Written by Mariela Casanova
Best business solution software for entrepreneurs. What to expect?
How to choose the best tool for your business?
The best software will have an affordable price and feature combination that fits your business needs and solves significant problems you deal with as an entrepreneur.
For who is meant to be a these business softwares?
This product is for entrepreneurs, freelancers, agencies, small business teams and medium size companies, looking to centralize crucial business tasks to grow faster.
What problems will be you able to solve?
With this software, you will create invoices, manage contracts, communicate with clients, centralize duties, manage your calendar, automate, and more.
Today's review is all about being a small business owner. As we all know, it's hard enough building a small business. For starters, entrepreneurs have to be on the ball with accounting, keeping up with the latest trends, administrative tasks and marketing.
However, what if you find your best friend that can help you organize your projects, help you communicate with clients, and take on many of your daily tasks? Giving you back the time that you can use to grow your business.
Well, my friend, that is when a good business solution comes into play. That's why today we will review two business tools: Dubsado and Plutio. Let's find together the best ally to run your business.
01
User Interface & User Experience (UI/UX)
To determine if a business tool is good enough, entrepreneurship gladiators, especially a “solo” business owner (me in this story), should ensure that the software has a good and easy-to-use user interface (UI). If not, it is almost definitive; I will not use it. So, simplicity is a must.
Check both business tool's key features and essential workflow through UI when you first open the application.
*Main Menu Features for Dubsado and Plutio 2021
Dubsado User Interface and Experience (UI/UX).
Dubsado was founded in 2016. According to their website, “We help your business stay in motion”.
Using Dubsado, you can manage your contacts, schedule appointments, and streamline projects. They divided the menus into two sections.
Dubsado's top menu allows you to personalize the software's setting, and the second menu covers the business management functions are on the left screen, on which we will focus on this article.
- Screenshot Dashboard of Dubsado 2021
Plutio User Interface and Experience (UI/UX).
Plutio app, launched in 2015, is “The most streamlined way to manage projects and get work done”.
Plutio allow you to communicate with clients, share files, create proposals, send invoices, and get paid via a straightforward application.
They have developed Plutio with an excellent and easy-to-understand workflow that implements a nice UI focus on visual cues.
When you open up Plutio, you can immediately see the menu and images of the features provided by the tool to manage your business. Let's dig into it.
*Screenshot Dashboard of Plutio 2021
User Experience Conclusions
What I like about their User Interface and Experience (UI/UX):
- Both platforms have nice, clean and smooth and both are friendly to users.
- Dubsado is more delicate, clearer and clean.
- Plutio has a more modern look, and it is very visually orientated.
- Dubsado prefer to centralize some functions under the primary role, making their menu with fewer distractions. It's clearer at first sight.
- Plutio you can see all the options at once, which for me as a visual person works very well.
- Plutio, as well, associated next to each named feature an image.
- Both systems have another set of menus to change the setting for the app, which offers very similar options.
- Both have customer service (Chat Widget) inside and the response was smooth and nice.
- They both have resources to learn and introduce the software not to get lost.
What I don't like about their User Interface and Experience (UI/UX):
- Being a marketer myself, I am really branding orientated, so I prefer the branding experience in Plutio.
- When I try to add my branding to Dubsado, even if change some colours, the dashboard keeps their colors of their brand, not mine.
- Even the Dubsado menu, it looks less cluttered, but I prefer to see all the options like Plutio have it.
- In Dubsado, to navigate all the options, you need to open more tabs. The names of the menu don't exactly let me know for what is the function.
User Interface (UI) Score :
After all, both have a nice user interface, but I understood Plutio faster to navigate.
So, the score goes:
Dubsado 8/10
Plutio 9/10 (Winner)
Features
Nothing beats a side-by-side features comparison
(Check the table below...)
02
Dubsado | Plutio | |
|---|---|---|
Dashboard | ||
Task | ||
Client Management | ||
Project Management | ||
Calendar | Agenda | ||
Scheduler for Clients | ||
Native Integration Videoconference | ||
Multicurrency | ||
Files Storage | ||
Inbox with your Email | ||
Chat Widget between Client and You. | ||
Customization | Text-Based (Limited) | Visual Page Builder |
Contracts | ||
Forms & Surveys | ||
Templates | ||
Proposal | ||
Wiki ( Knowledge Data Base) | ||
Invite Clients | ||
Team Members | ||
Workspaces | ||
Basic Accounting Reports | ||
White-labelled Client Portal | ||
Custom Fields | ||
Time Tracking | ||
Templates | ||
Branding Customization | ||
Desktop App, Mobile App | ||
Integrations | ||
File Manager | ||
API |
Dubsado Features
This is the list of the features that Dubsado offers:
- Forms & Templates
- Automations
- Scheduling
- Invoicing
- Projects & Client Management
- Reporting
- Automations
Plutio Features
The features of Plutio are:
- Dashboards
- Tasks
- Time Tracking
- Projects
- Invoicing
- Proposals
- Contracts
- Client Management
- Inbox
- Chat Widget
- Wiki (Knowledge base)
- Forms & Surveys
- File manager
- Calendar
- Integrations
- Branding
- API
- Automations
Conclusion Features
We all want a business solution with many features. However, it's not good if the tool, does not provide enough value. So basically, you want a good balance between features and value. In this round, we will break down the two business solutions and review the value they provide.
