I’m willing to bet the way your day-to-day as a designer looks right now probably isn’t what you thought it would look like when you started your design business. Are you finding yourself spending tons of time in your inbox or trying to figure out which CRM is right for you? Or maybe, the nitty gritty details you never actually thought would be part of running an intentional design business are taking up most of your time.

I get it.

There are so many moving parts within our businesses that are constantly vying for our attention. And to be honest, at the end of the day we don’t always have the time to do what we love the most. You know, actually designing!

But what could it look like if instead of scrambling and spending so much time in the day-to-day tasks inside of our businesses, we created a system that streamlines an intentional process and opens up time in our day to do more of what we love?

How To Serve Your Design Clients Well Through An Intentional Process

This isn’t just some dreamy idea, friend. It’s a reality if you are able to create an intentional process! Let’s stop wasting time in our inbox and spend more time diving into the design work that really fires you up.

Today, we are going to walk through five ways that you can create a streamlined process that enables you to bring your client’s vision to life and do more of the work you love.

#1 – Get In The Right Mindset

To create an intentional process you first need to start in the right mindset.

It’s undeniable you will receive so many benefits when you create a streamlined client process that is easy to follow and helps you get what you need when you need it.

But in order for this process to serve our clients well, we need to be in the mindset of putting our clients first.

At the very core of everything we do within our business, it’s crucial we put our sweet clients at the center of it all so we can pull in details that truly serve them well. It’s no good if we create a streamlined process that works for us, but confuses our clients.

And, on top of that, when you are in the mindset of putting your clients first, you will create a very memorable client experience that exceeds expectations at every turn!

So first, edit your mindset. Put yourself in the frame of mind where you put your clients first. And once you do that you are onto step two of creating an intentional streamlined client process.

#2 – Put Yourself In Your Client’s Shoes

Now that you are in the mindset of putting your clients first, walk through your client process from their point of view.

The end goal here of course is to create a streamlined client process, but first you need to actually understand what it’s like to walk through your current process as a new client.

If you are using a CRM like HoneyBook you can set yourself up as a new client with a new project. You can then see what it’s like to receive a proposal, accept an invoice or receive proofs through the messaging system. You can walk through and understand what it looks like and how easy or difficult it is to use.

Taking the time to understand what this process feels like from the client’s point of view opens things up for intentional areas of growth. You can see which parts of your client process you can be refining to make easier, more fun or memorable.

But in order to know where you can improve you must walk through your client process from your client’s shoes.

#3 – Create A Streamlined System So You Can Work Smarter

Now with all this insight of what it’s like to really walk through your own client process. You can start taking action on all the findings you discovered along the way.

Where can you make areas of your process more clear?

What steps can you simplify and combine?

How can you outline expectations better for your clients?

One way I did this within my own client approach was with my worksheets I have my clients fill out. When I start working with a branding client, I need them to go deep and share the very heart behind their brand. I ask very introspective, reflective questions that need in-depth responses for me to be able to create a brand that reflects the heart of their life’s work.

Over time, I’ve found that I need to educate my clients on how they should navigate these worksheets from the very beginning. So instead of just sending over these worksheets and crossing my fingers hoping they fill them out as honestly as I need them to, I took time to create an intentional process to guide them through these worksheets.

First, I’ve created an overview email that educates them on the right mindset when filling out these questions and how to create the best space to walk through this content.

Then, I set expectations for the amount of time they should expect to spend on these worksheets.

And taking it one step further, I even include some examples in the worksheets themselves so my clients can see what an in-depth answer really looks like.

It took me time to create this process initially, but now that I’m able to use this with every branding client, it saves me so much time in the long run.

#4 Create A Streamlined System With Automation

Trust me, creating a streamlined system like this takes time because you are outlining every step of the process. But you are also building in some very thoughtful and smart steps into your process that will help you reap the benefits in the end.

When it comes to creating a streamlined system, I think the best way to do this is to lean on some kind of CRM or project management tool. I have clients who love using Basecamp or Asana. But personally, I love using HoneyBook with my clients because it allows me to really dig deep into some sophisticated, automated workflows that keeps my client to-dos moving forward without me even having to lift a finger.

Automating this part of my process makes it so easy for my clients to receive all their on-boarding materials and worksheets on time simply through an automated workflow that I can apply to each individual project in HoneyBook. It’s made the first stages of working together easy for both my clients and me.

But remember, in order to create a streamlined process that works well for my clients I first had to get into the mindset of putting my clients first. I then walked through what this process is like from my client’s point of view. And then, I refined and tweaked this process over time to make it easier and more enjoyable for each one of my clients.

#5 – Introduce Your Updated Intentional Process To Your Clients

Now that you’ve spent all this time and energy refining this process.

Thinking about it from your client’s point of view.

And figuring out the ways to really make it effective for them.

You need to remember there are still always ways you can refine it even more.

So as you introduce this process to a new client, ask them, hey what are ways as you walk through this process that I can make things easier or more enjoyable for you? How can I elevate this process so you can have a better design experience every step of the way?

If you use a handful of clients to essentially be your testers of this streamlined process you will get some amazing feedback that will help you refine and serve them better along the way.

BONUS – Enjoy The Benefits Of All Your Hard Work

I know we have gone through some pretty in-depth steps of walking through your streamlined process, taking action and putting all of your findings into play through tools like a strong CRM, some automated workflows and a clear process overview.

But now is the time for you to enjoy the benefits of all your hard work sweet friend.

Spend less time in your inbox. Stop scrambling to figure out what you should be doing next. And instead, get back to what you actually love about your work.

Let Me Help You Create An Intentional Client Process

Now if you are at the point where this sounds great, but you need some help in moving forward with a clear proven client process that will save you time and allow you to do your best work. Then I’ve got a free challenge you can’t miss!

Let me introduce you to 5 Days To More Dream Projects: A Free Challenge For Brand Designers. This is a fun, totally free 5-day challenge designed to help you set every client up for success right from the start. I’m going to give you the tools and guidance you need in order to streamline your client process.

And as a result, you will be able to serve your clients better, work smarter, and enjoy those stress-free projects you currently are only dreaming about.

Together, we will leverage a proven client on-boarding process for more dreamy projects so you can get back to doing what you love most.

Sound like just what you are looking for?

Join me inside this totally free 5-day challenge that kicks off on August 13.

Save your seat by entering your email address below: