Behope Studio.
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ABOUT THE PROJECT
The Backstory
Behope Studio helps creative entrepreneurs and service providers to streamline the backend systems of their business with automated systems and workflows to streamline their processes. Phoebe's key service offerings allow her to help time-poor business reduce stress, gain more time back to work in their business instead of on it, and rediscover the joy of what they do.
The Brief
Blog Copy
CLIENT LOVE NOTES
“Thank you so much, they are literally perfect. I love them so much. I have already uploaded them to my website!!”
- Phoebe Palmer, Behope Studio
Words We Wrote.
Read the blog copy we wrote for Behope Studio.
How to organise your virtual assistant business
It’s such a great feeling to take the leap into starting your virtual assistant business and hit those first milestones when you sign your first clients and projects. Before you know it, the work is flowing in each month! All of sudden though, you have multiple clients to manage while trying to manage new enquiries for prospective clients and you can suddenly see all the disorganisation in your day-to-day processes.
Being busy is a good problem to have, but it can feel very overwhelming if your business isn’t organised to scale with you as you grow. Don’t stress and close your books for the month just yet, we’ve got your back. A sprinkle of organisation and TLC for your back-end systems and process will get your virtual assistant business in tip top shape. Set your business up for success to grow with you and spend time doing what you love each day, not drowning in admin work.
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Setting up a CRM system with workflows
The number one recommendation we have for organising your virtual assistant business is setting up a CRM (Customer Relationship Management) system, like Dubsado. A CRM system helps you manage and automate the communication between your business and your clients – think everything from the emails you’re sending manually to book in discovery calls, proposals, invoicing, onboarding and offboarding – it can all be automated and managed through your workflows in your CRM. No more jumping from platform to platform and spending your precious time doing mountains of admin work in your business.
It can be overwhelming at first, but once set-up your workflows and CRM system help ensure you never drop the ball with your client experience.
• Save time emailing clients back and forth
• Keep track of all your leads and clients
• Stay on top of your invoices and track your income
• Store client information and documents all in one place
• Automate repetitive ‘enquiry phase’ tasks
Dubsado is our bread and butter workflow automation tool that we use to manage our own back-end processes, and set up for our clients, at Behope Studio.
Utilise templates
Whether or not you have a fully automated CRM system or workflows set up, utilising templates is something that will make you feel organised AF and save you time in your virtual assistant business. Something as simple as a few scripted email templates will save you hours crafting the perfect email or finding the right words to convey your message to your clients. Having these on hand so you can copy, paste and swap a bit of pre-filled information means spending way less time tackling your inbox each day when you could be doing other client work.
Templates for everything from emails to proposals are a great way to ensure your client experience never slips. As your business grows, your prospective clients will continue to receive the same love and care from their first interactions to their last.
Psst, don’t have time to write email templates? Take a cheeky peek at the ones we’ve created for busy virtual assistants just like you, here.
Set boundaries and client expectations
Now, I know you’re eager to do it all for your clients but let’s chat boundaries. It feels all well and good to go above and beyond when you start out. However, as you grow you may start to feel that squeeze of resentment when you’re working late and your client emails you to ask if you can do ‘just one more thing.’ Setting clear boundaries from the beginning with your clients on guidelines of your working hours, how many revisions you do, and how much time you need to turnaround tasks can all help set clear client expectations from the beginning.
Communication
Organised communication is key in organising your virtual assistant business. In addition to setting boundaries and clear client expectations, tangibly keeping all your communication in one place (such as via email) – instead of over socials, Whatsapp, email, or by carrier pigeon – means that no task slips through the cracks. Great communication is exceptionally important in running an organised virtual assistant business.
Dubsado is our bread and butter workflow automation tool that we use to manage our own communication and back-end processes at Behope Studio – and set up for our clients!
We love helping our clients transform their business with a full Dubsado CRM set-up, but we know not everyone is in the place to make this full investment right away. Saving time and having a stellar client experience is something every business owner deserves though, that’s why we’ve created a handy dandy Dubsado 101 Guide Book (for the DIY-ers we know and love).
Launching July 24th, sign up for the launch list and be the first to have it in your hot little hands, my friend.
Prefer someone to take your messy processes (no judgement here) and polish them up all shiny and fresh? We’ve got you! Apply for our Dubsado in a Day and wipe the sweat off your brow. Your systems and processes are about to start giving you hours back in your day.
