Why We Design the Client Experience Before We Build Workflows in Dubsado

[00:00:00] Do you ever look backwards in your business and find something and think, wow, that’s when it all started. A year ago, I put together four episodes inside a client experience series and had no idea how that was going to change the trajectory of my business going forward. In those four episodes, I walked you through my process on how to create an amazing client experience for both you and your clients.

[00:00:24] Without realizing I was gonna take the ideas there, sunset every offer I currently had, and create two new offers that would be the only thing I took into 2026. Now, inside of that series, episode one was how to audit your current client experience and figure out how to make it better. Episode two was how to begin mapping your customer journey to plan an amazing Client Experience.

[00:00:50] Episode three was how to take that map and design workflows to automate the process for both you and your clients. And I ended the series with talking about how to create a five minute booking process so you can get booked and paid faster.

[00:01:05] Now, I’m not gonna rehash all four of those episodes today.

[00:01:08] They are linked in the show notes. But I do wanna focus on episode two because the concept of mapping your customer journey is something that I really didn’t talk about before March of 2025. But it’s the only thing I’m talking about going forward. And so in today’s episode, I’m gonna talk about why it’s so important to design your client experience, starting with the customer journey map, and I’m gonna walk you through how both of my offers in 2026 use that as a starting point to create something amazing. Let’s jump into the episode.

[00:02:06] Y’all. I guest on about eight to 12 podcasts each year, and I get asked the same question in almost every single guest interview I record. The host always asks me some version of, okay, Colie, if someone wants to jump into systems in their business, where should they start? And my answer is, never go pick a CRM.

[00:02:28] It’s never, let’s build workflow. It’s always let’s grab a piece of paper and a pencil and write down exactly what you want to do with your clients and when. Because before you touch Dubsado, HoneyBook, 17 hats, Airtable Notion, or any of the other tools that have workflows and automations, you need to map exactly what you want to do with your clients.

[00:02:51] Otherwise, you’re just building a system that sends shit and it doesn’t guide anyone anywhere with purpose. Now I understand why people are a little confused that I just don’t start making tool recommendations. I mean, y’all know I have my favorites, but because most people are taught to think about systems backwards, they think that’s where I’m going to start.

[00:03:12] They think systems start with the tool that you’ve chosen. They think workflows will automatically save them time in their business. They think automation will fix the friction that they’re currently experiencing, but systems don’t automatically create ease in your business. They execute the decisions you have already made about how you want to work with your clients.

[00:03:35] And if you didn’t make any decisions about your process, about your boundaries, about your communications, systems don’t end up saving you time. They just magnify the mess that already exists in your business. Now, this is why designing your client experience and planning your communication comes first period.

[00:03:57] The only thing that changes is where you do that work and how fast you move into implementation. Inside Systems in session, my signature offer, the first 30 days are focused completely on designing and implementing your client experience for your one signature offer. But design comes first.

[00:04:17] We previously aimed to have your systems prep blueprint completed in the first seven days, so we had a kickoff call. You and I went back and forth. We planned your customer journey, and then you started jumping into the assets.

[00:04:31] But starting in 2026, the exact same design and communication process I teach inside Email like you Mean It has been formally included inside the systems and session resource hub. You’ll have the option to do that as part of your pre-work or join a live five day sprint to do it with a group and get my direct feedback.

[00:04:51] If you’re ready to join systems in session, jump in now. I’m currently booking for April, May, and June Start dates. If you join Systems in session during the month of March, you can join the next Email, Like You Mean It Sprint. That’s happening April 6th through 10th, absolutely free.

[00:05:07] And then you’ll walk into your kickoff call with your entire customer journey planned and client communication library written before we even get started. That’s outside the 60 days that you get inside of Systems in Session.

[00:05:20] You’re not skipping the design, you’re not skipping the communication. You’re just moving quicker into implementation, starting on day one. Now, if you’re not ready for Systems in Session and you feel like you need more time before you’re ready to build your systems Email, Like you Mean, It is still a really good first step.

[00:05:40] Not because it’s smaller, not because it’s optional, but because it is the design and communication phase. You map your client experience, you plan the communication that guides it, and you write the emails that set expectations, educate your clients and protect your boundaries. And the reason I keep telling people not to wait on Email, Like You Mean It is simple.

[00:06:04] The work you do there will pay you back immediately. The very next time you have to send a client an email. There’s no guesswork. You just find the template, customize it if necessary within one to two minutes, and you send it and you are going to be able to do this with the very next lead or client that you communicate with.

[00:06:24] Now, a lot of people think, oh, it’s okay that I don’t have everything mapped out. I can just design the experience as I go. But what actually happens is you skip the design and the communication and you start saying yes to things that should be paid add-ons. You overexplain yourself in every single email because you didn’t take the time to plan what you wanted to say in advance.