What I like:
- Both offer basics templates, customization, and integrations, but Plutio is more complete and customizable.
- A strong point of Dubsado is the scheduler, where allow your clients to book from your website (embedding) or by email.
- Dubsado also has integrations with more calendars without Zapier through Cronofy.
- What I like is that Dubsado has integration with videoconference, something that Plutio at the moment doesn't have.
- Almost all the integrations you might need can be achieved via Zapier, and both have this option.
- Both of them have the integration of the basic payment gateway as well.
- For Plutio the Wiki (Knowledge base) is a strong point, with this you can create a database, help centre, whatever you want for your business but also for every client you have.
- About the templates for proposal, contract, invoices, and forms; the templates from Plutio are astonishing.
- The fact that Plutio is in a web-based format which means you can really surprise more than one client with an outstanding proposal and convince signing for your service.
- I will insist that Plutio is very visually superior, which in Dubsado is a text-base that looks also professional, but more basic and still usable.
- I also like that I can download the app of Plutio on my phone to do some tasks on the go. Dubsado doesn't have the option at the moment.
What I don't like:
- I don't like that Dubsado just offers one currency in one workspace, which, Plutio in one workspace allows working with different currencies as you need.
- Dubsado, unlike Plutio, does not allow for the storage of images, files as part of their project management.
- I prefer Plutio cause it has more native integration and doesn't depend on Zapier. For now, they still cover the basic integration that I might need to start.
Feature Score:
In this round, Plutio is missing the scheduler and some integrations that can be achieved by Zapier if I really need it.
Dubsado have some reports that can help with accounting but still think you need to pay for an accountant program, the good thing is that can be integrated.
Plutio allow download the app on my phone, the visual possibilities and that is a more intuitive tool.
Still, Plutio will be my choice in features because multi currency and have files storage.
Dubsado 7/10
Plutio 9/10 Winner
03
Round 03 Pricing
To be fair, the money matters, and occasionally, your expenses need to grow with your business.
The best part of it is that you have options, let's check the prices.
Dubsado Pricing
Dubsado: $35/month and $350/year (Included 15% discount if you pay yearly)
*Prices USD - Dubsado 2021
Plutio Pricing
Plutio: Solo $15/month, Studio $20/month, Team $30/month.
Add on (White label) is pay additionally for $9 per month.
*Prices USD - Plutio 2021
Conclusions in the pricing:
- Dubsado is $35 to start and have all included.
- In the Plutio scenery, the tool lets you grow from the solo plan ($15/month) until you need to pay the next tie.
- I probably will go with the Studio plan which $20 plus the add-on of the branding for $9 which is a total of $29. So will be less than Dubsado.
- With Plutio In the beginning, the solo plan ($15/month), you can develop your business while you save some money
What I like:
- I like that both have a free trial period.
- Both have an affordable plan, so you don't need to pay a massive amounts of money if your business is not yet ready.
- Plutio has a more accessible price for start-ups than Dubsado.
- Plutio's pricing is scalable with the business.
What I don't like:
- I don't like to have an add-on for the branding in Plutio as I love to brand my tools, in my opinion, they can just include it in the total pricing.
- Dubsado's price to start a business could be challenging, maybe could be nice to have two option prices, like starter and advanced.
Pricing Score:
The results,
Dubsado 7/10
Plutio 9/10 (Winner)
Battle Decision
PLUTIO
Best software for small businesses.
This battle got to an end, Plutio is the winner this time because it has a more intuitive platform, it has an approachable pricing, and it's easier to use.
I need to mention, as well, Dubsado is a very stable software. It's been more or less the same time in the market as Plutio, so they both have serious features to consider.
Dubsado looks more traditional and less customizable. Plutio has a better aesthetics and a more modern approach.
At Plutio, you can create very visually appealing documents, which is a plus in a competitive market. They have live chat to use with your clients and one app that you can download to your phone.
You can integrate Plutio via Zapier, but it also has basics like payment gateways and google calendars, which are enough to start.
In conclusion, Plutio wins with the higher score. I think they will evolve even more with time.
Currently Plutio is better, I enjoy their product and as I did my research and found that they are improving every day.