How to use the CA Firm CRM

Start with Getting started. Every other section is a short set of steps you can follow with the CRM open in another tab. Stuck anywhere? Email hello@grownic.dev.

Getting started Your account Workspaces Team and roles Connect your email Connect WhatsApp Clients Deadlines Documents and upload links Fees and invoices Leads Client support If something doesn't work

Getting started

From a new account to your first reminder, in about 20 minutes.

1
Create your account, then confirm your email from the link we send. Accounts
2
Set up your firm's workspace: its name and country. The country sets the tax terms, filings and currency. Workspaces
3
Connect your email so reminders and receipts go out from your firm's own address. Connect email
4
Optional: connect your WhatsApp Business number. Connect WhatsApp
5
Add your clients one by one, or import them all from a spreadsheet. Clients
6
Add the filing deadlines you look after for each client. Deadlines
7
Request documents. Each client gets a private link to upload them. Documents
8
Invite your team and choose what each person can do. Team

The demo on the CRM page is a sample practice. Nothing you do there is saved or sent. Your own workspace says Live in the top bar.
Your dashboard shows a checklist of these steps until they're done.

Your account

Signing up, signing in, and getting back in if you forget your password.

1
Open the CRM and press Create account in the banner at the top (or Sign in if you already have one). Open the CRM
2
Use your work email and a password of at least 8 characters.
3
Open the confirmation email and press the link. It brings you back to the CRM, signed in.
4
Forgot your password? Press Sign in, then Forgot password. The email link opens a box where you choose a new one.
5
To sign out, press Account in the top bar, then Sign out.

The confirmation email didn't arrive.: Check spam, then wait a few minutes. New accounts can only be sent a few emails an hour. Still nothing? Email hello@grownic.dev.
Can I use one account for several firms?: Yes. One account can belong to many workspaces. Switch between them from the workspace menu in the top bar.

Workspaces

One workspace per firm. Records, team and channels never mix between workspaces.

1
After you sign in, press Set up your firm (or Account → New workspace).
2
Type the firm's name and pick its country: Pakistan, United Kingdom or United States.
3
Press Create workspace. You land in it straight away, marked Live.
4
To move between workspaces, use the workspace menu in the top bar. Demo practice takes you back to the sample.
5
Rename the firm any time in Workspace settings (the gear, or Account → Workspace settings).

The country can't be changed later, because deadlines, tax IDs and currency all follow it. Make a new workspace if you picked the wrong one.
If you look after several firms, make one workspace each. Their clients and messages stay apart.

Team and roles

Who can see and change what.

1
Open Workspace settings → Team.
2
Type a colleague's email, choose a role and press Add.
3
Tell them to create an account with that same email. The workspace appears for them as soon as they sign in.
4
Change a role from the menu next to their name, or remove them with the bin icon.

Owner: everything, including the team and the firm's WhatsApp and email.
Staff: day-to-day work. Add and edit clients, deadlines, documents, fees and leads, and send messages.
View only: can look at everything but can't change or send anything.
A workspace always keeps at least one owner.

Connect your email

Send reminders, document requests and receipts from your firm's own address, through Resend.

1
Create a free Resend account. resend.com/signup
2
Go to Domains → Add domain and enter your firm's domain, for example malikco.pk. Resend domains
3
Resend shows a few DNS records (TXT and MX). Add them where your domain is managed: GoDaddy, Namecheap, Cloudflare, or whoever hosts your website. Then press Verify. It can take from a few minutes up to a day.
4
Go to API Keys → Create API key. Give it Sending access and copy the key. It starts with re_ and is only shown once. Resend API keys
5
In the CRM, open Workspace settings → Channels → Email.
6
Sender: your firm's name and an address on the verified domain, like Malik & Co <office@malikco.pk>. Resend API key: paste the key. Press Save.
7
Type your own email in the test box and press Test email. It should arrive within a minute.

The test says the domain isn't verified.: The sender address must be on the domain you verified in Resend. Check its Domains page says Verified.
Can I use Gmail or Outlook?: Not directly. Resend sends from your own domain, which keeps your messages out of spam. If you don't have a domain, Grownic can set one up for you.
Is my key safe?: It's stored on our server, never shown again in the browser, and only used to send your workspace's messages. You can replace it any time.

Connect WhatsApp

Send messages from your firm's WhatsApp Business number, through Meta's WhatsApp Business Platform.

