Getting started

Before you start building anything on Plainly, you'll need to create an account. There are then a few things you need to set up. The system will guide you through each of them but here's a bit more explanation.

1. Set your legal entity

You first need to set your legal entity. This is the name of the company or individual who'll be entering into each legal document on your side. 

Your legal entity will be used by default on any documents you want to get signed - although you can change this via the Template Editor.

2. Create your signature

Next, you need to create a default signature. This will be automatically applied to your documents when you send them out for signature - although again you can change this via the Template Editor. 

If your account is just for you, it should be your name. If your account is for a company, it must be someone who's authorised to sign on behalf the company.

3. Create your first workflow

The system will then prompt you to make your first workflow. We suggest using one of the pre-built ones at this stage. Just click on any one you want to use and Plainly will add it to your account. If the workflow includes any documents, these will automatically be added to your Templates.

You could stop there - it's possible to use Plainly entirely by copying prebuilt workflows. It's also possible - a good idea even - to copy a workflow and then adapt it for your needs. However, to unlock the true power of Plainly, we recommend learning how to build custom workflows. More on that here.

4. Build your team

The last step is to build your team on Plainly - i.e. inviting everyone in your organisation who needs access to Plainly (either as a fellow-builder or an ordinary user), configuring the business functions they should have access to and setting their user permissions. There are no limits to or charges for the number of people you can have in your team - all user accounts are free. As such, it's worth inviting everyone!

Inviting users

It's very easy to invite users. From the Team page, just click the 'Invite' button, enter the email addresses of the people you want to invite - each one separated with a comma - and click 'Send invites'. 

Each invitee will get an email from Plainly with a link allowing them to create a free account. Once they've created their account, they will show up in your Team page.

Configuring users

While you're waiting for people to register, you can configure the business functions they should have access to. You'll have to wait until they've registered to configure their user permissions. Learn more about configuring users.

All done? Now you're ready to start building...