As a wedding planner, you are focused on all of the fine details. From working with multiple vendors, booking clients, and chasing around getting final payments, there are many things you have to juggle! And while you might pride yourself in your attention to detail, sometimes things slip through the cracks. You get into a busy wedding season, where you have back-to-back weddings, and forget to send the final timeline. Or you forget to ask for that final payment. It happens to us all!
That is why the key to a successful business is simple: organization!
But how do you keep organized during a crazy season, as your calendar gets booked, while also delivering the best client experience? Don’t worry, my friend, I have the solution. In fact, this is the #1 tool you need in your wedding planning business.
The solution: A CRM System!
A CRM System is a customer relationship management system and will be the key to your wedding planning business. Today, I want to share why you need a CRM and the one that I use in my very own business. As a wedding coordinator, one of my mottos is to work smarter, not harder. And with my CRM system, I can do this!
Plus, now that we are in the off-season, there is no better time to get your CRM system set up.
What Is A CRM?
A customer relationship management system is simply software that helps you organize, nurture, and keep track of your clients. As you book more clients, you start to have more items that need to be sent out. You need to get an inquiry to contact you, then send them your information, then send a proposal, then a contract, then get paid… there are so many steps!
But when you use a CRM system, all of these steps are streamlined so you can book clients with ease and get paid faster. Plus, it makes the client experience much better! It can get very confusing for our wedding planning clients to work with us if we’re not organized on our end.
When you get an inquiry, where does it go? With a CRM system, inquiries can be added to your system as a lead, so you can easily track your leads and inquiries.
If you send a contract, how are they going to sign it? A CRM system will allow your clients to e-sign the contract without ever downloading a program or printing and scanning the document.
If you need to send them a questionnaire to gather info, how will you do that? As you might have guessed, you can do this with a CRM system! Honeybook, the CRM I use, even has templates ready for you to use and get started right away.
And when it comes time for clients to pay, are you having to remember to send a reminder email? With a CRM system, it automatically does this for you! And it collects the payment quickly. Win-win!
Save Hours (And Money!) With a CRM
There are so many benefits of a CRM system! But the biggest reason I chose Honeybook was simple: it saved me time! You can create and send a new contract in minutes. And you can get a signature AND a payment that very same day! It used to take me hours to make a contract in a document, email over, wait for them to figure out how to sign it, and figure out how they were going to pay. Not to mention the onboarding experience. I would have to email over questionnaires, hope they filled it out, and then circle dates on my calendar to send payment follow-ups.
But no more! With Honeybook, all of these steps are done in minutes. When I tell you it has saved me HOURS, I really mean it!
Not only does it save me hours, but it has replaced 10+ software programs I used to have. I no longer need a 3rd party calendar system, GoogleForms, Docusign, Asana, and Freshbooks. It’s all inside one system! It has saved me hundreds of dollars every single year.
Benefits Of A CRM
Now, there are several CRM systems out there. So while I use Honeybook and am going to share some of the things I love about this system, there are others you might love as well! So take some time to do your research, and choose the one that works best for you and the services you provide.
Makes you organized + professional.
One of the simplest ways to uplevel your client experience is by being professional and organized. With a system in place, you can easily onboard a new client in minutes. Plus, you show your client how organized you are!
It helps streamline business processes.
Because inquiries can come right into your CRM system, you can easily streamline the complete process of working with your clients.
Increases efficiency + productivity.
With Honeybook’s built-in task-system, I can easily create a to-do list, without using other software. You can also set up automation in CRM systems, so things like invoices, emails, and templates can be automatically sent to your client.
Improves communication + customer satisfaction.
Trust me when I say that your client will notice if your communication is unorganized. With Honeybook, you can track the emails inside the system and quickly reply.
Elevates the client experience.
Ever since I got a CRM system, my clients have raved about how easy it was to use and that they wish their other vendors utilized a platform like this!
Creates brand consistency.
Keeping your brand consistent across all of your communication touchpoints is essential. With CRM software, you can easily brand everything so that each detail aligns with your branding.
Features of a CRM
While every CRM system is different, and you will want to research what will work for your business, most have similar core features. These are some of my favorite features that Honeybook offers:
- Contract and proposal templates
- Email templates
- Electronic contract signing
- Online payment processing and invoicing
- Automated payment reminders
- Bookkeeping and reports
- Integration with accounting software
- Contact Form integration
- Manage and track leads
- Workflows
- Task Management
- Questionnaire Templates
- Project stages
- Booking alerts and project reminders.
- Connects to Quickbooks (a game-changer come tax season!)
- An app for your phone so you can always log in – even at a wedding!
Invest In a CRM In The Off-Season
As I talked about in my last blog post, the off-season is the time to prepare your business and get ready for the next wedding season. That is why if you don’t have a CRM system set up, now is the time! You can take advantage of Honeybook’s free trial and begin implementing it right away with your new clients!
Honeybook offers a free 7-day trial, AND you can save 20% when you sign up!
Honeybook Is Made for Wedding Planners
Honeybook is great for countless online businesses. But, as a wedding planner, it is one of the few that offers all of the things we need. It has continued to be one of the most popular CRM systems in the wedding vendor industry! Their Workspace tool lets you create a space for each client where you can add their vendors. This allows them to access files, timelines, and much more! My coaching students always rave about Honeybook, and I know you will love it as well.
As we enter the off-season, it’s time to get your business organized. And it’s time for you to invest in a CRM system! This is an easy and affordable way to elevate your client experience, get organized, and get ready for the new year.
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