1
You'll need a Meta Business account and a phone number that isn't already on the WhatsApp app. You can move a number from the app, but it then works only through the platform. business.facebook.com
2
Go to Meta for Developers → My Apps → Create app. Choose the Business type and link it to your business account. developers.facebook.com/apps
3
In the app, add the WhatsApp product. Open WhatsApp → API Setup, add your business phone number and verify it with the code Meta sends.
4
Copy the Phone number ID shown under your number. It's a long number, not your phone number.
5
Make a token that doesn't expire: in Business settings → Users → System users, add a system user (Admin), assign it your app with full control, then press Generate token. Tick whatsapp_business_messaging and whatsapp_business_management, and set it to never expire. System users
6
In WhatsApp Manager, add a payment method. Meta charges per conversation that your business starts. WhatsApp Manager
7
In the CRM, open Workspace settings → Channels → WhatsApp, paste the Phone number ID and the token, and press Save.
8
Type your own number in international form (for example 923001234567 or 447700900123) and press Test WhatsApp. Message your business number first, so the test is inside WhatsApp's 24-hour window (see below).

WhatsApp's 24-hour rule: you can send free-form messages to a client only within 24 hours of their last message to you. Outside that window, WhatsApp only allows message templates that Meta has approved. Until templates are added to the CRM, reminders to clients who haven't written recently go by email. That's why connecting email matters most.
The temporary token on the API Setup page expires after 24 hours. Use the system user token from step 5.

The test says the recipient isn't in the allowed list.: Your app is still in development mode. Either add your number under API Setup → To, or finish business verification and switch the app to Live.
The test says re-engagement message / outside the 24-hour window.: Send any message from your phone to the business number, then press Test again.

Clients

Your client list, one profile each, and importing from a spreadsheet.

1
Press New client in the top bar. Add the name, phone (with country code), email, business type and tax ID.
2
Have them in Excel or Google Sheets? Open Clients → Import and choose a CSV file. Save it from Excel as CSV UTF-8.
3
Column names are matched for you: name or client; phone, mobile or whatsapp; email; ntn, utr, ein or tax_id; services; notes. Rows that are already in the CRM, or that have no name, are skipped.
4
Click a client's name to open their profile: deadlines, documents, fees and messages in one place. Edit them with the pencil.
5
Export takes any list out as a CSV for Excel.

Deadlines

Track every filing and remind clients before it's due.

1
Open Deadlines → Add deadline. Pick the client and the filing. The list suggests your country's usual filings.
2
Set the due date. Red means within 7 days or late, amber within 30 days.
3
Press the message button on a deadline to remind the client now, on email and WhatsApp. Each reminder is counted on the row.
4
The CRM also reminds clients on its own: 7, 3 and 1 day before, on the day, and when it's late.
5
When it's done, press Filed.

Documents and upload links

Ask clients for papers, and let them upload straight to you.

1
On a client, press Request documents. Pick what you need, like a bank statement or salary certificate, and the filing it's for.
2
The client gets a message with the list and a private upload link.
3
Their link shows only your firm's name, their first name and what's still needed. Files go to private storage, up to 25 MB each: PDF, photos, Word or Excel.
4
Once a file arrives, the document shows Received and you can open it from the Documents screen.
5
Need the link again? Open the client and press Upload link. It's copied for you, and you can send it straight away.
6
Got a document another way, like on paper? Press Mark received next to it on the Documents screen.
7
On the Documents screen, press Remind on a client to chase everything still outstanding in one message.

Fees and invoices

Keep track of what's owed and chase it politely.

1
Open Fees → New invoice. Pick the client, the work, the amount and the due date.
2
Press the message button on an invoice to send a polite payment reminder.
3
When the money comes in, press Paid. The client gets a short receipt.

Leads

New enquiries, from first contact to signed client.

1
Open Leads → Add lead, or let enquiries from your website arrive here on their own (ask Grownic to connect your site's form).
2
Move a lead along with the stage menu: New enquiry, Qualifying, Proposal sent, Won.
3
When they sign, add them as a client.

Client support

Every message to and from a client, in one thread per client.

1
Open Client support to see each client's conversation.
2
Type a reply, choose WhatsApp or email, and send. It goes from your firm's own channels.
3
Reminders and receipts the CRM sends also show here, so you can see what each client has been told.

If something doesn't work

The usual causes, and how to fix them.

A message says Saved, but not sent.: That channel isn't connected for this workspace, or the client has no phone or email on file. Connect it in Workspace settings → Channels, or add the contact details to the client.
I can't see the gear or the workspace menu.: You're signed out, or still in the demo. Sign in and choose your firm from the workspace menu.
Buttons are greyed out.: Your role in this workspace is View only. Ask the owner to make you Staff.
Couldn't open the workspace.: Refresh the page. If it keeps happening, email hello@grownic.dev with the time it happened.