One of the hottest business topics for all self employed small business owners is client management systems. I know it doesn’t sound very exciting, but from a girl who used various spreadsheets, sticky notes and pen and paper documents for years before utilizing a more formal client management system, I can get fired up very quickly about it!

Honestly, when I was using the crazy disorganized system of my own, my main reason for not getting an official online system going boiled down to one thing: cost. I was so hesitant to invest in one because while they all have some sort of trial, for me to really decide if I loved something takes a longer time frame, and they are not a small investment.  But after ample research into the many many online options available, I chose Honeybook. I can confidently say more than two years after starting to use it that I absolutely love it.  This could be a 4 part blog series just to get through all the details, but for today I am going to stick with the very best features of it when it comes to my business, and maybe will do another later about the ins and outs of using it.

WHY I LOVE HONEYBOOK AND WILL NEVER USE ANOTHER CLIENT MANAGEMENT SYSTEM

• While this is far from the most important feature, it is the first I noticed when I first set up my account.  Honeybook is a beautiful platform.  The design is clean, it is easy to read and look at, and it just visually makes sense.  I can upload images from my business to my documents so it is custom and just lovely!  It was MADE for creative business owners, and it is so obvious in every part of it’s interface.
• Similarly to the first point, the main page I see when I log in (my “workflow”) is also beautifully organized and easy to read.  There are multiple different ways that I can sort the workflow (date of project, client name, etc) and I can customize different “parts” of the workflow so I can see which projects are in the inquiry stage, the booked stage, who still needs to send contracts, etc with just one click. This is what workflow page looks like:
• On to the real heart of the program: It saves me SO MUCH TIME!  How? Because there are extremely easily customizable documents of ALL sorts…contact forms for your website, proposals, brochures, contracts, invoices, questionnaires…you name it, you can create a template for it and easily customize for each client’s specific project needs.  I can have a full workflow built out for each type of client I have (wedding, portrait session, coaching session, workshop, etc) that automatically has all needed proposals, contracts and invoices, and questionnaires built into it (even including the emails that need to be sent and they can be scheduled!) so it is all laid out and ready for me the moment I create their project.  You can add vendors, clients, other employees, etc to each project easily (to share the information with them as needed) and customize who sees what part of documents.  It is just so highly customizable and easy to use, and when I send documents to the clients, the next part of my workflow is automated from whatever they choose. For example, if I send a brochure with 4 different session options to a Newborn Portraits client, they can pick from that brochure the collection that they want, and it will auto-populate into a contract with an invoice with everything laid out that I can double check quickly and send on to them!  Here is an example of a client contact form that can be embedded into your website (so inquiries come straight to my honeybook workflow with a project automatically created for them!) that can be customized in every way!This alone saves SO MUCH TIME from me having to get an email, go to my Client Management System, add in the details and contact info, etc. It is all just done for me!
  Down the left hand side here, you can see just some the types of forms you can customize and create templates for.
• Everything can be done online– all payments, signatures, calendars, communication, etc, so it is all in one place.  Gone are my days of a spreadsheet for payments, a calendar for dates, and random notes of what I have taken care of for each client. It is all in one.  Clients can pay through bank transfer, paypal, stripe, and more, and I can also mark if clients don’t pay through honeybook including a check number so that I can easily keep track of everything.  Here are 2 images that show you some of the various capabilities listed out– there are just so many tasks that this program can include so you don’t have to do them anywhere else!
• All emails can be done through the projects as well, and forwarded to my regular email.  So absolutely every type of communication with my clients could be done in one place.
• There is an amazing app that is growing in functionality all the time that puts all my client info and the project details right at my fingertips! This is especially helpful when I need an address to someone’s house and don’t want to bother them with a text, or if I am trying to get financial info on the go!
• There are TONS of highly customizable financial reports.  My husband is my business officer (is that a school term or what- throwback to the teaching days!) for JGP so he deals with 99% of the financial side of my business, but I do know that the reports  have been super helpful and easy for him to use and have cut down on some of the spreadsheets he needed too (even though his were always much more organized than mine!).
• This might be my favorite part…Honeybook has absolutely stellar customer service.  They help with every question and they are active in the HB user facebook group and easily reachable by chat or email.  Honeybook is constantly making new updates and taking feedback into consideration. It is just 100% a standup company. It is fully liked to the Rising Tide Society now, which I am a leader for.  And it gives back to many people and programs in need through some of it’s educational services.  I just absolutely trust the HEART of the system.

Honeybook does a yearly subscription, which I think works really well.  The best part of the investement though is that I can give you 50% off your first year if you sign up through me (click HERE!)! You can sign up for a trial first, and then convert it to a subscription when you decide you are sold.

Like every other system, there is a learning curve. But Honeybook employees set up most of my brochure, invoice, and questionnaire templates after I sent them a variety of PDF/word document forms I was using before, and made the transition so seamless– you just have to reach out for help! I think a lot of people download trials and then just stare confused at a blank screen, unsure what to do–you have to dig in and ask for help, and then I am so confident you would love this system how I do!

Click here to check it all out and for that exclusive 50% discount (who offers a discount that large?! Amazing!!)!  Don’t be a slave to spreadsheets anymore, and get your time back!!  I hope you love it as much as I do!!