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Today’s episode kicks off an exciting mini series in the Business Minimalist Podcast. Over the next few solo episodes, we’re going to explore all the ways less can be better in business!

I’m sharing my less but better software philosophy, the 7 types of software that are crucial for running my service based business, which software I use, and how I keep my business organized from A-Z. Let’s dive in!

There are 7 types of software that I find crucial for running my service based business. If you’re a busy, booked out service provider who’s feeling overwhelmed and exhausted, implementing the right software systems in your business can save you hours each month (or even week)! Here are the 7 software systems I use to organize my service based business.

01 Customer Relationship Manager (CRM)

For busy service providers who are feeling overwhelmed or scattered and are having a hard time staying on top of their client projects, a CRM is a lifesaver! A customer relationship management system (CRM) is a software that helps you keep track of your leads, turn them into customers, and manage your customer relationships.

Organizing and automating how you guide your clients through every step of your process is a huge benefit for you and your clients. Not only does a CRM help you provide a much better client experience, it also automates a lot of busy work like automating invoicing, contracts, proposals, and even emails.

I personally use Dubsado as my CRM, and it doubles as my scheduler.

Updated January 2024: I’ve moved my entire client workflow from Dubsado to ClickUp! Tune into this episode of the Business Minimalist Podcast to learn why I ditched Dubsado once and for all.

02 Meeting Scheduler

You are better than emailing dates and times back and forth with your clients! Calendly is a popular scheduler, but I use Dubsado to set up multiple types of schedulers that allow my clients, collaborators, and contractors to find time on my calendar quickly. Dubsado also automates my Zoom meeting links, adding events to my calendar, and emailing confirmation and meeting reminder emails.

03 Calendar

Part of managing a small business is knowing how to best manage your time! Every business owner needs a calendar management system, and I personally love Google Calendar. I have a Google Workplace (Gsuite) account, which also allows me to use certain Zapier integrations that aren’t available for regular google accounts.

04 Project Management System

Most small business owners aren’t utilizing the power of having a project management system, but it’s the hub of my entire business! I manage client projects, all my marketing channels, business development projects, admin tasks, and more in ClickUp. Check out my Organize Your Business Template to learn more about how to start utilizing a project management system in your business.

05 File Management System

This one may seem incredibly basic, but how many times have you tried to look for a file and wasting time searching in multiple locations? I organize all my files using the same hierarchy as my ClickUp space so I know exactly where to find documents when I need them. I also sync my Google Drive to my desktop, so I can easily search from my finder without having to open another tab.

06 Email Management System

Again, sounds obvious, but having an organizing inbox can change your business (and life)! I use a very similar organization system in my email to save important information for later. My favorite email hack is using Zapier to automatically upload receipts to a Google Drive when I tag the email as ‘receipts’.

07 Accounting Software

When you’re just starting out, a simple excel spreadsheet may be more than enough to keep track of your finances. However, the busier you get and the more your business grows, it can become harder and harder to stay on top of your accounting. Wave is a free accounting software that I used to track my expenses for a really long time. Now, I use Quickbooks for my small business accounting, and my bookkeeper does most of the heavy lifting (praise the Lord)!

Being Organized Helps you Scale

It took me a really long time to set up and iterate on these systems that I use to keep my business organized. And even now, I’m constantly learning and improving them! Systems aren’t a one and done event, but you’ll never achieve your organized business goals if you don’t start.

If you’re wanting to get your small business organized, the best place to start is with my Organize Your Business template. With this template and mini course, I walk you through how to create processes to keep your business organized in ONE place.