Creating Services Manually

While AI can help you build services quickly, creating services manually gives you complete control from the start. This guide walks you through building a service plan from scratch, filling in every detail yourself.

Manual creation is perfect when you have specific content ready or want full control over every element.

When to Create Manually

Choose manual creation when:

You have content prepared:

• Service descriptions already written

• Exact pricing calculated

• Specific terms and policies defined

You want complete control:

• Precise wording matters

• Brand voice is very specific

• Unique service structure

AI doesn't fit:

• Highly specialized services

• Complex pricing models

• Non-standard service offerings

✍️ TIP: Even if starting manually, you can always use AI for future services. Each service can be created differently.

Starting Manual Creation

From Guided Setup

1. Navigate to your Guided Setup page

2. Click Build your first service plan

3. Select Create manually

From Services Page

1. Click Services in the main navigation

2. Click Create Service

3. Begin to fill in the field manually (ignoring the AI Assisted modal)

The Details Tab

This is where you define what your service is and what it costs.

Service Name

Enter a clear, descriptive name for your service:

Good examples:

• "Professional Window Cleaning"

• "Weekly Lawn Care Service"

• "Monthly House Deep Clean"

• "Quarterly Pest Control"

Avoid:

• Vague names ("Service #1")

• All caps ("WINDOW CLEANING")

• Too long (keep under 50 characters)

 Service name field with example text

✅ BEST PRACTICE: Use what customers would search for. "Professional Window Cleaning" beats "Crystal Clear Vision Services."

Service Tagline

Write a brief, compelling subtitle (optional but recommended):

Good examples:

• "Keep your home sparkling year-round"

• "Perfectly manicured lawns, every week"

• "Your car's spa day, every month"

Tips:

• One sentence maximum

• Focus on the benefit

• Make it memorable

Service Description

Explain what customers get with this service:

What to include:

• Detailed service overview

• What's included

• Key benefits

• Process or approach

• Any unique features

Format options:

• Paragraph format: Flowing text for narrative descriptions

• Bullet points: Easy-to-scan lists of what's included

✍️ TIP: Keep paragraphs to 3-4 sentences max. For services with many components, bullet points scan better.

Important Notes

Add critical information customers should know:

Common notes:

• Service requirements

• What customers need to provide

• Exclusions or limitations

• Scheduling details

• Special instructions

Pricing

Set your subscription and regular pricing (both required):

Subscription Price:

• The recurring price for subscribers

• What customers pay per billing cycle

• Enter numbers only (no $ or currency symbols)

Regular Price:

• Standard price for one-time service purchases

• Typically 20-30% higher than subscription price

• Shows subscription value and savings

Subscription and regular price input fields

⚠️ IMPORTANT: Calculate your costs first. Ensure subscription price covers time, supplies, travel, overhead, and desired profit margin.

Purchase Options

Control how customers can buy your service and how pricing is displayed:

Show subscription savings to customer by comparing the regular price:

• Displays price difference and savings amount

• Example: "Save $25 per visit by subscribing!"

Allow one-off purchases at regular price (checked by default):

• Lets customers purchase once without subscribing

• They pay the regular price for single service delivery

Fulfillment timeline (when one-off purchases enabled):

• Set how soon one-off purchases will be fulfilled

• Options: Within 24-48 hours, 3-5 days, 5-7 days, 1-2 weeks, 2-4 weeks
  
  

Service & Billing Frequency

Choose how often service is delivered and billed:

Weekly: Service every 7 days with weekly billing. Best for lawn care, regular cleaning, and pet care requiring consistent attention.

Fortnightly: Service every 14 days with bi-weekly billing. Ideal for bi-weekly cleaning and regular maintenance tasks.

Monthly: Service once per month with monthly billing. Suits deep cleaning, inspections, and preventive maintenance.

Quarterly: Service every 3 months with quarterly billing. Works well for seasonal maintenance, pest control, and HVAC servicing.

Yearly: Service once per year with annual billing. Best for annual maintenance, winterization, yearly inspections, or once-annual services

Tax Treatment

Configure how tax applies to your pricing:

Apply default tax settings:

• Tax is calculated and added at checkout

• Uses your account's default tax rate (e.g., GST 10%)

• Customer pays base price plus tax

• Example: $100 service + $10 tax = $110 charged

This service is tax-free:

• No tax is calculated or added

• Customer pays exactly the displayed price

• Example: $100 shown = $100 charged

✅ BEST PRACTICE: Use "Apply default tax settings" for standard taxable services. Use "tax-free" only if your service is exempt from tax or you're not registered for GST/VAT.

Adding Service Images

Visual content builds trust and showcases your work:

Uploading Images

1. Click Add Images or the upload area

2. Select up to 6 images from your device

3. Images upload and display as thumbnails

4. Drag to reorder (first image is primary)

Image Guidelines

Best images to use:

• Before/after comparisons

• Completed work examples

• Your team in action

• Professional equipment

• Happy customers (with permission)

Managing Images

To remove an image:

• Click the trash bin icon on the thumbnail

To reorder images:

• Drag thumbnails to new positions

• First image displays as primary on your site

✍️ TIP: Start with 3-4 quality images. You can always add more later as you photograph your work.

The Terms & Policies Tab

Set subscription terms and service policies:

Minimum Subscription Term

How long must customers stay subscribed?

