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A typical client workflow
This page walks through a real workflow from first contact to final payment, naming every feature used along the way. It's not a feature tour; it's the actual flow most users follow when working with a client.
The workflow
1. Capturing the lead
You share a public form with a potential client. The form collects their name, email, project details, and any other information you need. When they submit it, a contact is created automatically in your directory.
2. Following up automatically
An automation triggers when the form is submitted: it sends a thank-you email to the lead, adds them to a CRM channel in your inbox so your team is notified, and creates a follow-up task assigned to you with a due date.
3. Sending a proposal
You create a proposal from a template, customize the line items and pricing for this client, and send it. The client receives a link to view the proposal. They can ask questions through the embedded messenger widget while they review it.
4. Client signs
The client reviews the proposal and signs it electronically. Because you've linked a contract with combined signature, signing the proposal also signs the contract in one step.
5. Project kicks off
When the proposal is approved, a project is created automatically from a project template. The template includes task boards, task groups, and pre-filled tasks for each phase of the work. The client is invited to the project and can see their tasks, files, and conversations from inside your branded workspace.
6. Booking a kickoff call
The proposal has a scheduler attached, so after signing, the client books a kickoff call. The scheduler checks your working hours and connected calendar to avoid conflicts. A Google Meet or Zoom link is generated automatically and sent to both of you.
7. Doing the work
Your team works through the project's task boards. Tasks are assigned, due dates are set, files are attached, and comments keep the conversation in context. The client sees progress on their side and can add comments or upload files to their tasks.
8. Tracking time
Team members start and stop timers against tasks as they work. Each time entry records who worked, on which task, for how long, and at what billing rate. The project's timesheet tab shows a running total of hours and cost.
9. Invoicing from tracked time
When it's time to bill, you create an invoice and pull in the tracked time entries as line items. The task name, duration, and billing rate are already filled in. You review, adjust if needed, and send the invoice to the client.
10. Client pays
The client opens the invoice from the link in their email or from inside your workspace. They pay through your connected payment processor (Stripe, PayPal, or Square). A receipt is sent automatically. The invoice status updates to Paid, and a transaction is recorded.
11. Ongoing work and repeat
If it's a retainer, a subscription generates the next invoice on schedule. If it's a one-off, you archive the project when it's done. Either way, the client's contact profile ties together every project, invoice, proposal, contract, conversation, and file from the engagement.
What makes this possible
Every step in this workflow uses a different feature, but no data was entered twice. The form created the contact. The proposal generated the invoice and the project. Time tracked against tasks flowed into the invoice. Automations handled the follow-ups. The client saw everything under your brand, on your domain, in one workspace.
For a full list of every feature and how they connect, see What is Plutio and how everything connects.