[00:06:48] You constantly feel reactive instead of confident when you are communicating with your clients. And if you jump into workflows, you build them, but you never fully trust them. Guys, all of that had nothing to do with tools. That’s a planning problem.

[00:07:05] So let me show you what it looks like when someone does the design first.

[00:07:10] Now, Genevieve came into Email Like You Mean It, and before that, her system was an Apple Notes page. She had information centralized, but nothing was actually planned. She actually told me that she was spending like 45 minutes to send a single email, and it’s not because she didn’t know what she was doing, it’s because she was overthinking, she was constantly digging for links and she was trying to sound consistent, but restarting from scratch every single time.

[00:07:37] Now, she’s not special. She does what most people do. She jumped straight into writing emails when she joined Email, Like You Mean It? And then she immediately hit a wall because you cannot write emails that guide a journey, if you haven’t taken the time to map the journey first.

[00:07:54] So she slowed down. She took my advice and she mapped her entire customer journey first, and that’s when everything changed. She ended up with a pre-written client communication of 27 emails each tied to a specific moment inside of her client experience. These are not random-ass emails. These were strategic touch points for everything that she wanted her clients to feel, understand and do while they were working with her.

[00:08:24] Now once she mapped the journey, she started seeing gaps that she didn’t even know existed, like huge waiting periods where her clients weren’t hearing from her, that messy middle that I’m always talking about. When clients get confused and start asking questions, she realized that she had several of them throughout her process.

[00:08:42] Now, instead of reacting in real time, she pre-planned the communication to guide the process. That means that she also accounted for her boundaries, the client education and finally charging for the add-ons that she was constantly saying yes to because she didn’t wanna disappoint her clients.

[00:09:01] And here’s the key shift.

[00:09:03] When your boundaries are planned, they stop feeling emotional and they just become part of the process. That’s how you stop saying no constantly and start saying, well, that’s not included with this, but here’s how we can add it on.

[00:09:17] Before Email Like You Mean It. Genevieve didn’t have a real rebooking or offboarding process. Now she does. Her emails keep her top of mind as her clients go forward. They create natural upsells while she’s working with the clients and they protect her scope so that the project doesn’t extend past deadlines and she doesn’t start feeling overwhelmed.

[00:09:37] Now, some of those upsells didn’t even exist before, but they were created because mapping the journey revealed what clients were already asking for that she was just giving away for free. That’s immediate. ROI.

[00:09:50] Speaker 2: So how do you decide if you wanna jump right into systems in session or start with email like you mean it? This is the decision framework I want you to use. If you’re ready to implement systems, full systems right now, join Systems in Session. You’ll still start with customer journey mapping and drafting your client communication library, either in a group as a five day done with you live, sprint, or with DIY. Access to the email like you mean it trainings and GPTs already available inside the resource hub.

[00:10:22] If you complete this prior to your kickoff call, we’ll move straight into building your workflows and other assets for your full system.

[00:10:29] Now, one of my Systems in Sessions clients, Angie participated in the last email, like you mean it Sprint before her kickoff date and had this to say.

[00:10:38] Speaker 3: Colie, if you would’ve asked me before I joined, if I needed email like you mean it, I would’ve said no. I’ve been in business for nine years. I have plenty of email templates.

[00:10:47] I thought I was set.

[00:10:48] But once I actually sat down and mapped out my client journey the way you’re meant to, my eyes were opened. I realized how many touch points I was missing. Colie showed me how to create intentional communication at every stage so clients truly feel taken care of. And the best part, it actually gives you time back when you proactively answer their questions.

[00:11:10] They aren’t emailing you with a thousand little things. It’s already handled.

[00:11:14] Speaker 2: Now if you feel like you need more time, Email Like you Mean It as a standalone offer is a powerful first step. It gives you immediate ROI and prepares you to jump right into the build when you are ready.

[00:11:28] Either way, the order doesn’t change.

[00:11:31] Client experience, design comes first.

[00:11:34] Client communication comes second.

[00:11:37] And the rest of your systems, which includes automations and workflows, comes after.

[00:11:43] Systems don’t start with tools. They start with you deciding how you want to work with every single one of your clients so that you can create consistent systems from the start.

[00:11:56] And when you design first, everything else gets easier. Your emails, your boundaries, your workflows, and yes, even your revenue. So grab the paper. Map the experience and choose the container that fits where you are right now, and then build the systems that will actually work for you going forward.

[00:12:17] Now. If you’re interested in learning more about Systems in Session, go to Colie james.com/systems. If email like you mean it is where you want to start. The next live sprint is April 6th through April 10th, and you can learn more information and grab your spot at coliejames.com/email.

[00:12:38] Alright, that’s it for this episode.

[00:12:40] See you next time.