Six ways to create an unforgettable client experience as a service provider
Think about the times you’ve worked with a service provider or shopped from a store and had the most amazing, unforgettable client experience. You must have felt taken care of and who you worked with really went above and beyond for you. It’s likely you raved about the experience to the people you know (hello, word of mouth!) More often than not, it’s the smallest touches that really elevate a client experience and make it truly unforgettable.
You might not think so yet, but it doesn’t have to be hard or time-consuming to implement processes so you can go the extra mile for your clients. Once set up, it’s oh-so worth it and pays off tenfold. Here’s what you should keep in mind to create the most unforgettable client experience as a service provider.
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First impressions count
Remember, you can’t make a first impression twice. Make it count! The first interactions prospective clients have with your business will set the tone for whether or not they choose to work with you. Taking the time to invest in getting your systems and workflows set up and automated with a tool like Dubsado will mean your business never misses a beat. Imagine a world where your entire onboarding process is tailored to your client, with no extra heavy lifting from you. An absolute dream!
Set up workflows
Step into your new enquiry’s shoes for a minute. You’ve decided you need XYZ service and you think you’ve found the perfect business to work with to have it rolled out. You book a discovery call, chat with them and it’s great – but you’re doing a lot of waiting around because their back-end processes are clunky. You’re super eager to get rolling but are waiting days for a proposal with service packages. By the time you receive it, you’ve lost that initial excitement and it’s put a slight dampen on the blossoming stages of your working relationship.
Not a fun scenario! Imagine instead, your client easily books a discovery call with you, they love your vibe and approach immediately, and you’re able to follow up very quickly with a templated, gorgeously-presented proposal in Dubsado to get their project rolling. They’re able to easily select a package, sign their service agreement, pay their invoice and get fully onboarded. The best part? You barely had to lift a finger AND your client loved the enquiry process. We can get your Dubsado set up for you in a day (it’s literally called Dubsado in a day, my friend) and have your workflows working for you.
Clear communication
Nothing sours a client’s standard of your services quicker than poor communication. Clear communication will empower you as a business owner to manage your client’s expectations with clear boundaries, plus always ensure your clients are in the loop. One of our best recommendations is to incorporate a ‘welcome pack’ into your onboarding processes. This can be fully automated into your Dubsado workflow too, so when a new client starts working with you, they get all the information they need to have the best experience working with you. We recommend including information on:
• Your typical working hours and availability
• The best way to contact and reach you
• Revisions and out-of-scope work
Always know the right thing to say
Are you guilty of letting emails pile up in your inbox when you don’t quite know what to say? No more dumping in the ‘too-hard basket’ and avoiding your emails. Our secret weapon is to start curating a few email responses that you can easily copy, paste and adjust when a tricky or ‘oh, this one again’ conversation comes up. This is also a great tip to half the time spent managing your admin and inbox management each day!
Don’t have time to craft the responses? We’ve got you! Meet our Email Templates for Service Providers. 60+ copy-paste templates for almost every situation imaginable.
Consistent branding
Branding isn’t just a ‘nice to have’ anymore. A brand that looks put-together from every touchpoint not only looks aligned, professional and like ‘she means business’ – but shows every prospective and current client you work with, that you care about how you show up in your business. A client who knows you care about how you show up will remember this, and know that you’ll show up for their business in the same energy.
Did you know not only am I the Dubsado Queen over here, but we also offer website services? Yep, that’s right. The All-In-One-Launch will allow you to scale your business instantly with a fully inclusive makeover and CRM setup. Apply here!
Ask for feedback
This is the best way to ensure you’re continually giving your clients the most stellar client experience. It can be easy to overlook the small details when you’re so close to the systems and processes of your business, but every new client has a fresh perspective. This is a goldmine for you to elevate your client experience for the next person. Try not to take it personally. Implementing new suggestions can help you improve your business, it’s a good thing!
Investing in systems and processes to improve your client experience can feel like a hefty upfront investment of your time and energy (if you choose to do it yourself) or money (if you outsource) but when your processes are set up to ‘wow’ your client at every touchpoint, it truly reaffirms the value of the investment your client is making with your services, allows you to take on more aligned projects and saves you time. That in itself? Priceless.
Ready to find the right fit for you and level up your client experience? Take a cheeky peek at our services, designed with creative service providers like you in mind.
