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The complete OpenClaw onboarding checklist for plumbing companies — 47 steps most teams skip.

Most plumbing companies that set up OpenClaw themselves complete about 18 of these 47 steps. The other 29 are where the automation, integrations, and team adoption actually live — and where most implementations quietly die.

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47
Total onboarding steps
5
Implementation phases
21
Days with RacingMinds

Who this checklist is for

Built for plumbing teams at every stage of OpenClaw setup

Whether you haven't started yet, you're mid-implementation, or you think you're done but something still isn't working — this checklist will show you exactly where the gaps are.

Just purchased OpenClaw

Use this as your master implementation roadmap. Follow all five phases in order, don't skip ahead to scheduling before your account is fully configured, and complete every integration before you run live dispatch.

Start here

Partially set up but stuck

Run through the checklist and mark off what you've done. The gaps will become obvious — and they're usually concentrated in Phase 3 (integrations) and Phase 4 (automation), where most teams run out of momentum.

Audit your setup

Think you're done

If you haven't explicitly completed every item in Phase 4 and Phase 5, you're not done — you just think you are. The most expensive gaps are the ones you don't know exist until a job falls through.

Verify completeness

The complete 47-step checklist

Every phase. Every step. In order.

This checklist is organized by implementation phase. Complete each phase fully before moving to the next — they build on each other.

1
Account Setup
Steps 1–8 — Foundation configuration
1

Create company profile

Business name, address, phone, logo, and license numbers. This data populates customer-facing invoices and notifications.

2

Set business hours and service zones

Define your standard operating hours, after-hours availability, and the geographic areas each dispatch zone covers.

3

Configure tax settings

Set up state and local tax rates, exempt categories (labor vs parts), and any county-specific rules for your service area.

4

Set up payment processing

Connect your payment processor, configure accepted methods (card, ACH, check), and set up deposit handling for large jobs.

5

Import customer list

Clean, deduplicate, and import your existing customer records with contact info, address history, and account notes.

6

Create service catalog with pricing

Build out every service you offer with flat-rate or time-and-material pricing, part SKUs, and estimated job durations.

7

Configure invoice templates

Set up branded invoice layouts with your logo, payment terms, and required legal disclosures for your state.

8

Set up email and SMS notification templates

Write and configure every customer-facing message — booking confirmation, reminder, tech-on-the-way, and invoice delivery.

Phase 1 takes most teams 2–3 days to complete correctly. Need help completing this checklist? We handle all 47 steps in 21 days.

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2
Dispatch & Scheduling
Steps 9–18 — The operational core
9

Create technician profiles with skill tags

Add every tech with their skills, certifications, preferred zones, and availability windows so the dispatch board can match them correctly.

10

Configure service zones by zip code

Map every zip code in your service area to a dispatch zone and assign primary techs to each zone to minimize drive time.

11

Set up job types (emergency vs scheduled vs maintenance)

Create distinct job types with different SLAs, priority scores, tech requirements, and pricing rules for each service category.

12

Configure scheduling rules

Define minimum buffer times between jobs, travel time estimates by zone, and max jobs per tech per day by job type.

13

Enable GPS tracking

Activate tech location tracking so the dispatch board shows real-time positions and can auto-calculate accurate arrival times.

14

Set up on-call rotation

Configure your after-hours on-call schedule with automatic routing of emergency calls to the correct tech based on the rotation.

15

Configure arrival window windows

Set standard arrival windows (2-hour, 4-hour) per job type and configure how those windows appear in customer communications.

16

Enable automated customer notifications

Turn on and test the full notification sequence — booking confirmation, reminder, tech dispatched, tech arriving, job complete.

17

Set up job status workflow

Define every status a job can be in (booked, en route, on site, complete, invoiced, paid) and configure what triggers each transition.

18

Enable technician mobile app

Install and configure the OpenClaw mobile app on every tech's device, test job acceptance and status updates before going live.

