One of the things that is important to have as a working actor is to have a solid system for organizing your projects and contacts. This includes auditions as well as gigs and for you to have a place to store information as you prep, audition, go on-set and after you’re on-set.
Remember, we must nurture the business side of “show biz” as actors and performing artists.
Why You Need a CRM
This is where a CRM comes into play. A CRM stands for Client Relationship Management and is a tool that helps you manage leads and sales plus manage & nurture client communication effectively to maximize your profitability, efficiency & trustworthiness.
I believe that having a CRM is a huge advantage one can have as an actor when you are auditioning and booking work because preparation and organization breeds success— and casting directors can smell that.
You can use any CRM tool you prefer and many CRM tools offer some kind of free trial. I’ve experimented with several CRM tools myself.
Dubsado as a CRM for Actors
My favorite CRM tool that I like to use for this is Dubsado. Dubsado gives you the capability to see your leads and compare them to your bookings, plus create checklists for each stage of your booking.
I love that Dubsado is totally customizable. In fact, this is why Dubsado can be used across a variety of industries. (I even used it for my headshot photography business.)
Project Management & Portals
Within Dubsado, I’ve developed a system for managing what I need to do for my auditions and what needs to happen after the audition. Then I have another stage set up in Dubsado for handling everything I need to take care of once I book something.
Within the folder I create for each project with a portal, I am able to easily upload documents like Sides, Directions, Contracts and more that are associated with a particular project. It really helps me to be able to access all the information I need about a project.
Invoicing and Getting Paid
I can track how much money I’m making from a gig. Although I haven’t used the feature that connects to Quickbooks, you can also connect to Quickbooks and other accounting software.
If you also do freelance work, like so many actors and performing artists do, you can also have ways to manage your clients as they pay you. Dubsado also offers you the capability to invoice your clients on a one time or recurring basis and also allows you to split up payments.
Portals for your Clients
Say for example you are also coaching clients as an acting coach, your clients can access their own private and secured portal within the Dubsado system.
Contracts
You can create contracts that your clients can sign electronically within the app. You have the ability to create a standard contract that will populate your client’s name so you only need to update it if you want to. I absolutely love this feature.
Contacts & Building Relationships
You can also create canned emails within Dubsado, which helps you save time when you need to follow up with a Director or Producer or your Agents. In addition to all of this, I also keep a solid list of contacts and link them to projects I’ve worked on which helps me manage relationships within the industry.
Scheduling
Another thing that I appreciate about using Dubsado is my ability to see what appointments I have coming up and tasks to prep for that with it’s scheduling features.
Fantastic Customer Support
I have to applaud Dubsado for their outstanding customer support. They are very personable in their emails and provide a free Facebook community so users can share ideas and ask questions. On top of that, they host free workshops on how to use certain aspects of Dubsado and how to get acquainted with it.
They offer one on one free consultations if you need help with a specific issue and also have agents you can chat with from within the app. I greatly appreciate their helpful support and also their receptivity to recommendations to continue improving their CRM.
Final Comments
Dubsado is a robust CRM tool that facilitates ease & streamlining your business for lucrative results.
This level of organization and preparation is what helps me to have a higher booking rate when I’m auditioning and booking and enables me to focus more on the craft of acting and look good (and feel good) while doing it!
Try Dubsado Today!
I invite you to try Dubsado for FREE and fully featured so you can check out all the bells and whistles out for yourself by clicking my referral link here http://bit.ly/32D7lv2 or by using my code AGIFTFROMKAT. Dubsado is free for your first three clients. Create a workflow, contracts, forms, invoices, and more!
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Much Love,
Special Note: Some of the links in this article are affiliate links, which means that I (Kat) may earn a small commission if you decide to click through and make a purchase. I only recommend services and products that I have personally invested in and used/tested extensively. The opinions I express are sincere and entirely my own. THIS BLOG POST CONTAINS REFERRAL LINKS WHICH MAY REWARD ME IN THE EVENT OF A PURCHASED SUBSCRIPTION.
