Pipelines tutorial (Basic): Your first pipeline with automations
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Create a standard pipeline with automations, add a job to it, then move the job forward until completion. Here we show you how to do it. Once you’ve set up your first automated pipeline and understand how it all works, you’ll want to make more pipelines to fit your particular business needs.
We’ll walk you through an example, creating a Corporate Tax Return pipeline, where we will be able to put the Corp Tax Return job for our client Charles Burns.
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Step 1. Add a pipeline from the Marketplace
Since we have a free (Tax Preparation) 1120S – S-Corp Income Tax Return template in the Marketplace, you can start from adding it. This will also copy all templates used inside automations.
As you can see inside the pipeline, the corporate tax return work process is broken into steps, which are the different stages of the pipeline. You can delete any of them as per your liking.
You can also learn how to create pipelines from scratch.
Step 2. Add/edit automations
Explore all stages including the automations, then edit them according to your processes.
Step 3. Turn on the automove feature
If you want to automate this pipeline even more, use the the Automove jobs feature for all stages (except for the last). This way, you can sit back and watch your jobs move from stage to stage as the work gets done. Here's more on using automove.
Don’t forget to save your updated pipeline. Now, we’re ready for Mr. Burns’s job.
Step 4. Add custom job statuses
If you want to prepare for any pipeline interruptions, such as filing extensions, additional requirements or missing documents, create custom job statuses for the pipeline and set up automations. This way, whenever your pipeline is interrupted, you can quickly add all required action items without moving the job. Here's more on creating custom job statuses.
This step is optional, and, if you understand that you need to set up custom statuses later, you can do it anytime, even right from the job card.
Step 5. Create a test client with your non-work email
It’s a good idea to check a created pipeline on your test client account before adding real ones. This will help you avoid future complications. Thus, create a test account with your non-work email and add it to the pipeline, so you could check its operability. Here's more on the best practices for creating test client accounts.
Step 6. Add jobs for your clients
Now that you have your Corporate Tax Return pipeline all set up, and you are confident that everything works as needed, you can begin adding jobs to it, either in bulk or one by one (here are the different ways to add jobs).
A job is always performed for a specific client account, in this case, Burns Corp. Each job is linked to one client account, but you can have several jobs for one client in one pipeline. Mr. Burns wants you not only to prepare Corp Tax Return 2022, but also Corp Tax Return 2021 and Corp Tax Return 2020! In this case, you’ll need to add all three jobs for Burns Corp. to your Corporate Tax Return pipeline.
With each job, this is what will happen:
1. Once you add the job to the pipeline, a pop-up will show you all the automated actions about to be triggered—you can uncheck any of them if needed.
2. Once you click Move (in this case, without unchecking anything), the job for Burns Corp. enters the Intake stage, and an automated Corp Tax Return proposal is sent to the client. Bravo! The proposal is automatically linked to the job. Also, Burns Corp. automatically gets the 1120 tag applied.
3. Once Mr. Burns signs the proposal, the job automatically moves to the next stage, Organizer Sent / Proposal Signed (you can also move it manually whenever you need to).
4. Once the job enters the second stage, Organizer Sent/Proposal Signed, an organizer and a message are sent to Mr. Burns.
5. Once the client submits the organizer, the job automoves to the next stage.
6. Once the job enters the In Return stage, a Prepare Return task is created for your team, and an email is sent to the client informing them that you started working on their forms.
7. Once the task is marked by any of your team members as completed, the job automoves to the next stage.
8. Once the job enters the In Review stage, the Review return task is created for your team. And again, the automatic email is sent to the client so that
This way, the job will be automatically moved until the service is completed.