Doula Business Automations That Save Time and Drive Revenue
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Transcript
Welcome to Dula Tips and Tits, the podcast where we cut through the noise and get real about what it takes to build a sustainable doula business. I'm Kaylee Harrod. I've been a doula informally for 14 years and full time for seven.
Around here, we don't sugarcoat stuff. We talk autonomy, owning your worth, creating a business that works for you. No fluff, no burnout, just the honest truth on how to be your own best boss. Let's get into today's episode.
Hello and welcome back to Dula Tips and Tits. We are talking today about doula business automations that save time and drive revenue to your business. So if you have been hanging out with me for any length of time, you have heard me talk about some of the automations and systems that I use in my business.
I think this is something that is really a level up in your business. If you are currently sending every email manually, for instance, then this is something that will be a game changer for you. I think automation is something that we are a little bit scared of, understandably, because the tech can be challenging, but also I think it gets a bad rap because we think that it's going to be expensive.
But the reality is that actually you can do quite a bit of automation without a lot of extra expense. And so I really want to encourage you to take some brave steps in terms of kind of looking into automation and how it could help your business because it is a lot more accessible financially than you maybe realize.
So why is it helpful? I would say the first reason it's helpful is there are so many things in business that are incredibly repetitive. So like for me, for instance, I have a lot of people sending inquiries from my website to potentially work with me as a client, as like a doula client.
And so I get those in, sometimes I'm at a birth and I don't see them, sometimes it's a weird time of day or it's over the weekend, I'm trying not to work or whatever and so what I have set up right now is that the inquiry comes in and then they automatically get an email from me that says like, hey, thank you so much for reaching out.
This is when you should expect to hear from me. You should expect to hear from me in the next 24 hours because that gives them a sense of like, okay, I did fill the form out correctly, it went to them because I think I'm probably not the only one who does this but like if I inquire about something online, when I hit submit, I'm sort of like, did it go through?
Like I'm not sure, unless I get some kind of confirmation email, right? So this is essentially a confirmation email and I think I even say in it, like this is automated, you know, like something that's like, hey, you're getting this from my system that says, thank you so much for filling out that form.
You'll be hearing from me in the next 24 hours. So it is something that's not like, it's clearly automated. It's not like sent from me, because also if someone spills out a form at 902, and they get an email from me at 903, clearly that's not from me, right?
But it's written by me, it's from my business. It gives me some like report and credibility with them, but it also gives them the first step of understanding what the next thing to expect is, which is a really big thing in the customer journey and increases your buying potential a lot.
So that's one example. Another way that I use automations is when I'm doing classes for doulas, then I set up things like reminders for the classes and the replay emails and all of that. If you have taken one of my online classes, then you have gotten scheduled automated emails, right?
And if you've taken enough of them, you've maybe gotten scheduled automated emails that were incorrect because I am a flawed human being. And so I had one masterclass that I had the wrong time zone. So my emails were sent at like 10 a.m.
They were supposed to go out at 11 saying like, hey, we start in an hour. And instead they went out the wrong time. So then I just got tons of emails back being like, oh my gosh, what time is it even happening?
I'm so confused. And I was like, ugh. But so you have experienced the ups and downs of automation for me. But that also means that I don't have to, like when I'm doing something like a class or when I'm like opening up seats in my coaching groups, I don't have to be sending out emails constantly, right?
Like I sit down one time, write out those emails and schedule them so that they are coming automatically. That takes some work, but then once it's done, I just rinse and repeat it, which is really. lovely, right?
The other thing that I like to do for clients is things like information, client onboarding, so like their intake form, scheduling their prenatal visits and reminding them about those prenatal visits, doing things like sending them information at a particular time after hiring.
Those are all things that I really like to use these things for. Automations should be viewed as something that's like taking a piece out of your brain that you're constantly having to think about, right?
So if you're always thinking, okay, I'm gonna have to send this welcome email, okay, I'm gonna have to send this, then that is work mentally that you don't have to be doing. If those emails are written in a way that they can go out to anybody, and they're still personable, right?
They're still from you, they're still, you know, telling your clients what you need to tell them. But it doesn't have to take so much work from you. And honestly, I know if you're thinking right now, like, Kaylee, it doesn't take me that much time to send an email.
But the reality is that the more clients you get, the more someone's gonna fall through the cracks if you're sending manual emails to people, right? Like they have to have some stuff that is getting to them automatically so that it is happening because people are going to get missed in the process when your client numbers are higher, okay?
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Trust me, you will notice a difference in your client interactions. Now, back to our episode or higher, okay? So when you're thinking about this, I want you to think about what are some repetitive tasks in your business that could be smoother?
Also, how are the things in your business working together? So like, does your inquiry or contact form on your website go somewhere? Does that information go into a system? Do you then email those people, right?
