Before HoneyBook, I can literally remember mailing out paper contracts to my very first real wedding clients. I texted my senior portrait photographer and asked her if I could use her contract… yes, her contract… for senior portraits. She kindly emailed it to me, I changed the business name, PRINTED IT OUT, sealed it in an envelope, and mailed it to my couple. They sent it back with a check for the deposit. I’m pretty sure I took the second check on the wedding day. The thought of that entire process makes me want to gag.
This process continued for my first 5 or so weddings (and God BLESS those clients). This was right around the time that HoneyBook became popular. It was one of the very first subscription services I made for my business. I could not believe I could not only send contracts online, but also accept payments, create a payment plan, send questionnaires, keep track of my projects, and so much more all in just one subscription service. I highly recommend a client management software of your own, whether it’s HoneyBook or something else.
Now that I’ve been utilizing HoneyBook for about four years now, I have settled into a really convenient backend workflow. It completely streamlines my client communication, so I’m going to share that with you today!
Contact Forms:
I have two separate contact forms built into my website that directly send my inquiries to HoneyBook. One for couples and weddings, and one for photography education. When someone inquiries via either of these contact forms, they each get put into their respective workflows.
For Wedding Inquires:
The very first step in my workflow for wedding inquiries is a response email. It tells the clients about me, links to multiple full wedding galleries, and of course includes my detailed pricing guide. In order to make it feel more personal, I approve the email before it’s sent and add a personal touch.
Then, they automatically receive a fun questionnaire that lets me in on their life and helps me decide if we’re a good fit for each other.
From there, I have HoneyBook remind me to follow up in 3 days if they haven’t responded. I have a follow up email already prepared so I can just choose a template and click send.
Once a client books, another automatic email is sent to explain next steps to my clients and direct them to my Facebook group. From there, I’ve set HoneyBook to remind me to send their client welcome gift and book their engagement session.
Three Months Before The Wedding:
Now that their wedding day is quickly approaching, I need more in depth info on the details of their day. This is when I send one more questionnaire. This one will provide me information like family names, vendors, unique details, venue addresses, timeline, etc. I have two more emails that go out to my clients at the one month mark and the one week mark. These include final reminders and a little pep talk/congratulations before they head into wedding week!
The evening before the wedding, HoneyBook reminds me to prepare for the wedding. The following day, I have to check off that I’ve culled the images and sent sneak peeks.
Then, obviously comes gallery delivery & a request for feedback, which completes the wedding workflow.
Utilizing workflows on HoneyBook has given me SO much freedom, and absolutely saves my life on the wedding day. I know I have plenty of information to serve my couple well, and I can be sure that I didn’t forget anything.
If this sounds like something you NEED, well I have great news for you friend! Click here to get 20% off your first year of HoneyBook!
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