Quick Start

From sign-up to your first logged hour in under 10 minutes.

This guide assumes you've already created an account. If not, sign up here — the Trial plan is free and requires no credit card.

Step 1: Create a Package Tier

Before adding a client, define a Package Tier — the retainer template you'll sell. Go to Settings → Package Tiers → New Package Tier and fill in:

Name — e.g. "Fractional CMO – 20 hrs/month"
Included hours — e.g. 20
Usage cycle — Monthly, Quarterly, etc.
Billing price — your monthly fee
Overage rate — hourly rate billed above the included hours

You only need to create a package tier once — then reuse it across multiple clients.

Step 2: Add a Client

Navigate to Clients → New Client. Enter the client's name and choose a color for visual identification across the dashboard. Set the status to Active.

Step 3: Assign the Package

Open the client you just created and click Assign Package. Select the package tier you created in Step 1 and set the start date of the engagement. The client's retainer usage tracking starts immediately.

See Assigning Packages for per-client overrides on hours and rates.

Step 4: Create a Task

From the client detail page, click New Task. Give it a title, set a due date, and assign it to a team member. Tasks move through open → in_progress → done. You can also block tasks on dependencies.

Step 5: Log Time

Click Log Time on the client detail page (or from the top nav). Enter the hours spent and optionally link to a task. The entry will appear in Time Entries and immediately update the client's retainer usage.

Step 6: View Usage

Go to Reports to see a per-client usage summary. You'll see hours consumed vs. included, overage hours, and recent activity. You can also email or export the report directly from this page.

Invite your team from Settings → Users. Studio and Agency plans support multiple users, so your team can all log time without sharing login credentials.

What's next?

Task Bundles — create reusable task templates for common client onboarding flows
Planner — see all your tasks in a calendar view
Claude MCP Connector — operate RetainerOps directly from Claude