the free tools every creator should start with, including Canva, iMovie, CapCut, and cloud storage, and when it actually makes sense to upgrade to paid software like Final Cut Pro, DaVinci Resolve, or other editing platforms.We also break down the tools that can directly improve efficiency and increase earnings, including Oink and Viral View for Amazon Influencer product research and Creator Connections, Geniuslink for international affiliate linking, vidIQ for YouTube optimization, Keepa for product research, and ChatGPT for workflow efficiency.In addition, we share how we personally manage our creator subscriptions, including how to audit tools regularly, avoid…
People in this episode
Host: Mike Strahl
Guest: Ben
Topics covered
- creator tools
- subscriptions
- Amazon Influencer Program
- content creation
- software evaluation
- efficiency tools
Keywords
- creator subscriptions
- content creation tools
- Amazon Influencer
- YouTube optimization
- free tools
- paid software
- efficiency
Mentioned in this episode
Products: Canva, iMovie, CapCut, Final Cut Pro, DaVinci Resolve, Oink, Viral View, Creator Connections, Geniuslink, vidIQ
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