Are they getting something from you? Or are they just kind of in the void? You have their email, but you do nothing with it, right? Also, what are things that you hate doing? And therefore, you either put them off, you don't do them, or you do them begrudgingly and they take a lot of emotional labor.
Those are things that would be wonderful to outsource. Now, I'm not gonna lie to you. When you're first setting up business automations, it can be very intimidating. And it can be hard, it can be time consuming, right?
But once you have them set up, they work so well for you. Like they do so much extra background work that you don't have to do. When you hear people saying like they have passive income streams, this is how they have that.
Because they have these systems set up that actually do this work behind the scenes, because otherwise they couldn't be selling at the volume that they're selling. They have to have systems that are sending those emails and automations that are putting people in the right category and tagging them correctly so that they only get those emails and not these emails.
And you don't have to start there. You're not going to start with multiple groups and tags and all the complications. What you're going to start with is just like when you send me a contact form, my email system immediately emails you back and thanks you for contacting me.
And if you have something like a free guide or you have something like a small offering, I have a $1 pack of all sorts of pregnancy stuff, that can then be put in that email. That can be sent automatically so they can actually become a customer right away.
That increases your chance of them being a customer down the line. And I think that the way that we think about this in business has to be, again, strategically, right? Like if you're wanting to have the same size business you have now and to never have it grow and to never have it have more income and to never have it have different services, then great, you don't need to do any of this, right?
Then whatever you're doing is currently working because you don't want to change anything. But if you know that you want your business to get bigger, if you know that you want your client streams to change and grow and multiply, you have to start doing some of this stuff or the other things won't work.
And the earlier you do it, the easier it is to do because then as you grow and you need it to be more complicated, you're already really familiar with the simple version of it. Okay? So I really want to encourage you to think about the ways that you could use automations.
Now, really keep it simple for now. One, think about any repetitive tasks that you do in your business that could be automated. The second... is what are things that you do that you hate doing but are necessary and you just don't do them or you put them off because you hate doing them, right?
So whether that's client emails, whether that's like sending follow-ups on something, like whatever that is, those are things that you want to think about outsourcing so that you are not constantly putting things off.
And part of the entrepreneur brain is feeling like there's always something that's not done, right? And I don't want that for you. That's not necessary in business. So that's the other piece of this that I'm wanting you to really dive into.
So that's all for today. I want to remind you that today, if you are listening to this on the day that it's coming out, today is the last day to apply for a scholarship for the 90-day doula growth accelerator mastermind.
The scholarship form is in the show notes. Today is the last day, so go do that right this second. And then you'll get more information about that mastermind and also about a free class I have coming up at the beginning of February so that you can sign up for both of those and have more information around the stuff that's coming in the spring.
So all right, I will see you in the next episode. Thanks for joining us for this episode of the Dula Tips and Tits podcast. If you learned something today or had an aha moment, we'd love for you to share that on Instagram and tag us at hiradula so we can celebrate alongside you.
If you found this podcast helpful, we would so appreciate you taking a second to leave a rating and a review on your favorite podcast app. That helps other doulas find us as we do this work together.
This podcast is intended as educational and entertainment. It is not medical advice or business advice. Please consult your own medical or legal team for your own needs around your health and your business.
We'll see you again soon.
Apply for a scholarship spot for the Doula Growth Accelerator program using the link below:
https://www.harroddoulaservices.com/accelerator-scholarship-application
Today’s Episode is sponsored by The Educated Birth. You can get 10% off The Educated Birth Binder right now with my code TIPSANDTITS at theeducatedbirth.store
Automations can level up your business! I know I’ve said it before, but I’ll say it again many times I’m sure! When you’re ready for growth you have to do growth things or growth can’t happen. Growth doesn’t come from doing the same things and hoping and praying. Your doula business can grow bigger than it is now, but only if you use tools that you’re not currently using!
Quote from the show:
“[Email automations] is something that is really a level up in your business. If you are currently sending every email manually, for instance, then this is something that will be a game changer for you. I think automation is something that we are a little bit scared of, understandably, because the tech can be challenging, but also I think it gets a bad rap because we think that it's going to be expensive. But the reality is that actually you can do quite a bit of automation without a lot of extra expense. And so I really want to encourage you to take some brave steps in terms of kind of looking into automation and how it could help your business because it is a lot more accessible financially than you maybe realize. ”
CONNECT with Kaely on TikTok or Instagram
https://www.tiktok.com/@doulacoach
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If you like this episode, don't forget to share it to your Instagram stories and tag me @harroddoula
Doula Tips and Tits is produced by Kaely Harrod of Harrod Doula Services
It is sponsored by The Doula Biz Blueprint Self-Paced Class for Doulas Launching Successful and Sustainable Businesses!
Music by Madirfan: Hidden Place on Pixabay