Handling the six toughest conversations you’ll have with clients as a business owner
It’s all fun and games running your business until you reach a point where you need to have those not-so-fun, tricky conversations with a client. What do you mean I can’t just ignore the problem until it goes away?! Don’t worry, we’ve been down this road before and we’ve got you covered with our best advice for handling the top-ranked toughest conversations with clients (according to our Instagram followers!)
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Rejecting an enquiry
“It’s not you, it’s me.” Rejecting a new enquiry or telling a client you can no longer work together, feels a bit like a break-up. Similarly to the dating world, even the most amicable rejections are never fun conversations to have. But, just like you might go on a first date and not feel the spark, you might hop on a discovery call with a prospective client and not feel aligned to work together.
While you technically can go the route of an excuse, such as saying you don’t have the capacity at the moment, honesty is always the best policy. We always recommend following up with a recommendation of someone who may be better suited to them. Luckily, in our Email Templates for Service Providers, we have a handy copy-paste script for you specifically for this sitch. Written with all heart and friendly professionalism, you can let those not-quite-right-fit clients down gently. No hard feelings here!
Receiving a rejection
Oof, it’s one thing to reject an enquiry as a business owner – but receiving a rejection stings just as bad, if not worse. We’ve all been there, you have a super excited prospective client jumping on to book a discovery call with you, they sound very keen to get the ball rolling, you’ve sent off a beautifully presented proposal with tailored service options, and then BOOM. Radio silence followed by a ‘Sorry, XYZ reason we can’t proceed working with you.’
We won’t lie, it sucks to pour time and energy into the enquiry process and get nothing back. Sometimes it’s not your fault either – you can do everything right and be the best fit but clients simply change their mind or don’t need your services at this time (or at all). The best way to handle this is to be gracious. Thank your prospective client for reaching out and considering your services, wish them luck, and let them know that they are welcome to reach out if they need help in the future. Relationships are everything, especially in business. Try to avoid burning a bridge whenever possible. You never know how something may pan out later!
Late or unpaid invoices
BRB, typing an email to say ‘pls pay me asap or else’ – okay, just joking. The key to handling late or unpaid invoices is keeping a delicate balance while being confident and firm. You’re the expert in your field providing a top-notch service. We know nothing feels scarier as a business owner than following up with a client who hasn’t paid their outstanding invoice but you’ve got this.
Though it may feel like you’re being too mean or pushy, it's extremely important to set these boundaries, as early on in your working relationship as possible, so that your limits are not to be pushed. The more you let things like late invoices slide, the more likely your clients are to take advantage of you – even unknowingly – because they know you’re ‘super chill.’
Standing up for yourself is easy, breezy with our copy-paste Email Templates (just sayin’).
Out-of-scope work
Oh, the dreaded scope creep – every service provider’s nemesis. It’s hard to know when to draw the line between completing ‘one extra thing’ as a good-faith gesture to when a client is taking advantage of you and your time. Approaching this conversation can feel daunting, but you’ll feel more confident if you come prepared. Whether you chat with your client face-to-face or via email, we recommend handling the conversation by:
• Referring to the services outlined in your contractual agreement
• Providing clarity on your revisions process – including how many
• Setting clear boundaries on client expectations, and
• Your hourly rate or quote for additional work
Not sure how to word it nicely in an email? We’ve got an email template for that too, here!
Raising your prices
Every business owner should increase their prices eventually. As you grow in your business, upskill and the quality of your services improve, you should be paid what you’re worth. But, how do you kindly tell your clients you’re increasing your prices (i.e. they’ll have to start paying more)? It can feel like a tough conversation to have, but the way you approach it is everything. Here’s our best advice:
• Provide explanation and context, but avoid over-explaining or apologising. You’re the expert here, and raising your rates is not only allowed but expected eventually.
• Give your clients enough notice – communication is key! Good timing is usually coming up to a new financial year, the new year, or before beginning a new service agreement period. Your clients would usually expect your prices to increase as your business grows and your services improve.
Reminding clients who the expert is
Maintaining a healthy dynamic between business owner and client in a working relationship can be tricky to work out at first. This can sometimes lead to unfavourable situations where the client is holding all the cards and you don’t feel you’re being respected as the service provider you were hired for. Instead of letting it sour your working relationship or harbouring any resentment, approach the conversation in a friendly manner and remind your client of the processes of how you operate your business. A quick email and you’ll be back on track!
