~ SEO & Webdesign Document Automation: What documents would you like? ~

Hey fellow Blackhatters,

So, I have finally decided to create my own service/product and I must say that as much fun as it is... it's also damn stressful.

I have seen so many people all over struggling with not know how to create contracts, non-disclosure agreements, invoices, proposals, general business letters, prospect letters, thank you letters, sales pitch email templates, hard sell email templates and so much more...

It got me thinking and as I mentioned, I decided to create a product that deals with this.

The product/service is currently in development and should be done pretty soon... The general idea behind this is for the member to be able to add and manage all his/her clients, create proposals automatically, once-off and recurring invoices, select from a number of business documents such as contracts, NDA's, etc. (mentioned above) that will automatically be created by the system.

All the correspondence would then also be sent off to the prospects and/or clients automatically.

With that being said, I would appreciate input from you guys...

What would you like in a service like this?
What don't you like?
What should be added?
etc.

As mentioned, this is pretty niche orientated (SEO and Web Design Freelancers and/or Business) at this stage, but as time goes on and interest builds I would obviously expand on this.

Lastly, I would like to offer a couple of people spots as Beta testers and if I am allowed, I will update this thread with the details if there is enough interest.

Your help would be much appreciated.

Ruoall

I'm a freelancer who currently manages maybe about 5-6 clients a month (in addition to my full-time SEO job) and think would be fairly valuable DEPENDING ON THE PRICE!

Having the documents available to customize would OK - but there are a lot of sources out there where you find these documents fairly quickly.

I think what might bring more value is using the service as a client management system.

Something along the lines of: You get a new client (or lead) and in their "folder" the program auto generates all the documents you need with the clients information (website, name, etc) already filled out on them.

From there you can send off email's (and attachments) depending on what stage in the project you are in. For instance a new client you can send off a new website design questionairre as well as a boilerplate email about what you need them to provide you with.

Automated invoicing (again with email/attachment) would be useful as well.

I think what would be important is that these communications with the client come from the designer/developer email and not come through branded out the ass with your service. In my mind that would be a deal breaker as I'm trying to build my own brand here.

I question how well the automated proposal system might work - I know I get fairly in-depth with my proposals, and they usually vary wildly from client to client (largely in thanks to the SEO I provide as well as well as what the client is looking for after I speak to them on the phone).

I would also love to see some sort of project management feature as well - mostly just keeping track of billing for customers as well as a "to-do" list I can use to estimate the total time of each project, but I expect that would be a bitch to code out if you haven't already started with that feature in mind.

If you do have any beta spots open I'd be happy to help out with testing!

Hey PhillyLuke,

Awesome suggestions, please see my comments below.

PhillyLuke said:

I'm a freelancer who currently manages maybe about 5-6 clients a month (in addition to my full-time SEO job) and think would be fairly valuable DEPENDING ON THE PRICE!

Click to expand...

Well the idea is to make it as affordable as possible so that at least struggling freelancers can find it affordable. At this stage there are 2 subscription options for $15 and $45 per month respectively.

PhillyLuke said:

Having the documents available to customize would OK - but there are a lot of sources out there where you find these documents fairly quickly.

Click to expand...

No no no... maybe I was vague in my post. I am not "just" providing you with templates. When you load up your clients, you add things like their names, addresses, contact details, etc. You then select your desired document and the system then automatically generates and fills out the documents with your and your client's details. You are then presented with a copy to make any final changes and once you are happy, you save and send it (unbranded) to your client.

I absolutely hate it when you are forced to use a service's branding and I have taken that into consideration.

PhillyLuke said:

I think what might bring more value is using the service as a client management system.

Something along the lines of: You get a new client (or lead) and in their "folder" the program auto generates all the documents you need with the clients information (website, name, etc) already filled out on them.

Click to expand...

Agreed. You will be able to manage your clients to a certain extent. When going into the Client details you will be able to see all the correspondence with them, the documents sent, etc. You can also add more "members" to the client's company.

PhillyLuke said:

From there you can send off email's (and attachments) depending on what stage in the project you are in. For instance a new client you can send off a new website design questionairre as well as a boilerplate email about what you need them to provide you with.

Click to expand...

As mentioned above, the emails will contain the attachments and will be unbranded per member. There are currently 40+ different documents to choose from and I will be adding more as time goes on for sure.

PhillyLuke said:

Automated invoicing (again with email/attachment) would be useful as well.

I think what would be important is that these communications with the client come from the designer/developer email and not come through branded out the ass with your service. In my mind that would be a deal breaker as I'm trying to build my own brand here.

Click to expand...

Noted and addressed above.

PhillyLuke said:

I question how well the automated proposal system might work - I know I get fairly in-depth with my proposals, and they usually vary wildly from client to client (largely in thanks to the SEO I provide as well as well as what the client is looking for after I speak to them on the phone).

Click to expand...

Makes total sense and as you can imagine, it can be hard providing a service that caters for everybody's needs. With that being said, the idea is to constantly make this system grow in terms of how things work and functionality.

PhillyLuke said:

I would also love to see some sort of project management feature as well - mostly just keeping track of billing for customers as well as a "to-do" list I can use to estimate the total time of each project, but I expect that would be a bitch to code out if you haven't already started with that feature in mind.

Click to expand...

Awesome idea and yes I havent added something like that to the scope of the project. Duly noted though as I feel it could definitely add a shitload of value to a product like this.

If you do have any beta spots open I'd be happy to help out with testing![/QUOTE]

Thanks again for your feedback and suggestions. I will definitely let you know of the Beta spots

Have a fantastic day.

Ruoall

did you ever start this service. Im still interested almost 4 years later