I love Text Expander because of its expansion feature. As a writer, I type a lot of words, but some things are really hard for me to remember, like hex codes. I can remember a cute little shortcode and what I need will *bloop!* right out at me.

Introduction to Text Expander

Finding the right set of tech is a mission for every entrepreneur. I use Text Expander on multiple computers and it’s on my desktop so I can use it on any Chrome Profile, which is helpful, because I switch it up sometimes.

The Big Idea of Text Expander

Text Expander is a robust version of text replacement on your phone. All phones have text replacement under the general settings of your keyboard. It is an accessibility feature and available on all phones.

The most common use of text expansion is auto correct for spelling.

Expandable

*Bloop* Your entire blogging template pops up.

No copypasta necessary.

If I have to stop to open Google Docs, Asana, or Evernote before I start typing, I’m going to lose track. my attention span is

• going
• going
• going

and then it’s gone. Where did the idea even go?

I use Workflowy as my quick-capture system for ideas and anything I say over & over & over, like my hex codes. I just add it into my text expansion system as a snippet.

Having my templates set up on Text Expander help me keep my flow going.

Multiple Devices

You can try creating snippets and text replacements on your phone or computer for free, but with Text Expander you can set it up once and log in on multiple devices. That really works for me.. I paid $200 for a year’s access pretty quickly. #worthit

Options!

You can even put your entire email template into text expander and make changes right in the space you’re typing. I don’t use this feature too much, but for bigger corporations, I can see it being very useful.

Conclusion

Text Expander is an important piece of my workflow. It is very simple to access a view of all your snippets. It’s simple to change and each use can create their own as well as have access to company snippets.

When I use text replacements on my phone, it is very cumbersome to remember the shortcode. If I get it wrong, it’s hard to look up. But with Text Expander, it’s very easy to see what the hold-up was and make changes so it’s easier next time.

Having a desktop version of my text expansion system works for me because it instantly updates on all of my devices. And I love the sound of the *bloop!*. My favorite way to use it is when I’m picking my hex codes and writing the name of my email program, Try Something New Every Month.