Phase 2 is where most self-implementations break down. Incorrect job type configuration and missing dispatch rules account for 80% of the "OpenClaw doesn't work for us" complaints we hear. Need help completing this checklist? We handle all 47 steps in 21 days.

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3
Integrations
Steps 19–27 — Connect your tech stack
19

Connect QuickBooks for two-way sync

Map customer records, invoice line items, payment categories, and chart of accounts between OpenClaw and QuickBooks.

20

Integrate Twilio for SMS

Connect your Twilio account, configure your business phone number, and map SMS templates to the correct trigger events.

21

Connect CallRail for call tracking

Link CallRail tracking numbers to OpenClaw so inbound calls create customer records and attribute to the correct marketing source.

22

Set up Zapier for workflow automation

Build automation bridges for tools not natively integrated — form submissions, Slack alerts, Google Sheets reporting.

23

Connect Google Calendar for scheduling

Sync tech job schedules to Google Calendar so your team can see their day in the tools they already use every morning.

24

Integrate credit card processing

Confirm payment processor integration works end-to-end — charge a card from the tech mobile app and verify it appears in QuickBooks.

25

Set up Slack notifications

Route critical alerts (emergency jobs, no-shows, payment failures) to the correct Slack channels for real-time awareness.

26

Configure email integration

Connect your business email for outbound invoice delivery, customer correspondence, and inbound lead capture from web forms.

27

Test all integration data flows

Run an end-to-end test for every integration — create a job, complete it, and verify data flows correctly to QuickBooks, SMS, and CallRail.

Most teams never complete Phase 3. Disconnected integrations mean double data entry, missing leads, and QuickBooks that's always out of date. Need help completing this checklist? We handle all 47 steps in 21 days.

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4
Automation
Steps 28–39 — Where the real ROI lives
28

Build lead intake automation

Automate the flow from inbound form fill or call to booked appointment — no manual data entry required for a new lead.

29

Configure quote follow-up sequences

Set up 3-touch automated follow-up for open quotes — SMS on day 1, email on day 3, final call prompt on day 7.

30

Set up job reminder notifications

Configure day-before and 2-hour reminders for scheduled jobs. Include the tech's name and arrival window in every message.

31

Build review request automation

Send a Google review request 30 minutes after job close, only to customers whose invoice is marked paid and who rated the job 4–5 stars.

32

Configure maintenance plan renewal reminders

Set up 90-day and 30-day renewal reminders for every active maintenance agreement with one-click rebooking links.

33

Set up lost job re-engagement

Build a 30-day re-engagement sequence for lost estimates — customers who got a quote but didn't book often convert on follow-up.

34

Build emergency escalation workflow

Configure what happens when an emergency job comes in after hours — auto-SMS the on-call tech, alert the dispatcher, notify the customer of ETA.

35

Configure no-show handling

Set up what happens when a tech misses an arrival window — automatic customer notification, dispatcher alert, and rescheduling prompt.

36

Set up after-hours routing

Route after-hours calls to the correct voicemail or on-call handler and ensure follow-up happens within your defined response SLA.

37

Build CSR script integration

Surface the relevant customer history, equipment details, and job prompts inside OpenClaw when a CSR receives an inbound call.

38

Configure dispatch routing rules

Build the logic that auto-suggests the right tech for each incoming job based on skill match, zone proximity, and current availability.

39

Test all automations end-to-end

Run a full scenario test for every automation workflow. Verify correct triggers, correct recipients, correct content, and correct timing.

Phase 4 is where OpenClaw stops feeling like software and starts running your operation. It's also where almost every self-implementation stops. We handle all 12 automation steps in Week 2 of the sprint.

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5
Training & Launch
Steps 40–47 — The difference between adoption and abandonment
40

Train office manager

Cover reporting dashboards, job cost review, invoice reconciliation, user management, and settings the manager needs to own long-term.

41

Train dispatchers

Live training on the dispatch board — creating jobs, assigning techs, handling reschedules, zone routing, and monitoring job status in real time.

42

Train field techs on mobile app

Every tech walks through job acceptance, navigation, photo capture, parts and time logging, payment collection, and job close.

