If you’ve recently launched your own business or become a freelancer, you’ll already know just how overwhelming it can be. Managing your own finances, admin and marketing can often mean you spend even less time doing what you love, and more time stuck behind a screen tearing your hair out over unpaid invoices, ignored emails and dead leads.
There are an abundance of Business Management Systems and Customer Relationship Management (CRM) tools available, but choosing the right option for you and your business can be super difficult and often overwhelming.
To save you time (and your hair!), I’ve narrowed down my recommended tools to 2 that boast the biggest benefits – Studio Ninja and Dubsado.
Let’s take a look at why Studio Ninja is one of my favourites, and why it could be yours too!
What is Studio Ninja?
Studio Ninja is a Business Management System and CRM specifically designed for photographers and studios, founded by wedding photographer Chris Garbacz and UX (User Experience) designer Yuan Wang.
Their aim was simple: Design a user-friendly tool that would save photographers time on boring and time-consuming administrative tasks, while collating everything – from Leads Management and Booking Systems to Contracts and Payments – into one location that’s easy to manage.
Studio Ninja can also automate many of these tasks, allowing you to focus on building your brand and producing stunning shots that your clients love.
Features and Benefits
The tool boasts a significant ‘features and benefits’ list that can truly work wonders for you as a photographer, such as:
Workflow Automation – A ‘Workflow’ is the series of steps you take for a shoot from start to finish, from obtaining the lead to asking for a review. Studio Ninja’s Workflow Automation tool allows you to not only create a checklist for each step, but also automatically send emails, contracts, and questionnaires without you lifting a finger!
Online Booking – If you’re a photographer who runs lots of shorter, sessional shoots (like family portraits or pet pawtraits), Studio Ninja’s Online Booking system could be your new best friend. It allows clients to book onto sessions when you make them available, automatically syncing new appointments with your Google calendar, without you having to do any of the admin work.
Leads Management –Through their Workflow system, Studio Ninja allows you to quickly manage contact form enquiries by triggering automatic workflows such as a follow-up email or sending a contract. Once a contract is signed, a lead will automatically move into your jobs section.
Quotes and Contracts – Not only can you set up Studio Ninja to automatically send quotes and/or contracts, but you can also access a range of customisable templates and combine them all into one workflow bundle.
Payments – The app is built for payment ease, integrating both Stripe and PayPal so all your invoices can automatically be marked as received and receipts can be sent to clients. Even better, you can track your annual revenue and year-on-year results via simple graphs (bye-bye, spreadsheets!).
Why I Recommend It
Studio Ninja has a wide array of features that can, undoubtedly support you, as a photographer, in the day-to-day running of your business – particularly in extremely busy periods. Here’s why I recommend it to clients:
- It’s easy to get to grips with – Setting up your business with Studio Ninja is simple and straightforward – just navigate over to ‘Settings’ to input your preferred payment method, sync your Google Account for Email and Calendar options, create a contact form, add your packages and more.
- It won’t break the bank – With a free trial and monthly packages starting at £17.90 per month (as of Oct '23), Studio Ninja is very accessible financially – particularly when combining the jobs of many other paid-for tools that can quickly rack up.
- Covers all your basic CRM needs – Studio Ninja can help you streamline your entire business process, boosting your client relationships and banking valuable time for you to spend on things that matter.
- Designed for Photographers – There are many CRMs and Business Management Tools available that could do similar jobs, but there are very few that are made by a photographer for photographers. Who knows what you need better than someone who’s been in the same boat?
- Responsive Support – Many existing users rant and rave about Studio Ninja’s exceptional Support Desk and their willingness to help.
The Cons
Not every Business Management System or CRM is perfect, despite their many benefits. Here are a few drawbacks to Studio Ninja, in my opinion:
- No API – Studio Ninja unfortunately lacks an API (the clever bit of tech that allows one bit of software to talk to another), limiting just how much you can streamline your process. This means popular online workflow platforms like Zapier and automation platforms like Make can’t be connected, so it’s likely some of your processes will still need to be done manually.
- Workflows Lack Depth – While the workflow tools in Studio Ninja are impressive, they’re not as rich as some other CRMs which have additional features, or more options. The need for these, however, depends on your business model.
- Booking System – The app’s Booking System is still relatively new, meaning several desired features are still lacking. While later updates will likely add more features, it's currently quite limited.
- Limited Personalisation – While some other CRMs offer more customisable branding options to better suit your business, Studio Ninja unfortunately does not.
If you're still unsure, or simply don't have the time to get your system set-up - get in touch. We can review your current tools and processes and help you decide which system is right for your business. We'll even be on hand if you need us to set it up for you.
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