How To Guide: Using a CRM for Your Doula Business

Do you ever think to yourself “I wish I could hire an assistant to handle the business side of my doula practice”? If you’re struggling with the administrative side of things or feeling super disorganized, you’ll likely benefit from adding a CRM to your doula business.

As a doula it can be a challenge juggling the inquiry emails, sending contracts, scheduling prenatal visits, managing your on-call calendar and still finding time for your true passion - being a doula! A CRM can help you streamline your business, free up time, and provide space for you to channel your energy into doing what you love.

Yes, a CRM subscription is an investment, but it is worth its weight in gold when you experience all the benefits we’ll share with you.

What is a CRM?

CRM stands for Customer Relationship Management. Essentially it is software or a database that manages your inquiries, your clients contact information, stores your doula contracts, and can act as an invoicing system. It helps you keep track of so many things including referral sources (who sent a client your way!), current client due dates, your client’s birth plan, your availability and all client correspondence.

And when you set it up right, it’s like a magical administrative assistant that makes your job as a doula SO much easier!

How can I use a CRM in my doula practice?

Oh let us count the ways!

One of the biggest sources of stress for us was responding to all the client inquiries that were coming in day after day. Don’t get me wrong, it was a nice problem to have, but when you’ve been at a birth for 18 hours and all you want to do is sleep, it can be hard to prioritize self-care and birth recovery when you have a lot of emails to respond to.

With a CRM you can create workflows that are activated when an inquiry comes in. This workflow automatically sends an email response to the client inquiry telling them about your services, linking them to your pricing & services menu, and sharing next steps. You can even include a link to schedule an interview! These workflows will also send follow up emails to prospective clients after your interview or if you haven’t received a response from them.

A CRM makes it easy to personalize your emails before sending to clients and it will send you reminders on when to check in with them! For example, if you have a prenatal visit and like to check in with a client a few days later, you can trigger your CRM to email you a reminder to call or email the client. This way client communication doesn’t fall through the cracks and your clients always feel valued and fully supported!

When a client wants to book your services all you have to do is add a contract & invoice to their profile, send a welcome email and the CRM does the rest! You can upload your client handouts to their profile as well to save on paper and to ensure they always have access to the documents that will enhance their client experience.

Another nice feature is that you can create a multitude of forms that will help you best serve your clients. One example is an intake form where you can include questions on their goals in working with you, any topics of education they want to focus on, resources they need, etc. Another example is a client feedback forms you can send to your doula clients once your services are complete. Not only does this help you improve your services, but you can use the positive client feedback as testimonials on your website!

Most CRMs connect with Square, Stripe, Paypal, and Quickbooks (amongst other financial apps) to help you keep all of your accounting in one place. You can schedule invoice reminders to be sent so you never forget to get paid and it can all be done through your CRM.

Trust me when we say these are only a few of the incredible ways using a CRM contributes to the business side of being a doula.

What CRMs are best for doulas?

There are a lot of CRMs out there and the key is finding the best one to fit your business needs.

We use Dubsado because it truly helped us streamline EVERYTHING! Before Dubsado we had to use several different programs to meet all of our client and record management needs… and let us tell you, it was annoying having to jump from one website to another trying to keep track of everything.

But with Dubsado, all client records, invoices, contracts, intake forms, feedback forms, service menus, referral codes, childbirth education class registrations, to-do lists, follow up emails, (and on and on and on) are ALL IN ONE PLACE!! It has helped us automate our services so that we have extra time for in person work with our clients and more time for our families.

Many CRMs offer free trials so you can check them out before committing to a subscription. Dubsado offers a free trial for your first 3 clients. If you like Dubsado and want to subscribe, click here to receive 20% off your first month or first year subscription.

Are there any downsides to a CRM?

Honestly, we can only think of two.

1) The cost may not be feasible for some, especially if you’re a newer doula and haven’t built a strong client base yet. If that’s you, be patient and be persistent. With consistency and hard work you can get to a place where your client base is large enough that you NEED a CRM and also where you can afford it! In the meantime, Google Drive is a great place to keep a lot of your client records and it’s free.

2) The time it takes to setup. Unfortunately the setup process can be tedious and slightly frustrating. Workflows might need to be tweaked until you find the right flow and you’ll have to decide on what order you want things done before creating a solid workflow. Thankfully most CRMs have amazing video tutorials and customer service that can help you along the way and there are even people you can pay to set things up for you. But ultimately, once the setup is complete, a small amount of maintenance is all you’ll need to keep things running smoothly.

Using a CRM reduces the amount of time you’ll spend on task management, giving doulas the relief they need to focus their beautiful doula unicorn energy on their clients. If you’re ready to invest, we highly recommend trying out a CRM or two to find the one that will work for you!