This series “business tips” will offer like-minded people some tips and advice on helping you with your day to day cake business.
*This post content affiliate links, meaning that if you sign up to Dubsado, I will get a discount...and so will you ;) *
I first started using Dubsado over a year ago and since then, I have been recommending them to all my wedding industry friends...and this was BEFORE they offered me a discount :)
Dubsado has genuinely made my life easier and I’m sure it will make yours too! With Dubsado, you can create invoices, contracts, questionnaires, workflow etc
Here is how I personally use it:
Questionnaire
So, you know the drill, a customer gets in touch to get an estimate on a cake...but they leave more than half of the information out! “Hi, we are getting married next year and we love your cakes! How much does it cost for a three tiers?” For months, I used to go back to them individually, with lots of questions and lots of back and forth emails!
I have now made my life a heck of a lot easier with Dubsado! As soon as a couple gets in touch, I create a new project and send them a questionnaire with everything I need to know:
- customers names
- wedding venue
- date
- number of guests,
- what type of cake/sweet table/patisserie (multiple selection possible)
cake tasting?
- etc, etc.
One of my favourite features is that it allows the customers to download actual photos of the designs they love.
This questionnaire also includes my policy regarding dietary requirements - allowing the couple to be aware straight away that I don’t cater for severe food allergies for example.
In a click I receive absolutely all the info I need to work out a first price estimate and that was with ONE email back to them.
Oh, and also, Dubsado uses “canned emails”, which means that for every situation, I have a pre-written email I created that I can just personalise and quickly adapt to each different customer :)
Yes, it’s THAT easy!
Planning & contract signing
After the cake tasting, if the clients decide to go ahead, I send them a “proposal”, which is basically a recap of their order that they have to double check and confirm.
I also attach their contract, which thanks to Dubsado, is automatically filled with their wedding details: names, wedding venue, set up time, price for the job etc. I always add my T&Cs to this, reminding them everything they need to know about ordering a cake: Dietary Requirements, Cancellation Policy, Cake Stand Hire, Set Up on the day, and everything you need them to know.
Remember that as a small business, we need to protect ourselves and kindly remind our customers what we can and can not be held responsible for.
Bonus: they can actually sign their contract online which means no more paperwork for you, and you automatically get a signed copy that is stored in the system (that you can of course print, should you wish to keep a hard copy somewhere).
Another bonus: Every order entered in Dubsado ends up in your calendar so there is no risk of forgetting a date (as long as you do check your laptop/phone calendar that is!)
The only downside in my opinion is that setting up everything can get pretty time consuming, but Dubsado offers to create up to 10 different forms for you as long as you send them the content. I have done everything myself as I did set it up at a time where I was not drowning under cake orders and I had the time to do it. But if I were to do it now, I would most definitely have them fill the forms for me.
Stay on brand
Dubsado allows you to enter your brand colours and your own photos, making you look super professional in front of your customers during the whole ordering process. I don’t think I can insist on this enough: looking professional and on brand will make all the difference in the world when it comes to ask your customers to pay for the most expensive cake they will probably ever buy.
Of course some cake designers and other wedding industry entrepreneurs already have their own working systems in place and they probably don’t need Dubsado in their lives. But for people like me who really struggle with organisation and admin in general (yes, admin IS my downfall), Dubsado will be such a great help!
For my business, being on brand and looking professional is an absolute must-have. Dubsado allows this professional look, without me needing to become some sort of tech wizard or graphic designer. I mean, I would never have been able to create such a wonderful tool in my spare time!!!
So there it is, the whole truth about my Dubsado experience. I feel it’s important I share this with you guys because if it helps me, I’m sure it can help you too!!!
Liked what you’ve read and want to give it a go? Head to Dubsado by clicking the button (or use the zazadubsado code at checkout)