Company Onboarding Wizard

Overview

The onboarding wizard guides you through essential company setup when you first create your contractor company account. Complete your company information, configure your default tax rate, select the services you offer, configure team and payment permissions, choose the types of customers you work with, and optionally import your existing customers and price book from CSV or Excel files - all in one streamlined flow that takes about 5 minutes.

Accessing the Wizard

The wizard appears automatically when:

• You create a new contractor company account
• Your company hasn't completed onboarding yet

You can also access it manually:

1. Go to /contractor-company/onboarding
2. Click "Start Onboarding" to begin

Onboarding Steps

Step 1: Company Information

Set up your basic company details:

1. Company Name - Your business name (required)
2. Phone - Main business phone number
3. Address - Street address
4. City - Business city
5. State - Business state
6. Zip - Postal code
7. Default Tax Rate - Your standard sales tax rate (e.g., 8.25 for 8.25%)
   • This rate will be applied to taxable line items on invoices and estimates
   • You can change this later in Settings
   • Leave blank if you don't charge sales tax

Click "Next" to continue.

Step 2: Services Offered

Select all services your company provides:

• Plumbing
• Electrical
• HVAC
• Roofing
• Painting
• Drywall
• Flooring
• Landscaping
• General Contracting
• And more...

You can select multiple services. This helps BlueClerk suggest relevant items and workflows for your business.

Step 3: Team Permissions

Configure default permissions for your team members:

• Can create tickets - Allow team members to create new work orders
• Can create jobs - Allow scheduling and job creation
• Can create invoices - Grant invoicing permission
• Can view customers - Allow access to customer data
• Can edit settings - Let team members modify company settings

These are default permissions for new team members - you can customize individual permissions later.

Step 4: Payment Permissions

Control who can handle payment operations:

• Can record payments - Allow recording cash/check payments
• Can process refunds - Grant refund processing permission
• Can view payment history - Access to payment records

Step 5: Customer Types

Choose the types of customers you work with:

• Homeowners - Individual residential customers
• Businesses - Commercial customers and property managers
• Builders - Construction companies and developers

Select all that apply. This affects how customer forms appear and which features are available.

Step 6: Import Customers (Optional)

Upload existing customers from a CSV or Excel file:

1. Click "Choose File"
2. Select your customer data file
3. Review the preview showing how columns map
4. Click "Import" to add customers

Supported formats:

• CSV files
• Excel files (.xlsx, .xls)
• BlueClerk export format
• Housecall Pro export
• Jobber export
• ServiceTitan export

Skip this step if you want to add customers manually later.

Step 7: Import Price Book (Optional)

Upload your service items and pricing:

1. Click "Choose File"
2. Select your price book file
3. Review the preview showing item mapping
4. Click "Import" to add items

The import automatically detects:

• Item names and descriptions
• Prices and costs
• SKUs and categories
• Taxable vs. non-taxable items

Skip this step if you want to build your catalog from scratch.

Step 8: Complete

You're all set! Click "Go to Dashboard" to start using BlueClerk.

After Onboarding

Once onboarding is complete:

• Onboarding checklist appears in the bottom-left corner
• Track your progress through recommended setup steps
• Complete at your own pace - you can always come back later

You can update any onboarding settings later in Settings > Company Profile.

Tax Rate Configuration

Why Set a Tax Rate?

Setting your default tax rate during onboarding ensures:

• Accurate invoices - Tax is calculated automatically on taxable line items
• QuickBooks sync - Tax amounts sync correctly to your accounting software
• Compliance - Proper tax collection for your jurisdiction
• Time savings - No manual tax calculation on every invoice

How Tax Rate Works

When you set a default tax rate:

• It applies to all taxable line items on invoices and estimates
• Line items marked non-taxable are excluded from tax calculation
• You can override the tax rate on individual invoices if needed
• The rate syncs to QuickBooks/Xero/FreshBooks for accurate reporting

Changing Tax Rate Later

You can update your default tax rate anytime:

1. Go to Settings > Invoicing
2. Edit "Default Tax Rate" field
3. Click "Save"

Changing the rate only affects new invoices - existing invoices keep their original tax amounts.

Skipping Steps

You can skip optional steps during onboarding:

• Customer import
• Price book import

These can be completed later from:

• Customers > Import
• Settings > Data > Import Items

Tips

• Complete company info first - This is required for all other steps
• Set your tax rate early - Prevents having to manually add tax to old invoices later
• Import data if available - Saves hours of manual entry
• Review team permissions carefully - Affects what your team can access
• You can change everything later - Onboarding choices aren't permanent

Common Questions

Q: Can I go back and change my answers? A: Yes, all onboarding settings can be updated later in Settings.

Q: What if I skip customer or price book import? A: You can import data anytime from Settings > Data.

Q: Do I have to set a tax rate? A: No, it's optional. Leave it blank if you don't charge sales tax or prefer to add tax manually.

Q: What happens if I set the wrong tax rate? A: You can change it in Settings > Invoicing. New invoices will use the updated rate.

Q: How long does onboarding take? A: About 5 minutes if you have your data files ready, 2 minutes if you skip imports.

Q: Can I pause and come back later? A: Yes, your progress is saved. You can close the wizard and return anytime.

Q: What if my import file doesn't match the preview? A: BlueClerk auto-detects most formats. If columns don't map correctly, adjust your CSV headers or contact support.