Do-It-Yourself-itis …
It’s a deadly disease affecting Solopreneurs, Freelancers, and Small businesses. Undetectable at first, it soon erupts into an ugly rash. Moms, engineers, and homesteaders are particularly prone. Symptoms may include amateur graphics, canned copywriting, and the inability to write a proposal in fewer than 3 hours. Victims also suffering from perfectionism may be reduced to permanent wandering in search of a yoga class or bottle of merlot.
Have you suffered from DIY-itis?
It may be the biggest time-waster in your business. When I first started out, I was smart enough to outsource the web design, graphic design, and first Facebook ad campaign. My designer created the perfect website, did the outsourcing for me, and coached me through my first sales funnel.
She also recommended a Client Management platform, but I decided to bootstrap instead. After all, I had a graduate degree and had raised 4 kids. I could do anything, right?
To my chagrin, I soon found myself struggling to manage all the details. I was planning and curating content, organizing contact information, keeping up with social media, and writing new proposals. Family time and weekends had vanished.
I needed help.
How I Learned to Avoid a HUGE Time-waster.
One of the biggest frustrations in my work was reinventing proposals and contracts again and again. I kept templates stored on the cloud, made copies and customized, and continually had to click a dozen times every time I uploaded anything. The contracts would be in PDF form. I asked my first clients to sign and scan their copies. It was a huge hassle.
Once I started working with each client, I filed all the phone and conference notes in manila folders in a big bin behind my desk. Then I would have to find them, sort through them, and pull the right set of phone notes to review before each call.
There had to be a better way!
Fortunately, I finally broke down and tried 17 Hats. As much as I didn’t want to buy yet another digital product, it has already paid me back much more than I spent for the entire year (in hourly time saved).
With 17 Hats, I can easily send, emails, proposals, and contracts to all my clients. And I use it for even more!
It’s like hiring a VA for a few cents per day.
When I first work with a client:
I set up their contact information. My client list is organized by client or company (choose for each entry). All their phone numbers, email addresses, street addresses, and company names are there plus there’s room to make notes about anything else I choose (kid’s names, favorite food, etc.)!
After I set up a contact, I can log phone notes. Then I can look them up by date with just a click or two instead of having to shuffle through all my handwritten notes.
When it’s time to propose a project, I create a professional quote right on the platform. For each service item (in my case: sales copy items), I write a description and price, and add it to the quote. Even better, 17 Hats lets me save each individual part of the quote for future clients. It standardizes the top of the form and lets me mix and match item modules with preset descriptions and prices.
I can then bundle a quote with an agreement and an invoice.
When I used it for the first time, I uploaded a basic copywriting agreement. Now I continue to use the document, making tweaks for each new project. And I don’t have to make all the changes myself. 17 Hats lets me put tokens into the copy for data it keeps on file. So, for example, instead of filling in a blank or changing a name for every contract the way I did before, I just put a colorful place-holding token in place of the Client’s name. The software automatically fills in the details for me. It also adds my custom signature to all correspondence.
Here’s the basic process:
- I assemble a quote using individually priced modules for each service (or easily make a new module for a custom package)
- I create a contract. It easy – I pick a template and add about two details.
- I preview everything
- I send
- 17 Hats automatically generates a message to the recipient- I get to edit if I want to.
- 17 Hats indicates when the client looks at the quote!
- When the client accepts the quote, they are AUTOMATICALLY sent to the agreement/contract page, which they sign electronically
- I receive my copy and countersign with one click
- Immediately after signing the contract, the client is taken to the invoice page, where they are invited to pay immediately
The entire process is smooth. It makes it easy for them to buy and easy for me to keep track of the process – without doing all the work.
17 Hats also provides
- Lead capture forms
- Client questionnaires
- New client notifications
- Client dashboard
- The ability to sync multiple email clients and calendars (mine connects to my Google calendar)
- Time tracking and task lists
- Schedule at a glance
- Bookkeeping tools
- Integration with QuickBooks Online
- Tax reports and Profit & Loss statements
- The ability to connect to over 20,000 financial institutions
- Automate project processes
- An expandable library of templates
And there are automatic payment reminders so I don’t have to be the bad guy when a bill is overdue. It sends out a nice official email for me, so I don’t have to do the talking.
Entrepreneurs, and especially mompreneurs, already wear dozens of hats. I’m happy giving up 17 of them.
My plan has saved me at least 10 hours per month.
What is your time worth? Are you in danger of succumbing to the time-squandering plague of DIY-itis.
Try 17Hats!