If handling tough conversations with clients always ends up in the ‘too hard basket’ for you as a business owner, it’s time you meet our Email Templates 60+ copy-paste templates for every situation imaginable – except maybe actually breaking up with your no-sparks Hinge date.
Five crucial steps for seamless onboarding
The onboarding process is a crucial time for you as an online service provider to show your client that they made the right choice in engaging to work with you. Even the smallest personal touches make all the difference on how seamless your onboarding experience is. Plus, your onboarding process will set the tone for what working with your business will be like for your client. As Dubsado experts, we know a thing or two about what it takes to ensure a seamless, luxury client onboarding experience. And no, it doesn’t involve extra hours of admin work added onto your day!
Spoiler alert: A key step to improving your onboarding processes and saving you time is automating and streamlining the backend systems of your business. We’ve done the hard work of trialling and testing for you. All you have to do is implement these five crucial steps for seamless onboarding to leave your client feeling satisfied and assured they chose the best in the business to work with. Let’s go!
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Prompt next steps for your kick off call
Clients can be eager beavers, especially when they’ve handed over the cashola and are ready to get stuck into their project with you. We know #businessownerlife gets busy, but if you take even a day too long to get back to your client, it can really dampen the vibes of your working relationship before you’ve even started.
Did you know you can actually automate a ‘next steps’ email in a Dubsado onboarding workflow so that as soon as your client chooses their package, signs their agreement and pays their invoice, they’ll receive an email from you with their next steps or even a welcome guide? Don’t worry, automated doesn’t mean it has to be a cookie-cutter, boring, robot-sounding email either. You can completely customise your canned emails in Dubsado to inject your brand personality and sound like you.
Pre-empt client questions
If you have certain services or offers that clients frequently have questions about, thinking about the ways you can pre-empt these in your lead enquiry and onboarding process will save you time and mental energy in the long-run. Automating these responses as much as possible will reduce your admin workload too! Below are our recommended options for efficiently pre-empting common queries from clients:
• Pre-enquiry: Utilise a ‘Frequently asked questions’ page on your website or section on your services page.
• Enquiry: Email templated responses for commonly asked questions. Simply copy and paste to reduce time spent crafting email responses.
• Onboarding: Answer details of typical client queries in your onboarding welcome guide or email workflow sequence in Dubsado.
Communicate clear expectations
Miscommunication can give you an unnecessary headache when onboarding a new client. Perhaps your client had previously worked with a different service provider with different turnaround times or boundaries that they can’t push with you, or your client had an out-of-scope request that got things off on the wrong foot. The good news is any conflict can be almost entirely avoidable by ensuring clear expectations are communicated as early on as possible. When you’re onboarding a new client, before you get started, we highly recommend ensuring you are on the same page about:
• Project timelines and deliverable deadlines
• Invoice and billing terms, including for additional revisions, hours or out-of-scope requests
• Your contractual obligations, as well as their contractual obligations to you as the client to ensure working together runs smoothly
• The best ways clients can contact you and your typical response window/time
Send a welcome gift
Nothing says ‘I can’t wait to work with you!’ quite like a welcome gift. It doesn’t have to be anything crazy or extravagant, but anything from a floral or edible arrangement to a personalised hamper is an exciting way to kickstart your working relationship with a new client. Touches like this during your onboarding process can take your client experience to the next level and ensure your new prospect feels that you’re just as excited about working with them as they are, every step of the way.
Send the client everything they need
Last but not least, keep the ball rolling smoothly in your client onboarding process by ensuring to send the client everything they need (as well as requesting everything you need from them) to get started. This could look like sending the client a ‘welcome guide’ that covers the details of your available office hours, turnaround times, ad-hoc requests, feedback and approval processes, and more. From the client side, be sure to ask for any strategy, logos, assets, inspiration, etc. that you need. Promptly requesting what you need from the client ensures there are less delays from onboarding to delivering the project, especially for intensives, and assures the client that no detail is being missed.
Automating your systems and processes with a Dubsado set up is the best way to save time on admin and impress your clients with a 5-star seamless onboarding experience–it’s a win-win.
Not sure where to start? We’ve created a jam-packed The Ultimate Dubsado Guidebook with everything you need to set your Dubsado up yourself, minus the overwhelm. With straight-forward video tutorials and visual instructions explaining how to get set up, it’s basically like I’m right there with you guiding you through it. Plus, I’m only ever a message away if you have any questions.
Prefer to hand over the reins and allow us to transform your client experience with Dubsado? Apply now for our Dubsado in a day. Limited spots available.
