{"id":27266,"date":"2020-08-31T17:15:00","date_gmt":"2020-08-31T21:15:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/honeybook.site.strattic.io\/?p=27266"},"modified":"2023-03-28T03:01:43","modified_gmt":"2023-03-28T10:01:43","slug":"how-graphic-designer-ceerica-booked-more-clients","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hbb.dev.reliablepenguin.com\/blog\/how-graphic-designer-ceerica-booked-more-clients","title":{"rendered":"How Graphic Designer Ce\u2019Erica Booked 80% More Clients in Half the Time"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

By optimizing her system to better manage her clients, Ce\u2019Erica freed up bandwidth to take on more clients, complete projects faster and, ultimately, grow her business.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"how<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Ce’Erica Allen of FRSH Marketing, Branding and Design<\/a> provides graphic design, marketing and branding services to help business owners \u201cwork smarter not harder through the approach that less is more.\u201d As her business grew, she needed a way to better manage her design clients to take on more of her ideal customers and earn more revenue.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The challenge<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

To onboard clients and manage her projects, Ce\u2019Erica was using a couple of different tools, including Excel, Calendly and Google Docs. Without an optimized client management software for small businesses,<\/a> she ended up:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Being spread too thin<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Ce\u2019Erica found herself spending time on her business operations every day, tracking whom she needed to follow up with, which client owed payment when, and everything in between. She updated a Google Sheet with outstanding\/received payments and took notes on the last communication she had with every client. All of this manual tracking meant less time for actual design work, let alone strategizing how to scale her business. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wasting time<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Collecting the information she needed from clients to move them from project start to finish took way longer\u2014and was way harder\u2014than it should have been . Since some of her clients aren\u2019t tech-savvy, she was looking for a user-friendly way to easily collect the information she needed from them. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Working with so-so clients<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Without systems in place to help her qualify inquiries, Ce\u2019Erica was meeting with all kinds of clients. And if she talked to them, she felt compelled to work with them\u2014even if they weren\u2019t the right fit. The result? She spent more time working with these clients and for less money. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The solution<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Ce\u2019Erica turned to HoneyBook, a CRM for graphic designers<\/a>, to streamline the process of onboarding clients and managing her projects. \u201cI specifically use HoneyBook to keep up with client communications and project details,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Below, she shares how HoneyBook fits into her business process.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Step 1<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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A client inquires through my HoneyBook contact form online<\/a>. There they submit their information including contact details, project details and deadlines. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

All of this information is automatically added into my HoneyBook account.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Step 2<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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The client receives a brochure that outlines the services that I offer so they can review pricing before booking a consultation call. The link to schedule that call (using HoneyBook’s online meeting scheduler<\/a>) is also linked in the email.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To have this go out automatically, I used a HoneyBook Automation<\/a> that\u2019s triggered to send the email as soon as the client submits the contact form.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For about half of the emails I send, it\u2019s not actually me sending them. I\u2019m so big on making templates and using automations because it saves time, and it makes clients feel like they\u2019re talking to me. With HoneyBook, clients \u2018talk\u2019 to me 2-3 times before I actually ever really communicate with them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Step 3<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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Once the call has been scheduled, we discuss their specific project needs, ideas and concepts. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Step 4<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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A follow-up email is sent recapping the conversation with a proposal that includes an online contract<\/a> and online invoice<\/a> of the items that we discussed.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I have a HoneyBook template for this, too, and only need to change a portion of text to reflect what we talked about in the proposal. I create this in HoneyBook and send it from the client\u2019s project workspace so it\u2019s easy to keep track of everything. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

 <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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There\u2019s less hiccups along the way because the client can see everything at the start. And I love being able to get an overview of all communications in one place.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Step 5<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Once the client pays through the HoneyBook invoice<\/a> link, they receive a timeline with deadlines for required items.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Step 6<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

I begin to execute the project items by the deadlines listed in the timelines. I send proofs through the HoneyBook client portal<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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This makes it really easy to get feedback from the client to keep the project moving. It\u2019s a very user-friendly experience for the customer who isn\u2019t always the most tech savvy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Step 7<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The client provides final approval and they receive their final files.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Also, for every project, along the way, I move clients to different project stages in my HoneyBook pipeline<\/a> so I always know where every one of my clients and projects is at.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The results<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

By optimizing her system to better manage her clients, Ce\u2019Erica freed up her bandwidth. She has time to take on more clients, complete projects faster and, ultimately, grow her business.<\/p>\n\n\n\n