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Trying to keep track of your clients, their requirements, and their invoices can get really cumbersome if you aren’t using a good CRM. Here are the ones that our clients recommend as CRMs for interior designers.
1) Houzz Pro / Ivy
Houzz is a website that all types of designers use to showcase their work, and many clients also look for designers on websites like Houzz. This means that they have the unique viewpoint of knowing what their designers and clients need from a CRM, and they can deliver something that meets these needs. Currently, a Houzz Pro subscription starts at about $65 per month and that includes most (if not all) of the features that you might need.
You can send out proposals or estimates to clients and have them approve, sign, and pay easily. Once the project has started, you can use the built-in timer to keep track of any hourly work. Your client can log in to view any public notes such as daily logs, change orders, invoices, and the project timeline.
Unique features that cater specifically to designers include a 3D floor planner which isn’t included in most other CRM systems and can cost quite a bit as an additional purchase otherwise. You can also keep track of any additional costs like furniture, create mood boards, and provide a timeline for your clients to view. The software even keeps track of your conversation with your client by directly pulling in any emails from the client, so you have a backup of all previous messages sent and received.
With all the features it has, we definitely recommend Houzz Pro / Ivy as the most inclusive CRM we’ve been able to find.
Get Started with Houzz Pro / Ivy →
2) HoneyBook
HoneyBook has marketed itself to creative businesses for many years now. They have a web interface as well as a mobile app that makes it easy to manage your business at home or on the go. It provides most of the basic features you might need from a CRM. You can send out proposals and estimates, and have clients sign and pay online.
HoneyBook starts at about $39 per month, although they usually have sales like $1 a month for the first 6 months or 20% off the first year.
HoneyBook has a lot of the features that you might need when you’re first starting out. You can view conversations with the client, track your time if you bill hourly, and make private or public notes for each project.
If you’re just starting out and don’t need all the extra features of Houzz Pro / Ivy, HoneyBook is what we recommend!
3) Dubsado
Dubsado is the cheapest of the three software we recommend at $20 per month. This gives you unlimited projects and clients, invoicing, and templates for forms and emails. The biggest difference between Dubsado and HoneyBook is that Dubsado doesn’t currently have a mobile app (it’s in the works). So if you’re on a go a lot and want something that exists as an app, you might want to use HoneyBook instead.
The other thing about Dubsado is that it has a tendency to log you out a lot, so you’ll find yourself having to keep logging in every day. That said, besides those minor inconveniences, it’s a very well-put-together CRM and it’s definitely an excellent start to your business.
Do you have questions about any of the systems we mentioned above? If you do, feel free to comment down below and we’ll help as best as we can. You can also contact us and we can help you in whatever way we can.