Disclaimer: This blog post may contain affiliate links for some of our favourite industry partners, in clicking we may receive a cheeky commission. We would never promote anything we don’t truly love and use for ourselves and recommend to our own clients.
How to charge more as a service provider
Are you hitting a wall in your business where your capacity is maxed and your choices are to either magically find an extra few hours at the end of each day, clone yourself or start increasing your prices? We’ve all been there. It can feel icky to start charging more, especially if it doesn’t feel like you’re offering your clients extra value. Want to know a secret though?
You can actually justify increasing your prices in your service-based business without adding hundreds more deliverables into your scope of work or gaining an extra ten years of experience overnight. If it sounds like a bit of a scam that gives you imposter syndrome, I promise it’s not. The key to charging more as a service provider is making sure the true value of what working with your business is like, is communicated with your target audience. You’re great at what you do, you just need to show it!
Keep reading for our top three tips to start charging what you’re worth as a service provider.
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Niche down
One of the best ways to kick imposter syndrome to the curb and back yourself when increasing your prices is to niche down. Niching down is basically working out what you like offering plus what you’re bloody good at, and staying in the lane of offering that. By niching down, you naturally become more of an expert in what you offer and therefore can justifiably charge more for your expertise.
For example, if you were a beginner wanting to get into the gym, would you be more likely to choose working with a personal trainer who is a bit of a generic all-rounder who charges less or a fitness coach who charges more but loves working with beginners, talks about easing your fears in the gym, and prioritises setting good foundations? They might have the exact same qualifications, but you’re likely to trust the expertise of and connect more with the second coach whose niche relates to where you’re at. Same goes in any industry!
Know your worth
If you receive amazing feedback, have evolved in your business, are always upskilling, learning and outdoing yourself – your prices should reflect your growth and knowledge. It’s up to you to showcase the top-notch service you offer your clients. When you feel afraid to increase your prices, remember no one can argue with your stellar standard of work, glowing testimonials from your clients or endless social proof and case studies you have.
At the end of the day, no one can decide what your worth and value as a service provider is other than you. If you feel like your current marketing and processes don’t reflect the value of your services, you have the power to change that. Invest in your business with a Dubsado CRM set-up and take your client experience to the next level or include the glowing client feedback you receive in your proposals to seal the deal when pitching prospects with your updated pricing.
5-star client experience
My last advice for backing yourself when increasing your prices is to ensure you’re offering a 5-star luxury client experience. Make sure the processes you have in place reflect your prices. Of course, if you take weeks to get back to your clients with a proposal or forget to send deliverables, high-ticket prices may not be matching your processes – yet. Don’t fret, there’s an easy solution for this!
An easy fix to take your client experience from lacklustre to luxury is to put an automated CRM system in place, so you don’t drop the ball at any stage of the client journey. Your prospective clients will be promptly greeted and taken care of from the moment they book a call with you to even after they’re off-boarded. The best part? It takes no extra work from you each time to do so. A CRM system, like Dubsado, is designed to automate the nitty-gritty parts of your back-end processes. Spend infinitely less time going back and forth with clients through every step working together.
A luxury client experience helps show your clients from the moment they interact with your business that the prices they’ll be paying are well-justified for the level of service they receive – without you needing to change the scope of work you offer.
Not a clue how to turn your Dubsado into your magical business assistant? They don’t call me the Dubsado queen for nothing! I can get your Dubsado set up for you in a day (it’s literally called Dubsado in a day, my friend) and have your backend processes working in your favour.
More of a DIY-er? Saving time and having a stellar client experience is something every business owner should prioritise, that’s why we’ve created a handy dandy The Ultimate Dubsado Guide Book. With video tutorials as well, it’s almost like having me there with you while you get your 5-star client experience set up!
Get your hands on our newly launched The Ultimate Dubsado Guide Book here.
Disclaimer: This blog post may contain affiliate links for some of our favourite industry partners, in clicking we may receive a cheeky commission. We would never promote anything we don’t truly love and use for ourselves and recommend to our own clients.
Top tools and resources for online business owners
No matter what stage you’re at in business, as a service provider especially, you would know how valuable it is to find tools and resources you can trust in your business to save you time. Many of us spend years trialling and testing the wealth of tools out there. Let us say, there are definitely some duds that end up being more stress (and money) than they’re worth!
