In this article:
- Creating a client manually
- Understanding Active and Inactive clients
- Adding a spouse, dependent, and other important clients to a client’s record
Add Client
A Client is an individual or business you are providing a service for.
Add a client by:
- Click on the Global + Button.
- Select Add Client.
You can do this action anytime and on any page within Canopy!
You’ll see the Add Client window next and this is where you’ll customize the information for your client:
- First off, you can create a client based on if you are working with an Individual or a Business. You are required to fill in:
- For individuals, a First and Last Name.
- For Businesses, a Company Name.
- You can also designate a Display Name, which is useful if you want to differentiate the names of individuals or companies in your client list.
- You can also decide if the client is someone you are currently working with, a prospect, or something else.
- You can also indicate a Client Since date - it defaults to the date you are creating this client record, but you can edit it if you want a more accurate date.
Understanding Active vs Inactive Clients
By default, the client record you are creating is Active - a client you are currently working with and you can send requests via the Client Portal.
If you turn this off, the client is Inactive which means they will not have any active Client Portals until they are activated again. But don’t worry, you can still access their records in the Client List.
Inputting Emails, Addresses, and Tax Information
Further down, you’ll find more options to fill out - such as email and physical address. Make sure to get that email address accurately as this is a crucial piece of communicating. There are also spots for information fields that may be relevant to your use case - such as SSN/ITIN numbers (for individuals) or EINs (or businesses) securely stored in Canopy.
You can also add your Custom Fields or objects. This could be for routing or accounting numbers. We’ll show you how to do that in later training.
Using Additional Information
The last option is the Additional Information box. You can add anything here that may help you remember who this client is, maybe a description. However, we recommend not putting confidential information here.
Canopy Tip!
We highly recommend not inputting sensitive information like routing or accounting numbers in the Additional Information box. Instead, create custom fields for that information. You can find out more about Custom Fields here.
Once you are satisfied with all the information:
- Click Create and Manage to view your newly created client record.
- Or click Create and Close which creates the record and allows you to move on to your next task.
Add a Spouse, Dependent, or Important Client
Adding additional people to the account is a helpful way to keep all your information in one place.
For client individuals, you can add spouses, dependents, and important clients.
To add a spouse:
- Click the + button next to Spouse
- Enter a Name
- If the spouse has not already been created as a client in Canopy, click Create New Client after inputting their name and hit create
- Then click Save.
To add a dependent:
- Click the + button
- Enter a Name
- If the spouse has not already been created as a client in Canopy, click Create New client after inputting their name.
- Enter a relationship
- Then click Save
In addition to spouses and dependents, you can add additional important clients under a client. This is typically done when handling business accounts. As a heads-up, if you are on a record page for a business client, you won’t see the spouse or dependents option - just important clients.
Canopy Tip!
Connections can be marked as Inactive clients to hide them from the active clients list and prevent them from counting toward your billing limit. It is important to note that even when a linked client is inactive, you can still invite them all under one active client portal to view and manage any files, client requests, or to-do’s.