Dubsado smart fields: the 5 I use in every setup (and why yours might be broken)

If you've ever copied an email for a new client and forgotten to change the name, guess what? You're my kind of people. We've all sent "Hi Sarah" to someone called Jess.

Smart fields are how Dubsado stops that happening. They're little placeholders that fill themselves in when an email, form or contract goes out, so the right first name, venue, balance or booking link lands for each client.

There are around 90 of them in Dubsado 3.0, which is a lot. You don't need most of them day to day. In this post I'll share the five I add to nearly every setup, and the reasons one might not be working for you.

Once they're in, they keep working every time a Flow sends that email, form or contract for you, even when you're, shooting a wedding, schmoozing at a networking meeting, or even tucked up in bed.

What are Dubsado smart fields?

They're the bits of your templates that change for each client. You write your email once, add a smart field where the client's name or information should go, and Dubsado fills in the real details when it sends. It pulls the info that's already been given by your client before. So just that one email becomes personal to each individual every time.

The golden rule: use the Smart Fields button

Always add smart fields with the Smart Fields button. It's the little circuit board icon in the toolbar of any email template, form or contract. Click it, search for the field you want, and click to drop it in wherever your cursor is.

Please don't copy and paste smart field code from a blog, a Facebook group or an old template. Pasted code often breaks, and your client gets an email full of curly brackets instead of their name. Not quite the magical first impression we're going for.

That’s why I’ve listed the five below by the names you’ll see in the Smart Fields menu, not the code. Just search for the name and click it.

The 5 Dubsado smart fields I use in every setup

1. First name, in the Client section. It pulls your client's first name from their record in Contacts, so "Hi there" becomes "Hi Maya". It works in any email or form sent through a project, which makes it the one I reach for first in every enquiry reply, welcome email and questionnaire.

2. Alt. contact first name, also in Client. This is one for the wedding pros, and it's my favourite. It pulls the first name of the alternate contact on the client record, so your emails can say "Hi Maya and Theo" instead of leaving one half of the couple out. Just make sure you add the second person as the alternate contact, otherwise there's nothing for the field to show.

3. Primary invoice, in Links. This adds a big button in your brand colour that takes your client straight to their invoice. No hunting through the portal, no "which link was it again?" emails. It always links to the invoice marked as primary on the project, so if there's more than one, check which is primary before it goes out.

4. Amount remaining, in Invoice. It shows what your client still has left to pay on the primary invoice. I love it in balance reminders and the "two weeks to go" email, because clients see the number without logging in to anything. Pair it with the Primary invoice button and you've got a lovely little "here's what's left, here's where to pay" email.

5. Reschedule button, in Appointment. It lets clients move their own call without emailing you first. The catch: appointment fields only work in appointment emails, meaning the default appointment templates (confirmed, rescheduled and cancelled) or an email attached to a scheduler template as its confirmation or reminder. Pop it in an ordinary email and it won't fill in. It won't even show up.

Why isn't my smart field working?

Like anything tech-related, glitches happen with these too. Whatever's happened, though, it's happened before and will happen again so try not to worry. Nine times out of ten, it's one of these.

• It's showing weird curly brackets instead of a name. It was more than likely pasted in rather than added with the Smart Fields button. Delete it and add it again from the menu.

• It's in the wrong place. Appointment fields only work in appointment emails, payment plan fields only work in payment reminders, and package fields only work inside a package element in a proposal.

• The invoice numbers look wrong. Invoice fields only read the invoice marked as primary. If the project has more than one, that's usually the culprit.

• Your VA's name isn't showing. Brand fields always pull the workspace owner's details from your settings, never a team member's.

• The Payment plan section has vanished. It only shows up in the menu when you're editing a template, not when you're writing a one-off email inside a project.

If you'd like someone to walk you through the rest of Dubsado 3.0 this simply, my course Get comfortable with Dubsado 3.0 is five short daily lessons with videos, covering projects, forms, the everyday tools and less chasing. It's £29.

Quick Q&A

What are smart fields in Dubsado? Placeholders that fill in client, project, invoice and brand details for you when an email, form or contract goes out.

How do I add a smart field? Click the Smart Fields button (the circuit board icon) in the toolbar, search for the field and click it. Never paste the code in.

Why is my smart field showing curly brackets? It was probably pasted in. Delete it, add it again from the Smart Fields menu, and check it's somewhere that field is allowed to work.

Do smart fields work in Flows? Yes. Add them to your email templates, and they fill in every time a Flow sends that email.

Five little fields, lovely, and your templates suddenly sound a lot less robotic and a lot more on-brand for you. Pop one in this week and let it do some magic for you.

Fancy a freebie?

Five is a lovely start, but there are around 90 more. The Spellbook has quick picks for the things you say most, and a little pink label on any field that only works in certain places, so you’ll never wonder why one’s gone wonky again.

Did you find my smart fields favourites useful? Why not pin it so other people can find it too?