Options:

• No minimum (cancel anytime) - Most common

• 1 month minimum

• 3 months minimum

• 6 months minimum

Use minimums when:

• Setup costs require commitment

• Seasonal services need duration

• Service only viable with minimum commitment

Minimum subscription term dropdown with options

Maximum Subscription Term

When does the subscription need renewal?

Options:

• No maximum (runs indefinitely) - Most common

• 12 months maximum

• 24 months maximum

Use maximums when:

• Services are seasonal

• Pricing may need adjustment

• Want periodic customer reconnection

Auto-Renewal

If you set a maximum term, should it renew automatically?

Enable auto-renewal:

• Subscription continues after maximum term

• Customer doesn't need to resubscribe

• Seamless ongoing service

Disable auto-renewal:

• Subscription ends at maximum term

• Customer must actively renew

• Good for seasonal services

✍️? TIP: Most subscription businesses use "no minimum, no maximum" to reduce friction and build trust.

Service Policies

Create policies customers should agree to:

To add a policy:

1. Click Add Policy or Create New Policy

2. Enter a Policy Title (e.g., "Cancellation Policy")

3. Write your Policy Content in the text area

4. Click Save

Common policies:

• Terms of Service

• Cancellation Policy

• Refund Policy

• Service Requirements

• Liability Limitations

Policy editor showing title and content fields

Example Cancellation Policy: "Subscriptions can be cancelled at any time with 7 days notice. Services scheduled within the notice period will be completed and billed. No refunds for partial months."

✅ BEST PRACTICE: Keep policies simple, fair, and easy to understand. Complicated policies reduce conversions.

The Settings Tab

Configure how your service operates:

Service Visibility

Show on live site (checked by default):

• Checked: Service appears on your public subscription page

• Unchecked: Service hidden from customers

Subscriber Limits

Limit number of subscribers:

• Check the box to enable

• Enter maximum number for subscription capacity

• Subscription signups unavailable once limit reached

• One-off purchases remain available (limit only applies to subscriptions)

Use limits when:

• Capacity constraints exist for recurring commitments

• Can only serve set number of ongoing customers

• Creating exclusivity for subscribers

• Testing new service with pilot group

Example:

• "Limited to 25 subscribers"

• Protects service quality for committed customers

• Prevents overcommitment on recurring schedule

• One-off customers can still purchase if enabled

? TIP: Subscriber limits help manage recurring workload while still accepting occasional one-off requests.

Customer Communications

Choose which automated emails to send:

Welcome Email:

• Sent when customer subscribes or makes one-off purchase

• Introduces your business

• Sets expectations

• Recommended: ON

Service Reminders:

• Sent before service is due

• Applies to both subscriptions and one-off purchases

• Helps with scheduling

• Reduces no-shows

• Recommended: ON

Service Complete Email:

• Confirms service was delivered

• Applies to both subscriptions and one-off purchases

• Professional touch

• Encourages feedback

• Recommended: ON

Term Ending Email:

• Notifies when subscription term ending

• Only applies to subscriptions (not one-off purchases)

• Only relevant if maximum term set

• Recommended: ON if applicable

Subscription Controls

Important: These controls only apply to subscription purchases. One-off purchase customers cannot pause or cancel on their end—only you can manually cancel one-off purchases through your dashboard (refund required).

Allow customers to pause subscription (checked by default):

• Customers can temporarily suspend service and billing

• Can pause anytime, even during minimum term

• Good for vacations or seasonal breaks

• Recommended: ON for flexibility and retention

• Only applies to subscriptions (one-off purchases are single transactions that cannot be paused)

On cancellation, refund any undelivered services (unchecked by default):

• Automatically refund for services paid but not yet delivered

• Customers can only cancel after meeting minimum term

• Builds trust and goodwill

• Consider based on your service delivery model

• Only applies to subscriptions (one-off customers cannot self-cancel)

✍️ TIP: Most successful service businesses allow pausing to prevent permanent subscription cancellations. For one-off purchases, handle cancellations and refunds manually on a case-by-case basis.

Preview Your Service

As you build, the preview panel shows how customers see your service:

Preview updates in real-time:

• Changes reflect immediately

• See exactly what customers see

• Test different descriptions

• Verify images display correctly

Check the preview for:

• Service name clarity

• Description readability

• Pricing display

• Image quality

• Professional appearance

✅ BEST PRACTICE: Read your service as if you're a customer. Does it answer: What do I get? How often? How much? Why should I subscribe?

Publishing Your Service

Ready to make your service live?

Save Options

Save as Draft:

• Saves without publishing

• Service not visible to customers

• Continue editing later

• Good for work in progress

Activate Service:

• Makes service live immediately

• Appears on your public site, if the Show on live site option is checked

• Customers can subscribe

• Opens publishing modal

Publishing Modal

When you click Activate Service, review the summary:

Modal shows:

• Service & billing frequency

• Pricing structure

• Tax configuration

• Service images status

• Terms & policies summary

• Customer communications enabled

• Service settings

• Subscriber limits

Verify and Confirm

Check carefully:

• All details are correct

• Pricing is accurate

• Terms make sense

• Communications set as intended

• If Stripe connected: Service goes "Active"

• If Stripe not connected: Service stays "Pending"

Click Activate Service to finalize.

Success!

After publishing:

• Success message appears

• Service listed in Services page

• Visible on your live site (if Stripe connected)

• Confirmation email sent

✨ Congratulations! Your manually created service is now live!