We’ve been in this game for a while now and helped many creative online service providers to gain time back to do what they love by utilising streamlined business automations in their favour. With this, we like to think that when it comes to top-tier online resources and tools to help you automate and streamline your business, we know what we’re talking about and can vouch for the winners.
Keep reading for our golden recommendations for tools to use in your business, from CRM automations to project management and client management.
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Streamline client experience
The emails and admin time that go into maintaining positive relationships with your clients and ensuring a 5-star experience might seem like tasks that wouldn’t take up much time, but as your business grows and you start to notice your days are being spent on admin tasks instead of the client work you got into business for. Instead of letting your client service standard slip or outsourcing to a virtual assistant right away, think about automating the admin tasks that are chewing up your time.
Dubsado
Imagine if you could gain hours back each week with automated processes for prospective clients to book calls with you and after-call etiquette, personalised and sophisticated proposals at the click of a button, and clean, streamlined workflow processes. Sounds like magic, hey? There’s no Harry Potter-esque spells at play here, just a Dubsado CRM set-up that works for you and your business.
Need a wizard to work this workflow magic for your business? I’m your gal! They don’t call me the Dubsado queen for nothing. I can get your Dubsado set up for you in a day and have your backend processes working their magic for you, giving you hours back each month.
Use the code ‘behopestudio’ for 20% off your first year or month’s Dubsado subscription.
Email templates
Another great way to save time on admin or from sending the same emails to clients over and over is to stay organised with a list of email templates. Use a bank of email templates with ready-to-go responses to common queries and topics to easily draw from when needed.
Having these on hand so you can copy, paste and swap a bit of pre-filled information means spending way less time tackling your inbox each day when you could be doing other client work.
Psst, don’t have time to write email templates? Take a cheeky peek at the ones we’ve created for creative business owners just like you, here.
Improve productivity and project management
Make the most of the hours in your day, stay on task and keep organised with the right project management tools. There are so many to choose from nowadays, it’s important to find the right one that works for you. We’ve trialled and tested many project management tools and found our favourites with Notion and Trello, especially for creatives, branding and website designers.
Notion
Notion is one of the most popular and aesthetic project management tools for its clean interface and endless customisations. You can use it for managing client-facing projects and tasks, as well as your own tasks and agenda within your business and personal life too.
Trello
We love Trello for project management. If you’re a visual person, you’ll love the ‘Boards’ on Trello which can be customised and used to manage anything from projects and lists to creating social media content and organising stages of a branding or website design project.
Make marketing a breeze
Now that your client experience and project management tasks are squared away, it’s time to streamline your marketing with a tried and trusted tool. Our pick is Flodesk for email marketing. Email marketing is a great way to nurture leads, build an owned list of prospects (not like Instagram followers that could be lost at any moment) and have completely personalised conversations that build connection. Some of our favourite features of Flodesk are the campaign automations, integrations with your other business tools (like Dubsado) and totally customisable templates.
Ready to bring in leads effortlessly with email marketing? Join Flodesk.
Our bread and butter is helping creatives and online service providers just like you to transform their business and gain more hours back in their day to do what they love. If that sounds like something you want a taste of too, book a call with Behope Studio and let’s chat about streamlining your business. Wipe the sweat off your brow – your systems and processes are about to start giving you hours back in your day.
Disclaimer: This blog post may contain affiliate links for some of our favourite industry partners, in clicking we may receive a cheeky commission. We would never promote anything we don’t truly love and use for ourselves and recommend to our own clients.
Five holy grail business tips for online service providers
Spoiler alert! This blog contains the holy grail advice every online service provider wishes they had in the early years of starting their business. You know, when you’re stumbling your way through and learning every hard business lesson under the sun? We won’t lie, owning your own business always comes with a constant learning curve, but that doesn’t mean you can’t skip a few cheeky, challenging chapters some of us had to learn the hard way by learning from others’ experiences.
From virtual assistants to social media managers to brand designers, we’ve helped countless creative online service providers transform their businesses and can confidently say that taking these tips onboard can put you miles ahead in your business from day one.
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Automate your systems before you need them
It’s a common misconception that you need to be uber-established in business with a fully-booked client roster before you can start automating your systems and processes, when in fact it’s quite the opposite. Sure, many business owners receive the harsh wake-up call that they need someone to help them automate their systems when they hit a wall in their business, realising A) they don’t have the capacity to handle onboarding new clients while managing their current ones, B) they’re spending more time on admin and working on their business than actually IN IT [read: the creative, fun stuff you love], or C) all of the above.