43

Create SOPs for common workflows

Write a one-page SOP for every recurring workflow — inbound booking, emergency dispatch, maintenance renewal, invoice reconciliation.

44

Run live dispatch simulation

Run real past jobs through the live system with the full team. Dispatchers dispatch, techs accept and close, office manager reviews the board.

45

Set up reporting dashboard

Configure the KPI dashboard your owner and manager will review weekly — jobs completed, revenue, tech utilization, open invoices.

46

Configure KPI tracking

Set up automated weekly reports delivered to the owner — job volume, close rate, average ticket, revenue by tech, outstanding invoices.

47

Soft launch with monitoring period

Go live on Monday with a full week of monitoring — review every job that runs through the system and catch any configuration gaps before they become habits.

You've reached the end of the checklist. If you'd rather have someone handle all 47 steps in 21 days, that's exactly what the RacingMinds sprint is designed to do.

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47 steps. 21 days. Done.

The checklist is free. The sprint is $10,000 and covers every item on it — with a dedicated implementation team, tested integrations, trained staff, and 30 days of post-launch support.

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By the numbers

What proper onboarding changes

These reflect what plumbing companies experience after a complete, correctly executed OpenClaw implementation versus a partial self-implementation.

18
Average steps completed in self-implementations
Out of 47. Teams typically complete Phase 1 and part of Phase 2, then stall out. The remaining 29 steps are where the ROI lives.
12
Automation workflows in Phase 4
Each automation replaces a manual task that would otherwise require a person to execute consistently every single day. Combined, they save 2–4 hours of office labor daily.
21
Days to complete all 47 steps with RacingMinds
From Week 1 data audit through Week 3 live dispatch simulation. All phases complete, all integrations tested, full team trained.

Frequently asked questions

Common questions about OpenClaw onboarding

A properly executed OpenClaw onboarding takes 21 calendar days when done by an experienced implementation team. Attempting it internally typically takes 6–12 weeks and still results in an incomplete configuration — most internal teams stall after Phase 2 and never complete the automation and training phases. The difference is having someone who has done it before, can make configuration decisions without second-guessing, and keeps the project moving through phases that feel uncomfortable to an operator doing it for the first time.
Skipping the automation phase. Most teams get through account setup and some basic scheduling configuration, then stop. The automation phase — which includes lead intake, quote follow-up sequences, review request automation, and dispatch routing rules — is where OpenClaw actually saves time and where the ROI on the software subscription lives. Without Phase 4, you've paid for a sophisticated CRM and built a glorified calendar. The second most common mistake is not doing role-specific training — one generic walkthrough with the office manager does not result in field techs using the mobile app correctly.
We strongly recommend doing it all at once. Phased implementations almost always stall after Phase 1 or 2 — the team gets busy, the project loses momentum, and you end up running on a half-built system indefinitely. We've seen companies that started a "phased implementation" two years ago and are still on Phase 2. The 21-day sprint format exists precisely to prevent that. We compress the timeline, keep the team accountable, and get everything live before the energy and motivation run out.
You'll need a customer export from your existing system (or spreadsheets), your current service catalog and pricing, a list of your technicians with skill specialties and service zones, your existing job types and definitions, and any active recurring maintenance agreements. We send a data prep checklist before Week 1 begins so nothing is missing when we start. Most of this data exists somewhere in your business already — we help you find and format it correctly, not start from scratch.
Yes — and we insist on it. Before go-live, we run a live dispatch simulation using real jobs from your history. We put the dispatcher on the dispatch board, have techs use the mobile app, and run jobs end-to-end. This surfaces configuration gaps before they become problems in real dispatch, confirms all automations trigger correctly, and gives your team a chance to practice on real scenarios before they're doing it for paying customers. We don't flip the switch until you've run at least one successful end-to-end simulation.

Done reading. Ready to have someone else handle it?

The checklist shows you what needs to happen. The sprint makes sure it actually does — every step, in 21 days, with a team that has done this before.

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