Keeping track of all your leads, contracts, invoices, and client info is HARD, y’all. The DIY way of doing things is okay for a season at the beginning of your business. But as your client roster grows and you start getting more leads, your hands can get full, and quickly.
I use Dubsado to manage the backend of my business, and I absolutely love it. Today, I’m going to share a full-on Dubsado review. So, if you’re looking for a CRM for your business and you’ve got your eye on Dubsado, keep reading! We’ll cover why I think it’s the best CRM for online business owners, my favorite features, and a Dubsado coupon code!
(Want to skip to the good part? Get 20% off Dubsado here!)
What is Dubsado?
Dubsado is a customer relationship management (CRM) software that helps you keep client information and communication organized. You know all that little stuff you do in your business, like sending out invoices, proposals, and contracts? Dubsado can do that for you!
It’s also super useful in SO many other ways. Client records? Dubsado keeps track of them. Automated reminders to review, sign, and pay? Dubsado has your back. Scheduling calendars? Check.
Basically, Dubsado takes the business-owner busywork off your plate and puts it on autopilot.
Who needs Dubsado?
Any online business owner who has more than one or two clients can benefit from Dubsado! Businesses that use a CRM can experience conversion-rate boosts of up to 300%.
Full transparency, if you only deal with one or two clients per year, then it might not be cost-effective to pay for Dubsado. But if you already have multiple clients, or are planning to ramp up to that point… do it!
Dubsado takes all the stress out of trying to remember when you need to reach out to clients, what you need to send them, and how a proposal should look. Everything is streamlined into workflows, templates, and systems. The end result is that your clients have a better overall experience AND you’re less stressed. It’s a win-win!
Read more about if you need a CRM here.
The Dangers of DIY
SO many times when I hop on an initial client call, I find out they’ve been manually handling all client intake or generating every step of the process by hand. In other words, the business owner is behind the computer sending off every single client communication, every time.
Not only does that leave a ton of room for user error, it’s costing your business time and money. I’m all about building know, like, and trust with consistency… And all about my clients getting paid on time! That’s a lot harder when you’re not dependable or streamlined.
I think back to the days before I used Dubsado and it literally makes me cringe. I spent SO much time that I could have used to take on more clients if I’d streamlined my processes from the beginning.
Side note, I also tried to save monthly costs by using a Dubsado alternative, and I didn’t love it as much. It wasn’t as customizable, and there were still some aspects of the process I had to manage manually. Dubsado has been the best for every stage of my business so far!
Dubsado CRM for creatives
All of Dubsado’s features are amazing for any online business owners, and that goes for creatives too! But I wanted to highlight a couple of additional reasons I think it’s particularly good for any creative business owner.
Whether you’re a web designer, writer, or photographer, working with your clients is a collaborative creative process. There are myriad questions to ask and notes to keep track of when it comes to figuring out (and remembering!) what your client likes and what you have in mind for a project.
For example, I give Launch Week and Scalable Site clients homework to kickstart the creative process in the form of a Dubsado questionnaire! You can also use questionnaires at the first point of contact to gather information about budget and expectations, which is helpful for whittling down discovery calls to your best prospects.
Dubsado features
There are honestly too many to list out every single feature in this post, but here are the ones I think really stand out for using Dubsado CRM for creatives.
Streamlined client communication
Having everything in one place adds polish to the client experience and makes things easier for you! You can finally stop digging through Gmail and DMs for that *one* message from your client, and keep it all in Dubsado.
When it’s time to make a contract or proposal, you can just pull up a template and have one ready in minutes. Dubsado provides ready-made examples, but you can customize everything to fit your client process and branding.
So ditch jotting down client info on post-it notes and make the switch! And, bonus: a CRM-driven experience is a huge step up for your business that means you can ask for higher rates.
Schedules galore
There are plenty of free scheduling softwares on the market, but Dubsado allows you to make multiple, separate calendars for different purposes.
For example, I have multiple types and lengths of meetings in my business. Discovery calls, project kickoffs, and internal team meetings are all different! With Dubsado, I can make an individual calendar for each one, embed the links into email templates, and send and schedule everything… all in one place.
Forms
Forms are really handy for capturing leads, client information, and testimonials. Try attaching a basic questionnaire to initial inquiries to filter clients based on budget and needs. Collecting that information on the front end leads to better discovery calls and more conversions, because you can identify client needs with ease. If the questionnaire reveals a client isn’t the best fit, just grab a handy email template and send them that info with next steps. Speaking of templates…
Templates galore
With Dubsado, you’re basically never on your own when it comes to writing proposals, contracts, and emails. The blinking cursor can get the best of us all sometimes. And that can kill the entire productivity vibe when it comes to putting something together for a client! Templates can help you get over that hump and get things done.
Workflows
One of my favorite parts! If you already know your SOPs, you can automate the entire process. So, if you always send a specific email to incoming leads, invoicing reminders on a certain date, or have a set funnel process… make a Dubsado workflow for it! Then your processes can work for you behind the scenes.
You can also define different workflows for different types of projects. Getting all of that information out of your head and into a pre-defined workflow can be such a relief!
Signing new clients is easy
In Dusbado, you can send a proposal, contract, and the first invoice all together… Or, you could set up a workflow that sends the next document as each step in the process is completed. Putting together proposals and contracts manually is time-consuming, and taking too long could lower your chances that a client will sign.
Dubsado can even automatically send reminders to clients that they have a proposal or contract waiting for approval!
Everything is highly customizable
Dubsado has always been really great with customization, but their latest update makes this even better! Obviously, as a designer, I can be pretty particular about the way I want things to look. Before Dubsado, I manually made each proposal and contract in Illustrator so they would be “pretty” enough to present to clients 😂
The nice thing about Dubsado is that you can white-label everything so that no one will ever know it doesn’t live on your actual website. You can switch up the color scheme, logo, and branding elements to match your existing brand design. And the URL even looks like it comes from your website!
It’s affordable
Rather than a timed trial, Dubsado is free for your first three clients. After that, subscription plans start at $20 per month. That said, the *best* features are in the $40 per month package (which is the one I use and reviewed here).
Ready to try Dubsado?
It’s truly the best CRM for online business owners! And, you can get 20% off with my Dubsado coupon code. Try Dubsado now!