But you, you lucky thing, have this holy grail advice from us. Investing in automating your systems and processes now, before you absolutely need them, means that…
…from the get-go your clients receive a top-notch client experience
…you’ll be more organised with upcoming client projects
…you can confidently take on new clients and raise your prices
…overall you’ll feel more organised, streamlined and easy breezy.
Psst, think your business is too small to invest in a CRM system like Dubsado? Read about our client who “thanks her lucky stars everyday” that she took that leap to invest when she had only one client, 5 months into her business.
If you’re looking for a Dubsado expert to help you get set-up, we’re right here and ready to help! Whether you need someone to take the reins and get your systems and processes all sorted with our Dubsado in a Day, bring your website, branding and systems together in perfect harmony with our All-In-One Launch, or give it a crack guided DIY style with our The Ultimate Dubsado Guidebook – we’ve got you more than covered.
Prioritise building your email list
You’ll hear this advice from digital marketers time and time again, but this is one tip not to roll your eyes at. Building your email list is crucial, firstly, because you own your email database! Marketing with Facebook, Instagram and Google are great avenues but these are ‘rented’ platforms – in short, you don’t have control over what happens if one day you wake up and these platforms are gone. This is one of the biggest reasons to prioritise building your email list over followers when growing your community online. Secondly, email marketing is a much more intimate experience and in turn a higher conversion rate.
Not sure where to start? We love Flodesk, it’s functions are built with online service providers like you and me in mind. We use it for our own email campaigns, as well as recommend to our clients. Ready to bring in leads effortlessly with email marketing? Join Flodesk.
Don’t skimp on organic marketing
There are many reasons to favour organic marketing, especially in the early days of your business, the biggest being the cost-effective ROI. While it may seem like it’s a ‘pay-to-play’ world when it comes to digital marketing and paid ads, building strong foundations with your organic marketing, such as your email marketing, blog posts and social media content, is crucial before you consider running paid advertising campaigns. Plus, we hate to break it to you, but if your content doesn’t perform well organically, there’s a good chance it won’t achieve your desired results converting clients when you put money behind it either.
Knowing your brand values and creating compelling content that speaks to your ideal audience are key steps and some of the most effective ways to build brand trust and credibility to nurture your prospective clients. In short, let your social media content, blog posts and more do the heavy lifting for you instead of trying to convince clients with a pitch on why they should work with you.
Stay organised
The organisation and systems behind a business can be the difference between a business that thrives sustainably long-term versus a business that cracks under pressure as you become more booked and busy. The top three things to stay on top of are your finances, your deadlines, and planning ahead. Most of which can be achieved by automating your systems and processes with a Dubsado CRM set-up and/or project management tool.
Our favourite tools for staying organised with your projects are Trello and Notion. Learn about more of our Top tools and resources for online business owners in this blog.
Deliver a 5-star client experience
Lastly, the best advice we can offer you in building your business, is to never falter on delivering a 5-star client experience. A luxury client experience against a lacklustre one can be the difference between whether a client decides to sign on with you over a competitor, or whether or not you can confidently raise your prices. An unforgettable client experience can pay off ten-fold, from client retention to word of mouth referrals. Automating your backend processes and systems simply means you won’t ever miss a beat and can save time working on the ‘boring’ business stuff, can spend more time doing what you love, all while effortlessly showing up as the best in the biz.
We believe the key to success is working smarter, not harder. We’re here to save you time and streamline your business so you can focus on what matters most to you. Ready to take the leap and invest in the future of your business? Apply here to work with us.
Not sure what service is right for you? Swing us a message on Instagram and let’s chat!
Disclaimer: This blog post may contain affiliate links for some of our favourite industry partners, in clicking we may receive a cheeky commission. We would never promote anything we don’t truly love and use for ourselves and recommend to our own clients.
Keep snooping.
The words I write are irresistible, I get it.
Sooo…you, me, copy date?
Caught feelings? Don’t worry, my words tend to have that effect.
If you have sweaty palms at the thought of irresistible copy, go ahead… lean in and make the first move.
Not sure what you’re looking for? I’m great at reading signals. We’ll have a cheeky [virtual] copy date to sus the vibes and figure out what kind of copy romance your brand is ready for.
Zero pressure, all chemistry. It’s time for the world to become obsessed with your good-hearted brand.