Struggling to give your clients the experience they desire and keep your sanity intact?

Oh, I hear you. Starting your own business can be overwhelming. While I had the opportunity to start Ember & Co as a side gig alongside a stable, corporate job (thus alleviating financial pressure to "get it right" immediately), it's taken me many years and much trial and error to find a rhythm that works for me. I've tried out countless programs and apps that promise to help automate client management and invoicing, and while some of them definitely have (I used Wave App for years and liked it), I have to confess...I have a new love. Here's my official Dubsado review!

Enter: Dubsado

As a small business owner specializing in design and branding, it has been tough to find an app that has all of the features I seek without charging an arm and a leg. When you're in the early stage of your business and still building your clientele base, you don't want to take on any monthly expenses that are not absolutely necessary. However, I knew that I needed to uplevel my client experience if I wanted to really make it as a creative solopreneur.
I started Googling the options for client management and invoicing software, and that is how I stumbled upon a love letter to Dubsado. Then I found another. And yet another. Two months later, I have officially drunk the Koolaid and I am smitten. 110%.

Some of Dubsado's many, many features:

Yeah, it's crazy. Here are a few reasons that I think Dubsado is worth looking into if you own any sort of service-based small business:

1. As hesitant as I am to try yet another new app? Try it for FREE, fully featured, forever.
   What?! You read that right. Dubsado offers a free trial, with ALL of the features of the full version, for as long as you'd like, with your first three clients. Create a workflow, contracts, forms, invoices — the whole kit and kaboodle is available to you until you're absolutely sure that you're in love.
2. Need a one-stop-shop? Dubsado is as close as you can get when it comes to client management and invoicing.
   Fully-functioning invoicing via Stripe or Square, electronic contract creation and signing, invoicing, proposals, automated payment reminders, basic bookkeeping, questionnaire forms, embeddable lead capture forms, calendar syncing, to-do lists, address books, client portals for each client, and fully-customizable automation workflows...ALL standard. Seriously. It's crazy.
3. Tired of half-hearted customer service? You won't have that problem with Dubsado.
   Dubsado's customer service team is one of the best I've encountered. They are friendly, extremely knowledgable, and patient. Becca, one of the owners, heads up these efforts herself and she is such a doll. They even sent me an adorable welcome kit (shown above) when I joined, and honored the promo price that they launched the day after I purchased (Becca refunded me the difference immediately). They're good, y'all.
4. Ever wonder how other users have maximized their account and made the most of the software? Wonder no more. Dubsado's FB Community is amazing.
   They are supportive, helpful, and friendly. It's also one of the quickiest ways to get an answer to your "What if's?" and more simple questions. Curious what other consultants include in their proposals? Or what designers add to their Client Welcome Packet? The Dubsado community loves sharing their tips and ideas with you, even when it's not directly Dubsado-related. There are even a few resident (non-Dubsado-paid) experts on the FB group that specialize in helping you make the most of it if you're not sure where to start.
5. Tired of seeing the software's branding all over your documents? Not with Dubsado!
   That's right, Dubsado doesn't add ANY of it's own branding to your invoices, contracts, or forms. Create beautiful, professional documents with your logo and brand colors. Even the Client Portal is branded for your business, not theirs. This gives your customers an incredibly consistent, professional experience. See here an example of Ember & Co's client portal (the login page, then the portal itself as a client sees it):
   
6. Exhausted and overwhelmed trying to stay on top of each client's project? Let Dubsado automate it for you.
   Create as many custom workflows as you'd like through Dubsado. Want help taking a prospect from lead to paying job? Create a workflow that automatically follows up with their lead capture via email, send them a questionnaire, ask Dubsado to give you a reminder/To-Do to put together a proposal price, then automatically receive their approved proposal, signed contract, and auto-calculated down payment (based on your preferred payment schedule), and watch their name move from LEAD to JOB without hardly lifting a finger. Once set-up, it can save you countless non-billable hours and allow you to focus on what you truly rock at: your exceptional service.
7. Tired of signing up for an app and having to consign to what they don't offer? Dubsado is (literally) constantly adding new features.
   I've been with Dubsado for about a year now and I've already seen them add dozens of new, very cool features. Pop over to their Release Notes page to see what I'm talking about. CRAZY.
8. Don't want to (or can't) pay for another expensive business software? Dubsado is shockingly affordable right now.
   Pay $35/month or $350/yr. And even better, I asked the Dubsado team and Ember & Co readers can now get 20% off their first month (or year!) using PROMO CODE: ember&co. That means that you could be paying $28 per month for all of these incredible features. Trust me, it's worth it!

Claim your 20% off now!

As you can see, I am already obsessed..and I've barely tapped into all that Dubsado can do! I wouldn't be sharing it with you if I wasn't so sure that it would improve your life as a small business owner. Be sure to check it out if you're in the market for a new client management / invoicing software.

Have you recently come across a software/app that you're obsessing over? I want to hear about it! Let me know in the comments below 🙂